Advocate Like a Mother Podcast

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S01 Episode 3 - Preparing you IEP with Child Advocate Sandi Ames | Pt. 2 Dec 10, 2018

Show notes

Welcome friends, On today’s episode of ”Advocate like a Mother™ Podcast,” Michelle and Ashley chat with the Sandi Ames. Sandi is the director of Parents CAN which stands for Collaborate, Advocate, Navigate. Parents CAN is a non profit that provides education and support to individuals with disabilities, their families, and those that serve them. She is an incredible child advocate and parent mentor. We sat around Michelle’s kitchen table with Sandi to discuss IEP’s (individual educational plan). We discuss goals and the actual assessment in our first part of this two part series. Sandi is a powerhouse advocate when it comes to IEPs and the school, she’s been in the field since the mid 80s! On this second part of this episode we discussed the actual meeting itself. Sandi is working hard on giving the educators the resources that they need. Going into the IEP meeting make sure you know this is not a us vs. them, We need to all work together. You should review the assessment, and the proposed goals, make sure you have a vision for your child. Come prepared with your talking points. Keep in mind we want to build a strong relationship and help build this foundation for our kids. Be proactive not reactive. Don’t feel overwhelmed when you feel emotionally charged during the meeting, take a break, take a deep breathe, and come back. There’s so many approaches. You can always bring someone with you to take some notes. You have a voice in this, you can ask for them to explain their abbreviations and district terms. It’s your meeting, we are equal members of the team. To make it a little less stressful we have included a checklist you can bring in alongside your brag sheet! To any parent struggling with a child that has an IEP, you are not alone. We are here to help encourage you, and to help find your community. Michelle & Ashley Check out the IEP checklist here: https://www.advocatelikeamother.org/podcast/s01ep3-iep-sandiames-pt2 CONNECT WITH OUR SHOW INSTAGRAM | http://www.instagram.com/advocatelikeamother TWITTER | http://www.twitter.com/advocatelikeamom EMAIL | Hello@advocatelikeamother.org

S01 Episode 2 - IEPs with Child Advocate Sandi Ames | Pt. 1 Nov 26, 2018

Show notes

Welcome friends, On today’s episode of Advocate like a Mother Podcast™, Michelle and I got to chat with the Sandi Ames. Sandi is the director of CAN which stands for Collaborate, Advocate, Navigate. CAN is a non-profit that provides education and support to individuals with disabilities, their families and those that serve them. She is an incredible child advocate and parent mentor. We sat around Michelle’s kitchen table with Sandi and talked all about IEP’s -if you don’t know what an IEP it stands for “individual educational program”. We discuss goals and the actual assessment in our first part of this two part series. Sandi is a powerhouse advocate when it comes to IEPs and the school. She has been working in the field since the mid 80s! Having a child in “special education” means you need a lot of prayer and prep. She has a “house” metaphor that explains a great program for a student with a disability. In the “house” metaphor, first you need a foundation, or an assessment where everyone is in agreement. Second, you have your walls, which are the goals. The areas where your focus to help improve the child. Then you have the roof, which is the services. The amount of time each service gets. Then you have the neighborhood where they would be best placed. To any parent struggling with a child that has an IEP, you are not alone. We are here to help encourage you, and to help find your community. SHOW LINKS > Michelle mentioned that she wrote a blog post all about Eli's first IEP and a guide for other parents on how to be prepared for their child's first IEP. Read her article here >> https://www.littlestwarrior.com/blogs/news/a-guide-to-your-childs-first-iep > And our friend Tiffany Stafford (if you want to link to her, here is her FB link: https://www.facebook.com/tiffany.n.stafford ) made a great template for brag sheets or as she calls them, vision statements. You can find the template on her blog here >> https://our3lilbirds.blogspot.com/2017/05/how-to-make-one-page-profile-ellie-style.html?m=1&fbclid=IwAR02VrGa0ZyYW-Tls2PSEm6aKgbxjvoNKfFRrFf-bcxXYUaxiFW5R8P-Qy4 > 18 TOOLS FOR INCLUSIVE UNDERSTANDING AND SUPPORT WORKSHEET > https://advocatelikeamother.squarespace.com/s/18-Tools-for-Inclusive-Understanding-and-Support.pdf Email Sandi Ames: parentscanoc@yahoo.com Michelle & Ashley CONNECT WITH OUR SHOW INSTAGRAM | www.instagram.com/advocatelikeamother TWITTER | www.twitter.com/advocatelikeamom EMAIL | Hello@advocatelikeamother.org

