Anne Fricke, poet, writer, podcaster joins Amanda and Vickie on today’s podcast to tell her story about raising a daughter with Prader-Willi Syndrome.

Listen in as they discuss Anne’s journey to her podcast, "Walking With Freya; A Journey Through Special Needs Parenting", and how it quickly morphed into having other people come on and share their own experiences. They also cover poetry, activism, and how connection is the best way to advocate.

If you missed Amanda and Vickie as special guests on Anne’s podcast, don’t worry, we’ll make it easy and provide you with a link so you can go take a listen after they wrap up their conversation!

Show Highlights:

• Anne relates how parents who do not have special needs children tell her how much they enjoy listening to her podcast.
• The most feedback that Anne receives is from new parents.
• Anne tries to be open with putting her bad days out there, but always tries to end her show with a positive message.
• “Performance poetry” and how it is a powerful and heartfelt way to share poetry.
• Starting the conversation and learning from others.
• Anne provides an overview of a Writing Journal for parents and caregivers of children with special needs. 
• How news sources can be overwhelming.
• Anger can be a valid emotion.
• Education of our children is something we all should be caring about.
• Dr. Maria Montessori and her role working with children with intellectual disabilities.
• “Cookie-cutter” education in modern times.
• Anne shares her plans for the future.

Links/Resources:

Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, then please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, or Google Play. It helps other listeners find this show.

Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions/concerns:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

IEP website

This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice specific to your circumstances. If you need help with any legal matters, be sure to consult with an attorney regarding your specific needs.

Connect with Anne:

Anne’s Website

Anne’s Podcast

Anne’s Email

Anne’s Instagram

Annie’s Facebook Page 

Anne’s Facebook Group - Private

Anne’s Self-Published Poetry Book

One Mother’s Revolution, by Anne Fricke 

Listen to Amanda and Vickie on the Walking with Freya Podcast - Episode 47!

Walking with Freya & IEP

Anne Fricke, poet, writer, podcaster joins Amanda and Vickie on today’s podcast to tell her story about raising a daughter with Prader-Willi Syndrome.

Listen in as they discuss Anne’s journey to her podcast, "Walking With Freya; A Journey Through Special Needs Parenting", and how it quickly morphed into having other people come on and share their own experiences. They also cover poetry, activism, and how connection is the best way to advocate.

If you missed Amanda and Vickie as special guests on Anne’s podcast, don’t worry, we’ll make it easy and provide you with a link so you can go take a listen after they wrap up their conversation!

Show Highlights:

• Anne relates how parents who do not have special needs children tell her how much they enjoy listening to her podcast.
• The most feedback that Anne receives is from new parents.
• Anne tries to be open with putting her bad days out there, but always tries to end her show with a positive message.
• “Performance poetry” and how it is a powerful and heartfelt way to share poetry.
• Starting the conversation and learning from others.
• Anne provides an overview of a Writing Journal for parents and caregivers of children with special needs. 
• How news sources can be overwhelming.
• Anger can be a valid emotion.
• Education of our children is something we all should be caring about.
• Dr. Maria Montessori and her role working with children with intellectual disabilities.
• “Cookie-cutter” education in modern times.
• Anne shares her plans for the future.

Links/Resources:

Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, then please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, or Google Play. It helps other listeners find this show.

Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions/concerns:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

IEP website

This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice specific to your circumstances. If you need help with any legal matters, be sure to consult with an attorney regarding your specific needs.

Connect with Anne:

Anne’s Website

Anne’s Podcast

Anne’s Email

Anne’s Instagram

Annie’s Facebook Page 

Anne’s Facebook Group - Private

Anne’s Self-Published Poetry Book

One Mother’s Revolution, by Anne Fricke 

Listen to Amanda and Vickie on the Walking with Freya Podcast - Episode 47!

Walking with Freya & IEP

You may recognize today’s special guest if you keep up with The Lucky Few podcasts.

Terry Brown from So Happy to Learn at Mrs. Brown’s House joins Vickie and Amanda to discuss the philosophies behind her teachings, her ideas for a child’s potential, setting expectations high, and not limiting what we think a child can do.

