As a parent and instructor of special ed kids, I wish I could give a copy of this book to every parent new to the special education system (or still struggling with it). The information contained within is clearly written, and invaluable in advocating for any type of special needs child/teenager in today's public school system. I wish I had found it sooner!

Very imformative. Great book to educate yourself on how to advocate for your autistic child.

This is fantastic book. It empowers parents to take control of negociating their child's education needs so that we no longer feel like we are twisitng in the wind.

I do not recall any information regarding emails. Many teachers and school officials use emails as a primary method of communication. I wish this book spent some time talking about to email or not to email, how to email....

I really liked this book. Easy to understand.
Would definatly recommend.

I am a special education attorney and the mother of two children with disabilities. This book is the best I have ever come across to inform parents of best advocacy strategies. I recommend it to ALL my clients and friends. It covers everything from applicable law, interpreting complicated standardized testing scores, effective advocacy with different personality types, and MOST IMPORTANTLY how to remain collaborative and cooperative with the School District.

I wish I had read this 2 years ago!! This is a great resource for any and all parents who are fighting the special education maze. It gives great advice and practical strategies on how to approach team meeting and not let them railroad you. They also provide great tips on creating your own file on your child and how to effectively write letters. This is a must have for any parent with a child in special education.

This book is easy to read, use and understand. It's compassionate, supportive and a must have for any parent dealing with the system.

I didnt know anything about my rights for my daughter. Parents to play an active role in their childrens rights. This book will give you all you need and a lot more. If you need somewhere to start this is it.

This book is by far the best I've read regarding Special Education law and how to successfully advocate for your child within the school system. It shows you how to level the playing field and become an equal and effective member of the IEP team. The commentary provided by the authors is invaluable and something you'd probably pay top dollar for if you had to hire your own attorney. We as parents can be effective advocates. "From Emotions to Advocacy" is the one tool in your box you can't do without.

I didnt know anything about my rights for my daughter. Parents to play an active role in their childrens rights. This book will give you all you need and a lot more. If you need somewhere to start this is it.

I've been involved in advocating for my special needs son for 14 years and this is the BEST book I've ever read on the subject. A real "how-to." I just walked away from an IEP meeting with MORE than I asked for and it all happened in less than an hour. I was SO prepared. In particular, the chapter on the Rule of Adverse Assumptions helped me prepare. Thanks to this book, I had the confidence and the information that allowed me to effectively go to bat for our son. I'm using FETA in a parent training class I'm conducting now and it's SO helpful. From Emotions to Advocacy is a real treasure and should be the bible for every parent of a special needs child.

Pete and Pam Wright do a great job in creating a guide for parents of children with disabilities.

It is the night before Jessica's first big IEP Team meeting and her parents are scrambling to find something - ANYTHING - that can help them prepare for the meeting. Try Wrightslaw. Sally's advocate is packing her briefcase as she heads out the door for the IEP Team meeting. She checks for her most critical resource. Wrightslaw. Susan, a school district attorney, checks her bag before heading off to her next meeting. Yup. Wrightslaw. Is there no one who hasn't heard of Wrightslaw?

Actually, we are sure that many readers have not, so today we review two new books from Wrightslaw. Both are second editions of books Pam and Pete Wright first released several years ago. The Wrights have updated both books to reflect the 2004 changes to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act [IDEA] and its implementing regulations. We use both books in our regular course of business and highly recommend them to parents, educators, advocates, attorneys and anyone else who has a need for quick but comprehensive manuals on special education law.

Wrightslaw: Special Education Law, 2nd Edition [Wrightslaw] is a wonderful and ready resource for all who want to be able to find and then quote chapter and verse of IDEA law and regulations. The book includes the complete text of all four parts of IDEA as enacted in December, 2004. Wrightslaw also contains the complete implementing regulations for IDEA that became effective in August, 2006. These texts alone are worth the cost of the book.

But Wrightslaw does not stop with the IDEA statute and its implementing regulations. Wrightslaw also includes the complete text of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act [FERPA]; the text to Section 504 [the Rehabilitation Act of 1973]; and the text of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. These inclusions ensure that the Wrightslaw user always has the key educational laws right at her fingertips at a moment's need. We have cited our Wrightslaw at IEP Team meetings, due process hearings, client meetings and the like.

