Basic+Needs+Group+3

Addressing the basic needs of a family can be important for the general success of our students as well as a stress-reducing component for the family. Emotional, informational, financial, and safety needs are the basic needs that should be met in order to reduce anxiety for both the family and for the student and, in turn, supports the success within both elements. Emotional needs are crucial in ensuring the stability and success of the family. Many times there are multiple sources of stress within a family; from financial strains to communication issues within the family. Sometimes these stresses can further be aggravated when parents are uncertain on how to further support their children through times of crisis. Resources such as Parent to Parent programs and Parent Support Groups can alleviate some of the emotional burdens by ensuring that the families know that they are not alone in their situation and give hope to the family. These programs can also be a source of meeting some of the informational needs of the family since many of these programs have veteran families who can help. They can provide informational needs such as the resources that are available to a family that can help alleviate financial stresses, can provide references to recommended professionals and physicians, and can lead families to services such as Community Parent Resource Centers. Since some of these resources can also provide information for meeting financial needs, many emotional needs are also met, which in turn improve the overall quality of life. When emotional needs are met and stresses are reduced, there’s an increase in meeting the safety needs of students; especially in familial situations where a parent or family member are outwardly expressive of their frustrations. Of course, in any situation where this may be the case, the families’ and student’s quality of life is improved when professionals become advocates for protecting the student and having open lines of communication and support with the family in a nonjudgmental manner.
 * Jorge Martinez**
 * What role families’ basic needs play in their overall quality of life? **

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Professionals can build trust by making sure that these familial needs are met. Usually this involves going above and beyond in recognizing that there are circumstances that are invoking stress from lack of one of these needs. Opening lines of communication in these matters require remaining nonjudgmental and avoiding jumping to conclusions. Providing the family with information on resources such as support groups can be one of the best ways to begin the line of communication and build trust with the family. Systems and professionals that further encourage the creation or sponsor of such programs also build trust with families. These programs are a great forum for sharing information and even more resources that are available to families. When families know that you are advocating for them and are providing resources to meet their basic needs, you are building a strong line of communication and trust with them. Helpguide.org provides a resource of helpful tips in the article “Parenting Children with Learning Disabilities” ([]). In the introduction of this article, it mentions that what is more important than the academic success of the child is that the child lives a happy and a fulfilling life. I believe professionals and systems that approach the families in this manner can further build trust with the family since it shows that they are supporting the child in more than just their academic successes.
 * 1) **** How systems and professionals within systems can build families’ trust? **



= = = = =Jasmin Lewis=


 * 1) ** What role families’ basic needs play in their overall quality of life? **

====There are four types of basic needs that families can play in their overall quality of life. These types include emotional support, informational support, economic support and abuse and neglect. Within emotional support, in some cases families can have the feeling of lose hope or loneliness which can affect their support when working with their child who may be disabled. Parent to parent programs are important to families who feel this way because it offers support from others who are in the same predicament or who feel the same way. Informational support is important because families who are uneducated of their child’s disability or what they can do to help their family and child can affect decision they make with their overall quality of life. Families need to be informed in order to make appropriate decisions for their family and in different situations that may occur over time. There are many federal funded parent centers that help families who have children with disabilities from birth to age 22, as well as one-on-one assistance and language friendly materials that may be helpful for families to gain information needed. Economic support plays a huge role in the overall quality of life because financial stress occurs in many families. When financial stress in prominent in any family, especially ones with a disabled member, it makes it difficult to focus on education. The focus is usually on how the bills, personal or medical, would get paid or how they will provide food, clothing and transportation. To help families who are in financial need, there is federal funding available to help with special finances that will define and meet the needs of the family. Lastly, neglect and abuse is important in the overall quality of life because stress, frustration and exhaustion often occurs in a family and could sometimes resolve in abuse or neglect of the child and can create a dangerous environment. It is very important to build trust with families and keep an open line of communication and honesty, because when you notice a problem that may create some stress and harm to a child, you can help parents and provide them resources that can protect that child.====

[]** Maslow’s Hierarchy ** This pyramid shows the basic needs of families and children in the overall quality of life. These needs play major roles in families and can have both negative and positive effects on individuals.


