Requesting An IEP Evaluation

Districts typically tell parents to put in writing their request to have their child evaluated for an IEP. When parents do put the request in writing, they usually put together a very basic or cursory letter request, one that lacks supporting facts, details and examples. Oftentimes, such a basic written request will result in a very basic assessment, with the district often failing to assess many areas of concern, or provide no assessment at all (right or wrong, we have seen districts refuse to do assessments on a regularly).

We attempt to ensure all areas of concern and suspected disability are brought to light and assessed by having the parent write a detailed request for an IEP assessment. We have the parent detail why they want the IEP assessment in the first place and why they are suspicious their child needs an IEP. But, since it is hard to remember all of one's concerns at letter writing time, we have the parent keep a daily journal for about 3 weeks detailing the concerns that arise over that time along with anything else they can remember as they go through the journaling process.

In this journal, we suggest the parent keep notes detailing what the student is having difficulty with according to their own observations, as well as any complaints from the child and teacher when it comes to schoolwork or homework. For instance, is the child having difficulty focusing during homework time, fidgeting, or fighting with you the entire time? If so, include it in the letter. Or, is the child having difficulty reading at her grade level or is the reading very chopping and slow with many errors? If so, include it. Just be sure to find a way to record all of your concerns and include all that you observe about your child's struggles in the journal. In addition, we like parents to include in this journal any past struggles that they remember, such as past struggles, comments from prior teachers and old report cards.

Is the student unable to do math homework, or having difficulty remembering math facts or doing word problems? Does the student have difficulty following multistep instructions and require you to break down the steps over and over again? Maybe, the student does not require you to repeat instructions but takes a very long time to respond to questions. Does the student have school-related anxiety or nervousness? Is speech articulation an issue or does the child have expressive or receptive language issues? Or, are there occupational therapy concerns, such as handwriting, motor coordination issues, vision processing, or sensory issues? Do you think physical therapy or adaptive physical education is required? Do you notice the child skips lines or words when reading? We say to include it all in the letter requesting the IEP assessment in as detailed a fashion as you can, with the understanding that specific facts, details and examples are better.

We also ask the parent to go through report cards, emails, and any other updates from the teachers on the student’s reading or math challenges or on the student’s ability to focus or attend during lessons, what the issue may be. We like them to look for any areas of concern mentioned to them over the years by a teacher and to look for any reports of prior reading or math levels and related academic scores. It is so important to have the old levels so parents can compare them to the current level. If anything helpful is found, we might have them include this information in the letter as well, whether mentioned by this year’s teacher or a prior year’s teacher.

In addition, if a parent thinks the child has a reading issue, we suggest the parent google "symptoms of a reading disorder" and then add to this letter any symptoms that apply to their child, noting relevant and specific examples. We suggest the parent do the same research for ADHD if attention, focus, organization, or executive functioning is an issue, and for any other potential disability as well, including but not limited to speech, auditory processing, writing, math, sensory issues, etc. And, if the parent does not know which disabilities apply, we suggest a more general Google search on "symptoms of learning disabilities" or "types of speech disorders", and then zero in on the more specific issues at hand.

Also, before writing the letter, we suggest that the parent raise their concerns with the teacher(s) in a face-to-face conversation (as this is where you will get the most information) and, after sharing their concerns, ask the teacher for details about any areas where she sees the student struggling. We encourage parents to take notes during this conversation so that all relevant information can be included in their letter (with a teacher "reported to me" statement) as well as any state scores, math, reading, or writing levels, and whatever else the teacher provides that shows the student is behind. The parents should consider themselves an investigator during the meeting and be sure to ask lots of questions (in a friendly way) and for all data supporting the teacher's positive or negative opinions.

So, if the teacher says the student is doing great in reading. We would suggest the parents ask to how many reading assessments have been given over the school year, when the next assessment will be given, and for the teacher to review his reading assessments with the parent. We would have the parents ask if there is a more detailed breakdown of any results that are discussed and for the grade level equivalent of the student's assessment. Be sure to ask for and see the data!

We also suggest the parent gather related and helpful information from any healthcare providers, and this can include anything from an ADHD diagnosis to a sleep apnea diagnosis. If the healthcare provider is willing, we like the parents to ask them to put the diagnosis in writing and to explain how it can or does adversely impact the student's education. In addition, we want the parent to gather assessment reports that may be helpful as well as any information as to present levels or continuing struggles from any private tutors or speech, occupational therapy, physical therapy, etc., providers.

