Welcome to our School Avoidance Alliance blog. We are happy to see you here.
This is where we share articles, interviews, and information that provide help, hope and support to school avoidance families and educators.
There are effective new tools families and schools can use to help kids w anxiety disorders or school avoidance get back to school. These interventions have created some confusion around the meaning of the word “accommodations.”
Children are supposed to go to school. We could equate kids going to school with adults working every day. So,
School avoidance is challenging on so many levels. One aspect that doesn’t get much attention is the judgment and blame
Your child has the right to an education regardless of their school attendance problems. Getting your individual state’s guide to parental rights is the first step to understanding how your school can help your child.
There are effective new tools families and schools can use to help kids w anxiety disorders or school avoidance get back to school. These interventions have created some confusion around the meaning of the word “accommodations.”
Children are supposed to go to school. We could equate kids going to school with adults working every day. So,
School avoidance is challenging on so many levels. One aspect that doesn’t get much attention is the judgment and blame
Your child has the right to an education regardless of their school attendance problems. Getting your individual state’s guide to parental rights is the first step to understanding how your school can help your child.
Many schools don’t understand school avoidance, so parents must take on the role of advocate and educator. You may feel
School avoidance families will be nodding in agreement and appreciation when reading this series of information from Anxiety Institute Co-Founder
School avoidance families will find value as Dr. Albano addresses escape as avoidance and how natural parent instincts lead to accommodations that enable our kid’s avoidance. Her guidance and insight are helpful for us to understand so we can work on correcting this pattern.
Parents, clinicians, and researchers covet school avoidant kids’ insights and thoughts to help us find better solutions. So, when we see a teenager who speaks about it, wow, we surely want to hear what they have to say.
In this video, I explain some important, yet simple steps for working with your school at the beginning stages of
We had the pleasure of hearing from Kade in our private FB group for school avoidance families. It’s not often
For all you parents reading about 504 Plans, FAPE, IEPs, IDEA and ADA, laws, take a minute to laugh and get inspired.
The Americans with Disability Act (ADA), Amendments Act of 2008 Expanded Section 504’s Reach. Clarifying How School Avoidant Kids Can Qualify for 504 Plans
Working with your school is key to getting your school-avoidant child back into the building. Whether you have an intervention
Dear Schools and Educators, We wish you all an excellent start to the 2021 school year. We know your staff
Chronic school absenteeism is an issue that schools, states, and the federal government have on their radar. When they talk
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from leading School Avoidance expert Chris Leonard LCSW, M.Ed Chief Learning Officer at Thrive
School avoidance brings a new set of questions and challenges for schools. The responsibility of who will be involved in
This is the first post written by L. Reddan, who is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) on a High School Counseling team, and an experienced professional helping kids with school avoidance get back to school.
L. Reddan will be writing under a pseudonym in order to speak freely about pervasive issues in our school system as it relates to school avoidance and inclusion.
The following information is from a candid discussion that I had with Dr. Steven Myers, Licensed Psychologist, Certified School Psychologist, and Board Certified School Neuropsychologist. He has been a practicing School Psychologist in New Jersey for the past 14 years and maintains a private practice in Bergen County.
A discussion with Dr.Naoki Maeda of the School of Social Welfare, Kyushu University of Health and Welfare, Nobeoka, Japan
Have you heard that exposure therapy is the treatment of choice for school avoidance?
For some reason, the role of the behavior analyst (Board Certified Behavior Analysts, BCBA) has been under the radar. They shouldn’t be, though. They can play an integral part in helping kids get back to school.
I had a lightbulb moment when I read this article by John Reily’ which discusses using hybrid learning as an opportunity for school refusal reintegration. Why wait until the Fall when it will be the same environment as before. Now is the time for schools to work with the families while there are fewer kids in the building.
This is one of my top ten learning resources regarding anxiety-based school avoidance.
It is a video from Lyra, a very articulate 10 years old discussing her difficulties of going to school.
She provides keen insight into what has helped her get back to school.
We know that school avoidance is often misunderstood. Our friends and schools may question our parenting skills. They may share simplistic and insensitive advice. They usually mean well, but sometimes it hurts.
Disclaimer: This site is designed by School Avoidance Alliance to assist parents, family, friends, caregivers, educators, advocates, and other professionals involved with helping children and finding resources to understand, help and cope with school avoidance, as well as to increase public awareness regarding school avoidance. The contents of this website are presented for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing on this website is to be construed as professional advice on medical, legal, technical, or therapeutic matters. By accessing and using the information on this site, you agree to waive any rights to hold the site developer(s), or any individual and/or group associated with this site, liable for any damage that may result from the use of the information presented.
Unfortunately only a small percentage of school professionals, therapists, educational advocates and policy makers understand school avoidance best practices. So, you must become the expert to ensure your child is getting:
The time passing slowly without progress is the worst feeling. It wouldn’t have taken five years of suffering and uncertainty if I had this expert guidance during my son’s school avoidance. We would have saved $29,000 in lawyer fees and $69,000 for private schools.
