How can I request school supports for PDA in my child's IEP?

Pathological demand avoidance (PDA) is not a recognized qualifying category for an IEP, but if your child is eligible under another category, you can talk to your IEP team about accommodations and supports.

Education Advocate Lisa Carey suggests that you have information about what works for your child around placing demands in the IEP under accommodations. You can get the description of what PDA is and add it to the IEP. You can also add this information to your child's All About Me document for teachers and providers. You may want to add the FBA information in there as well as far as how to help prevent behavior from happening, the “tells” of the behavior, and other relevant information.

If the school's supports are not adequate, hold an IEP meeting and advocate for what your child needs. If the school refuses, you may need to ask for another assessment, or an outside assessment, then maybe proceed to informal dispute resolution (a non-formal way of “talking to the supervisor.”) Advocate for a good, solid IEP that will really be tailored to the student’s needs. Make sure the school knows the way that your child learns and that they understand what works.

When it comes to IEP goals for PDA, check out this handy resource from PDA North America with some sample IEP goals. When crafting goals that are related to PDA, they tell parents to make sure your child’s IEP goals are neurodiversity-affirming by including supports that align with their needs. Executive functioning, sensory, and motor supports can help create goals that truly support their learning. It’s also important for school staff to respect all forms of communication — whether that’s AAC, speech, vocalizations, sign language, or gestures. For PDA learners, using declarative language in their goals can make a big difference.

For more information, see our full article Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) 101.