When we think of those in charge of crafting a well-written Individualized Education Program (IEP), we often think of the special education teacher, general education teacher, speech language pathologist, occupational therapist… and so on and so forth.
If we limit our “team” to those working in the school, we are missing out on a huge asset and a crucial communication opportunity! Keeping the student’s FAMILY included in the IEP process can make your life easier, create a more holistic IEP, and make the actual execution of the IEP so much smoother.
Start involving families from the beginning of the IEP process. When you’re beginning to draft the annual update of the IEP, send home some surveys to family members.
There are many areas of the IEP – if not all parts – that families can add in their input, thoughts, and requests. When they’re looped in from the start, you gain input from another expert of the child.
Seeing families as co-creators of the IEP can not only lessen the load for you, but it makes families feel heard, and makes the actual IEP meeting go smoother.
This can start when you are sending home progress reports, and by sharing the raw data with families.
We often write IEPs on our own, and consider them documents that we create, and then loop families in on at the end of the process. If goals and benchmarks are written WITH families, including their requests in the document from the start, it can help mitigate future communication gaps.
Our time is precious as special education teachers – we are busy bees all day long! The IEP team is often quite big, so figuring out who to invite to the IEP meeting and scheduling an IEP meeting in general can feel like a logistical nightmare.
If we are to think about the key players in an IEP meeting, we likely think of ourselves and the student’s family as the most crucial members of the meeting. Starting the scheduling process by finding several times that work for you and offering them to the family to choose before asking anyone else can really help ensure that they can make the meeting at a preferred time.
If your preferred times don’t work for the family, get creative! Creating a flexible plan that will work to ensure that the student’s family can be physically present for the meeting helps them see how important they truly are in the IEP process.
Remember: IEP meetings can be any day of the week at any time… not only on Thursday afternoons from 3-4pm. You are to work with the family to determine a time that works best for all parties involved. Don’t forget about virtual IEP meetings too!
School teams notoriously see families as “the enemy” in the IEP meeting. There are often families that are more litigious, combative, and inflexible throughout the IEP process. It can be hard to see them as team members. But as the special education teacher, YOU have the ability to set the tone for how families will be viewed, and ultimately treated, during and after the IEP meeting.
When we involve families from the very beginning of the creation of the IEP, we are looping them in, getting their input, and leaving few surprises for the meeting. While IEP meetings aren’t often a party, they do not have to hold a tone of stress. Keeping the child at the center of the meeting, keeping all data as fact rather than opinion, and always validating the feelings of the family can really help the meeting stay calm.
Not every meeting will be stress free or void of discord, but remaining professional and student centered can help to alleviate unwanted and unneeded drama.
Read more on how to improve the IEP meeting experience for parents here.
Families do not have to sign the IEP in the meeting, though some families do this. Why do families wait to sign? They often want to take some additional time away to read the document again and/or share the document with a trusted advocate or outside therapist.
This does not mean that they do not trust the expertise of the team, and does not need to be taken personally – though that can be hard after a lot of time and energy have gone into writing it. Allow the space that families legally deserve to view and digest this big document.
Read more about creating a safe space for parents at the IEP meeting here.
While we know families are a member of the IEP team, special educators often keep families more in the dark than needed until the actual IEP meeting. Keeping them included throughout the entire process can really make everyone’s experience so much more positive and meaningful!
Writing IEPs doesn’t have to be overwhelming! The Intentional IEP gives you the tools, training, and resources to turn IEP chaos into clarity. With access to 10,000+ data-backed, standards-aligned goals, expert-led trainings, and ready-to-use data collection tools, you’ll save time, reduce stress, and feel confident in every IEP you write. Join today and transform your IEP process!
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