Navigating the School System as a Parent of a Disabled Child

 

Learning is the building blocks to life

Throughout our entire life we are learning, growing, and changing. From the time we start kindergarten all the way up to highschool our teachers build onto the information we learned in each subject the previous year. Then we get to the point were we get ready to graduate where we have spent many years learning how to read fluently, how to become a great writer, tons of math skills, and a bunch of other information that we may or may not even use depending on career choice. It doesn't stop there though; many of us may hoose to go off to college, go to a trade school, start working, or even take a gap year to dig deep in their interests to figure out what they want their career to be. Learning doesn't just stop after you finish highschool, it just ends up taking a different form depending on what you choose to do in life. If learning is such a big part of life; then how can parent of a disabled child best navigate their child's school to provide them with the tools and resources they need to be successful?

What are We Going to Cover 

 

In this blog, we are going to be covering a bunch of different topics that will provide you with the knowledge you need to be able to successfully navigate the school system to overall help your child be the best they can be. These topics will include;

• What is an IEP plan?

• What is a 5o4 plan?

• What is the difference between these plans?

• How can your child qualify for these plans?

• What goes into each plan?

• Good questions to ask during an IEP or 5o4 meeting 

• The importantance of having your child in the meetings

From start to finish receiving an IEP or 5o4 plan takes ruffle  between 30-60 days to complete depending on the state. During this time there are many different steps that must take place before sitting down to write of a plan with the professionals. These steps include;

1.Understanding what an IEP or 5o4 plan is

2.Request an evaluation

3.Finding out if your child is eligible for services

4.Going over the results with the evaluation team

5.Voice an concerns

6.Sit down with the school to write the plan

7.Make sure the plan is carried out 

8.Follow up as nessasary

I know this may seem a little daunting; but it will defalently be worth it in the end. Now let's take a deeper look into what is involved in each of these steps.

Digging in Deeper

No one is born just knowing how to do something or what the steps are to complete a task. We have to learn it, practice it, apply it to our life, revise it, and then apply it back into our life again. Putting your child on an IEP or 5O4 plan is no different. As I listed up above the first step to completing this process is to do your research and information that will help you understand what an IEP or 5O4 plan is.

What is an IEP and 5o4 Plan?

What is an IEP plan?

An IEP (individualized education plan) is legal doccument that is renewed and revised once a year or sooner if needed. An IEP isguided by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This program provides special education and related services to kids who have a disability that affects their ability to learn in the same way as other kids. This allows kids to recieve the nessasary services they need to be successful. Some of these resources include;

• Modification of curriculum

• Classroom accommodations

• Specialized instruction

• Occupational therapy

• Physical therapy

• Speech therapy

• Counseling

What is a 5o4 Plan? 

A 5o4 accomadation plan is a formal document that is guided by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  This plan doesn't require an annual review like an IEP requires. A 5O4 plan allows for kids with disabilities  to have access to accomodations that helps them improve their academic function.

Some of the resources that are built into this plan include;

• Extended time or small group assistance during tests

• Frequent breaks

• Fidgets

• Modified homework asthou a 5O4 plan may seem very close to the same thing; they are actually quite different. 

These are a few of the ways that an IEP and a 5O4 plan is the same and how they are different. For example, an IEP provides services such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy which is something that a 5O4 plan does not offer. I highly reccomend that when doing your research that you look and see what is offered with each plan to make sure you pervide the best resources for your child.

How to Qualify for an IEP or 5O4 Plan?

Now that you have gotten all the research out of the way; you should now have a good understanding of what an IEP/5O4 is and what the difference are between the two plans. The next step that needs to be taken is to get an evaluation done on your child to see if they qualify for these services.

