The FETA Group will cover the following:

Week One and Two: Getting Started

In “Getting Started,” you will learn:

• Basic advocacy skills

• Supplies you need to get started

• How to develop a master plan for your child’s education

Week Three: Advocacy 101

In “Advocacy lOl” you will learn about:

• Schools as bureaucracies and the rules of the game

• Obstades to success – school culture, myths, gatekeepers, and emotions

• Common causes of conflict

• Steps you can take to prevent or resolve problems

• Events that trigger parent-school crises

Week Four: The Parent as Expert

In “The Parent as Expert,” you will learn:

• Why you must become an expert about your child’s disability and educational needs

• How to organize your child’s file, step by step

• How to use information from evaluations to understand your child/s disability

• How to use test scores to monitor and measure your child’s progress

• How to write SMART IEP goats and objectives

Week Five and Six: Special Education Law

In “Special Education law,” you will learn about:

• The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004)

• Findings and purposes of the IDEA

• Definitions in the IDEA

• Extended school year (ESY), child find, least restrictive environment (lRE), private placements, statewide assessments

• Requirements for identifying children with Specific learning disabilities Discrepancy

Formulas and Response to Intervention (RTI)

• Evaluations, eligibility, IEPs, and placement

• Prior written notice, procedural safeguards, mediation, due process hearings, appeals, discipline, and age of majority

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act

• The No Child Left Behind Act and implications for children with disabilities

Week: Seven: Tactics and Strategies

In ”Tactics and Strategies,” you will learn about:

• “The Rules of Adverse Assumptions;” first impressions; image and presentation

• How to use logs, calendars, and journals to create paper trails

• How to write effective letters (includes sample letters)

• How to write a persuasive “Letter to the Stranger” (includes sample letters)

• How to use IEP worksheets, parent agendas, visual aids & graphs of progress or lack of progress (includes sample worksheets and agendas)

• Roles of experts; how to use an expert to help develop an appropriate educational program

• Pros and cons of recording meetings; strategies