What Massachusetts parents should know this back-to-school season

If a child requires any kind of additional support, such as physical accommodations or extended time on assignments, it is important for the teacher to be informed about them.

This is especially important if a child is receiving special education services or has an individualized education program, or IEP.

“Teachers are getting to know 25 or 30 students at a time,” Perez said. “Many people think teachers have the IEP right there with them, but that’s not the case. They either have to go in the computer and search for it, or they have to go to the office where the IEP is saved.”

Perez also recommends sharing information about the child’s strengths, interests, and specific goals for the new year.

Massachusetts Advocates for Children created a sample letter parents can use when deciding what information they want to share with new teachers.

Massachusetts doesn’t have a law banning students from having cellphones in school, despite recent efforts to pass legislation.

Each district has its own policies regarding electronic devices, and some individual teachers might have their own rules as well.

Brockton, Fall River, Ipswich, Methuen, and Newton have rules in place restricting student use of cellphones. In Newton, for example, public school students are not allowed to have cellphones with them throughout the school day.

In other districts, such as Boston, students are only permitted to use cellphones before and after school hours, at after school or sports activities with permission of a coach or instructor, and at evening or weekend activities in the school building.

Perez said many parents and children rely on cellphones to communicate during the school day: “‘Hey, remember the doctor’s appointment?’ or, ‘Mom, can you bring me my lunch I forgot?’”

“Some kids with social-emotional struggles use their cellphone to call mom or dad and say, ‘I’m not feeling well,’ ‘I’m anxious,’ ‘The bullies are here again’,” Perez said. “It’s going to be really hard for these students to not have that way of direct communication with their families.”

If the district has a policy preventing cellphones in schools, families should ensure they communicate ahead of time, Perez said. Her recommendation for families is to make a plan of what steps their children will take in case they’re not feeling well.

Some of these steps include communicating with teachers and other school employees, and asking them to use a school phone to call parents if necessary.

Some children struggle with change. A new school year often means a new teacher, a new classroom, or even a new school.

Perez recommends parents take their children to tour the campus before school starts, if the option is available. Finding their new classroom beforehand and creating some familiarity with the building can be very helpful for some children.

She also recommends introducing children to their new schedules and routines ahead of time and minimizing the number of unfamiliar things. That includes waking up earlier in the days or weeks leading up to the first day of school, bringing back scheduled meals, and setting a bed time.

“Anything that the school offers in terms of orientation, in terms of tours, or just coming in, I would do that many times,” Bardwell said. “Come in when no one’s around because you don’t want to admit you’re scared or worried . . . That relieves, hopefully, some of the tension and anxiety they may have.”

Bardwell recommends normalizing the process of going back to school, while communicating with children about how they’re feeling.

“Are they excited? Are they nervous? Are they anxious? What are they saying?” Bardwell said. “Many adolescents, in particular, don’t want to interact with adults. Some parents take that as ‘I’m done. I don’t have to do this.’ In fact, I would suggest the opposite of that.“

The young people who don’t want to communicate with their family might be the ones who need it most, Bardwell said.

When parents ask about children’s feelings and check in with them, it sends a message that the parent is interested and engaged.

If the child doesn’t want to talk, parents can ask when would be a good time and schedule a time for later.

“Tell me more about why you’re nervous,” and “What are you worried about?” are good ways to approach the conversation, he said.

Bardwell advises parents to try to understand what the child’s concerns are, and then try to see if anything can be done to remediate that.

If they’re worried about who they’re going to sit with during lunch, one approach, he said, might be finding out their friends’s schedules to see if they match.

Every child, regardless of immigration or disability, have the right to attend public schools.

Public schools are mandated to provide services for certain children, including English language support and special education services.

Schools must follow the individual education plans tailored for children with special needs. Non-English speaking families also have a right to an interpreter and to have the documentation translated into their native language.

“We have received a few calls from parents whose primary language is not English, and they are having a hard time registering their child because they call the office and nobody speaks their language,” Perez said.

When it comes to accessing services or supporting a child struggling, Perez suggests parents should communicate in writing with school leaders to make sure they have a record of the interaction.

“The time that people need that extra support, it’s now at the beginning of the year,” said Bardwell.

In addition to resources available in school districts, outside nonprofit organizations, such as St. Stephen’s Youth Programs and Children’s Law Center of Massachusetts, support parents with advocacy and legal support.

Such organizations often specialize on supporting families dealing with bullying, struggling to access special education services, and navigating discipline issues.

Massachusetts Advocates for Children has a free helpline for parents who are struggling with any educational issue, from enrollment to special education services.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Newton.