You must also put into writing who will be attending such as ..

Parents, doctors, friends, other teachers, family.

I am not so sure if they will allow a conferance meeting via phone that might be against some school rule.

Knowing what I know today about how schools deal with special ed I would have recorded the meetings with a tape.

Which you still could do and advise everyone at the meetings it is better then taking notes. Then you could send a copy to your Aunt and she can advise you or make letters of dispute.

Also ** JUST FOR YOUR INFO

Should the school want you to sign off on any paperwork RIGHT THERE NOW…. always say NO and give yourself time to review the meeting and offer they give.

You give them the time YOU say to let them know your answer.

Do not be bullied into something you might not be sure of.

I now have 9 years of dealing with Special ED and the tricks they can play with the children within the system…. do not allow them to play with your childs LIFE…. YOU as the parent have ALL the rights NOT the school.

Best of LUCK

My big suggestion… go to Wrightslaw.com There you will find out all sorts of helpful info about how to handle ARD meetings, etc. I also reccomend From Emotions to Advocacy… their book, but get it on Amazon.com I wish I’d had the book before we got started, not right before I pulled my kids out of the public school system.

Quick tips… definetly get that tape recorder! That should not cause any trouble at all, you are simply wanting to record the meeting to review later… Also, have a list of your concerns that you want addressed in your child’s education, with room to make notes on how they are going to address those concerns. They talk another language in these meetings, so make sure you know ahead of time what it is you are looking for, and you understand exactly how they are handling your concerns. Including writing down “no response” if you have too. And that signature they ask for seems like no big deal when it is placed in front of you. In fact, it seems like you are simply saying that yes you were there. But it is used as your acceptance to the child’s IEP… don’t sign. Simply tell them that you want to have time to review the paperwork at home, and set up a following meeting… where you either bring your signature, or your list of questions.

Bring someone with you. Not just dear hubby. Perferably someone who has experience working with special ed. Another parent, someone from ECI, if you have that luxery. You walk into a little room, and suddenly you are surrounded by 6 to 10 qualified professionals. It can be a bit intimidating.

I was not the least bit prepared for my first ARD meeting. I had no idea what I was getting into. In fact I spent the next year trying to figure it all out. I found out a lot, I joined a special ed advocacy group, but then I pulled my children out of school before our second ARD. Personally, I’m glad I did… but that doesn’t mean that you won’t have a good experience… what is that saying? Be wise as a serpent, but gentle as a lamb. A good lesson I could have learned!