Special Education
Parent Page
By Susan Wulczyn
SPECIAL EDUCATION PARENT GROUP:
The Special Education Parent Group begins another exciting year with the privilege of determining which books to buy for its new library! A donation of over $500 was made to the group by CHADD National in combination with a local community member, Lee Ristow. Our first meeting of the year will take place in September; stay tuned for where and when. All ideas for further meeting topics this year are welcome!
Help for Parents:
Questions regarding the special education process are not uncommon. In fact, with the new regulations regarding the use of Response to Intervention for determination of a learning disability, many more have been generated. While web sites and literature have the potential of providing excellent information, your child is an individual. If you have a question about your child’s school performance, it is best to start with his or her teacher since that person is most familiar with your child. A frank and open conversation can go a long way toward building the collaborative relationships with teachers that augment your child’s success in school. The next person to approach to help you to sort out what is happening with your child’s school performance is your child’s principal. He/she has a broad view of the school and its functioning, and a wealth of experience with children from many different classrooms and backgrounds; additionally your child may be known to him/her in a different way or across a number of school years.
If you have general questions about the special education process or would like to talk further about your child, please feel free to contact the Lemont-Bromberek CSD 113A Director of Student Services at any time (Susan Wulczyn at swulczyn@sd113a.org or 630-257-2286 ext. 4611).
The web sites linked below provide further information for parents:
New Parents’ Guide- everything you ever wanted to know about special education in Illinois- a great, easy-to-access resource for all the basics:
http://www.isbe.net/spec-ed/html/parent_rights.htm
This guide was recently released and is quite user-friendly. The table of contents is available if you scroll down, and it will allow you to link directly to the area of your inquiry.
Procedural Safeguards:
http://www.isbe.net/spec-ed/pdfs/nc_proc_sfgrds_34-57j.pdf
Extended School Year (ESY) for Students with Disabilities:
Guidance document from ISBE:
http://www.isbe.net/spec-ed/pdfs/memo_esy_01.pdf
RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION:
ACADEMICS:
For more information about Response to Intervention for academics at District 113a, please see the District RTI plan and parent resources on our website:
BEHAVIORS:
Illinois Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
This is the first tier of Response to Intervention for behavioral issues.
PARENT HOME PAGE of ISBE’s Special Education section:offers links to a variety of specific departments that address parents’ questions:
http://www.isbe.net/spec-ed/html/parents.htm
This tends to address legal issues and can be used in conjunction with the Parents’ Guide (linked above), which offers a practical understanding of the special education process.
Helpful general resources include the following:
http://www.rainbows.org/ – resources for children who are managing grief from trauma, loss, or other emotional upheavals
Parenting with Love and Logic: Teaching Children Responsibility by Foster W. Cline and Jim Fay
The Out-of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder, Revised Edition by Carol Kranowitz and Lucy Jane Miller (Paperback - April 4, 2006)
The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun, Revised Edition: Activities for Kids with Sensory Processing Disorder byCarol Kranowitz
“The Medicated Child,” a PBS presentation regarding children and medication..
http://illinoisparents.crc.uiuc.edu/stateres.html a myriad of resources for the families of students in Illinois
http://www.cfw.tufts.edu/- This site published by Tufts University is a family-friendly resource guide regarding child development, parenting issues, school issues, etc. Each search links to other “expert reviewed” sites.
http://www.isbe.net/spec-ed/html/parents.htmISBE’s website for parents of students with disabilities
Resources for parents with children who have Learning Disabilities:
http://www.ldonline.org/parents - the parent page dedicated to supporting students with learning disabilities and ADHD
http://www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/learning/learning_disabilities.shtml This sensitive description of warning signs also offers pointers to parents of children with learning disabilities
http://www.ldail.org/ Illinois chapter of the national Learning Disability Association
Resources for parents with children who have Other Health Impairments:
http://www.cec.sped.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Other_Health_Impaired&Template=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=37&ContentID=5631 - This website contains direct links to a wide range of helpful sites for parents of students with Other Health Impairments including ADHD, Prader-Willi Syndrome, Epilepsy, Williams Syndrome , Multiple Sclerosis - MS for parents, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and more.
Resources for parents of children with ADHD
http://www.iassw.org/Link-ADD_ADHD.htmIllinois Association of School Social Workers’ resource guide for parents of students with ADHD
http://www.smartkidswithld.org/parent resource for helping kids with ADHD
http://www.ldonline.org/parents - the parent page dedicated to supporting students with learning disabilities and ADHD
Resources for parents with children who have Emotional Disabilities:
http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/facts_for_families - facts for families are included in several languages including Spanish, Polish, Urdu, Arabic, and Malaysian.
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/child-and-adolescent-mental-health/index.shtml - general resource about child and adolescent mental health
http://www.aacap.org/cs/forFamilies- great general resource for families regarding child psychiatric and mental health conditions
Resources for parents with children on the Autism Spectrum
http://www.autismfamilyonline.com
htttp://www.autismweb.com
The Way I See It: A Personal Look at Autism and Aspergers by Temple Grandin.
Visual Strategies for Improving Communications: Practical supports for Home and School by Linda A Hodgdorn
http://autism.pbisillinois.org/ Illinois Autism Training an Technical Assistance Project-Many District 113a staff members have been trained and continue to use the services of this project
http://autismillinois.org/Illinois Autism society that provides resources and advocacy for families living with autism
http://www.aspennj.org/ national resource for individuals managing Asperger Syndrome
Resources for parents with children who have Speech/Language Impairments:
http://www.speech-language-development.com/index.html - helpful information for parents about what to look for in children’s speech/language development
http://www.asha.org/public- national organization dedicated to support for students with communications disorders
Resources for parents with children who experience deafness or impaired hearing:
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/ informative site that includes research and health information
http://www.raisingdeafkids.org/ - support for parents who are raising deaf children
http://www.childrensmemorial.org/depts/rehab/resources.aspx
Resources for parents with a child who has a cognitive disability:
http://www.nads.org/pages_new/new_parents.html This website offers support for those in the Chicago area and refers interested readers to many further resources.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/dd/ddmr.htm
http://www.kumc.edu/gec/support/down_syn.html National and local resources for parents and other information seekers
SPECIAL EDUCATION ADVOCACY:
http://www.wrightslaw.com/-special education advocacy for parents
You are welcome to contact your child’s teacher for suggestions of other books/resources for helping you with the responsibilities of parenting. In addition, our special education cooperative (Southwest Cook County Cooperative, linked off the Student Services tab) offers parent and teacher resources through their library systems.
Again, your comments and additions will be most appreciated! Feel free to contact Susan Wulczyn at swulczyn@sd113a.org or 630-257-2286 ext. 4611.
