HeyJaredPlanning Beyond the IEP
Insights, resources, and strategies focused on supporting students with and without disabilities through their transition to adulthood, with a special focus on self-advocacy, special education, readiness for learning and work, and meaningful life skills.
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- 14
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- Sep 27, 2026
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- Jul 5, 2026
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Missing Ingredients, Messy Kitchens, and Real-Life Skills (opens the original)
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In a house full of teen and tween boys, finishing dinner does not necessarily mean anyone is finished eating. It’s not unusual to hear rumblings that someone is still hungry — or suddenly craving a baked good that isn’t readily available.That happened last night when we were hanging out with our friends of 10 years who have similarly aged boys. Three of the boys surveyed the dessert options and found them deeply unsatisfying.Rather than waiting on them “hand and foot,” as my mother likes to say,
Let’s Stop Calling Them “Soft Skills” (opens the original)
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In my role as an independent evaluator, I review a lot of IEPs and transition assessments. A common theme is for students to be given one or more career interest assessments, perhaps a career preference assessment, and/or to be interviewed about their career goals.All of that information is important. We want to understand what students are interested in, what types of environments they prefer, what motivates them, and what kinds of careers they might want to pursue.But there is another piece of
Episode 6: Transition Tuesday - Ready or Not? College, FERPA, and the Parent Role (opens the original)
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In this Substack Live conversation, I was joined by my friend and colleague Elizabeth C. Hamblet, LD Advisory, a long-time college disability services professional and author of Seven Steps to College Success, to talk about what students and families need to understand as they make the transition from high school to college.Because it’s September, our conversation was especially timely for two groups: families of high school juniors and seniors wondering whether their student is truly ready for
Every Teenager Needs Work Experience (opens the original)
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I first published this article last September. I’m sharing it again with a few updates because, as families decide what will fill a teenager’s schedule this year, I think paid work deserves a place in that conversation.When you picture the activities that fill a teenager’s schedule, many come to mind: sports, theater, music, robotics, student government, volunteering, travel, and more. Most families treat extracurricular and enrichment activities as a central part of high school life, and that m
When an Ordinary Milestone Isn’t Ordinary (opens the original)
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Subscribe nowOn Wednesday, I watched my 13-year-old get on a school bus. (Probably not the most riveting opening line for a Substack.)I took a few pictures of my son, even though I knew I might be overstepping. I tried not to make too much of it because he is 13, and having your mother turn getting on a school bus into an emotional event is probably not particularly high on the list of things a middle schooler wants. It probably also wasn’t something that other 7th-grade parents we
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