She also covers better ways that we can be supporting and teaching them to help set them up for success. You don’t want to miss this fascinating and educational conversation!

Show Highlights:

• Terry’s program was born from some ideas she read in a book about teaching children with Down Syndrome how to read.
• While a paraprofessional, she was given the freedom to test these ideas in the classroom.
• Within six months, the students with Down Syndrome - who went from running around the classroom and hiding under the desks because the previous work made no sense to them - became readers, learners who were excited to learn, and working independently during that 45-minute class period.
• Having zero experience with anyone with Down Syndrome until this setting, working with them became her life.
• Parents started asking her if she could work with their children after school. Three of the children that she started helping after hours had Down Syndrome, one had autism, and one had a learning disability.
• During this time, Terry went from an SDC class to a mixed class to a full-inclusion class.
• She was told that she couldn’t work with Down Syndrome anymore because people were wanting to come to the school she was at just to work with her. 
• She eventually left the school district for private practice.
• Starting with author Patricia Logan Oelwein’s work as a foundation, she discovered over the years while teaching many hundreds of Down Syndrome students how they learned best, and she would make activities that were specific to them.
• Terry is still working with the three children with Down Syndrome that she originally started working with. They are 25 and 26 now. 
• Amanda, Vickie, and Terry discuss Terry’s holistic approach to her students.
• The difference between - and the importance of - questioning and testing is explained. This is pivotal for success!
• How to rewire a child’s brain for learning math. 
• There is value in repetition.
• Ways to improve reading comprehension.
• Ideas for making writing a successful experience.
• There’s a saying in the educational system that Down Syndrome kids plateau at age 5. That is a myth; it is more often the teachers that plateau.

Links/Resources:

Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, then please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, or Google Play. It helps other listeners find this show.

Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions/concerns:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

IEP website

This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice specific to your circumstances. If you need help with any legal matters, be sure to consult with an attorney regarding your specific needs.

...

You may recognize today’s special guest if you keep up with The Lucky Few podcasts.

Terry Brown from So Happy to Learn at Mrs. Brown’s House joins Vickie and Amanda to discuss the philosophies behind her teachings, her ideas for a child’s potential, setting expectations high, and not limiting what we think a child can do.

She also covers better ways that we can be supporting and teaching them to help set them up for success. You don’t want to miss this fascinating and educational conversation!

Show Highlights:

• Terry’s program was born from some ideas she read in a book about teaching children with Down Syndrome how to read.
• While a paraprofessional, she was given the freedom to test these ideas in the classroom.
• Within six months, the students with Down Syndrome - who went from running around the classroom and hiding under the desks because the previous work made no sense to them - became readers, learners who were excited to learn, and working independently during that 45-minute class period.
• Having zero experience with anyone with Down Syndrome until this setting, working with them became her life.
• Parents started asking her if she could work with their children after school. Three of the children that she started helping after hours had Down Syndrome, one had autism, and one had a learning disability.
• During this time, Terry went from an SDC class to a mixed class to a full-inclusion class.
• She was told that she couldn’t work with Down Syndrome anymore because people were wanting to come to the school she was at just to work with her. 
• She eventually left the school district for private practice.
• Starting with author Patricia Logan Oelwein’s work as a foundation, she discovered over the years while teaching many hundreds of Down Syndrome students how they learned best, and she would make activities that were specific to them.
• Terry is still working with the three children with Down Syndrome that she originally started working with. They are 25 and 26 now. 
• Amanda, Vickie, and Terry discuss Terry’s holistic approach to her students.
• The difference between - and the importance of - questioning and testing is explained. This is pivotal for success!
• How to rewire a child’s brain for learning math. 
• There is value in repetition.
• Ways to improve reading comprehension.
• Ideas for making writing a successful experience.
• There’s a saying in the educational system that Down Syndrome kids plateau at age 5. That is a myth; it is more often the teachers that plateau.

Links/Resources:

Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, then please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, or Google Play. It helps other listeners find this show.

Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions/concerns:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

IEP website

This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice specific to your circumstances. If you need help with any legal matters, be sure to consult with an attorney regarding your specific needs.

Connect with Terry Brown!

