Educate yourself!

Let it be said that if you have a child with special needs, you NEED to get educated. You NEED to familiarize yourself with the laws. You NEED to become unpopular if necessary to get what your child needs. Don't be a shrinking violet, be a tiger. You don't have to be mean or rude, but you do have to know your stuff and you do have to be firm and persistent. Family to Family has a lovely bunch of advocates to give you advice, don't be afraid to call. Please do yourself and your child a favor and check out these sites.

http://www.thearcoftexas.org/resources/families/inclusionresources.asp

Print, highlight, and refer to the publication "It's A New IDEA" frequently. This is a must have if you are an educator or parent of a special needs child. Since it's not published by the TEA, the school district will not allow teachers to distribute it. It is a wonderful publication and you NEED to have it.

http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/guidance/special_dietary_needs.pdf#xml=http://65.216.150.153/texis/search/pdfhi.txt?query=guidance+for+special+needs+children&pr=FNS&prox=page&rorder=500&rprox=500&rdfreq=500&rwfreq=500&rlead=500&rdepth=0&sufs=0&order=r&cq=&id=4bc7808f7

This publication is the USDA law requiring public schools to provide appropriate substitutes in the school lunch program, if your child is on a special diet for his/her special need. You must have a letter of medical necessity from your child's pediatrician. This publication outlines how that must read. The school district can NOT turn you down for this service if you have the appropriate documentation - it is a federal law.

http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/Docs/ED/pdf/ED.25.pdf

This is the law that requires the school district to excuse absences for recognized therapy for autism. This is a good one if you're doing a lot of private therapy and run into attendance issues.

http://wrightslaw.com/

You just MUST subscribe to this site - it has everything you need to know. Check it out but make sure you have some time to browse.

OK, I may be done with my rant for the day. I just cannot stress enough how important it is that you become educated. This is one of the most important things you will do for your child through this whole journey of special needs.

Good luck and be brave!