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Person-Centered PlanningCommittee on Special Education

Lower Merion School DistrictMarch 6, 2012

A Little about Your Presenters…

DianeGerry

A Little about our Audience

Why Plan for Your Child’s Future?

“If you don’t know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else.”

Yogi Berra

"The best way to predict your future is to create it."

Anonymous

Focuses a person’s unique Strengths

Gifts Talents

with a positive, proactive approach

Person-Centered Thinking

Person Centered Thinkingleads to

Person Centered Planningwhich leads to

Creating a Vision

Person-Centered Thinking“Non Person-Centered Planning” Goals focus on specific

negative behaviors to change or decrease

Plans may look “one size fits all”

Little/no mention of personal relationships or community life.

“Person Centered Planning” Specific examples of

positive activities, experiences, and life situations to increase.

Plans reflect person’s unique interests, gifts, and qualities and the unique characteristics, and life of the local community

Emphasizes creative ways to focus on the development and deepening of personal relationships and community lifeFrom “Person-Centered Planning: Finding Directions for Change Using Personal Futures Planning”

Beth Mount

a process that uses creative facilitation tools to assist a focus person in developing a plan for how they wish to live or be in the future.

What is Person-Centered Planning?

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“A person centered plan can help those involved with the focus person see the total person, recognize his or her desires and interests, and discover completely new ways of thinking about the future of the person."Beth Mount & Kay Zwernik, 1988

Creating A Vision Statement

“A vision is a clear picture of what you hope to create” Chynoweth and Dyer (1991, p 63) Strengthening Families

From Person-Centered Thinking to Person-Centered Planning

to Creating a Vision

A Vision for David

Vision StatementA Vision: Is a family’s statement about who their

child is and where they see their child in the future.

Can be a paragraph, a page or even a voice or video recording.

Is most powerful when it is shared with other individuals who are important to your child and family, particularly the school team.

When Families Share their Vision it can result in…

Educational Benefits Families: Greater input into their child’s

Evaluation Report (ER) Individualized Education Plan (IEP) Transition Plan

Professionals: Greater understanding of families priorities

Sharing the VisionWhen families share their hopes and

dreamsProfessionals respect and honor families’

contributions and insights

When families contribute their expertise

Professionals offer expertise

Together they support the child

PATH Format (Pierpoint, O’Brien, Forest, 1994)

Other Person Centered Planning Tools

Recruit interested students Identify a facilitator Determine group size based on focus

student’s needs Decide where and when to meet Identify activities to do Set ground rules Give students ownership of their circle

Circle of Friends/Lunch Bunch

Other Person Centered Planning Tools

MAPs What is the child and family’s (his)story? What are their dreams? What are their nightmares? Who is the child? What is the child’s gifts, strengths &

talents? What does the child need? What is the plan of action?

All My Life’s a Circle, Inclusion Press, 1994

Other Person Centered Planning Tools

Other Person Centered Planning Tools

COACH – Choosing Outcomes and Accommodations for Children

Essential Lifestyle Planning

Biographical Timeline

COACH (Choosing Outcomes and Accommodations for Children)

What is COACH?

◦ Educational model◦ Workbook format◦ Transferred to IEP

Person-Centered Planning: for a Stronger Family-Professional Partnership

◦Establish a new tone

◦Gain greater respect.

◦Develop innovative strategies.

◦Achieve dynamic collaboration.

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“Let not our needs determine

our dreams, but let our dreams

determine our needs.”

Colleen F. Tomko