Your New School Year Toolkit
Hey everyone,
My family just returned from a relaxing weekend at the beach, and it's amazing how a little time away can help you reset and get organized. As we settle back into our routines, I'm thinking of this week as an opportunity to build our toolkit for the new school year. This newsletter is packed with new tools and resources to help you advocate for your child with confidence and purpose.
Podcast Updates:
Episode #135: 5 School Communication Secrets That Change Everything. This episode is packed with tips to help you build a collaborative relationship with your child’s teachers and IEP team.
Webpage: https://waterprairie.com/2025/08/31/school-communication/
In Case You Missed It
If you haven’t had a chance to listen, last week’s episode, EP 134 features a wonderful conversation with Kristin Lombardi and Christine Drew, authors of Spectrum of Independence. We talked about how parents can help their children become more independent and prepared for life after school.
Webpage: https://waterprairie.com/2025/08/24/independence/
IEP Tip of the Week:
Review the Documents
Before any IEP meeting, the school is required to provide you with all relevant reports and documents. Your tip for the week: Take the time to read through these documents carefully before the meeting. Highlight any sections you don't understand and write down questions you have. This will help you feel more confident and prepared to participate as an equal partner on the IEP team.
Digital Accessibility: A New Frontier
The digital world is becoming increasingly important, and so is making it accessible to everyone. You may not be aware, but there is an upcoming deadline on April 24, 2026, for governments serving 50,000 or more people (April 26, 2027, for smaller governments or for special district governments) to comply with WCAG 2.1 Level A and AA standards. This means digital media (like websites and online documents) must be compliant with WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) standards. These standards apply to websites, PDFs, and other digital content that need to be usable by people with a wide range of disabilities. For many of our students, this will mean better access to online learning opportunities!
Do you know if your website or business's digital media is compliant? This is an important step in ensuring everyone can access information and resources. I’m working to make Water Prairie compliant by the end of 2025. If you’d like to help me find where the problems lie, feel free to send me a list of what I need to focus on. I’m sure this will be an ongoing process, but I want the information on Water Prairie to be accessible to everyone who wants to access the website, videos, and digital downloads.
Supporting the Water Prairie Community
Your support keeps this community growing! We've updated our Water Prairie Buy Me A Coffee site with two membership options to help you get more involved and help us keep going.
- SUPPORTER ($10/month): This tier helps cover essential podcast costs like editing and hosting.
- ADVOCATE ($25/month): This new option gives you everything in the SUPPORTER tier, plus a monthly activity packet for your children and access to exclusive monthly live stream events with me and special guests starting this September.
You can learn more and sign up here: https://buymeacoffee.com/waterprairie
You Are Your Child's Best Advocate
Every tool in your toolkit—from knowledge of the ADA to a well-written parent input statement—helps you build a better future for your child.
If you feel like you're missing a few tools or just want to learn how to use them more effectively, I offer IEP coaching to help you build your toolkit and use it to your child's greatest advantage.
Wishing you a wonderful week,
Tonya
