IEP Meeting Do's, Don'ts and Fun

IEP Meeting Do's, Don'ts and Fun

Many advocacy books and websites will offer you a helpful list of do's and don'ts for IEP meetings with the child study team. Here are a few do's, don'ts and suggestions for fun from me.

Do - Bring cookies.
Don't - Lace them with arsenic.
Fun - Bring cookies with Trans Fats in them.

Do - Smile when smiled at.
Don't - Scowl when someone smiles at you.
Fun - Tell the suit with the giant smile that she has something stuck in her teeth.

Do - Put on your best poker face.
Don't - Stick your tongue out at the child study team.
Fun - Stick your tongue out at the child study team.

Do - Pick a seat at the head of the table.
Don't - Take the offered seat where a light is shining directly into your eyes.
Fun - Sit to one side of the school psychologist, just beyond his periphery vision.

Do - Shake an offered hand.
Don't - Squeeze very tight when shaking hands.
Fun - Sneeze and politely cover your mouth and nose with your hand, just before you shake.

Do - Treat everyone with respect.
Don't – Let yourself be treated with disrespect.
Fun - Start every sentence with, “With all due respect...”

Do - Speak when you have something to say.
Don't - Interrupt, practice good listening skills.
Fun - Include your six foot invisible rabbit friend, Harvey, in the conversation and insist that they let him sign the attendance sheet.

FYI - Harvey (1950) is one of the great comedy films of classic Hollywood. James Stewart plays Elwood P. Dowd. A man who drinks a little, hands his personal card to all he meets, inviting them to dinner, is always pleasant and keeps company with a six foot invisible rabbit named, Harvey. For some reason, this bothers his sister.  I sometimes wish that I could have Elwood P. Dowd as an Advocate at my children's IEP meetings.  He picked pleasant over smart and yet he seemed to have gotten what he needed.