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    Monday, August 27, 2012

    Paraprofessional Survival Kit--FREEBIE

    This year we have six paraprofessionals that we truly could not live without! This summer my teaching team and I worked hard to come up with a paraprofessional handbook to streamline our classroom procedures and communicate our expectations to our paras (old and new!). 

    To go with our handbooks, I made these Paraprofessional Survival Kits. They include lots of the essential items (mostly office supplies) that our paras will need this year. It was a great, practical back to school gift and it also aligned with our handbook. For instance, one thing we want paras to do this year is share their thoughts or concerns on a Concern Clipboard in a central team communication area in the classroom so we included post-it notes in the bag. Also, we have paras leading groups so we want them to record student progress and take notes to let us know how things are going. Therefore, we provided each para with a notebook. 






    What else did we include? Click on the links below for amazon links to each item (or just raid your school's storage closet if you are blessed enough to have one!)

      • We used my Editable Paraprofessional Role Sheets which can be found by clicking the images below



    •  Notebook: You can certainly get a basic notebook but are tons of adorable options out there specific to paras too for a little something extra.






    • Pink Eraser: Ok I love mechanical pencils but the erasers never seem to last long enough.



    • Post-It Notes: Another obsession that I cannot help! You could certainly go with the tried and true Post-It brand post its (none seem to stick quite as good am I right?!). But I am a sucker for cute post-its too!



    • Lifesavers: We are often all up in each other's bubbles in the special education classroom so anything to keep our breath fresh is a bonus... especially when you have that one autistic student who isn't afraid to call out your coffee breath LOL!
    • Rubber Bands: Does anyone else have a baggie full of rubber bands at the bottom of their desk drawer?? Or is that just me?? An added bonus of plenty of rubber bands is they are a great tool for taking frequency data... comment below if you want more details!



    • Paper Clips: Again, you can certainly use the basic paperclips from your supply closet but I am a sucker for cute school supplies. It's the simple things right?!


    • Puzzle Piece: We got enough blank jumbo puzzle pieces for all of the staff and students in our program to make a bulletin board.



    I made up cute cards to attach to each survival kit which you can grab for FREE by signing up for my newsletter or in my TPT Store!

    Enjoy!






    Welcome visitors from Classroom Freebies! I hope you enjoy this Manic Monday treat!
    Classroom Freebies Manic Monday

    Download my FREE Paraprofessional Survival Kit Gift Tags!

    I look forward to connecting with you and sharing SpEd Spot tips and FREEBIES!

      Thursday, August 23, 2012

      Think About It Thursday--New (School) Year Resolutions

      If you are anything like me you have probably completely forgotten what resolutions you made back in January. With the new school year starting I felt it was a perfect opportunity to come up with some new resolutions. I didn't want to overdo it so I have three top resolutions for this school year...

      1. Go to bed earlier!- I have been a night owl for as long as I can remember. I swear my best ideas happen after 9pm which is horrible because no one likes tossing and turning at night because you can't stop thinking about how you are going to change a lesson or rearrange your desk! I need to go to bed earlier.

      2. Get up earlier!- Anyone who has taught with me and pretty much anyone who has tried to meet me somewhere knows I am always late! This is mostly due to the fact that I am NOT a morning person. I move so slow in the morning and on most days I wish caffeine could be injected intravenously! I think a lot of this stems from the problem in resolution #1.

      3. Leave school earlier!-(Hmmm I am beginning to sense a theme here.) As I mentioned last week, I am a bit of a perfectionist which leads to many late nights at school "perfecting" whatever project I am currently working on. This leads to getting home late... eating dinner late... and going to bed late. It's a vicious cycle!

      Wish me luck on my resolutions and leave comments on what resolutions you want to have for this school year! Best of luck to all my readers on a new school year!

      Saturday, August 18, 2012

      HUGE giveaway at Mrs. Wheeler's First Grade Tidbits!

      Mrs Wheelers First Grade

      My coworker and pal Megan at Mrs. Wheeler's First Grade Tidbits is having an AMAZING giveaway to celebrate 2 years of blogging and 1000 FOLLOWERS! Way to go, Megan!

      I absolutely had to pass the word to my readers because this giveaway is just too good to pass up! There are tons of great prizes and better yet there will be lots of winners! Plus, I highly recommend following Megan because she has so many awesome ideas!


      Here is the link to the giveaway:



      Now what are you waiting for?! Go sign up! (But come back soon :) )

      Friday, August 17, 2012

      Classroom Before Pictures


      I'm linking up with Karlie at <a href="http://karlie-johnson.blogspot.com/">We are ALL Specials</a> for her Classroom Before and After Pictures Linky Party.


      We are All Special!


      As I shared back in May, my district moved us to a new building. My wonderful paras helped me pack about 100 BOXES!! Eeeek! So walking into my classroom looked like this....




      I could hardly even get into the room to start unpacking! It was such a disaster. Then, I started getting things organized and then maintenance came in to do a variety of things (paint, install projector, retile bathroom floor, install shelving, etc) and EVERY time they moved a bunch of stuff and didn't put it back. GRRR!

      After lots of organizing (and reorganizing!), I am almost done! I REALLY hope everything is ready for the kiddos' arrival on Tuesday. I will be sure to share some "after" pics then!

