Child and Family Advocacy is a road map to help you help your child. You know your child best and when you get that "gut" feeling that something is wrong, you are usually correct. What do you do? What are the laws? Who is on your side? Why won't they listen to you? What are your rights?
Many questions are answered here written specifically for the Parent and Family that no one has taken the time to share their rights with them. To give them informed consent of what they plan to do with their child, to make them an equal participating member of the "Team" for Identification, Referral, Evaluation, Planning, Implementation and Review of their child's life.
This endeavor includes specific Chapters on your Child's Advocacy, Psych-Social and Developmental History, Education, Special Education, Parental Rights, Developmental Disabilities, Juvenile Justice, Behavioral Health/Grief, Funding, Laws to Advocate By, Conflict Resolution and Advocacy Management and Documentation.
The Appendix covers National Resources, State Resources, copy of your Parental Safeguards from IDEIA 2004, Key Concepts and lists of acronyms from several children's systems.
Two hands-on tools for Parents to control and drive their child's trip to success; The Psych-Social/Developmental History can be completed at your convenience without being rushed and missing key elements. An incomplete Psycho-Social/Developmental History can be as damaging to your child as none at all. The second tool is the, Advocacy Plan which will help you to identify what you believe is the Problem. It will assist you in defining the goal including objectives, methods, resources, strengths, laws and systems required to get yourchild's needs met.
Never forget you know your child best and their most valued and successful advocate because you hold that one element that no one can match, Love.