Start Here —-> https://www.sohappytolearn.com/start-here.html#

Become a So Happy to Learn Member! —-> https://www.sohappytolearn.com/join-or-renew.html

https://www.sohappytolearn.com

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/sohappytolearn

Suggested Book

Teaching Reading to Children With Down Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Teachers (Topics in Down Syndrome), by Patricia Logan Oelwein

Joining Amanda and Vickie on today’s podcast is Dr. Daniel Franklin. Due to his dyslexia, Dr. Franklin did not develop even rudimentary reading and writing skills until 5th and 6th grade. He shares his extraordinary story about an extraordinary teacher who reached out to him and helped him develop the confidence to learn.

Dr. Franklin has been in the education field for the past 30 years. He demonstrates his own success story as he discusses language-based learning disabilities and attachment-based teaching and learning. As he relates, anyone can use these strategies with kids, from teachers, parents, and other family members.

Dr. Franklin opened his practice, Franklin Educational Services, 14 years ago and now has locations in West Los Angeles and Newport Beach. Franklin Educational Services provides a very broad range of educational services including tutoring, test prep, fully accredited one-on-one schooling, educational consulting, and more.

He is the author of Helping Your Child with Language-Based Learning Disabilities: Strategies to Succeed in School and Life with Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia, ADHD, and Processing Disorders.

Show Highlights:

• His book is for parents and based on a course he developed about 15 years ago. It’s currently a graduate extension course on the principles of one-on-one support for children, teens, and young adults with language-based learning disabilities.
• Language-based learning disabilities include dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia.
• Dysgraphia is the writing version of dyslexia.
• Dyscalculia is the math version of dyslexia.
• Language-based learning disabilities also include ADHD and executive function deficits, and a wide range of visual and auditory processing capacities.
• A lot of these learning and behavioral differences overlap, so you need strategies that consider both issues.
• The major principle of Dr. Franklin’s book is that the human brain is a social organ and it’s designed to learn in a social context, especially one-on-one.
• No-one is better equipped to provide one-on-one service than parents.
• The difference between helicopter parents and helpful parents is that helicopter parents provide help that may be unneeded, and the helpful parents provide help that IS needed. 
• The book is both explanatory and strategic. Each chapter of Dr. Franklin’s book addresses a different area of learning, such as reading, writing, math, study skills, ADHD, auditory and visual processing, advocacy, and more.
• When a child is learning to read, they cannot use reading to learn. This is where a parent needs to step in and figure out what their child needs to learn from reading and come up with strategies that allow their child to acquire an understanding of that material. This is called a bypass strategy.
• Writing also requires a lot of co-active support.
• In order to learn we must have a broad base of general information, and if we limit access to information by a slowly emerging skill like reading, we’re hindering the capacity for that child to develop reading comprehension skills.
• Dr. Franklin does all of the initial phone calls with parents because he wants to have a good understanding of what’s going on. 
• Since the human brain is a social organ, it only develops well in the context of healthy relationships. The single most important thing we can do for a child, teen, or young adult is to provide them with close, healthy relationships with adults. 
• It is in the context of healthy relationships that a brain is in a state for learning. 
• Attachment-based teaching prioritizes the quality of relationships above other considerations. 

Links/Resources:

Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player...

Joining Amanda and Vickie on today’s podcast is Dr. Daniel Franklin. Due to his dyslexia, Dr. Franklin did not develop even rudimentary reading and writing skills until 5th and 6th grade. He shares his extraordinary story about an extraordinary teacher who reached out to him and helped him develop the confidence to learn.

Dr. Franklin has been in the education field for the past 30 years. He demonstrates his own success story as he discusses language-based learning disabilities and attachment-based teaching and learning. As he relates, anyone can use these strategies with kids, from teachers, parents, and other family members.

Dr. Franklin opened his practice, Franklin Educational Services, 14 years ago and now has locations in West Los Angeles and Newport Beach. Franklin Educational Services provides a very broad range of educational services including tutoring, test prep, fully accredited one-on-one schooling, educational consulting, and more.