S01 Episode 1 - American Sign Language with Rachel Coleman of Signing Time Nov 12, 2018

Show notes

Welcome friends, On tonight’s episode of Advocate like a Mother Podcast, Michelle and I got together to chat with the Rachel Coleman. Rachel is an American producer and actress who is known for creating with her sister Emilie de Azevedo Brown, they created together the Signing Time! It’s a video series to teach children basic American Sign Language (ASL), which was broadcasted on public television and Nick Junior. She produces, directs, and stars in the series. On top of handling much of its operations as co-founder of Two Little Hands Productions, she is also executive director of the American Society for Deaf Children. We sat around Michelle’s kitchen table with Rachel. We had the best conversation discussing American Sign Language, and Singing Time! We talked about the diagnoses process of her sweet girls Leah and Lucy, which she learned always trust your mom gut. What an inspiration she is in the ASL & special needs community. She changed her entire focus from her musical background to something that was not only life changing for her daughters, but for so many other families. She has made such an impact helping teach others how to communicate. We love that this is a family production, it shows what such a product of love she created. Sometimes after you have kids that’s when you truly find your place in this world. Diagnoses are so hard, from the phone call, the stress, and the pressure but when you look over at that shinning light, and see their little souls telling you, “I’m fine guys, nothing is wrong here. Don’t be sad.” Us parents maybe need to learn some new things, and that’s not bad! To any parent struggling with a child that is deaf, you are not alone. We are here to help encourage you, and to help find your community. Michelle & Ashley Read the Show Transcript here: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5bad5607d7819e296d684673/t/5befa1361ae6cf7a6947c89a/1542431031748/S01+Episode+1+-+American+Sign+Language+...+Coleman+of+Signing+Time+-+Google+Docs.pdf CONNECT WITH OUR SHOW INSTAGRAM | www.instagram.com/advocatelikeamother TWITTER | www.twitter.com/advocatelikeamom EMAIL | Hello@advocatelikeamother.org WEBSITE | www.advocatelikeamother.org CONNECT WITH OUR GUEST RACHEL COLEMAN WEBSITE | https://www.signingtime.com INSTAGRAM | www.instagram.com/signing_time OTHER LINKS CHIME INSTITUTE | http://www.chimeinstitute.org/

0 - Welcome to the Advocate Like a Mother™ Podcast Oct 08, 2018

Show notes

Welcome to the Advocate Like a Mother Podcast! The official launch of Season 1 kicks off this fall and today Michelle and Ashley spend some time sharing about their journey and what this show is all about! In the meantime, sign up for our email list at http://www.advocatelikeamother.org to get notified when the show launches! Also, please subscribe on iTunes or Google Play and leave us a review! Thanks! *Follow us on Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/advocatelikeamother

Advocate Like a Mother™ Podcast Trailer Sep 25, 2018

Show notes

Welcome to the Official Advocate Like a Mother™ Podcast! This fall, get excited for our official launch of the show with Michelle Sullivan, owner and CEO of Littlest Warrior and her co-host, Ashley Montano. We are excited to host stories, education, and in formation around all things advocacy related to people with special needs, disabilities, or different abilities, whichever you prefer. Michelle and Ashley are passionate about helping mothers and parents learn how to find their voice in a social space filled with opposition and inequality. Join us this fall, and subscribe today! http://www.advocatelikeamother.org http://instagram.com/advocatelikeamother Production by Portable Podcast with Andy Lara http://www.andylikeswords.com

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