 * 1) ** How systems and professionals within systems can build families’ trust? **

====Systems and professionals within systems can build trust with families by having an open and honest line of communication. It is key to always be respectful to the family and their culture and to always keep their perspectives and information provided in mind. Being an advocate to the family and providing equality is also very important in building trust. By being committed to the family, it is important for a professional to go out of their way and provide information to the family that may be helpful, whether its information regarding a child’s disability or information on bilingual education for the child. It is also important to review information with the family and not make any decisions without the family’s consent or their input. A professional can find resources to meet the family’s basic needs and work with them in carrying out actions in putting those resources to use. Lastly, providing many options that may meet the family’s individual priorities is important in gaining trust as well. There are an unlimited amount of actions that systems and professionals in systems can perform to build trust with families and these are just to name a few.====



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I chose this image because it illustrates that in order to get to trust, one would have to put the puzzle peices together to complete that bridge.

Lauren L. Johnson
 * What role families’ basic needs play in their overall quality of life? **


 * A family's basic needs include emotional, informational, financial and safety. Addressing these basic needs can help with the partnership and trust with families as well as be the reason for success in children's education. To have quality in our children and our education programs we need the support and partnership of the family. To do this, we must address the families' basic needs. Sometimes families are not as involved as they should be or as involved as we want them to be because they don't know where to get involved or know what resources are out there. If we support families' as they support their children, we will need to share all of the incredible resources out their for them to explore. A families' emotions also come into play. We can help with a family's need of emotion by getting them to talk to other families that have a child with a disability and make them feel encouraged and let them know that they are understood. There are also family support groups that allow families to get together and discuss their child. These groups can seem more approachable to families and allow them to talk about things that they wouldn't normally discuss with someone who doesn't have a child with a disability. These groups can also provide advice, hope, encouragement and a sense of belonging for a family which can overall satisfy a families' needs and the overall quality of life. A family may also have questions about their child's diagnosis and have many other questions that are information based. Knowledge is power and to gain knowledge a professional must have current, accurate and family-friendly resources to help with the informational based need of a family. A family also may have financial difficulties where they have a budget and will need to make the best for what they have. A great support system for that would be federally funded support centers where a family doesn't have to pay out of pocket. A family needs to know that everything that their child does and is a part of is safe and secure. They need a support system that they can trust; a support system that they can always turn to. **

(http://www.abacus.ik.org/p_Temp2.ikml)  In Reply to your post: I liked the last comment that you made about having a support system they can trust. Families need to be able to trust the support system that they are working with in order to improve their quality of life. When a support system is unreliable or they feel that they are being judged, it can ultimately affect anxiety levels of the family, thereby affecting the anxiety and success of the student. (Jorge Martinez )
 * An example of a family support group: **


 * (2) how systems and professionals within systems can build families’ trust**


 * A system and a professional can build a family's trust in many ways. What is most important in building a trusting relationship is proving that a professional can be relied on and that they have the best interest in a child and will do whatever it takes for that child to get a deserved education. A way to achieve this is through good communication and dedication. You can also be helpful and supportive. A way to be helpful is by knowing and communicating with a family about helpful community, state and national resources available to them to help with their needs and to provide support. As a professional, you must consider a family's individual needs, strengths and preferences to gain a foundation of trust. A professional can do this by being sensitive to families' emotional needs, being available and accessible, and going above and beyond. That is what a family is looking for and that is what can build a trusting partnership. **

Image From: http://fearlesscompetitor.net/2011/01/05/the-importance-of-trust-4-ways-to-earn-it/

In reply to your post: I liked that you pointed out that professionals achieve going above and beyond for their students by both having good communication skills and dedication to the student. I believe that being dedicated in involves being aware of the student's needs beyond academic skills and addressing those needs without hesitation. (Jorge Martinez)