REEL is frequently asked by educators how to approach conversations with parents about academic, behavioral, or social-emotional concerns regarding a student. What is appropriate to say? How should they handle situations where parents are resistant or do not understand the concerns? To provide guidance, we spoke with several experts including an educator-turned-special education advocate with experience across multiple districts, a Santa Clara County Office of Education leade

Need a holiday gift or some winter break reading? Check out this list of books featuring neurodivergent characters, organized by grade. Elementary Just Ask: Be Different. Be Brave. Be You. by Sonia Sotomayor and Rafael Lopez (differences) The World Needs Who You Were Made to Be by Joanna Gaines (differences) The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig (feeling invisible) The Girl Who Thought In Pictures: The Story of Temple Grandin by Julia Finley Mosca (autism) You’re So Clumsy Charle

By Jenna Segall, 5th Grade Teacher, Palo Verde Elementary School, Palo Alto (Check out REEL's list of suggested books for all grades featuring neurodiverse characters or themes.) I remember reading this poem a few years back, written by autistic, then 5th grader, Ben Giroux. I was so moved by his incredible self-awareness and the raw vulnerability that he shared so beautifully on the page. Immediately, I thought of my own 5th grade students and was eager to share Ben’s work a