He is the author of Helping Your Child with Language-Based Learning Disabilities: Strategies to Succeed in School and Life with Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia, ADHD, and Processing Disorders.

Show Highlights:

• His book is for parents and based on a course he developed about 15 years ago. It’s currently a graduate extension course on the principles of one-on-one support for children, teens, and young adults with language-based learning disabilities.
• Language-based learning disabilities include dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia.
• Dysgraphia is the writing version of dyslexia.
• Dyscalculia is the math version of dyslexia.
• Language-based learning disabilities also include ADHD and executive function deficits, and a wide range of visual and auditory processing capacities.
• A lot of these learning and behavioral differences overlap, so you need strategies that consider both issues.
• The major principle of Dr. Franklin’s book is that the human brain is a social organ and it’s designed to learn in a social context, especially one-on-one.
• No-one is better equipped to provide one-on-one service than parents.
• The difference between helicopter parents and helpful parents is that helicopter parents provide help that may be unneeded, and the helpful parents provide help that IS needed. 
• The book is both explanatory and strategic. Each chapter of Dr. Franklin’s book addresses a different area of learning, such as reading, writing, math, study skills, ADHD, auditory and visual processing, advocacy, and more.
• When a child is learning to read, they cannot use reading to learn. This is where a parent needs to step in and figure out what their child needs to learn from reading and come up with strategies that allow their child to acquire an understanding of that material. This is called a bypass strategy.
• Writing also requires a lot of co-active support.
• In order to learn we must have a broad base of general information, and if we limit access to information by a slowly emerging skill like reading, we’re hindering the capacity for that child to develop reading comprehension skills.
• Dr. Franklin does all of the initial phone calls with parents because he wants to have a good understanding of what’s going on. 
• Since the human brain is a social organ, it only develops well in the context of healthy relationships. The single most important thing we can do for a child, teen, or young adult is to provide them with close, healthy relationships with adults. 
• It is in the context of healthy relationships that a brain is in a state for learning. 
• Attachment-based teaching prioritizes the quality of relationships above other considerations. 

Links/Resources:

Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, then please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, or Google Play. It helps other listeners find this show.

Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions/concerns:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

IEP website

This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not to be construed as legal advice specific to your circumstances. If you need help with any legal matters, be sure to consult with an attorney regarding your specific needs.

Find Dr. Franklin!

https://www.danielfranklinphd.com

https://www.franklined.com

Suggested Reading

Helping Your Child with Language-Based Learning Disabilities: Strategies to Succeed in School and Life with Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia, ADHD, and Processing Disorders, by Daniel Franklin PhD

Amanda and Vickie cover some new laws that California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law at the end of the school year in May, and discuss some that California has started implementing this 2019 / 2020 school year.

Show Highlights:

• The LGBTQ+ law concerns incorporating the LGBTQ community into all the teachings that schools have. Part of that is the idea of gender identity. 
• Amanda shares a story about the Oak Park Unified in Los Angeles County. They published their plan for the upcoming school year of the changes being implemented in grades K-5. At a school board meeting, they had to clear up a lot of misconceptions that the parents had about what they were actually doing.
• Oak Park’s plan to satisfy the law was to hold a class for enrolled students to learn about gender identity once per year, in a 30-40 minute class taught by a school counselor, using age-appropriate books and lesson plans.
• The gender diversity program is about teaching children in age-appropriate language expressions of gender, including male, female, non-binary, and transgender.
• An example of mislabeling was suggested as a crayon that is labeled as red, but is really blue.
• Parents do not have the ability to opt their child out of the class, because the course is not considered sex education.
• The state law requires districts to include this LGBTQ+ community into its teachings, so along with educating students on gender diversity, this program is designed to help curb suicide among students in the LGBTQ community.
• The state code already had prohibitions on matters reflecting adversity upon persons because of their race, sex, color, creed, handicap, and national ancestry, so this bill added sexual orientation to that list.
• Another section of the bill directs the governing boards of the school districts to adopt instructional material that accurately portrays the cultural and racial diversity of our society. 
• Administrators should learn from Oak Park’s example of giving the parents an overview of the materials ahead of time.
• Senate Bill 419 makes changes to the California Education code, including public and charter schools. This bill prevents students in Grades 4-8 from being suspended for disrupting school activities or otherwise willfully defying the valid authority of those school personnel engaged in the performance of their duties.
• Kids with disabilities and kids of color are being suspended far more often than their white, neuro-typical peers.
• A recent study found that students lost over 150,000 days of school due to suspensions of this specific nature in the 2016 / 2017 school year.
• For IEP students who are engaged in “willful defiance”, the first questions that need to be asked is "Does he have a behavioral support plan?” and “How did we get here?”.

