Transitioning from elementary to middle school can be difficult for even the most successful student and seasoned parent. For a student with an IEP, the transition can be daunting. For me as a parent, it was downright traumatic.

My son has central auditory processing disorder and has had an IEP since the third grade. IEPs can be a confusing and difficult process. Just when you think you have mastered the IEP process — having learned all the terms and sailing smoothly middle school comes along.

I thought I was prepared. Boy, was I wrong!

When a child moves from elementary to middle, or middle to high school, a transition IEP is held. This gives the IEP team an opportunity to ready things for the new school.

When I heard my son would have a transition IEP for middle school, I panicked. What did that mean exactly? Would his services change? Would I have to start all over at the new school?

I decided to hire an advocate who had experience with transition IEPs. I knew there were going to be things that happened in middle school that I was unfamiliar with. I wanted to make sure I was getting everything my son would need.

The advocate provided me with all kinds of new terms I had never heard of such as graphic organizer, a communication log and an assignment sheet. She gave me suggestions I had never thought of, such as requesting copies of class notes, being provided with a list of key concepts in advance and not being penalized for spelling errors. This was a wealth of knowledge I took with me into the IEP meeting.

I set up a meeting and tour of my son's new school. I had been on the regular school tour when we were thinking of sending my son there. But I had not been on a special education tour.

On the tour, my son and I met with the resource teacher who would be assigned to my son's grade. We reviewed his IEP with her. We toured the classrooms so we could see what they looked like and met some of the teachers.

We also met with the special education coordinator and spoke with her about the school's program. I asked her what she thought should be in my son's transition IEP. She gave me some insightful information about how her school worked that I was able to take with me into the IEP meeting.

The transition IEP went smoothly. I felt confident and successful. My advocate and I were able to get all of the items we requested. We even had it written in the IEP that his new school would hold an IEP 30 days after the new school year began. This would be an opportunity to see how things were going and make any necessary changes.

I was thrilled and felt like I had finally mastered the beast that is the IEP. I felt we were ready for middle school.

The new school year started, and my son was doing great. I was nervous and worried about all the new things he would encounter and the teachers to which he would have to explain his IEP. But things went smoothly. Too smoothly.

By the eighth week of school I just had this feeling that things were going too easily. My mother's instinct kicked in. My son was not demonstrating any of the struggles he used to have in elementary school. I thought middle school would be harder, but it seemed easier.

I contacted the school and relayed my concerns. The school advised me the classes my son was in were "split-level classes." This was a term I had never heard before. It was never used on the tour or in any of the meetings I had with the school before he started attending.

A split-level class is a class that contains all of the students that have an IEP, regardless of their academic strength. Middle schools do this because the resource teacher can work with all the students at one time in one class. There are not enough resource teachers to place one in each and every middle school class.

I was uncomfortable with this. Not only had the school never mentioned this, but my son worked at a high academic level. I did not feel he should be placed in a class just based on the fact that he had an IEP. He needed to be placed in a class where he would be challenged and have the ability to work at his level with similarly paced students.

I was angry at the school for not discussing this with me. After several discussions and classroom observations, I had my son moved out of the split level class and into a regular academic class. He still has an IEP but receives less time with the resource teacher. He is working a bit harder, is being challenged and is still doing great in middle school.

Middle school is a transition. Make sure you are asking all the right questions when your child makes that change. And keep monitoring for changes good or bad so you can bring them to the school's attention.

Remember, you are always your child's best advocate.