Could an IEP be What Your Child Needs?
on Nov 20, 2009 in Education Programs School Special Needs advocate for your child behavioral contract behavioral problems disabilities education act does my child need an iep? ep FAPE free appropriate public education heather sedlock IDEA IEP process IEPs individualized education plan influence how the school will handle misbehavior notice of procedural safeguards observe your child parent blogger parents rights psychologists school administrators school personnel special education teachers As a parent of a special needs child, one often does not know where to begin. It all can depend on how old the child is when he or she is diagnosed. If a child is age 3 or older, one of the first things a parent should do is to request his or her [..

A Non-ADHD Parent’s Initiation into an ADHD World
on Nov 20, 2009 in ADHD/ADD add/adhd ADHD adopted child angie schexnaider arguing with child consistent routine difficulty making friends finding balance homework issues hurt feelings hyper impulsive child karate loss of self esteem micromanage parent blogger routine self control From the day we took my son home from the hospital, I knew it was going to be a wild ride.   He cried all night long and didn’t stop for six months.   He was adopted and we knew little about his birth parents’ medical history and none of...

With Kids, Stuff Happens–and Thank Goodness It Does!
on Nov 19, 2009 in Ask PSL Parenting Skills behavior problems Child Behavior effective parenting james lehman parental support line advisor tina wakefield total transformation program trying new things One of my main goals as a mom — and in my opinion, one of the most important qualities you can have as a parent — is to be more flexible and adaptable. Now, when I say “flexible” I don’t mean that you should throw rules, limits, or...

How I Worked with the School to Accommodate My Son’s “Learning Difference”
on Nov 13, 2009 in Homework School AR AR program changing the way my son studies criteria for the course empowering parents greengirl learning difference listening to kids parent blogger working with the school When our son TJ was nearing the end of 7th grade, he had not yet earned any AR*, or “Accelerated Reading” points.  In an attempt to resolve this before the deadline, we created scheduled reading times and reading quantities (number of pa...

Ask PSL: My 19 Year Old is Living at Home — And Lying to Me!
on Nov 12, 2009 in Older Children adult child living at home arguing with child arguing with parents blog consequences for older kids empowering parents james lehman Legacy Publishing Company living at home motivating the unmotivated child no job older child at home older child living at home older child lying parental support line advisor rules for older children total transformation program unemployed child Dear PSL: I am at my wit’s end. I have been trying to get my 19 year old son to get a job for months now. He says he’s trying, but I can’t be sure, as I am not home during the day to supervise him. I also just found out that he has...

A Mom/Teacher Tells It Like It Is: “Two of My Kids Have ADHD — and So Do I.”
on Nov 11, 2009 in ADHD/ADD add ADHD Daycare educator empowering parents guilt melody miracle mother of three parent blogger raising a child with behavior challenges ritalin teacher My name is Melody, and I’m the mother of three children — two of which are diagnosed ADHD, as am I.  I’m excited to begin blogging here on Empowering Parents. Today’s disjointed society separates us from one another, yet through websites...

Is Your Family Watching Too Much TV? (You’re Not Alone!)
on Nov 6, 2009 in Media News annita woz childhood obesity children's tv habits empowering parents kids watching tv nielsen report on television viewing non-violent parent blogger physical activity tv for babies tv watching A Nielsen Co. reports kids are watching more television than ever and television viewing for children ages 2-11 is the highest since 1995.  Kids ages 6-11 watch 28 hours a week with about 4.5 hours on DVD.  And worse, kids age 2-5 are watching 32 h...

Sound off: Should a 6-year-old be Evicted from Her Grandparents’ Home?
on Nov 6, 2009 in News empowering parents fighting to keep granddaughter florida foster care foster home grandchild grandparents jimmy and judy stottler judge's ruling kimberly evicted from grandparents retirement community lago Grandparents in Lagos, Florida are fighting to keep their 6 year-old grand daughter Kimberly from being evicted from their retirement community. They have been caring for Kimberly for five years, since her drug-addicted mother was forced to give up c...

Mom Investigating an Incident: Why Won’t My ADHD Son’s School Give Me Details of His Inappropriate Behavior?
on Nov 6, 2009 in ADHD/ADD Acting-out Behavior School ADHD asperger's syndrome Consequences empowering parents fourth grade hand gestures inappropriate language keeping records of behavior kim stricker new parent blogger school administration teacher I got a call from my son’s teacher last week. Apparently, he used an inappropriate word and perhaps a hand gesture to accompany it to another child. That child’s parent had called the principal. The principal asked my son Builder’s teacher t...

A Tale of Tension: When Our Adult Son Moved Home “Temporarily”
on Oct 30, 2009 in Older Children adult children adult child at home bail out burger king cash for clunkers empowering parents empty nest financial help for adult children Independence kathy pride landlord living at home with adult child parent blogger rent temporarily living at home west coast I have often quipped that middle-aged women and their twenty-something year-old kids don’t belong under the same roof, but the reality of this statement hit home this summer when our son moved back home temporarily. The key word here is “temporar...