Links/Resources:

Thank you for listening! Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the show to receive every new episode delivered straight to your podcast player every Tuesday.

If you enjoyed this episode and believe in our message, then please help us get the word out about this podcast. Rate and Review this show in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, or Google Play. It helps other listeners find this show.

Be sure to connect with us and reach out with any questions/concerns:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

IEP website

This podcast is for...

Amanda and Vickie cover some new laws that California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law at the end of the school year in May, and discuss some that California has started implementing this 2019 / 2020 school year.

Here’s a little something special for their 100th episode! Amanda and Vickie decided to go live on Facebook and Instagram to answer some of your questions. Tune in for a potpourri of information, including some tips on how to best communicate with your child.

Show Highlights:

• Q: Can I ask for a weekly phone call from my child’s regular and special education teacher? My daughter can’t tell me all the things that happened to her during the day and I have no idea what happens from drop off to pick up.
• A: Short answer: it depends on the circumstances. There’s nothing in the law that says you can’t ask, but you need to be practical. When there’s a lot of things going on, you can request a communication log. There should be times when regular and special education teachers talk together. In the events of safety or extreme behavior, then this request would be warranted. Weekly communication is practical, but not necessarily in the form of a phone call.
• Tip: We bombard our children with so many questions, they can easily become overwhelmed. Many times, children think there is a right way and a wrong way to answer a question, and they don’t want to get it wrong. One way to get answers from them about how their day went is to share something from your day first. Another way to take the pressure off is to make an observation about their day that can open up a conversation.
• Tip: It’s ok to not know everything that is going on in the classroom, as long as your child is happy, safe, and learning. That takes pressure off the parent, who often stress over every little thing that happens during their child’s day.
• Q: Can I be in my child’s classroom to help out each week?
• A: The IEP is the district’s promise that we’re going to work on these goals in this classroom setting and we’re providing these services. There are a number of things you can put in the IEP, but trying to force the district to have you in the classroom on a weekly basis is probably not feasible. There are actually liability issues and safety concerns related to this.
• Tip: If your classroom or school has a policy that volunteers are allowed to do certain things, then absolutely volunteer for that. If there are no policies in place, there may be certain restrictions in terms of how often that can be. Distraction is one scenario where this might apply.
• Q: What are the options for my child after high school?
• A: Some questions to consider: Is your student on a Diploma track or a Certificate of Completion track? Students do have until the age of 22 to do the Vocational Life Skills, self-help skills, and academics if needed. After the student has received either the Diploma or Certificate of Completion, there are other options. More and more 4-year colleges are coming up with programs for students with intellectual disabilities or on the autistic spectrum. Some community colleges are in partnership with school districts and offer vocational programs. 
• Tip: Once you turn 18, technically the Americans with Disabilities Act kicks in, and you can find college campuses with disability rights centers that can help provide accommodations. The burden has shifted: from K-12, the burden is on the school district to plan out, implement, and provide. In college, however, this burden has shifted to the student to provide the school with need and the request for accommodations.
• Q: What does the law say regarding being in classes with same-age peers? What if a school is only offering inclusion time for a 6th-grader with 8th-graders because of scheduling problems?
• A: To the extent that a certain mainstream inclusion is appropriate, this is ok. If you have a child who socially and emotionally is below their same-age peers, and academically the same (but they haven’t been retained), they may benefit from mainstreaming say, 3rd and 4th grade in a 2nd-grade classroom because they

Here’s a little something special for their 100th episode! Amanda and Vickie decided to go live on Facebook and Instagram to answer some of your questions. Tune in for a potpourri of information, including some tips on how to best communicate with your child.