ArticlesArticlesGETTING TO KNOW YOUR CHILD'S TEACHER
In the musical "The King and I," a teacher sings of all the beautiful and new things she learns about her students, day by day. It is a lovely sentiment, but shortsighted if the teacher has students in her class with learning disabilities or ADHD, according to Suzanne H. Stevens, author of THE LD CHILD AND THE ADHD CHILD: WAYS THAT PARENTS AND PROFESSIONALS CAN HELP and also CLASSROOM SUCCESS FOR THE LD AND ADHD CHILD.
Instead, advises Stevens, parents should take on the role of ambassador to their child's teacher, initiating contact, providing information on the student's needs and abilities, and seeking to create a parent-teacher partnership that will result in a positive classroom experience.
A Conciliatory Approach
"It requires tremendous diplomacy to approach a teacher about any child," says Stevens, a former teacher and now a special education consultant and therapist. "When it is your own child and that child is learning disabled, parents often have an emotional aspect to their wishes that makes communicating and negotiating very difficult." However, these emotions can, if harnessed and used creatively, be effective in getting help for the child, especially from the classroom teacher, she notes.
"When parents know what the experts are saying about their child's disability and how it can be overcome, they are more confident," says Stevens. "The key is too then use that knowledge to guide the teacher."
At the start of each new school year, assume the classroom teacher, no matter how experienced, does not understand the special needs of learning disabled or ADHD students. The teacher may not have access to student records or have the time to go through them. Stevens recommends that parents schedule a meeting with the teacher at the beginning of each school year, if possible, before classes start. Be sure the teacher knows that the purpose of the meeting is to discuss the child's needs and that it will be brief.
First Meeting Tips
"In that first visit, the parents should inform the teacher lovingly about the child and convey their belief that this teacher is the right one for their child," says Stevens. "Since the objective of this first meeting is to open communications, the best approach is one that positions the parents as looking for answers that will help the teacher help their child."
Stevens counsels parents not to use this first meeting to tell the teacher what they expect of her, but to ask questions about how the class will be run and make suggestions of methods or accommodations that would help the student. The list of suggestions should be short and specific. Stevens also recommends that parents provide details on accommodations or teaching methods that have worked in the past.
While Stevens encourages parents to share what experts are saying about their child's disability, she also cautions parents about the amount of information they provide.
"If you hand the teacher a two-inch thick book, the teacher is likely to respond by saying he does not have the time to read it," says Stevens. "Parents should provide written materials with the passages that pertain to their child marked with a highlighter or post-it notes, and offer to review these sections with the teacher."
Next Steps
Before leaving, schedule a second meeting, preferably for a month later. "At the second meeting, the parents should get a definite commitment from the teacher of how the student will be taught," says Stevens. "Everyone needs to understand what the instructor will and will not do on behalf of the LD or ADHD student."
In most instances, teachers respond positively to the parents' efforts to help them get to know their child. "In my experience the enemy is ignorance, not teachers who don't care," concludes Stevens. "Teachers who truly understand a learning disabled student's situation usually want to do everything in their power to help."
excerpted
from an interview for Smart Kids with LD — www.smartkidswithld.org
A truly outstanding web resource where parents can find
information and support.