1 / 12

Empowering Parents Through Healthy Communication for Child Advocacy

Learn vital communication skills to advocate effectively for your child. Our experienced team shares strategies, including nonverbal cues and professionalism tips. Understand the power of assertive communication and how to navigate roadblocks in advocating for your child. Discover the importance of knowing the law and teaming up with professionals to ensure your child's needs are met.

smansfield
Download Presentation

Empowering Parents Through Healthy Communication for Child Advocacy

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. HealthyCommunication Advocating for Your Child

  2. About us • David Scott, MA, LAC, LPCC • Worked in Clinical Behavioral Health for 10 years • Experienced in behavioral strategies for children • Advocated for children with various agencies: schools, social services, juvenile court, etc. • Stacy Scott, MEd • Worked in Special Education for seven years • Treatment foster parent for six years • Advocated for children as a professional and parent

  3. Our story • Our Heart for Children • Treatment Foster Care with PATH • Our Adoption

  4. The role of communication • Extremely important in advocating for your child • Both verbal and nonverbal • How do you obtain what your child needs without angering all of your child’s providers?

  5. Communication Elements • Verbal vs. Nonverbal Communication • Breakdown of the numbers (with a caveat) • 55% is body language • 38% is tone of voice • 7% is actual words spoke (Mehrabian & Wiener, 1967 and Mehrabian & Ferris, 1967) • Three C’s of Nonverbal Communication • Context • Clusters • Congruence • Mehrabian, Albert (1972). Nonverbal Communication. Chicago, IL: Aldine-Atherton. ISBN0-202-30966-5.

  6. Nonverbal Communication • Nonverbal Cues to Consider • Posture • Gestures • Facial Expressions • Paraverbal Communication • Inflection • Pacing • Pitch • Tone

  7. Communication Styles • Passive • Aggressive • Passive Aggressive • Assertive

  8. Professionalism • Advocating for your child is your JOB as a parent • Conducting yourself as if you were at a work meeting is EXTREMELY important • Imagine yourself in a courtroom. Would your behavior or the way you speak get you charged with contempt of court? If so, reassess and start over!

  9. Hot buttons • What really irks you? • What gets under your skin? • What about how someone communicates to you sets you off? • Knowing the answers to these questions will help you be successful!

  10. Responding • Assertive, assertive, ASSERTIVE!!!! • You can advocate for your child without embarrassing yourself and losing the respect of the professionals in the room.

  11. Roadblocks • When all of your attempts have failed, what do you do next? • Know the Law! • It is there to make sure your child gets what s/he needs • Team up with another advocate • DD case manager (if applicable) • Other professionals involved in your child’s life (therapist, psychologist, psychiatrist, SLP, OT, PT, etc.) • Protection and Advocacy • Lawyer up!

  12. Questions

More Related