053: IEPs, 504 Plans & School Advocacy, with Amanda Morin
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In this episode of the Podcast, I'm talking IEPs and 504 Plans with former teacher and educational advocate, Amanda Morin. We're defining IEPs and 504 plans, and the differences between them. In addition, learn how to determine what services and accommodations your child may need in school, and how to go about securing them. We also answer questions like, should my child come to school meetings? And we're busting some myths around the rights of kids with special needs at school.
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My Guest
Amanda Morin is a parent advocate and former teacher. She worked in classrooms and as an early intervention specialist for 10 years. Since 2007, she has been working as an education writer and, more recently, as a parent advocate to empower parents and affirm the pivotal role they play in their child’s education.
During her years as an early childhood educator, she taught kindergarten and worked with infants, toddlers and preschoolers with disabilities. She provided education and training to parents of children with disabilities and led multidisciplinary teams in developing and implementing Individual Family Service Plans.
She is the author of three books: The Everything Parent’s Guide to Special Education, The Everything Kids’ Learning Activities Book and On-the-Go Fun for Kids: More Than 250 Activities to Keep Little Ones Busy and Happy—Anytime, Anywhere!
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As an elementary teacher I really enjoy your podcasts. However, I would really suggest you have a podcast with actual teachers who can give classroom tips and accommodations that they have experienced that work best. I do have to say that I often get a feeling that teachers are not given enough credit at times in your podcasts. As you and your guests mention how difficult it was for you find what works best with your own children, it’s truly also difficult for teachers when we have 2 or more kiddos with adhd or autism due to inclusion in the classrooms. We don’t have years to figure what will work best and for sure collaboration with parents is key. However, many times, the parents themselves don’t know how to help their own children when it comes to completing school work or adapting to school in general and ask for our assistance. I do feel that many kids that are medium to high on the spectrum should be included in a regular classrooms with paras and sped teachers to assist. However, when there are several kids with emotional issues or with severe adhd and or autism in the same classroom, that they should not be in a regular classrooms and be better serviced by pull out classes or in a resource classroom as it used to once be. I do beli ve that they should at one point be included in clases like pe, music, art or history. I as a teacher truly care for all children and that’s why I chose this profession in the first place. It’s true that our education system is broken and that too many expectations and accountability is placed on us teachers. The pressure that is placed on us for our kids to perform high on standardized state assessments is unimaginable. The reality is that we can only do so much before we break down. As for myself, I will continue not to try and get discouraged and I will continue to listen and learn more about adhd and autism so I can better help my kiddos year after year and god willing make a positive difference in their lives.
I'm glad you're listening. Amanda Morin in this episode was a classroom teacher for many years. Yes, I have shared many stories of our struggles with school but have tried to always give the caveat that it's my experience. My son has had a couple great teachers and it makes all the difference. Unfortunately, he's had far more that decided his high intelligence meant extra high capability, and wouldn't listen to reason/knowledge from me. First and foremost, it's a broken system. But, we also need to train teachers to understand all types of neurodiversity.