Articles
One question at a time
Each article answers a single question about the special education process, from the same primary sources as the guides, and names the guide that goes deeper.
Published October 24, 2026
Does the school have to provide transportation for a child with an IEP
Transportation is a related service the IEP team decides on, not an automatic part of every IEP. Here is who decides, what the IEP should say about the ride, how long it can be, and when a bus suspension counts as a suspension.
Companion guide: The School Bus Playbook
Published October 22, 2026
Does auditory processing disorder qualify a child for an IEP or a 504 plan
Auditory processing disorder is not on the federal list of categories, and a diagnosis does not decide eligibility for an IEP or a 504 plan. Here are the four doors that can open, what the evaluation must look at, and where an FM system fits.
Companion guide: Auditory Processing Disorder at School, Decoded
Published October 21, 2026
Can a child with depression get an IEP or a 504 plan
A depression diagnosis does not decide either question, and it does not close either door. Here is what each law asks, what the evaluation must look at, and what a plan can hold.
Companion guide: Depression, Bipolar Disorder and ODD at School, Decoded
Published October 11, 2026
Does dysgraphia qualify a child for an IEP or a 504 plan
Dysgraphia is not a word in the federal regulations, and a diagnosis does not decide eligibility for an IEP or a 504 plan. Here is the one writing area, the line the law draws at the hand, and where help is written on each side of it.
Companion guide: Dysgraphia at School, Decoded
Published October 8, 2026
Does dyscalculia qualify a child for an IEP
Dyscalculia is not a term in the federal regulations, and a diagnosis does not decide eligibility. Here is the category a child is evaluated under, the two math areas, who decides, and what a private report can and cannot do.
Companion guide: Dyscalculia at School, Decoded
Published October 5, 2026
Can a child with an IEP be held back
Yes. Federal special education law does not decide promotion, and it does not stop a school from holding back a child with an IEP. Here is who does decide, what the IEP team can do, and what to ask for in writing.
Companion guide: Grades and Report Cards With an IEP, Decoded
Published October 2, 2026
How to get counseling into your child's IEP or 504 plan
Counseling at school becomes a commitment when the IEP team writes it in as a related service, with an amount. Here is the test the team applies, the four services that can carry counseling, and what to read on the page.
Companion guide: Counseling at School, Decoded
Published September 28, 2026
What to do when the school wants to change your child's placement
A placement change is decided by a group that includes you, based on the IEP and explained in writing before it happens. Here is how the rules work, what the school owes you on paper, and what stay-put does and does not do.
Companion guide: The Placement Decision, Decoded
Published September 27, 2026
How a child gets occupational therapy at school
School occupational therapy is a related service with its own test, and "medical, not educational" is not that test. Here is what the rule asks, what the evaluation has to cover, and where the service gets written down.
Companion guide: Occupational Therapy at School, Decoded
Published September 24, 2026
How a child qualifies for speech therapy at school
School speech therapy turns on two findings, not one, and a report card answers neither by itself. Here is what the federal rule asks, what the evaluation has to cover, and where the parent sits in the decision.
Companion guide: Speech Therapy at School, Decoded
Published September 22, 2026
How to get assistive technology into your child's IEP
Federal law makes the IEP team ask about assistive technology at every meeting, and no regulation names a single device. Here is what the rules define, how the question reaches the team, and what the IEP has to say for a tool to be real.
Companion guide: Assistive Technology, Decoded
Published September 20, 2026
How to ask for a one-on-one aide in your child's IEP
No federal rule names a one-on-one aide, so the request runs on a different vocabulary. Here is the category the support belongs to, what the IEP has to say for it to be real, and the two answers a written request can get.
Companion guide: The One-on-One Aide, Decoded
Published September 18, 2026
What happens after you file a due process complaint
Filing does not put you in a hearing room. It starts a run of federal deadlines: a written response inside 10 days, a resolution meeting inside 15, a 30-day period to settle it, and only then the clock on a decision.
Companion guide: The Mediation and Due Process Playbook
Published September 16, 2026
How to read your child's IEP progress report
A progress report is close to unreadable on its own and readable beside the goal it belongs to. Here is what the IEP has to say about progress, what a complete entry shows, and what to do when an entry is a word instead of a number.
