Guides

What a new teacher wishes you would send first

Send your child's new teacher a brief one-page summary: allergies and your contact information, any assistive technology, what your child does well and what connects with them, the accommodations they need, what helps and what does not, and the outside services they receive. Teachers usually start with very little about a child's care outside the classroom.

Each fall, a teacher meets a lot of new children, usually for the first time. Often they are not told much about a child's care outside the classroom, including whether the child is on a care plan, takes any medication, or has a diagnosis. Teachers work from accommodations and modifications, so the fuller picture rarely reaches them.

Share a brief one-page summary with your new teacher. Here are some important things to include:

• Allergies and parent contact information.
• Whether the child uses a speech device or other assistive technology, and if so, the name and type of device.
• What they do well in academics, what they like, and what connects with them in an academic setting.
• What accommodations the child needs, for example a seat at the front of the class, or a quiet space during testing to avoid distractions.
• What helps and what does not, for example calm, clear communication that gives them enough time to process, or a timer for transitions.
• What outside services they receive, which ties into the care team.

Care Team Binder is not one more thing for a teacher to manage. It is a resource: the important files in one place, a way to message the parent and the care team, and somewhere to share the signed releases of information that let a teacher and a provider work together. You keep it current, and the teacher gets what they need without another login.