'Mommy, is that Lady Gaga?' When my youngest was a toddler, he LOVED Lady Gaga. I have no idea why or where it came from, but he did. He would ask me to put videos of her on my computer. So, when we were watching the Super Bowl one year, the year that Madonna did| A Day in our Shoes
IEP goals are the future. IEP Present Levels is where the child is now; goals are where we want them to be. But, learning how to write an IEP goal that is both measurable and effective, is something that both teachers and parents should learn. Teachers and IEP staff need to know this, since they| A Day in our Shoes
I am wildly passionate about kids being toilet trained if it is a possibility. I never dreamed I would be a passionate advocate for toilet training. But here I am. Lack of toileting skills is one functional IEP skill that really carries a serious stigma for our kids. It's very ostracizing for an older child| A Day in our Shoes
Personal hygiene skills is something that many of us take for granted. If you do not pick up on social cues, and your interoception is different because of your neurodivergence, you may not notice these things. But, others will! That's for sure. And some things, like managing your medication, can be complete barriers to independent| A Day in our Shoes
It's a familiar sight, dating back many decades. We thought we were just playing, and didn't realize we were learning letter recognition. When I was small, we had the wooden blocks with the alphabet on them. Some kids had the plastic alphabet letters with magnets so they'd stick to the fridge. Now, you can get| A Day in our Shoes
'Dysgraphia? What's is dysgraphia? I've never heard of it!' This is a scenario that has come up many times to parents in our online chat group. As parents become more informed, we are better able to advocate for our kids. If you go back even 10-20 years, not many parents had even heard of specific| A Day in our Shoes
As a kid, I was an unidentified 2E student. They only identified the gifted part and missed the two big learning disabilities. Oh, and I was in adaptive PE. But I didn't have an IEP. Weird, I know. But being the only girl in my school in gifted, missing specials once a week so I| A Day in our Shoes
Inside: Learn what perseveration is, what causes it, and how to get unstuck if you are perseverating on something. Plus, IEP goals if a child perseverates and it's interfering with school. Perseveration is a term used in psychology to describe the tendency to repeat a particular behavior or response even when it is no longer| A Day in our Shoes
IEPs are long. Like, 80+ pages long. And let’s be real—teachers, aides, and therapists don’t have time to flip through all of that every time they need a reminder about your child’s accommodations. Or substitute teachers. Yes, I am aware that schools are responsible for following the entire IEP, all day every day. But, I'm| A Day in our Shoes
Inside: Browse, print, and use this comprehensive list of 504 Accommodations for Students with Disabilities.| A Day in our Shoes
Work completion or task completion refers to the ability to finish a given assignment, project, or task to the best of one's ability, and to do so within the allotted time frame. It is an important skill in academic and professional settings, as well as in personal life, as it enables individuals to meet deadlines,| A Day in our Shoes
How long is a benchmark goal on an IEP? And what is the difference between IEP goal benchmarks and IEP goal objectives?| A Day in our Shoes
Remember this? Did you know that way back when...when Tupperware invented this toy, that you were using fine motor skills to play with it? And it was Tupperware! If you're a Gen X'er like me, you definitely remember this Tupperware toy. When I was young enough to play with this toy, IEPs didn't even exist.| A Day in our Shoes
The other day, my younger son and I were on my tablet. We were choosing team gear to purchase for his new AAU basketball team. I was looking at the website and he was on his phone, and he was describing things to me and asking me questions (what size do I wear? should I| A Day in our Shoes
Parents can certainly assist the IEP team with developing goals. One IEP area that I find parents and teachers struggle with is addressing the skill of writing. And by writing, I'm talking about content, not fine-motor handwriting skills. If your child struggles with handwriting, I would read this post on dysgraphia or ask for an| A Day in our Shoes
I got two inquiries recently that are very similar. Both parents asked for something on their child's IEP and were told, 'We don't do that here. It happens often. Can a school say that? Can they deny a service based on 'we don't offer that here?' You've heard it before, right? Short answer, no. So| A Day in our Shoes
