10 Mistakes Parents of D/HH Kids Make in Preparing for their I.E.P

1. Didn't insist on a member of the IEP team who has specific expertise on deafness or hearing loss - allow the meeting to progress even if all required IEP team members aren't there.
2. Didn't ask for assessments/draft IEP's in advance of meeting - don't understand how to read an audiogram, language assessments etc.
3. Let your emotions rule the day.
4. Didn't give school advanced notice of special or new requests. If you're pulling kid out of placement, didn't give school 10-day advance notice.
5. Lose focus on what this process is really about - your child (not you, not the program, not the budget).
6. Stay quiet because you feel intimidated - and you're the one who sits down in the kid-sized chair at the table. You're afraid to ask the hard questions.
7. Don't really have a grasp on the implications of your child's hearing loss in the "real world"/educational setting.
8. Haven't prioritized your child's goals/accommodations from your perspective before the meeting.
9. Don't have a clue what IDEA really says - so you don't know whether the IEP provides a FAPE (free, appropriate public education).
10. Haven't created allies on your team before the meeting. Think you and IEP team can plan out your child's whole plan for the next year in an hour and a half meeting.