Pam and Pete Wright make Wrightslaw even more valuable by including commentary on how to apply the included laws to typical special education circumstances. They talk about the No Child Left Behind Act and show how it fits into the special education law scheme. They cite and include the text of the major court cases that have shaped how special education law should be interpreted and implemented. And they have included a glossary of special education terms and acronyms with a user-friendly index.

We regard Wrightslaw as an essential resource in our practice. We believe the book should be part of every parent's [and educator's, advocate's, attorney's] special education library because of its rich and vital contents.

We also heartily recommend Pam and Pete's second book, Wrightslaw: From Emotions to Advocacy, 2nd Edition. The Wrights call this book "The Special Education Survival Guide." And well it is. The Wrights designed this book primarily for parents who need a one-stop how-to resource that will teach them to be strong and effective advocates for their children.

We cannot say enough about the contents and organization of this book. The Wrights have divided it into five sections. Section One helps parents to organize their thoughts and ideas, creating a mindset for them in their undertaking as advocates for their child. Section Two highlights the practice of advocacy, outlines the players, identifies common traps and provides strategies for resolving conflicts and managing crises. Section Three gives parents nuts and bolts information needed to make parents experts on all facets of their child's education; from file organization to testing to writing strong IEP's. Section Four walks parents through the broad principles found in IDEA's major provisions, touching on Section 504 and the No Child Left Behind Act. Finally, Section Five shows the now-well prepared parent how to advocate in the trenches: at the IEP Team meeting, collecting and documenting information; and managing and winning disputes.

We like From Emotions to Advocacy because it is loaded with sage advice that most parents will find easy to understand and apply. We especially like that the Wrights pull no punches in telling parents what they are in for as their child's advocates. Their "Rules of Adverse Assumptions," discussed in Chapter 21, are particularly powerful and to the point - don't expect others, especially educators, to see things your way. Plan and prepare to win your case on your own, using your own wits and resources. They then show you how.

Through Wrightslaw and From Emotions to Advocacy Pete and Pam Wright have provided a great service to parents, educators, advocates and attorneys, providing them with hands-on resources that pack power to the punch. We proudly award both books the EP Symbol of Excellence

This book is amazing..I am so glad I bought it..It has lots and lots of info very useful for new special ed parents or seasoned ones...Highly recommend anything by these authors!!! Buy it!!!

If you have Wrightslaw copies of "No Child Left Behind" and the 2nd edition of Special Education Law, there really isn't a need to upgrade to the second edition of FETA. All that is different between editions 1 & 2 are the references to caselaw. Functionally there is little difference between editions.

Both editions of this book are excellent, though. It is a must have for any parent with a special needs child.

If you have a special needs child, you need this book. Buy it as soon as your child is diagnosed, because you will gain so much valuable insight into working with school districts, teachers, etc. You will learn the value of keeping accurate notes from meetings, phone calls, etc. You will learn how important it is to follow up phone calls with letters (although I now use email--my edition is several years old). You learn most of all how important it is to keep your emotions in check during those dreaded IEP'S. You learn how NOT to dread the IEP's--which further helps in keeping your emotions reined in. You learn how to work with the professionals on your child's educational team, of which you are a part, to design the educational programming that will best benefit your child. And, you will learn when it is necessary and appropriate to take further action on your childs behalf when your child is not receiving the education he/she is entitled to under US federal law. This book takes the reader through all possible steps involved in crafting and implementing an IEP for a special needs student, and does so in layman's terms, not in legalese that most of us cannot understand.

This is a great book for learning how to develop an educational plan for your child. It teaches you many skills you'll need to give your child the best chance to succeed in school.

* How to organize the mountain of paperwork that gets generated.
* Who is typically responsible for what job in the school.
* What to expect in an IEP meeting.
* How to write and evaluate goals.

The Wrights set up a multi-stage approach with the school. You start by trying to form a cooperative team. If that doesn't work, you'll already have set up the documentation for any compliance issues. It's basically a carrot and stick approach. Hopefully the school will fulfil their obligations, but if not, you'll be prepared for the next level.

