Springtime Means Transition Meetings Are Around the Corner!

Springtime is almost here! March, April, & May tend to be busy IEP months for schools, especially if your child's annual review of the IEP is due and/or if your child will be attending a new school next year! Perhaps your little preschooler attending the district's Early Childhood program is moving on to Kindergarten next year... Or your elementary schooler is preparing for the bigger world of middle school... Or maybe your child is moving on to high school next year! Springtime is when you will meet with the school team to ensure the IEP is appropriately edited to support your child in that BIG transition, via an IEP transition meeting.*

(*Please note that the transition meeting being referred to here is not to be confused with "transition planning", which is something different that begins at age 14 for post-schooling planning.)

Sometimes your transition meeting for moving on to a new school may be combined with an annual review. In either case, it is important to ask a few clarifying questions to ensure your child is properly supported in the new school environment next year. Typically, a representative from the new school may attend your transition meeting.

One big decision to come out of this meeting is placement determination at the new school. This may differ than your child's current placement. Be sure to ask clarifying questions about this and discuss what supports need to be in place to make a possible placement change successful.

For example, in an Early Childhood program, if your child's current placement is in a blended classroom, this may not be the case for kindergarten. In middle school, your child's time with general education peers may look different than it did in elementary school. Discuss all options with your child's IEP team and how each placement option looks.

The continuum of federally mandated placement options from least to most restrictive that every school district must consider in an IEP meeting is as follows:

1.) General Education
2.) General Education with accommodations
3.) Resource Program (student spends less than 60% of day in Special Education services)
4.) Instructional/Cross Categorical Program (student spends more than 60% of day in Special Education self-contained program)
5.) Public Day Program
6.) Private Day Program
7.) Residential Program

The great thing about IEPs are that they can be completely customizable for that child, no matter what the placement. And the placement can be customized as well, via a combination of any of the above options, as deemed appropriate to your child's unique needs.

Before agreeing to a certain placement, you can request to visit the option(s) in person. (Be sure this gets scheduled before the end of the current school year.) Remember, as a parent, feel free to speak up on your thoughts, as you are indeed a member of the team and a part of this important decision. 

As the first day of school nears in August, be sure to schedule a separate visit for your child to see the school (i.e.: see where the classroom is, meet the teacher, tour the school, see where the bus will come, etc). This will help prepare your child to know what to expect, reducing any first day jitters for both of you!  

Do you have a transition meeting coming up? Feel free to send me an email with specific questions you have, to help you plan ahead prior to your meeting date. I would be happy to have a complimentary 15 minute phone call with you!

Want to learn more about IEPs and advocacy? Gigi's Playhouse Fox Valley will be hosting a "Parents' Night Out" on April 23rd where I will be presenting. Topics to be discussed include how to prepare for your next IEP meeting, how to effectively convey your concerns to the school team, important questions you may want to ask, and more! Each attendee will receive a FREE copy of my IEP Organization Packet to help you organize all that paperwork from the school. RSVP to the Fox Valley Playhouse! Hope to see you there!