Canadian Military Kids and Special Education

As I prepard to move across the country, the fact my kids will have to start school one month late, and that Monster will have one less month to familiarize himself with his educational assistant, with a new school, with new rules and environment, has certainly reminded me that there is always the one extra little complicated factor and for some of us, it’s our Special Needs kids at posting season.

So today, I have Meg from Milkids Education Consulting to give us some insight on how you can make the most of education for your special needs child.

Moving is challenging under the best of circumstances, but add in moving with a child with special needs and things can be complicated. And moving with the military AND a kiddo with special education services…woooo boy!

Before you move

The first thing that you should do is to contact your current school office to let them know about the upcoming move. It is best to contact them several ways: phone, email, and in person. This way they have lots of notice about the change in educational placement, and you are making sure that your concerns are not overlooked. The end, or beginning, of a school year is especially busy and stressful with new enrollments and disenrollments occurring daily.

When you contact the school, you should request copies of the following items:
● IEP/IPP, current and updated
● all formal evaluations, including district, provincial, and national assessments
● all report cards/progress reports for the last academic year
● all medical records, if any exist

You might also want to contact your child’s team of teachers and specialists. Let them know how much they have helped you over the last year(s), and that you will be sad to leave them. Ask, politely, if they might be able to create a short narrative about your child, explaining what has been tried, what has not worked, and what is currently working to help her reach her highest potential. If you have not saved work samples, see if they might have a small portfolio that you could take copies from.

At your new school

As we all know, the military moves you crazy places. And in Canada, each province has their own (similar, but not the same) policies and laws about how special education and disability services are provided. Check out what your new home province offers. Some offer significant amounts of reimbursement for parents caring for severely disabled children. It is totally worth a quick peek!

If you know precisely which town or city you will be stationed, then go ahead and check out schools. Give their central office a call and let them know that you are a military family with a child who receives special education. Find out what services they offer and what their track record is. This might be a good time to jump on a military spouses page on Facebook and submit a query: We are being stationed at (X). Which school system no more than (Y) km away has the best track record dealing with (A, B, C disabilities)?

Once you have found a new school, definitely give them a heads up that you are arriving. Request a sit down meeting with the principal or special education chairperson, or both if possible. Bring that file folder with your child’s academic records and IEP/IPP. Lay everything out for them. Explain what your child’s team at the old school was working on, what strategies were working for them, and how you would like to proceed. Find out what the next steps are in securing your child the best possible services.

First Day of School

Or hopefully before that! Make contact with your child’s general education teacher, special education teacher, case manager (if different than the special education teacher), any specialists your child will see, and potentially any academic aides your child will work with. You want to know who these people are, and you want them to think of you as helpful and supportive.

Talk to these people, but especially to the teacher(s) who will spend the most time with your child. Introduce everyone, including your son or daughter. When you drop him or her off on Day 1, you want your child to be walking in to a familiar and friendly face.

Once again, explain to the primary teacher(s) what was working at the old school, what types of interventions had been tried in the past, and what your child’s personality is like. Or, if he feels comfortable and is able to, your child can explain all of these things.

Give the teacher(s) your contact information. Be sure to include your cell phone, your work phone, and your email address. If something is off, your teacher will want you to know as soon as possible. The school will probably collect this information, too. But any teacher worth her salt keeps her own personal file of parent contact info on hand at all times.

After the first week

Check in with your child, and with the teacher(s). Ask how everything is going. Make sure the IEP/IPP is being implemented correctly and inquire what next steps you need to take in order to make the transition from your last province smooth.

At home, check over the homework and any agenda/assignment books your kiddo brings home. Often times, I would write notes to parents in the agenda books to keep everyone, student included, on the same page.

Make sure that the teacher(s) know that you are an involved parent, but also give everyone time to get comfortable with each other. This is a big change for your child, and there might be some regression or even emotional distress. Try to let it run its course. I know that this is easier said than done, though!

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Be that parent. Ask to have any specialists sit in on the meeting. Treat it like a round table discussion and check in with everyone. Be sure to have copies of all academic and legal paperwork with you, including the IEP/IPP. Verify that you child is getting the correct services, and ask to see her service schedule or calendar if you get a bad vibe.

If you feel that the teaching team is on track, let them know! Be supportive, and recognize their hard work and effort. Give them important updates. Will Mom or Dad (or both) be deploying this academic year? Is there a divorce or marital separation or remarriage? Was there a recent serious illness or death in the family? All of these things can impact a child’s mood and academic performance, and his teachers need to know.

If you feel that there are some gaps, bring that up too. Remember that these are highly educated professionals working inside of a sometimes constrictive and restrictive system that is bound by hard and fast budgets and laws. They do want the best for your child, but may need polite leading in the correct direction. Coming at them like a missile will be off-putting and set them on the defensive. They may just dig more firmly into what they have been doing, and then you each become the other’s enemy. This is not what you want. Be polite, but firm.

School is right around the corner, and teachers are getting ready to meet their new students. Hopefully, you find the best school for your child and a team of professional educators who go above and beyond to make him/her have an amazing year!

Meg Flanagan is a special and elementary education teacher who holds an M.Ed in special education and a BS in elementary education. In addition to classroom experience, she has also worked in private tutoring and home schools. Meg is passionate about education advocacy for all children, but especially for children with special needs and children of military and state department personnel. You can find Meg online at MilKids Education Consulting, as well as on Facebook and Twitter.

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