How do I know if my child's IEP supports are helping?

You hope that the supports in your child's IEP are helping them progress in school, but how can you tell? Here are some tips:

• Watch for behavior changes in your child. Do you notice an increase in behaviors when your child comes home from school, or do they not want to go to school in the morning? When your child does homework, are they struggling? These kind of behavior changes can give you a clue that supports in their IEP might not be implemented, or might not be effective, so you can open a discussion with your IEP team.

• Ask the teacher open-ended questions instead of yes or no questions. Don't ask, "Is it working?" Ask, "What is a particularly difficult time of day, and what's happening during that time?"

• Ask for data. For example, if your child’s IEP has a behavior support plan, the school is responsible for collecting data on those behaviors to see how well the plan is working. This applies to data that the school is collecting about your child's IEP goal progress or therapy services.

• Ask for an assessment. An assessment can reveal where your child may have an area of need, and the expert performing the assessment can suggest potential strategies.

• Look at the big picture. Looking at what’s going on with the entire class, not just your child, can help you assess if your child’s accommodations or modifications are working as they should. You can even get data on what the big picture is by requesting an ecological assessment.

• Ask other parents in your community, such as other parents at your school or in disability-specific groups in your area or online. By listening to what other parents are discussing, you can learn things you didn't know.

For more tips, see our full article How to Tell If Your Child’s IEP Is Working as It Should.