Paving New Paths and Riding New Waves
Oh Boy. As we round the corner to the beginning of a new school year, anxiety is high. I feel it. Parents are feeling it. Teachers are feeling it.
Change is hard. Unpredictability is uncomfortable. But what if instead of letting these feeling cripple us, we take a deep breath, link arms together, and trust the process?
Easier said, than done, right?
There are many things that many people do not like about our current school situation. There are so many things out of our control.
But here are two things we CAN embrace and control:
1) Organization
2) Communication
On Saturday I gave a training on how to prepare your classroom or family if you have children on IEPs or 504s. You can watch the training below.
In a “normal” year, organization and communication are very important to highly functioning IEP teams. In the era of the pandemic, these two things will need to be the driving force behind all we do.
Both parents and teachers will need to stay organized and constantly communicating with each other. Over communicate if you have to.
Truly forging partnerships together will be the only way through this. Every family may have to adapt and adjust on an individual basis. It’s okay to draw boundaries and clearly state what you need from each other.
Parents: I am giving you permission to trust your instincts and talk problems and feelings through with all the key players in your child’s life. The good news is: Nothing is set in stone! There are no right or wrong answers here. Only what’s best for your child in each moment.
Teachers: Knocking it out of the park means keeping it simple and keeping your relationships with your students at the center of everything you do. Here is our chance to slow down and go deeper with content. Embrace the opportunity.
In the training, I offered almost a dozen organization PDFs to get your school year started. You can download them here. They are for parents and teachers. Feel free to share and use them with whomever may benefit.