A Day In Our Shoes

Don't IEP Alone | IEP Advice for Parents | Special Education Advocacy

Home » How to Be a Better IEP Advocate for your Child.

How to Be a Better IEP Advocate for your Child.

Tell a friend.

IEP Help for Parents

Hi there and welcome! You have found what has been called some of the best, most helpful, parent-friendly and practical IEP meeting advice for parents. Since my first blog post in 2011, it has really evolved. Glad you’re here!

You should bookmark this page and come back to it as a reference. The amount of information surrounding IEPs can be overwhelming, so take it one step at a time. Remember, you didn’t get to this point in just a day or two, it won’t be solved in a day or two.

I usually think of IEPs in three main categories.

better iep meetings

Want better IEP meetings? It’s just one step in the process, but it’s an important one.

what is an iep

What is an IEP? An IEP is a complex document, with many working parts. Learn them!

iep goals and accommodations

If you need ideas for IEP Goals and Accommodations, click here.

If you want to dig deeper, I have more categories below.

A Day in our Shoes ~ Don’t IEP Alone

Where can I find a special education/IEP advocate?

  • Start with your state’s Protection and Advocacy group. Call and ask if they have Special Education Advocates.
  • Call around to other advocacy groups such as the Arc, NAMI, CF Foundation, etc. Many times these groups will be able to direct you.
  • Do an internet search. Some places call them parent mentors, parent partners, parent buddies and so on.
  • Some professional organizations like COPAA maintain a list on their website.
  • Wrightslaw has Yellow Pages.
  • Pennsylvania has Right to Education Task Forces in every county. By law, these are parent-led groups and often have knowledgeable parents leading them or participating. A good resource to find advocates.

Thanks for visiting!

Lisa Lightner
Join me.

Lisa Lightner

Special Education Advocate at A Day in our Shoes
Hi, I'm Lisa, owner and main writer for this site. I live in Chester County, PA with my husband and two boys. I am a Special Education Advocate and Disabilities Consultant, run this blog and the Facebook group and manage to squeeze in time for lobbying. Thanks for reading!
Lisa Lightner
Join me.

Latest posts by Lisa Lightner

As Seen On

IEP Meeting Advice for Parents

7 Fun and Easy No-Carve Pumpkin Ideas | Decorations | Stickers

No-Carve Pumpkin Decorating Ideas True confession time. I don’t like carving pumpkins. I don’t. I’ve done the basic triangle eyes and pumpkin teeth carve, but after a few decades, that gets old. I tried the “buy a complicated pattern and battery operated carver” thing and they either never work. Or if we have a warm […]

How {and when!} to Request your Child’s School Records. {including IEP files}

School Educational Records We were seated around a huge U-shaped setup. I was directly across from the school district’s attorney, though we were a good 10 feet apart. We were in a settlement agreement meeting and were hoping to see some of the student’s IEP and school records. He looked right at me and said, […]

12 Inspirational Family Movies | Gratitude | Making a Difference | Giving Back

Inspirational Films about Making a Difference and Giving Back I hate when I have to rework posts due to creeps. With all of the buzz out there about the misogynist creeps in Hollywood, I am updating this post. I certainly do not want to promote anyone’s career who acts like that. And certainly, they don’t […]

The Dreidel Game + other Hanukkah Recipes and Activities. {free printables!}

The Dreidel Game + Hanukkah Activities Happy Hanukkah! It’s coming up soon. I like to teach my kids about all the major holidays and customs, even if we are not that ethnicity or religion. My sons both started playing the dreidel game in preschool and now one still asks for it. Personally, I think it’s […]

Hosting by Evenpar Solutions