1 Person-Centered Planning Person-Centered Planning Committee on Special Education Lower Merion School District March 6, 2012

Diane Gerry

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 leads to Person Centered Planning which leads to Creating a Vision

“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 life From “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.

9 “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

Vision Statement A 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 Vision When families share their hopes and dreams Professionals respect and honor families’ contributions and insights When families contribute their expertise Professionals offer expertise Together they support the child

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

 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  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.

44 “Let not our needs determine our dreams, but let our dreams determine our needs.” Colleen F. Tomko