It's a great book for parents and educators. It provides a great structure to keep all the details organized so that you can concentrate on the important goal, helping your child succeed.

As a parent of a child with a disability, adding the word "advocate" to the many other hats that I have to wear is not appealing. However, reading this book gave me a clear path to follow in this endeavor. It is filled with practical advice that is simple to implement. It is easy to read.

A pretty good beginners book for IEP & advocacy. It doesn't concentrate on any specific type of disabilities. I wanted something more specific to autism, but a pretty good book just the same.

I am a paralegal who has been an advocate for children with disabilities for 13 years. I have read and studied From Emotions to Advocacy since I bought it about a year ago. It has become one of my first choice references because of its straight forward and easy outline of what I would call a preponderance of material. Having also attended Wrightslaw BootCamp and used their website search engine for language, cases and legal cites, I think Pam and Pete Wright are truly revoluntionary in their ability to make the law and information easily accessible. I can always count on my now well worn From Emotions to Advocacy manual, as well as the Wrightslaw site when I need some quick information before a meeting, or some indepth research on a certain point. It doesn't get any better than this.

I am a parent of a child with a learning disability. I have found the book to be a MUST read. Emotions play such a pivotal role for parents that it is important to be able to put all that energy to good use in effectively advocating for your child. The book explains how to successfully navigate the process of providing for a child's educational needs, while protecting important legal rights. Navigating through special education is often a foreign experience for parents. From Emotions to Advoacy helps parent negotiate in the best interests of a child. Pete and Pam Write speak from personal and professional experience in dealing with special education issues. I could not recommend another book that speaks as succinctly to the issue of advocating for a child.

I dunno, I don't think this is as bad as some people say, yet I don't find it as good as some other people say. It's a good book to get you started, but there is no way to totally understand special education with one book alone. Each book has a different focus (law, IEPs) and is written by a person in different profession (lawyer, teacher). It depends on what you want in a book. I'd save your money and check out several books at your local library (get them through interlibrary loan). Once you decide which one or ones you want, buy them online and then highlight the book and use Post-It notes throughout to help you later on.

This book had been around when I started out it would have saved me two years of wasted effort. It teaches about group dynamics, negotiation skills, building a paper trail, understanding evaluations, and how to write measureable goals for an IEP. This is one of the first books a parent should buy when they find out that they will need to understand the special education system and make it work for their child.

I have a dyslexic son. He had been in resource for three years and made NO progress in reading. I begged, pleaded, cried, screamed and pitched a fit over that three years. It was not until I discovered Wrightlaw.com and bought this book, "From Emotions to Advocacy", that I was able to maneuver within the school system and aquire my son the REAL help he needed. This book is a step by step guide to advocating for your child. It is the only thing that has worked for me. The Wright's have a real handle on what really works! They teach you how to make the system work for you! If you want to help your disabled (learning disabled or physically disabled) child this book is your best bet!

From Emotions to Advocacy: The Special Education Survival Guide I feel is a must have for any parent seeking an appropriate education for their child with a disability. Since obtaining the book my husband and I learned how to be more effective communicators, more effective IEP team members, and also how to maintain our sanity within the maze of special education.

It has been especially helpful as we seek LRE (least restrictive environment options) for our son who is 14 years old and has autism. We have been seeking inclusive services for him in his home school within a general education setting for the last seven years. It's been a struggle to say the least. However the Wrightslaw newsletters, Pete and Pam Wright's training sessions, and all of their books....which we never go to an IEP without reviewing or taking with us, have made it so much easier for our entire family.

This book also made us see that within what we were seeking, and what are son was entitled to, we still needed to be educated in the law and understand both sides of the coin prior to advocating for our child. This book has allowed us to feel more confident, has provided us guidance when we feel we've hit a wall, and too it is obvious that this was written by folks that care about the rights of kids. That makes a big difference.

It's also kept us out of hearing and provided us with options we didn't know about before. I'm surprised by one of the negative comments about the book by a teacher because we do not perceive this book as promoting opposition at all. It's been an asset to us to in guiding us to be more collaborative IEP team members for our son.

