Ask for a reevaluation when the current data no longer fits
A reevaluation request asks the school to test again and update the picture the IEP is built on. You or your child’s teacher can ask for one, and the district may also decide by itself that fresher data is needed. You can send it today: paste it into an email, replace what sits in brackets, and write down the day the school received it; the table below says which day starts each clock.
What the rule says
“A public agency must ensure that a reevaluation of each child with a disability is conducted … If the child’s parent or teacher requests a reevaluation.”
34 CFR 300.303(a)
Your request is one of the two events that opens a reevaluation, and no gatekeeper stands in front of it.
When to send it
- The last evaluation is three years old and your child’s difficulties look different now.
- Progress reports have shown the same score on the same goal for two straight marking periods.
- A new diagnosis arrived over the summer and nobody at school has tested in that area.
What happens after you send it
| What is being counted | By when | How it is counted |
|---|---|---|
| The three-year floor | 3 years | That outer limit holds unless you and the district agree the testing is unnecessary.34 CFR 300.303(b)(2) |
| How often you may ask | Once every 12 months | A second reevaluation inside that span needs agreement between you and the district.34 CFR 300.303(b)(1) |
| The testing finishes | Set by your state | The count for completing a reevaluation belongs to your state, so look it up there.34 CFR 300.301(c)(1) |
What the letter has to contain
The date of the last testing
An undated file reads as a current file, and a current file gets no second look.
A reevaluation happens at least once every three years unless you both agree otherwise. 34 CFR 300.303(b)(2)
Which skills to test
Naming the areas keeps the round from repeating whatever happened to be measured the first time.
Assessment covers every area connected to the disability the team suspects. 34 CFR 300.304(c)(4)
What has changed since then
The team can decide no new testing is needed, and the quickest route to that outcome is a vague request.
Existing data gets reviewed first, and the gaps in it identified. 34 CFR 300.305(a)
The form, or the reasons
Silence leaves you holding nothing, while a written no is a document you can carry forward.
If no more data are needed, the agency tells you that and why. 34 CFR 300.305(d)(1)
The letter
Replace everything in brackets. The rest sends as it stands.
- To
- The school psychologist who ran the last testing
- Subject
- Reevaluation request for [Student’s name], [Grade] at [School]
Dear [Case manager], I would like the district to reevaluate [Student’s name], [Grade] at [School], and to look at areas the last round did not cover. The most recent evaluation is dated [date of the last report]. Since then: • [What changed — a diagnosis, a move, a new behavior, a drop in one subject] • [What the progress reports show, with the goal and the numbers] • [What a doctor, therapist or tutor has said, and when] Please have the team review the existing data and tell me which areas it plans to assess. I would like [suspected areas — for example: reading fluency, math reasoning, attention, speech, occupational therapy, social skills] covered. If consent is needed, please send me the form. If the district turns the request down, please put the reasons in writing and attach whatever records the decision rested on. Many thanks, [Your name] [Your cell] · [Your email] [Date sent]
If no answer comes back
Give it your state’s reply window, counted from the day the request reached the office.
- Bump the thread by adding the date of the last evaluation to the subject line.
- Ask the school psychologist directly whether a review of existing data has been scheduled.
- Take the request to the district office, where a separate log records it.
A no owes you prior written notice: the decision, the reason for it, and the records behind it (34 CFR 300.503).
This is a template, not legal advice: it does not replace your state’s procedures, or advice from someone qualified to read your file.
Have the pages you are writing about read back to you, free.
The review reads every page you upload, names the 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
- Reevaluations (34 CFR 300.303)Where the quoted line sits.
- Review of existing data (34 CFR 300.305)What the team does first.
- Evaluation procedures (34 CFR 300.304)How wide the testing goes.
- Prior written notice (34 CFR 300.503)What a no owes you.
Response deadlines are set state by state, and the state pages carry each number with its rule.