Much like the other posts I have on this site about anxiety, I want to start with the same warning. IEPs are not diagnosis-driven document. They are needs-driven. Your child's needs, determined through their IEP evaluations, will drive the IEP goals that the team creates. Not a diagnosis of anxiety. Still, there are some commonalities| A Day in our Shoes
Over the years, I cannot even count how many times I've been asked if I have a FAPE checklist on the site. Now, I can finally answer with a 'Yes!' With input from teachers, advocates, parents and even a few school admins who I had look over this, this free FAPE compliance checklist is a| A Day in our Shoes
Here you will find Executive Functioning IEP Goals, executive functioning IEP goals for ADHD, and some IEP Organizational Goals. This is one of the oldest articles on the site and is updated frequently. Since this post has evolved so much, I have broken down executive functioning into its subsets of skills. Back when I started| A Day in our Shoes
Telling time is an essential executive function that our kids need to live independently. Of course supports and accommodations can be put in place, but it will be very difficult for anyone to live on their own without the ability to tell time. Telling time is considered a math skill. Telling time IEP goals will| A Day in our Shoes
When a child has math skills and can apply them to everyday life, it can be something we take for granted. Many of us are familiar with the moaning and groaning while doing math and saying, 'But I'm never going to use this in my everyday life!' But, you might! My teen can now do| A Day in our Shoes
Remember when we were little, and we thought nickels were worth more than dimes, just because they were bigger? Ah, those were the days. As part of adulting, we need to teach our kids practical money skills or functional math skills which are a subset of functional math IEP goals. Few kids even see dimes| A Day in our Shoes
Photo of Linda Gilmartin with her dog| A Day in our Shoes
The other day, my 13-year-old sports fan and I had a short but confusing discussion. I knew he was looking at a sports-something on Instagram,| A Day in our Shoes
IEP Progress Monitoring and IEP Data Collection are among the most important things about an IEP. And yet tracking IEP goals is one area that| A Day in our Shoes
Student counseling is listed as a Related Service in IDEA. Actually, Parent Counseling and Training is too. But that's another post for another day. I| A Day in our Shoes
Inside: Take a deep dive into learning about AT Assistive Technology, and how it differs from AAC. And 15 IEP goals for assistive technology.| A Day in our Shoes
As a special education advocate who has attended hundreds of IEP meetings, nothing frustrates me more than dyslexia IEP meetings. Mind you, sensory issues come| A Day in our Shoes
For almost 10 years, readers have been asking me questions about an IEP and autism. It's quite common in our message boards to have a| A Day in our Shoes
This is a concept that I really need parents to grab on to and internalize. I hope that this brings you that 'a-ha!' moment in| A Day in our Shoes
Inside: I hear from many parents who 'don't even want to bother' with an IEP. It's a sentiment I understand, but you may want to| A Day in our Shoes
Confused about 504 Plans and IEPs? Discover the key differences and similarities between these education plans to find the best support for your child.| A Day in our Shoes
Several years ago, I took my boys up to my Dad's house. Kevin just walked into the room where we were, stood in the middle,| A Day in our Shoes
One concept or behavior that you may be exposed to as an IEP parent is elopement. Unfortunately, I am not talking about the fun kind| A Day in our Shoes
If your child has negative behaviors at school, they should receive an FBA and a Behavior Plan. Here are behavior goal ideas for your IEP.| A Day in our Shoes
A few weeks ago, Michelle wrote a post about IEP Progress Monitoring. In that post, she references 'collecting IEP data' several times. And, in our| A Day in our Shoes
I will never forget this one day when Kevin was a preschooler. We had an IEP meeting, and one of his proposed math IEP goals| A Day in our Shoes
Goals are all around us. We make goals all day, every day in our own head. It may be as simple as 'I want to| A Day in our Shoes
Many parents and caregivers struggle to manage aggressive behavior in children. These are the situations that can deteriorate a situation quickly--because many schools have zero| A Day in our Shoes
So, there's a reason why I am now just doing this post after the blog is more than 13 years old. I am philosophically opposed| A Day in our Shoes
I have a friend and there are 18 school staff people at her IEP meetings. I've mentioned many times before how large Kevin's IEP team| A Day in our Shoes
