Communicating With Parents Of Exceptional Children

This book combines innovative strategies with daily activities designed to improve communication between the school and families of special needs children. The text addresses the changing family structure and takes the stance that parents and educators should be partners rather than combatants. Listening skills and positive communication are the heart of building positive relationships between family members and professionals. This text explains how to handle parent - teacher conferences, progress reports, group meetings, parent training, and planning programs. This fourth edition takes an in-depth look at fostering the best relationship between teachers and parents. Classroom teachers, as well as special educators, will find this resource extremely useful in communicating with parents and addressing the needs of children with disabilities.

This book helps readers with real-world situations. It is easy and user-friendly, this book provides strategies and tools to aid in communicating with parents.

Features: * First person narrative vignettes help to highlight the critical role collaborative relationships play in working effectively with parents and families of children and youth with exceptionalities. * Activities are provided at the end of each chapter to help the reader integrate and apply his/her understanding of the material, including role-play exercises based on case studies presented in the appendices. * Straightforward and functional content that assists educators and related service personnel with knowledge and skill acquisition directly connected to effective collaboration with parents and families of children and youth with exceptionalities. * Integration of effective-practice methods and current literature in an easy to understand, albeit highly professional, resource. The primary theme of the fourth edition of Working with Parents and Families of Exceptional Children and Youth is that educators and related service professionals must be involved in helping parents and families to contend with the challenges of raising, living with and educating a child who has an exceptionality. This text retains its focus on developing critical knowledge and skills for conferencing and collaborating that springs from a strength-based approach when working with families to develop responsive practitioners. Additionally, it offers professionals current evidence-based methods and related resources for building knowledge and skill sets needed for effective parent and family involvement. The text is organized in three sections: 1.Part 1: begins with an overview of the historical and changing nature of the family. It continues with specific strategies to establish trust and effective partnerships with parents and families of various configurations, including those with different languages, cultural practices, lifestyles and values. 2.Part 2: details methods to address parents' concerns during initial conferences, to report academic and soci

For preservice students taking special education courses as well as inservice educators seeking professional development. An engaging discussion of the legal, ethical, practical, and cultural considerations of working with families of special needs children. With a strong focus on the families of special needs children, this first edition text provides students with both the information to understand the challenges and needs of these families as well as the skills and strategies required of educators working with such families. Containing a thorough discussion of the common legal and ethical concerns surrounding children with special needs and their families, this book also emphasizes the many individual differences among families. With that in mind, the authors focus on diversity in families with special needs children, cultural considerations, age, and communication with special needs families. In addition, a distinctive final chapter called "A Family's Voice," gives students the special opportunity to hear about the unique thoughts and experiences of a large selection of family members of children with special needs.