August Newsletter from Knowledge Tree, LLC

Advocating for your child is one of the most important parts of being a parent. For a child who struggles in school, it is even more vital. Following is a list of resources to help you successfully advocate for your child.

The Oklahoma Parents Center was developed to provide statewide training and information to advocate for all of Oklahoma's children with disabilities. Oklahoma Parents Center is dedicated to the inclusion and equality of children and adults with disabilities. Their mission is to train, inform, educate, and support parents, families, professionals and consumers in building partnerships that meet the needs of children and youth with the full range of disabilities ages' birth through twenty-six.

The Oklahoma Parents Center also provides community IEP partners to work with parents to prepare for IEP meetings, plan for suggestions, and attend as an interested bystander. If there is a community partner in your area, you can request a partner by calling the Oklahoma Parents Center at 1-877-553-4332.

You can find out more about Oklahoma Parents Center on the web at www.oklahomaparentscenter.org. They also have some online training for parents and advocates by going to http://oklahomaparentscenter.org/Courses_online.html. The online courses can be taken by both in-state and out-of-state parents.

Sooner Success is also a program developed to serve children and adults with special needs in your community. Sooner SUCCESS can offer support for families who:

Need a break and would like information on whom to call
Would like help organizing your child's medical, educational and other information
Would like to know what resources are available in your area
Would like to network with other parents and learn about children's services and issues
Need services or equipment and you don't know what to do
Would like more information on a specific disability or condition

Contact information for Sooner Success County Coordinators can be found at

http://www.oumedicine.com/body.cfm?id=1524

They say save the best for last, and well, we think this one qualifies in that category. The resources available at Wrightslaw are comprehensive and cover far more topics than most of us have time for! Parents, educators, advocates, and attorneys visit Wrightslaw for accurate, reliable information about special education law, education law, and advocacy for children with disabilities. A good starting point is their article Advocating for Your Child - Getting Started by Pamela Wright, MA, MSW. WARNING: the following website may cause information overload! Following are a few of the MANY topics available on their website www.wrightslaw.com:

Accommodations
Advocacy
Assessment & Testing
Attention Deficit Disorders (ADD/ADHD)
Autism, PDD and Asperger Syndrome
Behavior Problems & Discipline
Due Process
Eligibility
Evaluations, Assessments and Tools
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)
High-Stakes Tests
IDEA 97 & IDEA 2004 Statute and Regulations
IEPs
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), Mainstreaming, Inclusion
Letter Writing, Paper Trails and Documentation
Mediation
No Child Left Behind Act
Parental Protections, Safeguards and Parent Notice
Privacy Rights, Records, FERPA
Progress Monitoring
Retaliation
Retention and Social Promotion
Section 504 & ADA: Civil Rights Law and Protection from Discrimination
Twice Exceptional Children (2e)
Wrightslaw Training & Seminars