Educating Young Children Volume 1 - Winter 2026 | Page 17

Training together helps teams work across departments to build and share a common vision. It also gives team members a chance to share their experiences and hear success stories from their peers. [ CS: IS THERE BRANDING FOR WOYC THAT SHOULD

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. One. of the most powerful things we’ ve done is to share stories: What has been tough? What have you tried? This gives everyone an opportunity to have a voice and to hear beautiful success stories from other team members.

5. Prioritize partnerships with families.

No one knows a child better than their family. We should support families in advocating for their children, even if their perspective is different from ours. Our goal is to find common ground and make sure the child gets what they need.

Many aspects of inclusion are overwhelming for families at the beginning. Walking into an IEP meeting is intimidating. We preview for families what these meetings look like, what we’ ll be discussing, and how valued their input is. It’ s important for families to feel confident, supported, and heard. This child is their whole world.

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