I also always tell folks that nobody know our kids like we do, nobody knows their true abilities, we need to be able to advocate appropriately to provide the light to shine on the positive, and the abilities of our kids. At least until they one day can hopefully advocate for themselves.

Don't leave home for an IEP before getting this book. It's one of the best investments you will make in your child's education. If you can, get them all and attend one of the trainins sessions. I've been to a couple and my husband went to his first last fall. They are wonderful and we are very lucky to have the Wrights out there helping parents. In doing so they are helping entire IEP teams as well as our kids.

Carolyn Gammicchia

I agree with the one reviewer. This is just an okay book, but I returned it and bought another one instead. This one just didn't seem all that helpful to me. I decided I did not want a book written by a lawyer. Teachers know a lot more about special education and I have no intention of hiring a lawyer to fight my district. This book just seemed to be one large ad for lawyers and advocates who probably make a lot of money suing everybody.

I remember being introduced to this book over a parent listserv from Yahoo several years ago. People were raving about it. I had to have it just to see if it measured up to the hype. Well, it did and the second edition is even better! I have used this book on many occasions when preparing for IEPs for my own son and to give other parents pointers on dealing with issues that arise often in a child's education. The Wrights are not only very amazing people, they know first-hand what it is like to experience what the education system looks like from the parent's perspective. Pete Wright dealt with dyslexia and the major misunderstanding of it during his childhood. His father advocated greatly for him and set a fine example that I believe he follows today. Pam Wright is someone who takes the time to listen to parents and has dedicated her life to helping others by sharing the information that they've gleaned from years of work. To sum it all up, this book helped change the way that I advocate for my son. It has also given me the knowledge and understanding of how to go a step further and to share that knowledge with others. This book is sure to enlighten anyone who takes the time to read it.

I recommend all parents of children with disabilities purchase this book! Read it and re-read it to ensure you fully understand how the special education system works. The book is written in a format that is easy to understand. It will tell you the things you won't hear from school district trainings. It's the `unwritten rules' of special education. You will learn the importance of good documentation. Most of all you will learn how to participate in the process of developing an appropriate educational plan for your child.

Maybe it's just me, but I didn't find the book that helpful. I think that some of the information is good, but many parts were a bit condescending to parents. Now, I may not be an attorney, but I have more than a 5th grade education, so I don't need every little thing explained in order to make the book so repetitive that reading it is a chose and quite boring. Choose another book, one that actually thinks parents are intelligent and that is not as repetitive.

Clear, concise - not overwhelming to a parent just entering the maze of "special needs children"

Now in a fully revised and updated second edition with information about The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 and the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, From Emotions To Advocacy: The Special Education Survival Guide remains the definitive resource for advocates of children with disabilities, particularly parents. Chapters teach the reader in plain terms how to devise a master plan for the special education of one's child, how to use test scores to monitor the child's progress, why parent-teacher conflict is inevitable and how best to resolve it, how to create paper trails and write effective letters, and much more. Building up one's negotiation, interpersonal and communication skills to becoming familiar with the laws directly affecting the education of one's child are chief areas of focus. From Emotions To Advocacy draws directly upon all the talents of its authors - a psychotherapist and an attorney, both expert advocates for children with disabilities - to present parents with everything they need to know. A "must-have" for any parent, guardian or advocate of a child with a disability.

I wrote a review for the first edition and this edition just gets better. It includes IDEA 2004. So not only will you learn how to create call logs and master lists you learn the MOST CURRENT law. IDEA goes into effect July 1,2005 and this is an AWESOME book for anyone who is new to the special education maze, but also is an EXCELLENT resource for those that have been in the system for awhile. I've learned to write letters that have been recognized and not filed under a pile, I've learned to keep a complete call log that has helped me when trying to obtain services for my son, and I've learned to understand the many complexities that come with the special education system.

I have MANY, MANY special education books, but this is this is the book I return to over and over again. I reccomend getting the Wrights Law Book and the Wrights Law IDEA 2004 to go with this. This book does reference some of the special ed law and it is great to be able to flip to the specific paragraph in the law book to help fully understand what Emotions touches on.

An awesome book!