Tag Archives: Guidance Counselors

Social Issues In School – Revisiting SPC Episode 08

Social Issues In School.

When we talk about issues that can cause anxiety for parents of special needs kids,  dealing with social situations in school and elsewhere is probably right at the top of the list.  Will our children be accepted or will they be teased or shunned? Will our kids be able to handle the day to day interactions in the class room, in the cafeteria, or on the playground? What about bullying? And what are we supposed to do when our kids experience problems with these situations? Many of these social issues in school start early in pre-school and elementary school and can cause a lifetime of stress and problems for parents and children alike.

Social Workers And How They Help.

For many schools the person who can help guide our kids through their day in school is the social worker. They’re also the person who parents can talk to for help with making sure their special needs child can fit into the various social situations and can offer advice that parents can use to reinforce the school’s expectations at home. They are also often the ones who work with the parents of other students to facilitate better communication and understanding.

Advice From A Real Elementary School Social Worker

Our guest on this episode of Special Parents Confidential is Chris Kenward, an elementary school social worker who has many years of experience dealing with both special needs students and general education students.  Many experts agree, the vast majority of social problems begin early in elementary school so the sooner a child with special needs can get help in dealing with social issues, the better their progress will be throughout their life. The information Chris shares here is vital for every parent of a special needs child, as well as for teachers, special education experts, care givers, and anyone who has a relationship with a special needs kid.

Links Mentioned In This Episode

Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid – The website by the authors of the book. Includes a page with links to where you can purchase a copy of their book.

Driven Story by Jon Singer  – The website of the Sibling Support Project, where you can see stories from the book and order a copy.

Views From Our Shoes – Sibling Support  – The website of the Sibling Support Project, where you can see stories from the book and order a copy.

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Special Parents Confidential Episode 27 Education Funding

Education Funding.

School districts across the United States are facing education funding problems. Whether through outright tax cuts, or reductions in revenue from State allocations, education budgets are getting smaller every year. 

Unfortunately in order to save funding for general education programs some districts have made the hard choice of reducing special education programs by eliminating support staff, teaching assistants, specialized therapists, social workers, intervention specialists, or any combination of staff who work with special education students.

Recently, one school district in Michigan has taken a bold step to help fund their special education programs. The Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency (KRESA), which oversees nine school districts and four public service academies in Kalamazoo County, Michigan, put together a ballot initiative to raise taxes specifically to fund their regional special education programs for the next six years. Despite widespread sentiment among most people against raising taxes, the ballot initiative passed successfully.

John spoke to KRESA Superintendent Dave Campbell to talk about the initiative and how their combined districts were able to get the funding passed. Proving that taxes to fund education can be raised when parents, educators, administrators, taxpayers and voters work together to make sure the message is heard.

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Please note: the link to the news article on M-Live about the successful election may be expired, depending on when you see this post. Typically they are good for about two years after the posted date, which was two months before this episode was posted.

 

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Special Parents Confidential 08 Social Issues In School

Social Issues In School

When we talk about issues that can cause anxiety for parents of special needs kids,  dealing with social situations in school and elsewhere is probably right at the top of the list.  Will our children be accepted or will they be teased? Will  our kids be able to handle the day to day interactions in the class room, in the cafeteria, or on the playground? What about bullying? And what are we supposed to do when our kids experience problems with these situations?

For many schools the person who can help guide our kids through their day in school is the social worker. They’re also the person who parents can talk to for help with making sure their special needs child can fit into the various social situations and can offer advice that parents can use to reinforce the school’s expectations at home.

Our guest on this episode of Special Parents Confidential is Chris Kenward, an elementary school social worker who has many years of experience dealing with both special needs students and general education students.  Many experts agree, the vast majority of social problems begin early in elementary school so the sooner a child with special needs can get help in dealing with social issues, the better their progress will be throughout their life. The information Chris shares here is going to be vital for every parent of a special needs child, as well as for teachers, special education experts, care givers, and anyone who has a relationship with a special needs kid.

Links Mentioned In The Podcast: 

Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid  The website from the authors of the book.

Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid link to the book’s listing for sale on Amazon

Driven Story – Jon Singer – This is the website of the author of the book, “The Special Needs Parent Handbook”, which you can find on this page.

Views From Our Shoes – The website of the Sibling Support Project, where you can see stories from the book and order a copy.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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