IEP: How-to's and Organizing a Binder

Well if having six children on IEPs (Individual Education Plans) doesn't make you go insane, it makes you get organized.  It was much easier to store it all in my brain when we only had 3 kiddos on IEPs. I want to share with you some tips I have embraced to make my life easier.

The first thing, and most important, is to have an IEP binder for each child. I use a 3-ring binder, size according to the amount of records, and personalize it with the child's name. This is where you will keep everything IEP related: IEP requests, assessment plans, assessment reports, meeting notices, progress on goals, behavior notices, and report cards.

Then I found it extremely helpful to have a Table of Contents which lists the dates of each IEP, notes, services, etc. at the front of the IEP binder. I am providing a copy for you to download FREE.

I also scan each IEP and components (assessment reports, etc.) into my computer and save on an external hard drive. Each child has a folder on my external hard drive. I save the documents first by year, then by name and date. This way I have easy access to the records if i am looking for a specific documents. I also have them available to e-mail or make copies as needed for their Alta worker or medical providers.

In case you are wondering if your child qualifies for an IEP, here are the 13 categories in which your child may qualify. These specific categories also must be adversely affecting their educational performance.  For instance, if your child has ADHD they might qualify under Other Health Impaired, but only if it is adversely affecting their educational performance.

If you would like to have your child assessed for special education services, you MUST put your request in writing and give it to the school. It has been my experience that it is best to also give specific examples of why you think your child needs to be assessed. The school district has 15 school days to respond to your request. They will provide you with an assessment plan which states the areas they would like to assess your child and are asking your permission. Please sign this form and return to the school district as soon as possible. 

The school district then has 60 school days to assess your child. During this time frame they will also schedule the IEP meeting. Most school districts are accommodating to your schedule, within reason. They will provide you a Meeting Notice, which you then sign stating whether or not you are able to attend.

Here is an example of the IEP Process from CAHELP (specific to California).

I also have a video IEP How-to's: A Parent's Perspective on our YouTube channel: DivergingLives. Feel free to check it out!

San Diego Zoo

While we were in Los Angeles for our Disneyland trip, we decided to drive a little further south to check out San Diego.  Our oldest child, DJ, is attending college to earn a degree in Zoology/Animal Biology.  He has been quite interested, for some time, to check out the San Diego Zoo.  So that's what we did!

They have a little petting zoo area.  But to get back to it, you first walk over a bridge that may squirt you with water, then you walk past a large play structure.  We stopped for a few minutes to let the kids play, then stopped for another photo opportunity.

In the petting zoo area were mainly goats, but there were also a couple of miniature horses and a pig.  The kids loved feeding the goats a few pieces of hay that were scattered about.

The insect house had a lot of things that made my skin crawl.  I didn't mind leaving it quickly when Johnathan needed to go to the bathroom.

We did a lot of walking!  But it wasn't just walking.  It was up hill, then down hill, up again, down again.  It was also a very hot day!  When we passed a store and Johnathan saw binoculars, he just had to have them.  When we didn't buy them he was not happy at all.  Thankfully there was a pink hippo to distract him, if only for a second.

We had already walked to the back of the zoo and we needed to get everyone something to eat (which was towards the front of the zoo), so we decided to ride the Sky Glider back to the entrance.

Here's the view of Balboa Park and downtown San Diego from the Sky Glider ride.

Everyone was feeling recharged after eating lunch so we started walking again.  {Thankfully we had our stroller so Amada and James didn't have to walk the hills.}  Our older daughter, Adriana, loves panda bears and always has.  She wanted desperately to see the pandas up close and personal.  She was very pleased.  We also discovered that she can see them live anytime she wants through San Diego Zoo's panda cam.

At the panda bear exhibit, zoo personnel take your family's picture and edit panda bears into the picture to make it look like you are actually holding a panda bear.  So cute!

We finally decided to get on the double-decker bus and take a riding tour of the zoo.  This was much easier and we had a great view of the animal exhibits.  We ended up staying on the bus for one full route then got off close to the entrance.

We also learned a few interesting bits of information.  Like one of the giraffe's is pregnant and due very shortly.  They also have a baby giraffe that was born 3 weeks ago.

Adriana was happy she got to stop at the gift shop and pick out some panda items {bear and bracelet}.  I bought the younger kids matching shirts and DJ got a panda bear hat.

Thankfully we had a quiet ride back to the trailer.  Everyone was worn out and had a little too much sun today.  Apparently the sun in San Diego is hotter and makes you burn easier/faster because despite sunblock a few of us still got sunburned.  My only complaint was I thought the tickets prices were quite high.  We had a coupon for $4 off each admission, but it was still expensive.

That concludes our family's southern California vacation.  We were very pleased with all of the kids overall.  We were completely exhausted by the time we arrived home and took about a week to recover.

~Nicole~

Postcards from California

I am so excited for the postcard swap that Beth at Living Life Intentionally has organized.  I was planning on doing an in-depth study of the United States this year in our homeschooling and this just makes it much more exciting!  I found a website where I was able to personalize postcards and I am anxiously awaiting their arrival.  I was able to add text to the back of the postcard so I wouldn't have to write it out 50 times!  You can even order custom (matching) postage stamps!

Here is a preview of the front of my postcard:  

 

Since I am sharing this with you, Zazzle is offering you $10 off your order.  How cool is that?  I love saving money!