Once all that great information has been gathered, we like the parent to put all the relevant information in a letter requesting an IEP evaluation. We want them to include all helpful report card scores and comments as well as anything a teacher may have stated in the past about the area of concern, whether at a parent-teacher conference, by email, or otherwise. We like the letter to read like a story, in chronological order, and to be written in a way that causes the reader to want to help the child. As an example, we have prepared the following letter/email as something we might like to see:

Dear Principal ________:

As you know, I am the parent of ________ who is in ___ Grade at ______________ School. I am referring my daughter for a comprehensive assessment in all areas related to suspected disability to determine whether my child is eligible for special education and/or related services either under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (including the Other Health Impairment category) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

In preschool, we first noticed my daughter was far behind her peers in learning letter sounds and had difficulty learning and remembering the names of the letters in the alphabet. In fact, it took her over a year to learn and remember the three letters in her own name. This was why we held her back one year before she started kindergarten. During that year, my daughter attended preschool and took classes at Kumon to focus on reading and math. Her troubles with learning sounds and letters continued and were so great that Kumon recommended she stop attending the reading portion of their program. In her preschool report cards, the teachers reported that …

As Kindergarten progressed, we noticed my daughter still could sound out simple words and could not understand that words can be broken down into parts. She also struggled with attention and focus on any pre-reading or reading activities. In her Kindergarten report card, her teachers expressed a similar concern, stating "she struggles with letter sounds", "she has difficulty with phonemic awareness", and ....

In First Grade, we noticed my daughter continued to have the same struggles. In response to my email asking about my concerns, her teacher mentioned she had the same concerns, saying "I am concerned as well and will keep an eye on her." Her report cards also reflected her reading difficulties because she regularly received 1s or 2s in related areas as well as areas requiring attention and focus. We reported these concerns to my daughter's doctor, who later diagnosed her with ADHD. We have attached a letter from the doctor indicating my daughter's ADHD diagnosis.

In Second Grade, my daughter's reading continued to lag behind her peers. So, we hired a reading tutor for her. The reading tutor works with her twice a week and believes her efforts are not enough. She suspects our daughter has dyslexia. We have attached a letter from her indicating the same. Throughout Second Grade, we continued to receive reports about the teacher's concerns about my daughter's reading. The teacher made statements to us such as"she is really struggling with reading" and "she is far behind many of her peers." In Second Grade, we started to get increasing reports about her behavior as well. In her report cards, she continued to get 1s and 2s in these areas, and the teacher comments included "she is still working on her letter sounds", "she struggles with phonemic awareness, "needs to work on her sight words", "has difficulty completing work independently" and "struggles with attention and focus."

As mentioned above, our daughter is now in Third Grade. I recently spoke with her teacher, Ms. _____, and she has expressed concerns about …. Ms. ____ also indicated that my daughter's current reading level is at a Kindergarten grade level in most areas and that my daughter is still working on her letter sounds, is unable to sound out CVC words, and has only mastered a few sight words. We have noticed these same things at home. Despite continuing to work with a reading tutor, she still cannot read grade-level books to us, nor can she read first-grade-level books to us. She simply cannot complete her homework independently and when we ask her to she cries and screams. For our child to complete her homework, we have to sit alongside her and read the material to her.

This year we also noticed that my daughter is having significant handwriting issues and cannot spell anything besides her own name and two-letter words like "it" or "me." We are starting to notice she is having math struggles as well and becomes quite upset when it is time for math homework. She refuses to do any of it and hardly pays attention when we work on the math homework together. I suspect her math skills are not much better than her reading skills in terms of grade levels.

I look forward to hearing from you and working with you and your staff. The best way to reach me is by email at ___________.

This is not just about getting the district to agree to do an IEP evaluation, but we like to ensure districts assess all areas of suspected disabilities and do not overlook any potential assessment areas. So, after the parents submit their letter requesting an IEP, is notified the IEP evaluation will proceed, and gets the consent to evaluate, we also suggest that the parent sends the same letter as an “FYI” to the school psychologist who is doing the evaluation, along with a copy of any other evaluator(s) (speech, PT, OT, etc.). And, copy and paste or attach it to any questionnaires they have you fill out, writing "see attached parent concern letter" as appropriate and in addition to any other information the parent includes.

Also, at the initial IEP meeting, it is a great idea to share the same letter of concern again, but be sure to first edit it to include any additional concerns that you remembered or discovered. At the start of the IEP meeting, when they ask about the "parent concerns", the parent can then say, "I have a concerns letter I would like to read to the team and I will email it to the team after I read it so it can be copied and pasted into the parent concerns section of the IEP." After the IEP meeting, you can then email the letter to the IEP team along with a request it be copied and pasted into the parent section of the IEP. We talk more about the Parent Concerns Statement in The Initial IEP Eligibility Meeting Checklist and Guide on our Member's only Checklists & Charts page.