My child with an IEP is being sent home early for behavior
The office phones you mid-day, says come get your child after a behavior incident, or sends your child home early or on a shortened schedule, with the day never logged as a suspension. It depends: one early pickup on its own is not a change of placement, but removals that add up to more than ten school days this year can form a pattern that is one (34 CFR 300.536(a)(2)). Start by pulling the IEP page or the letter the dispute turns on and writing down today’s date; every move below adds to that record.
What the rule says
“a change of placement occurs if … the child has been subjected to a series of removals that constitute a pattern … because the series of removals total more than 10 school days in a school year”
34 CFR 300.536(a)(2)(i)
The days count toward a change of placement whether or not the school ever called any of them a suspension.
What to do this week, in order
Log every early pickup and shortened day this year: the date, time missed, who called, and the reason given.
A running log of every early dismissal this year
Ask the front office, in writing, for its own call log and the attendance code used on each of those dates.
The office’s call log and attendance codes
Once the log passes ten days this year, ask in writing whether the district is treating it as a change of placement.
A dated email and the district’s written answer to it34 CFR 300.536(a)(2)
Once the pattern is confirmed, ask for the manifestation determination review and the functional behavioral assessment that follows a yes.
The manifestation review request and any FBA after it34 CFR 300.530(e)(1), (f)(1)(i)
What to put in writing
Replace what sits in brackets and send it by email, so the date is fixed.
- To
- The principal, whose office makes each early-dismissal call
Dear [Principal’s name], Since [start date], the office has sent [Child's full name] home early or shortened the day [number] times after behavior incidents; my log with each date, minutes missed, and reason given is attached. Please send the office's own call log and attendance codes for those dates, and let me know whether this year's total is being tracked as a discipline pattern. I would also like a functional behavioral assessment or a look at the current behavior plan on our next meeting agenda. If that answer is no, please put it in writing as a formal decision under 34 CFR 300.503, for our file. [Your name] [Phone] · [Email]
If the answer is no, it arrives as prior written notice: what was refused, why, and the records the district relied on (34 CFR 300.503(b)).
When to escalate, and to whom
Escalate when the written answer is a no, or when the record you built this week draws no answer at all.
| The path | The count | How it runs |
|---|---|---|
| A state complaint | 60 days to a decision | A signed letter to your state education agency about a violation inside the past year; the state decides in writing within 60 days.34 CFR 300.152(a), 300.153(c) |
| Mediation | Voluntary, at no cost to you | You and the district sit with an impartial mediator the state pays for; it can start before any complaint and may not delay a hearing.34 CFR 300.506(b) |
| A due process complaint | 2 years to file | A hearing before an impartial officer; the district holds a resolution meeting within 15 days, and the decision is due 45 days after the 30-day resolution period.34 CFR 300.507(a)(2), 300.510(a)(1), 300.515(a) |
Those counts are IDEA’s; your state may set its own window for due process, and publishes its own complaint form.
This page explains the federal rule, and it does not replace your state’s procedures, or advice from someone qualified to read your file.
Have the pages this dispute is about read back to you, free.
The review reads every page you upload, names the service, goal or wording that is vague or missing, and gives you its page number.
Review my IEP — freeFree, no card. It reads your pages and contacts no one.
Where this comes from
- When removals become a change of placement (34 CFR 300.536)The pattern rule quoted above.
- Manifestation review and the FBA that follows (34 CFR 300.530)What a change of placement triggers.
- Considering behavior supports for the classroom (34 CFR 300.324)The behavior-plan review move above.
- Prior written notice (34 CFR 300.503)What every no owes you.
When the paragraph needs to become a full letter, the letter templates carry one for each request.