EXCEPTIONAL FAMILY MEMBER PROGRAM ”Remember, when you and the team sat down to hammer out the IEP, you all did the best you could based on what you knew about your child. Now that the new school year is starng do you see things work- ing as planned? “ Mysael Santolaja INSIDE THIS ISSUE: IEP Procedures 1 Adolescent Substance 2 Calendar Of Events 3 Calendar Of Events 4 Thank You! 5 S EPTEMBER EPTEMBER EPTEMBER 2015 2015 2015 S EPTEMBER EPTEMBER EPTEMBER School is back in session! Our chil- dren are facing new teachers, new class- mates and new classrooms. This time of year can be a little difficult for a child who has an Individualized Education Program (IEP) as the routine is new and accessing support and modifications can take time to establish. It is time to pull out your child’s IEP (that big packet of paperwork) and review it. What kind of supports/ modifications is your child supposed to have in place? Are the current accom- modations working? Remember, when you and the team sat down to hammer out the IEP, you all did the best you could based on what you knew about your child. Now that the new school year is starting do you see things working as planned? The EFMP office knows the IEP Process can be daunting. So we teamed up with DODEA to design a workshop to help parents of children with special needs. The workshop will take place on September 4, 2015 from 11am-1pm . Please join EFMP and DODEA’s Joe Laurenzi Instructional Systems Specialist - Special Education Okinawa DSO for this informative workshop. You will learn about the IEP process, the inner workings of the IEP, and how to establish an IEP. . This is your chance to voice concerns and ask questions about IEPs.
Transcript
EXCEPTIONAL FAMILY MEMBER PROGRAM
”Remember, when you and the team sat down to hammer out the IEP, you all did the best you
could based on what you knew about your
child. Now that the new school year is starting
do you see things work-ing as planned? “ Mysael Santolaja
I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :
IEP Procedures 1
Adolescent Substance 2
Calendar Of Events 3
Calendar Of Events 4
Thank You! 5
SSSEPTEMBEREPTEMBEREPTEMBER 201520152015
SSSEPTEMBEREPTEMBEREPTEMBER
School is back in session! Our chil-
dren are facing new teachers, new class-
mates and new classrooms. This time of
year can be a little difficult for a child who
has an Individualized Education Program
(IEP) as the routine is new and accessing
support and modifications can take time to
establish.
It is time to pull out your child’s IEP
(that big packet of paperwork) and review it. What kind of supports/
modifications is your child supposed to have in place? Are the current accom-
modations working?
Remember, when you and the team sat down to hammer out the IEP,
you all did the best you could based on what you knew about your child. Now
that the new school year is starting do you see things working as planned?
The EFMP office knows the IEP Process can be daunting. So we
teamed up with DODEA to design a workshop to help parents of children with
special needs. The workshop will take place on September 4, 2015 from
11am-1pm . Please join EFMP and
DODEA’s Joe Laurenzi Instructional
Systems Specialist - Special Education
Okinawa DSO for this informative
workshop.
You will learn about the IEP
process, the inner workings of the IEP,
and how to establish an IEP. . This is
your chance to voice concerns and
ask questions about IEPs.
Page 2
Adolescent Substance Abuse: "My
child has a substance abuse prob-
lem."
It's a sentence no parent would want
to utter, yet drug abuse and alcohol abuse
seem to be prevalent throughout the coun-
try. For example, the National Center on Ad-
diction and Substance Abuse at Columbia
University (CASA) reports that 26 percent of public school students ages 12
to 17 years say that drugs are used, kept or sold on school grounds, and
each day CASA reports, more than 13,000 adolescents take their very first
sip of alcohol.
Unraveling the reasons for substance abuse in teens is difficult, as
each teen is an individual and has his/her own reasons for making disas-
trous choices like this, but parents who know more about what abuse like
this can look like are in a good position to step in with solutions when their
children begin heading down an addictive path. Armed with information,
these parents can ensure that their children get help and leave their danger-
ous behaviors behind as they move into adulthood.
Trying to help teens with substance abuse, means spotting the behav-
ior early, and forcing a conversation about the issue. Since teens often won’t
readily admit that they’re using drugs or alcohol, parents are forced to be-
come detectives on their own, looking for signs of drug use and/or alcohol
abuse on a 24/7 basis. It’s hard to be suspicious day in and day out, but it
might be the best option for parents who want to ensure that the problem is
handled early.
This month, the Exceptional Fami-
ly Member Program and Miss Elizabeth
Jackson, Substance Abuse Prevention
Specialist will be holding a forum. In this
forum, we will talk about how to recog-
nize substance abuse among adoles-
cents, drugs available on Okinawa, and
where to seek help. The forum is going
to be on September 17 at the Camp Fos-
ter Education Center from 1130am-1pm.
“When trying to help teens with substance abuse, means spotting the behavior early, and forcing a conver-sation about the is-sue.”
September 2015 Page 3
September 2- Exceptional Coffee Breaks 930am-1030am. Camp Foster EFMP Building 495. Join us for Family interaction and collab-oration as we welcome new EFMP families and foster overall communi-ty awareness of EFMP.
September 3- P.A.S.S. Proactive Advocates Sharing and Support-ing 5pm-6pm Bob Hope Elementary School Kadena Air Base. A monthly parent driven support group. Participants are divided into two interactive groups-one for parents and one for children. Parents talk about effective communications and best practices for promoting posi-tive behavior. The children’s group participates in learning activities in a structured recreational based setting.
September 4- IEP Procedures 11am-1pm Camp Foster Education Center. Join us as Department of Defense Education Activity and EFMP team up to discuss and answer questions about Individualized Education Program (IEP) procedures.
September 16- Play and Learn With EFMP 10am-11pm - Every 3rd Wednesday of the Month, Camp Foster Library. Join EFMP and EDIS for some fun activities for ages from 0 to 3. For more information call EFMP at 645-9237.
September 17 Adolescent Substance Abuse Forum Camp Foster Education Center 11am-1pm In this forum, facilitated by Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist Elizabeth Jackson, parents and educators can learn how to recognize the warning signs of substance abuse among adolescents, drugs available to them on Okinawa, and where to seek help.
Please be advised that these events may change.
For more information about all of our upcoming events and for times and location contact your Okinawa EFMP office at 645-9237 or visit our website at www.mccsokinawa.com/efmp.
Page 3
October 1 - ADHD Awareness Month Kick Off Resource Fair 9am-2pm Camp Foster Communi-ty Center. Join EFMP in celebrating the month of October as the ADHD Awareness Month. Come down to the Foster Community Center and interact with various resources, providers and support organi-zations here on island. We will be having lots of activ-ities and a presentation about ADHD from our spe-cial guest Dr. Gail Tripp PH.D. Head of the Neuro-science Department from Okinawa Institute of Sci-ence and Technology.
October 1 - P.A.S.S. Proactive Advocates Sharing and Support-ing 5pm-6pm Camp Foster Bowling Alley.
A monthly parent driven support group. Participants are divided into two interactive groups-one for parents and one for children. Parents talk about effective communications and best practices for promoting positive behavior. The children’s group participates in learning activi-ties in a structured recreational based setting.
October 21 - Play and Learn With EFMP 10am-11pm - Every 3rd Wednesday of the Month, Camp Foster Library. Join EFMP and EDIS for some fun activities for ages from 0 to 3. For more in-formation call EFMP at 645-9237.
Please be advised that these events may change.
For more information about all of our upcoming events and for times and location contact your Okinawa EFMP office at 645-9237 or visit our website at www.mccsokinawa.com/efmp.
