2. Defining family  U.S. Census Bureau: A group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who reside together  Authors: Two or more people who regard themselves to be a family and who carry out the functions that families typically perform

3. Who are today’s families?  Similarities among families with and without disabilities  Differences among families without and without disabilities  Income  Education level  Household composition

4. What are partnerships?  Family-professional partnerships: Families and professionals collaborate with each other, capitalizing on each other’s judgment and expertise to the benefit of the student  Partnerships are important because they:  Foster trust  Stimulate student achievement  Enhance families’ quality of life

5. Importance of Partnerships  Early childhood  Elementary school  Middle/high school

6. How do children with exceptionalities affect their families quality of life?  Mother’s stress and depression when raising a child with a disability  Findings are mixed  Mothers who have children with certain types of disabilities have greater stress

7. Domains of family quality of life  The authors of your text have identified five domains of family quality of life:  Emotional well being  Parenting  Family interactions  Physical/material well being  Disability-related support

8. Emotional well-being  Families experience better emotional well-being when they have:  Friends or others to provide support  The support they need to relieve stress  Time to pursue their own interests  Outside help available to take care of the special needs of all family members

9. Positive approaches to increase satisfaction of the emotional well being domain  Utilize Circle of Friends  Encourage parents to be involved with other parents  Be available to parents outside of regular school hours

10. Parenting  Parenting is strong when families can help their child:  Learn to be independent  With schoolwork and activities  Get along with others  With individual needs

11. Family interactions  Families who have high levels of family interaction:  Enjoy spending time together  Talk openly with each other  Solve problems together  Show they love and care for each other

12. Physical/Material Well- Being  This can include the ability of families to:  Access transportation  Pay expenses  Feel safe at home, work, school, and in the neighborhood  Obtain medical and dental help when needed

13. Disability related support  Some aspects of disability-related support help the student to:  Achieve goals at school or work  Make progress at home  Make friends  Have a good relationship between family and service providers

14. How can you form partnerships?  Partnerships capitalize on each other’s judgment and expertise in order to increase benefits for students, families and professionals  Seven principles of partnerships  Communication  Professional competence  Respect  Commitment  Equality  Advocacy  Trust

15. Communication  Five practices for effective communication  Be friendly  Be clear  Listen  Be honest  Provide and coordinate information  Three major networks of parent programs  Parent training and information centers  Community parent resource centers  Parent to parent programs

16. Professional competence  Three practices associated with professional competence  Provide a quality education  Continue to learn  Set high expectations

17. Respect  Professionals who demonstrate respect:  Honor cultural diversity  Affirm strengths  Treat students and families with dignity

18. Commitment  A committed professional will:  Be available and accessible  Go “above and beyond”  Be sensitive to emotional needs

19. Equality  Professionals who seek equality in partnerships:  Share power  Foster empowerment  Provide options

20. Advocacy  To be an effective advocate, professionals will:  Seek win-win solutions  Use skilled dialog  Prevent problems  Keep one’s conscience primed  Pinpoint and document challenges  Form alliances

21. Trust  Four practices associated with being a trusted partner:  Be reliable  Use sound judgment  Maintain confidentiality  Trust yourself