 Somethings they evaluate is your child's 

• Strengths and weaknesses in different subjects
• Behaviors
• Social skills
• Performance on tests, assignments, and homework
• Performance and engagement in the classroom
• Social skills
• Motor skills
• Speech skills 
• Health assessment ( vision test, hearing test, etc.)
• Other assessments they feel are necessary

Along side an evaluation taking place; there are also a number of requirements that your child must have to qualify for IEP services. These include;

• The student must have a disability or disabilities.
• The student's disability/disabilities adversely affect educational performance.
• The student’s unique needs cannot be addressed through education in general education classes alone – with or without individual accommodations and requires specially designed instruction.
• A disability or disabilities that falls under one or more of these categories.

Much like the requirements to qualify for an IEP the state requires an evaluation to be done on students to see if they qualify for a 5O4 plan. Unlike the evaluation that is done durning the IEP process where they do a full evaluation to look at every aspect of your development like I listed up above; an evaluation that is done for a 5O4 plan is only a partial one that basically requires the evaluator to see the student experiencing disabilities that affect one or more major life activity. Some of the things that would be included in this type of evaluation include;

• A review of their work
• A review of their medical records  and evaluation report
• Direct observation
• Interview with student, family, and school personnel

If this is all they need then the evaluation will be over, but if they need more information then they might do a full evaluation like they do for getting an IEP. To be eligible for a 5O4 plan your child must

• Have a physical or mental impairment that limits one or more major life activities in a big way. This can include things like

                        1) walking

                        2) breathing

                        3) eating

                        4) sleeping 

                        5) communicating

                        6) seeing

                        7) hearing

                        8) speaking

                        9) reading

                       10) concentrating

                       11) thinking

                       12) learning

                       13) standing

                       14) bending

                       15) lifting 

                       16) working

           

• Have a record of such an impairment

• Be regarded as having such an impairment

The data they collect during the time they spend observing your child will determine if whether they qualify for the services of the plan they were being evaluated on to see if they qualified. For more information on the evaluation process check out check out this article on Understood.org by Amanda Morin.

Both plans are put into place to overall accomplish the same goals of providing the resources that students need in order to be successful. They just do it in a different way with the IEP focusing on in proving everything from the learning experience, building on life skills, and helping students to accomplish their goals. A 5O4 plan focuses on providing studients with accomadations like taking breaks, extra time for tests, and fidgets to help them get the best out of their learning experience.

Finding out if your child is qualified for an IEP or 5O4 plan

You have done the research, your child has had an evaluation done by professionals from either the IEP program or the 5O4 program depending on which plan you are trying to get your child into, and now it's time to get the results.

Going over the results with the evaluation team.

This is the moment you have been waiting for the past week or so. This is the moment that your child's life will change forever. Ok, I know that was a bit germanic, but I could help myself. It is always fun to finally get the news you were waiting on for so long. In this portion of the process you will get with the evaluation team and they will share their observations, whether they are eligible for the services, and with give you the change to speak your concerns about moving forward or ask any questions you may have at that time.

*Make sure you voice your concerns*

This isn't a step in the process, but it is something you should do not matter what step you are currently at in the process . Don’t hold back because you are worried about bothering them everyday due to question, thinking you will remember your question until the next time you talk to them, or that it is a silly question to ask. The people at the school, district building, and even the people who did the evaluation would be happy to help you.

 Sitting down with the school and writing the plan

Are you ready to put the meat, cheese, and condiments on the the buns? This step is the most important part of the whole process. When you sit down with the school, IEP or 5O4 people, your child's teachers, and whoever else is involved it becomes the real deal. 

What goes into an IEP?

An IEP is generally a lot longer than a 5O4 plan because it covers more catigories that the child needs more help in than do students who are getting put on a 5O4 plan will in their learning experience. As stated in the name this is an individual learning plan, so what is put into your child's IEP will be a lot different than another kid's IEP. The basic topics that are written into an IEP during these meetings include;

• Performance level (This is a summary that describes current specific, measurable, objective baseline information for each area affected by the disability.)

