How do I communicate with my child's 1:1 aide?
Remember that the aide works for the school district, not the parent. Many districts have rules against paraeducators communicating with parents because they are not trained to do so. Marquez tells us communicating through a case manager is best, and that communication between paraeducators and parents may sometimes end up destroying lines of communication. This can be especially tricky if there are things about your child or your family that the case manager and teacher know but the paraeducator doesn’t, as a way to protect the confidentiality of the student. You can find ways to work with the paraeducator that honors your child's privacy and helps you stay informed.
Whatever your situation is, you should be receiving communications from the school through communication sheets or daily logs and updates in the IEP at the very least, so everything is documented and easily accessible.
For more information, see our article Paraeducators 101.