Companion guide: The IEP Progress Report, Decoded
Published September 14, 2026
How a special education state complaint works
A state complaint is a signed letter to your state education agency saying a public agency, usually the school district, did not meet a special education requirement. Here is what it has to contain, and what the state has to do in the 60 days that follow.
Companion guide: The State Complaint Playbook
Published September 14, 2026
Does an autism diagnosis qualify a child for an IEP
A clinical diagnosis and a school eligibility decision answer two different questions, under two different sets of criteria. Here is the two-part test the school applies, and the job your private report actually does in the file.
Companion guide: Autism at School
Published September 14, 2026
What the IEP team has to do with a parent's concerns
Federal law requires the IEP Team to consider a parent's concerns when it writes the program, and it does not require anyone to copy those words into the document. Here is what the duty covers, and where your sentences land.
Companion guide: The Parent Concerns Statement
Published September 14, 2026
What prior written notice means in special education
Prior written notice is the school's written record of one decision, and federal law lists seven things it has to contain. Here is when a school owes you one, what belongs inside it, and what the timing rule actually says.
Companion guide: Prior Written Notice, Decoded
Published September 8, 2026
Who has to be at an IEP meeting
Federal law names seven categories of required IEP Team member and sets two different rules for excusing one of them. Here is what the meeting notice has to tell you, and how to check it before you reply.
Companion guide: The IEP Meeting Playbook
Published September 8, 2026
What to do when the school says no to an evaluation
A school is allowed to turn down a request for a special education evaluation, but it is not allowed to do it quietly. Here is what a refusal has to contain in writing, and what the routes are once you have it.
Companion guide: MTSS and RTI, Explained
Published September 8, 2026
What to do when the school is not following the IEP
Federal law requires the plan to be in effect and accessible to every teacher and provider who works with your child, each one told what they are responsible for. Here is what the rules require, and the order to work through when the classroom looks different from the paper.
Companion guide: From Paper to Practice
Published September 8, 2026
When the school pays for a second evaluation
A parent who disagrees with a school district's evaluation can request an independent one at public expense. Here is what the federal regulation promises, and what it does not.
Companion guide: When You Disagree With the School’s Evaluation
Published September 8, 2026
How to read the scores on your child's evaluation report
An evaluation report prints several kinds of score on the same page. Here is what each scale means, why every score arrives with a range, and what the regulations required of the evaluation behind it.
Companion guide: Your Child’s Evaluation Report, Decoded
Published September 8, 2026
How to get your child's complete school file
FERPA and IDEA both open a child's education records to a parent, on two different clocks. Here is what counts as a record, when the file is due, and why neither law guarantees copies.
Companion guide: Your Child’s Complete School File
Published September 8, 2026
How to get a 504 plan for your child
A 504 plan comes out of a process federal law lays out: a written request, an evaluation at no cost, and a decision by a group of people who know your child. Here is the route, with the rule behind each step.
Companion guide: The 504 Plan Playbook
Published September 8, 2026
How many days a school can suspend a child with an IEP
Federal law puts two ten-day lines and one 45-school-day exception around a suspension, and each one changes what the school owes your child. Here is how the count works and what it sets off.
Companion guide: The Behavior Intervention Plan Playbook
Published September 8, 2026
How long the school has to evaluate your child
The federal deadline is 60 calendar days, counted from the day the school receives your signed consent rather than the day you asked. Where a state has set its own timeframe, the state rule replaces the 60 days.
Companion guide: The Evaluation Request Letter Kit
Published September 8, 2026
How a child with dyslexia qualifies for an IEP
Dyslexia is named inside the federal definition of a specific learning disability. Here is the test a school eligibility group actually applies, what the rules require, and what they only permit.
Companion guide: Dyslexia and the IEP
Published September 8, 2026
Can a child with anxiety get an IEP or a 504 plan
Anxiety is not one of IDEA's disability categories by name, and it still reaches both doors. Here is what each law asks, and what a school may not require before it looks.
Companion guide: When Anxiety Keeps a Child Out of Class
Published September 8, 2026
Can a child with ADHD get a 504 plan or an IEP when grades are fine
Grades are not the test under either law. Here is what IDEA asks about a child with ADHD, the different question Section 504 asks, and where a good report card actually belongs in each decision.
Companion guide: ADHD at School