Thursday, December 20, 2012

The IEP

Last week was the first of many IEP meetings we will have for Claire in the years to come.  While not really excited about it, I wasn't dreading it either.  Our district preschool is inclusive, and the teacher Claire was placed with had a student with Down syndrome in her class for the last two years.  While every child is different, it's so nice that J (Claire's teacher) is at least familiar with Ds.

Since many of the providers haven't met Claire, I prepared a packet with some additional info on her, how she communicates, and her likes and dislikes.  It also included some general info on Down syndrome and some communication strategies.  The packet I used also included a spot for a photo, which I love as it helps remind everyone that all of this is for *Claire*.

Claire's services in school will be 30 minutes a week each of ST, OT and sign language support.

After the IEP meeting we walked through Claire's classroom to make sure that all places in it were accessible to her, and picked out her cubby.  There is a little person in Claire's class so we were easily able to find a chair and coat hook that will fit her!

Today we finish her behavior support plan, next week is her home visit with her teachers, and the week after that she starts school!

6 comments:

  1. Wow, that packet is fantastic!! I'd never seen that before. I'm glad everything went well - Claire's going to do great. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh my gosh I love that packet! I'm going to put one together for Sutter's teacher! I'm not sure if she's ever had a student with Ds so this will help! Can't believe our babies are starting "real" school! So exciting!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great idea...I love the packet...think I am going to do this for Maddie and her teachers...it really opens the conversation up...love that you got to pick out the cubbie...it really is important! I do not hate iep meetings...I understand they are part of our world...I try to make them positive...having a packet ready for all the teachers is a great starting point and making sure all the important stuff is covered! Happy Christmas...smiles

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow, it sound like you had a well thought out plan before your meeting that will definitely benefit Claire. What a good Mom:0

    Have a nice Christmas Melissa.

    ReplyDelete
  5. How did I not know about Club 21? Just briefly glanced at it but it looks AWESOME! I'm curious to hear more about the behavior support plan. Kim (Joy's mom)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sounds like everything is falling nicely into place. Claire is going to do great in school, can't wait to hear all about it :)

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by! I love to hear what is on your mind.