• Goals (These are descriptions of what a student can reasonably be expected to accomplish within a 12-month period with the provision of special education services. Goals should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable Results, Time-limited.) 

• Benchmarks and Objectives (Benchmarks are major milestones that specify skill or performance levels a student needs to accomplish to reach his annual goal. Objectives are measurable, intermediate steps between a student’s PLP and the annual goals established for the student.)

• Assistive Technology ( This states extra technology avallible to the students as they need it.)

• Description of Special Education Services (This indicates the time, frequency, and any related services that the student needs, as well as the amounts of time these services will be provided. The amount of time and areas in which the student will be removed from the general education setting are also identified.)

What goes into a 5O4 plan?

A 5O4 plan is not nearly as long in paper form as it is for an IEP because it covers fewer categories, but still just as important as an IEP. In a 5O4 meeting things that are written into the plan include;

• What their disability or disabilities are
• What major life activity or activities are affected by their disability or disabilities
• How and when their accomadations will be used in the classroom
• A list of accomadations you and your child need for their success. Some of these accommodations include;    

                1) preferential seating 

                2) extended time on tests 

                3) extended time on assignments 

                4) reduced home/school work

                5) verbal, visual, or technology aids

                6) modified textbooks

                7) video- audio materials 

                8) behavior management support 

                9) adjusted class schedules 

               10) adjusted grading

               11) verbal testing 

               12) excused latenes

               13) excused absences

               14) excused missed classwork

               15) pre-approved nurse visits

               16) accompiment to visits 

               17) Occupational or physical therapy 

     

These are just some of the different topics that are put into each plan. I highly recommend adding  every little detail of things that you can think of to put into the plan. I say this because a problem may seem very small to you, but it is still a problem non the less, so it's important to still put it in the plan so, they can work to address the problem with your child.

Good questions to ask during an IEP or a 5O4 meeting

It can be a little challenging trying to participate and work your way through one of these meetings; my parents went through this exact process when I was going through school.

 

Good questions to ask during an IEP meeting

• What is the best time and way for me to contact you?
• What are some changes in goals do you recommend and why?
• What does my child's support look like on a daily basis?
• What support will my child's classroom teacher be providing to meet these goals?
• How do we plan to measure progress and communicate this progress?
• What can I do at home to support these goals?

Good questions to ask during a 5O4 meeting 

• In your opinion, what accomadations should we add to the list?
• When and how will these accomadations fit into my child's daily schedule?
• What is my child's responsibility when using their accomadations?
• What are the consequences for my child misusing their accomadations while in class?
• Do I need to provide the accomadations?
• If I have to provide some of the accomadations, should I put them in their backpack or bring them into the teacher?

These are just a few of the many questions you can ask during these meetings. Don't worry about running out of time; an IEP meeting generally lasts anywhere from an hour to ruffly three hours and a 5O4 meeting lasts ruffly forty to sixty minutes depending on how long it tasks to discuss the information, write or rewrite the plan, and answer questions.

The importance of having your child attend the meetings

Throughout my whole school education experience I believe I always attended the IEP meetings with my parents.  No one knows your child better than them, so it is important to make them part of the conversation. This will allow them to engage by sharing their opinion of what they feel are their challenges and what they feel they need to be successful.

Resources I used in this blog

This is only a small portion of what there is to learn about IEP's and 5O4 plans. Some of the resource I used to find this information include;

• Eligibility for Special Education by The Special Education Department
  
• 7 Questions to ask during your child's annual IEP meeting by Mathew Lynch
  
• The school evaluation process by Amanda Morin
  
• The 13 Disability Categories under IDEA by Andrew M.I. Lee, JD
  
• 5O4 education plans by Steven J. Bachrach, MD
  
• 5O4 Eligibility requirements by Study.com

Conclusion

Learning is the building blocks to life. There is many different ways that you can help your disabled child be successful in their education experience. For me, the biggest way my parents helped me through my education experience was sitting down with my school and getting me on an IEP plan.