Early Intervention FAQ

An Individualized Education Program (IEP) is a plan that is developed for each child that is in need of special education services.  The purpose of the IEP is to develop an education program for each child based on that child's unique needs.

Your child's IEP tells his or her teachers what your child's disability is, what class size your child should be placed in, how your child is performing currently in school, and what related services your child should receive.   Each year, you should be sure that your child's teacher has a copy of his or her most recent IEP.

An IEP is written at an IEP planning meeting, which must include the parents of the child and the teacher.  The IEP is reviewed every year and updated to accommodate a child's changing needs.

The IEP development process must consider:

• your child’s strengths;
• your concerns for your child’s education;
• the results of your child’s individual evaluation;
• the results of any State or districtwide tests or assessments; and
• any unique needs related to your child’s disability (such as communication needs, behavior, etc.).

An IEP should provide clear connections between a student's present levels of performance (academic, social/emotional and health/physical development), the goals (the expected outcomes), the special education services designed to accomplish these goals, the degree of participation in the general curriculum, the removal, if any, from the general education classroom, and the student's retention in (or eventual return to) the general education setting.

Here is a sample IEP form:

Click here to download this sample IEP in pdf format (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader to view).