Parents, you need to take ownership of the IEP transition goals and process for your child. Here's how to start.| A Day in our Shoes
If your child has an IEP, you undoubtedly are surrounded by special education acronyms all the time. One of the more frequently used acronyms is| A Day in our Shoes
Ah, progress monitoring. I find it to be one of the most difficult areas of the IEP, as it pertains to parents. First, the data| A Day in our Shoes
For a long time, I purposely did not include lists like this on my site--lists of things like math word problem IEP goals. I refrained| A Day in our Shoes
IEP Goals for Handwriting | Handwriting issues can be much more than a fine motor planning issue. It could be dysgraphia, dyslexia, vision issues, or| A Day in our Shoes
Before I get started with this list of Life Skills Goals for an IEP, I want to make one thing clear. That is, remember, IEPs| A Day in our Shoes
Inside: Get 25 free IEP letter templates, including my e-book 'How to Ask your IEP Team for just about Anything.' If you're in this for| A Day in our Shoes
For me, both as a Special Education Advocate and a Parent, I find the hardest part of the IEP process to be the IEP eligibility| A Day in our Shoes
The special education referral process is all about getting your child evaluated for special education services. Once you've been through the steps and your child| A Day in our Shoes
Ok, so here we go. I used to have IEP reevaluation information in my post about IEP evaluations. But, I've since decided that IEP re-evaluations| A Day in our Shoes
Everything you need for Reading and Reading Comprehension and your IEP: IEP goals, strategies, evaluations, and more.| A Day in our Shoes
One little-known feature of IDEA is the section on parent training. Parents are often unaware that they can ask for training and/or counseling as part| A Day in our Shoes
IEP Goals How many goals should an IEP have?Who writes IEP goals?Can parents submit IEP goal ideas?What if my child doesn't meet their IEP goals?| A Day in our Shoes
As the school year kicks off, it’s time to do more than just sharpen pencils and pack those lunch boxes. The first week of school| A Day in our Shoes
Ask almost any Special Education Advocate, and they'll tell you that Present Levels is the most important section of the IEP. Present Levels has several| A Day in our Shoes
We do so much for our kids, and we mean well. But time marches on, whether we want it to or not. We have to| A Day in our Shoes
What does IDEA say about required members of an IEP team? And what are their roles and responsibilities? All explained by an Special Education Advocate.| A Day in our Shoes
We all know the dread and frustration that can accompany IEP meetings. You're armed with data, observations, and a passionate desire to get your child| A Day in our Shoes
As an advocate, I have attended literally hundreds of IEP meetings. I know you, Moms. You're stressed and anxious. This IEP meeting checklist is one| A Day in our Shoes
Organizing an annual IEP review and meeting is a critical responsibility for teachers. It ensures that disabled students receive the appropriate support and services to| A Day in our Shoes
Inside: It's best practice, but not required, to have an IEP Meeting Agenda. Here are some samples and templates for IEP Meeting Agendas for you| A Day in our Shoes
It's no secret that many kids with disabilities struggle socially and struggle to build and maintain friendships. When Brian tells me stories of kids at| A Day in our Shoes
Many students struggle with Impulse Control Disorders, secondary to other learning disabilities. Here are goal and accommodation ideas to add to an IEP or 504| A Day in our Shoes
Does your child struggle with Working Memory issues, and do you want them added to the IEP? Have you heard parents talk about working memory| A Day in our Shoes
I'm going to wag my finger at you--from this day forward, you do a Parent Concerns Letter for your IEP. Every.single.time. No more 'Well I| A Day in our Shoes
Specially Designed Instruction Specially Designed Instruction, or SDIs, is actually one of my favorite things to talk about when it comes to IEPs. The name| A Day in our Shoes
Emotional self-regulation is a necessary executive functioning skill that all kids need to develop. Some will require direct instruction.| A Day in our Shoes
Many of our learning-disabled kids struggle to communicate. The causes vary, from expressive or receptive language disorder to hyperlexia, processing, or even dyslexia. If you are not learning disabled, we often take some skills for granted. Once we learn a grammar rule, we can apply it universally. And exclude it when there are exceptions. Inflectional| A Day in our Shoes
