Special Education Letter Writing; 7 Items Parents of a Child With a Disability Must Include in Letters

Are you a parent of a child with a disability who would like to write
letters to special education personnel, but do not know what to
include? Would a short list of things to include be helpful? This
article will address 7 specific items that should be included in
letters to special education personnel, to make them effective.
Letters should be one page if possible, and contain these things:

Item 1: You should include your name in the letter as well as the name
of your child with a disability. If the special education person is anadministrator, they may not know you or your child.That’s why it is
important to include both in the letter.

Item 2: You should include your child’s birth date, if you are writing
to special education personnel who do not know your child. Specialeducation personnel often use a child’s birth date, for identification
purposes.

Item 3: You should include the date when you are writing the letter;
the date should include month, day and year. Letters sent to special
education personnel become part of your child’s school record. By
dating the letters, anyone looking at the record can tell when it was
written. The date the letter was sent may be important in the future
if a dispute occurs between you and special education personnel.

Item 4: You should very clearly state the purpose of the letter. For
Example: I am writing you today to tell you of my concerns for my
child, Mary, whom I believe may have a learning disability, in the
area of reading. I am asking that she be tested using a standardized
reading test such as the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test. When the test
results are finished, we can discuss them at an IEP meeting."

Item 5: You should include the person’s name that you are sending theletter to, their title, and school address.

Item 6: The letter should contain a hand signature at the bottom of
the page, by the parent writing the letter. If the letter is used in
the future, it holds more weight if it is signed.

Item 7: The letter should include any written documentation or
reports that help your case. For Example: I am including a letter from
the Occupational Therapist, about the behavioral difficulties my
daughter has been having during therapy time. After the signature put
the word attachments in the left hand margin, and list the name of all
attachments.Be sure to include the attachments with the letter.

By including, these important items in your letters to school
personnel, you are ensuring that yourletter is easy to read and tounderstand. Documentation is critical in case of a dispute between you
and special education personnel, in the future. Happy Writing!!