Episode 5: Putting Your Child in the Driver's Seat: A Parent's Guide to Person-Centered Planning

Today, we’re diving deep into a topic that I am passionate about: Person-Centered Planning. This concept is absolutely fundamental to empowering our kids as they plan for their futures.

Resources:

Charting the Life Course:  https://www.lifecoursetools.com/

I'm Determined Framework:  https://imdetermined.org/

 PATH and MAPS Framework:  https://inclusion.com/path-maps-and-person-centered-planning/

SnapType Pro:  https://snaptypeapp.com/

Clicker:  https://cricksoft.com/clicker/

Book Creator:  https://bookcreator.com/

Notability:  https://notability.com/

OrbitNote:  https://www.texthelp.com/products/orbitnote/

Kami:  https://www.kamiapp.com/

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As a Disclaimer, I am NOT a lawyer, a medical doctor, or a licensed psychologist. I am writing this blog as a mom sharing her journey and opinions. My views are my own and should not be construed as any direct medical or legal advice. (I hate having to write a disclaimer, but this is the world we live in!)

Transcript

Hello, and welcome to "Life Without a Filter," the podcast where we talk about the ups, downs, and everything in between on our journey with our young adults with disabilities. I’m your host, Cheryl. In addition to being an Assistive Technology consultant, I’m also the mother to a young adult who utilizes the Self-Directed Adult Service model. 

Today, we’re diving deep into a topic that I am passionate about: Person-Centered Planning. It’s a concept that is absolutely fundamental to empowering our kids. There’s a powerful motto used by disability organizations: “Nothing About Us Without Us”, and that is the guiding principle for our conversation today.

What is Person-Centered Planning?

So, what exactly is Person-Centered Planning? According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, it is a process that is directed by the participant—your son or daughter—and is meant to identify their strengths, preferences, needs, and desired outcomes. This is a major shift away from older models where plans were often driven by providers and caregivers.

When I would attend IEP meetings, I loved to use the analogy of “Who is driving the bus?” when discussing vision and goals.   When our kids are young, we as parents, along with teachers and providers, tend to be the one’s in the driver's seat. We make the big decisions about goals and services. But as they get older, that has to shift.

In Massachusetts, for example, that shift gets very real at age 14. At that age, your child must legally be invited to their own IEP meetings, and transition planning officially begins.  If we look at how IDEA is currently written (§Sec. 300.43 Transition services) §300.43 

"Transition services.

§(a) Transition services means a coordinated set of activities for a child with a disability that—

§(1) Is designed to be within a results-oriented process that is focused on improving the academic and functional achievement of the child with a disability to facilitate the child's movement from school to post-school activities, including postsecondary education, vocational education, integrated employment (including supported employment), continuing and adult education, adult services, independent living, or community participation;"

https://sites.ed.gov/idea/regs/b/a/300.43

This is the perfect time for the student to start moving into the driver's seat. We, the parents and professionals, are still on the bus, but our roles change. We’re there to provide the roadmap, point out potential obstacles, and help re-route when needed to get them where they want to go.

Having this plan becomes incredibly helpful when transitioning from the school system into adult services, because it keeps the entire team focused on your child's goals. Those goals often fall under what are called the 3 Pillars of Transition Planning, which are Education and Training, Employment, and Independent Living. This person-centered plan becomes the foundation for their Individual Support Plan, or ISP, in the adult world.

Frameworks to Get You Started

This all sounds great in theory, but how do you actually do it? The good news is, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. There are several amazing, often free, models you can use as a framework. Let’s talk about a few of my favorites.

First, there’s Charting the LifeCourse. This is a framework I first learned about at The Arc of Massachusetts conference.  The materials are available for free on their website, and this is the process that we used to help my son, L, create his plan. It was developed by the Institute for Human Development at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. The framework helps individuals and families create a vision for a good life and identify the supports needed to achieve it. The best part? Their website has free video tutorials and all the handouts are free to download. One of its core tools is a visual one-page document that helps organize supports across different areas of life, like technology, personal strengths, relationships, and community resources.

Next is the PATH Method. PATH is a creative planning process that does something really interesting: it starts in the future and works backward. The first step is to identify the "North Star"—the person's ultimate dream or goal. From there, you work backward through steps like generating a vision, grounding yourself in the "now," and identifying the first bold steps you need to take. It’s a powerful way to build a hopeful path forward.

A similar tool is MAPS. It is also a visual, storyboard-based method. The MAPS process is about listening to a person’s dreams, acknowledging their nightmares or fears, and building a rich portrait of their unique gifts and talents. The center of the MAP is the person's story, and from there you map out their dream, their fears, their contributions, and what it will take to move forward.

Finally, I want to mention the “I’m Determined!” program. This is a project funded by the Virginia Department of Education that focuses on providing direct instruction and practice in skills related to self-determined behavior. Its goal is to help youth, especially those with disabilities, take control and "steer the course rather than remaining a silent passenger". They have fantastic resources, like a "Goal Plan" worksheet that walks a person through defining their goal, outcomes, next steps, and who can support them.

Segment 3: The Power of Assistive Technology

Now, for many of our kids, the idea of "directing" this process can feel overwhelming. This is where assistive technology, or AT, can be a game-changer. Pairing person-centered planning with AT can empower students to shape their futures with confidence.

Transition plans need to address how a student’s AT will transfer from school to their post-secondary life. This includes thinking about equipment, training, and funding. But beyond just transferring the tech, we can use it to help them create their plan in the first place.

Let me give you some concrete examples:

• Remember the Charting the LifeCourse star worksheet? Instead of struggling with a pen, your child could use an app like Snap Type Pro on an iPad to take a picture of the worksheet and type their answers directly onto it.
• For the MAPS method, which is all about telling a story, a student could use a program like Clicker. It provides word banks and other writing supports to help them build sentences and express their ideas.
• For the PATH method, you could use an app like Book Creator to make a multimedia digital book, with pictures, text, and even recorded audio to map out the steps from their "North Star" dream back to today.
• And for the “I’m Determined” Goal Plan, a student could use Notability or a PDF reader like OrbitNote to fill out the form digitally.
• And of course, for students who are non-verbal, their AAC devices are their voice in this process.

Don’t forget about the built-in accessibility features on the devices you already have, whether it’s an iPad, Chromebook, or Microsoft computer. These tools are there to make sure every student can meaningfully participate.

Conclusion: Your Call to Action

So, what’s the main takeaway from all this? No matter which method you choose, the most important thing is to ensure your child's voice is the primary driver of their plan.

I want to leave you with a call to action. You now have the tools and the models, so it's time to put them into action.

1. Start today. Introduce one of these person-centered planning models to your child and your family.
2. Incorporate assistive technology. Find the right tools so your child can actively and meaningfully participate in their own planning.
3. Champion their voice. In every single IEP and ISP meeting, make sure they are the driver of their own future.

Remember, the future belongs to our students—let's help them claim it.