Starnet Chicago

📢 ATTENTION PARENTS: ADVOCACY SUPPORT IS HERE! 📢

Are you looking for ways to strengthen your voice and lead with confidence in your child's next IEP meeting?

Join us for a live webinar: From Input to Impact: How to Write an Expert Parent Statement

Learn a clear, step-by-step strategy to frame your concerns effectively and keep your family’s voice at the center of your child’s goal-setting process.

💡 What You’ll Gain:
⚖️ Legal Grounding: Strategies rooted in special education law to advocate effectively.
🤝 Active Collaboration: Tools to move from receiving a plan to becoming a co-architect of your child’s success.
📝 A Reusable Framework: A strategy you can rely on for every IEP meeting throughout your child’s school career.

🗓️ EVENT DETAILS:
📅 Date: Thursday, October 8th, 2026

⏰ Time: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM

📍 Location: Live Online Webinar

🎙️ Presenter: Tareema Jean-Baptiste

🌐 Languages: English & Spanish available / Disponible en inglés y español

⚠️ Spots are limited! Reserve your seat today to turn your input into lasting impact.

👉 Register ENGLISH: https://forms.gle/UHQTUyaBjWbP3M6c9
SPANISH: https://forms.gle/ZWYojmcroY5E6kUp7

Share this post or tag a fellow parent who needs IEP support today! 👇

🚨 Attention Early Childhood & Special Education Professionals! 🚨

STARNET Chicago’s Fabulous Fall Learning series is in full swing! Expand your skills, gain practical classroom strategies, and better support young learners with these upcoming professional development sessions:

🧠 Understanding Trauma in Early Childhood

💡 Let's Talk: Practical Strategies for Early Childhood Special Educators

🔄 Transition from Early Intervention to Early Childhood Services: Roles & Responsibilities

Whether you're looking to refine your daily strategies or navigate critical service transition processes, these workshops are designed with your daily work in mind.

🔗 Register now to secure your spot:
https://forms.gle/2Fdw9sEa4d5szgSd8

Attention professionals! Join us!

Starnet Chicago is ready! Join us at the Parents of Extraordinary Children Support Group-Southeast annual Disability Resource Fair! Come grab a free book and other resources!

📢 Attention Families! Still need potty training support? 🚽✨

Join us for The Potty Dance: Unlocking Executive Functioning for Big Potty Wins!

Whether you missed the first part or just need a refresher, we’ll start with a quick recap of Session 1 before diving into practical planning, tools, and actionable strategies!

🗓️ Date: Thursday, September 24, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM

📲 Register Here:

🔗 Register in English
https://forms.gle/KwLhpTqLrUb3wHYX7

🔗 Regístrese en Español
https://forms.gle/r774uQKxSh3FyYy96

📢 Attention Families: Part 3 is Happening Tomorrow!

Don't miss the next session in our series! We're diving into your educational rights, Functional Behavior Assessments (FBAs), and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs).

💡 What We’ll Cover:

Understanding your & your child's rights

How FBAs work

What goes into an effective BIP

📲 How to Join: Scan the QR code on the flyer below to register and save your spot!

“Your child isn’t ready for general education.”

Imagine a swimming instructor saying:

“Your child can’t get into the pool until they already know how to swim.”

It sounds ridiculous because children learn to swim in the water, with instruction, practice, and support.

But “not ready” can become a locked gate at school.

Maybe your child needs to read independently first.

Sit still longer.

Communicate differently.

Complete the work with less support.

Each new condition puts the responsibility on your child while leaving a more important question unanswered:

What needs to change around your child so they can learn with their classmates?

At your next IEP meeting, ask:

“What support, training, or planning would need to be in place for my child to learn in this classroom?”

Then pause.

Listen for what staff identify: training on your child’s communication device, adapted materials, planning time, classroom support, or clearer responsibilities.

Those are not reasons your child must remain outside the classroom. They are parts of the adult plan that have not been built yet.

Ask who will do what, when it will happen, and how those next steps will be documented in the IEP.

We don’t teach children to swim from the side of the pool.

And children shouldn’t have to prove they can succeed in general education before they are given the instruction and support to learn there.

Belonging has no prerequisites.

What version of “not ready” have you heard?

Alt Text: Graphic with colorful pencils and markers framing a white background. Blue text reads: “Ask at your next IEP meeting: ‘What would it take for the staff to feel comfortable and supported having my child in their classroom?’ Then stop talking.” url at the bottom IEP.today/Charmaine

Starnet Chicago will be there!

You still have time to RSVP for NPN's parent-centered Developmental Differences Parent Fest, happening Saturday, 9/19, from 4PM to 7PM.

Thank you to our amazing partner and event host LEEP Forward Academy and our sponsor Wander Through Wonder Academy!

RSVP for FREE here: https://www.npnparents.org/events/event/683-npn-developmental-differences-parent-fest-at-leep-forwardqla/