      Thursday, August 16, 2012

      Think About It Thursday-- High Expectations


      I am a total perfectionist! Anyone who knows me and has worked with me knows this about me. I have super high expectations for myself. I love a challenge and I love pushing myself to be my best.

      I admit I push others to be better too. I try not to do it in a crazy Sue Sylvester way, but in a way that makes them see that there really is no other way. I have been super blessed. I feel my paraprofessionals respect that the reason I push our team is to give our kids the best education and quality of life that we can. I know they worry about the stress I put myself through to get us there but they work with me and it makes us a remarkable team.

      However my high expectations for myself and my team is not what I find most important or fulfilling. It's the high expectations I have for my students and their ability to exceed them which are the most rewarding. My last couple Think About It Thursday posts have been about labels and all the things they imply students cannot do. If I focused on my students' labels and what their disabilities imply they cannot do, then I really shouldn't be teaching... especially not special ed.

      I admit sometimes when I push my kids they push back! I have had people tell me that if one of my students doesn't want to do something and they put up a fight it would be better for me just to not make them do it. Ummm hello?! What kind of teacher would I be if I just let my students do whatever they want and stim in the corner?! Yeah, not gonna happen! Sometimes it takes meeting a student half way and then pushing them a bit slower than the rest of the kids but  in my experience they all get there eventually. 


      Where do you feel like you fall when it comes to expectations?... for yourself, your team, your students? How do others perceive your expectations? Have as anyone ever suggested your expectations were too high for a student or that you shouldn't push your students to be better? 


      Thursday, August 9, 2012

      Think About It Thursday-- Autism


      Last week I discussed how I felt about labels and how I didn't think it was fair for a child's label to dictate the services they receive. This made me think of the label/diagnosis of autism.

      Autism is basically diagnosed from a list of things a child cannot do...

      He cannot relate to others.
      She cannot communicate appropriately. 
      He cannot stop obsessing about that toy or TV show.
      She cannot handle loud noises.
      He cannot handle changes in routine.
      She cannot understand the risk of danger.
      He cannot stand being touched.
      She cannot make eye contact.
      He cannot play with toys appropriately.

      I hate all the focus on cannot for two reasons.

      1. There is no mention of any of the things the child can do! And kids with autism can do some pretty amazing stuff! I admit some of what they can do may be unconventional but how many of us can repeat a Disney movie verbatim, determine what day of the week someone was born on just by knowing the date, or recite the first 100 players drafted in the NFL including where they went to college and their position?!?

      2. It implies that the child will never be able to do any of these things. And from experience I can say this is 100% not true! Although I love teaching all students with special needs, working with children with autism has been remarkably rewarding for me. They have awed me again and again by exceeding expectations. Being able to help a child develop meaningful speech, eliminate difficult behaviors, and/or take interest in their classmates makes my job totally worth it.

      I think a lot of what makes my students so successful is intensive intervention. For my kids who are on the more severe end of the spectrum I try to provide 1-3 ABA (Applies Behavioral Analysis) direct teaching sessions daily in addition to group activities (cooking, theme reading, specials). I started out doing ABA before I was even interested in special ed so I am a strong proponent. I wish all of these kids received in-home ABA in addition to what I provide at school. However, unfortunately, a majority of my students come to me at age five with no early intervention. And if they do come with early intervention it is typically preschool which provides no ABA.

      I just don't know how in 2012 the awareness is still not out there about intensive early intervention for children with autism... specifically ABA? I wonder what resources doctors give when a child is newly diagnosed? Whose job should it be to educate these parents? Doctors? Parent Advocates? School Districts? It seems like no one is helping these parents unless they do the research themselves. Teachers and parents of children with autism... what have your experiences with early intervention been? Parents, how did you know where to go for help? Teachers, how do you approach parents when you think a child needs more intensive intervention? Perhaps a younger sibling of a student comes in and all of a sudden red flags start going off... what do you do?


      Thursday, August 2, 2012

      Think About it Thursday-- Labels

      Nobody likes labels. Labels always bring with them certain connotations. As a special education teacher, I have personally struggled with what to call myself and I often find myself tailoring it to meet the needs of my audience (is it a fellow educator or a parent of an intervention student?). Some of the "labels" I have given myself over the past 5 years include:

      Intervention Specialist
      Special Education Teacher
      Cross-Categorical Teacher
      Multiple Disabilities/MD Teacher
      Resource Room Teacher

      Honestly, it doesn't matter to me what label I am given as long as I get to work with my special kiddos each day! 

      However, labels can be a very tricky thing when it comes to my students. Typically in special ed, a label defines all the things that child cannot do... He cannot see. She cannot hear. They cannot sit still.

      Since they have moved all of our "MD" classrooms (which were labeled Cross-Categorical classrooms until they were conveniently relabeled this year for the move), they have began to restrict which students can receive our services. In the past, I have worked with a wide variety of kids and I have LOVED it! Kids with more severe needs were with me all day in the self-contained classroom (they would be included for specials and lunch/recess) while kids who just needed intensive academic intervention would come to my room for pull out. It is challenging for sure but it provides my students with experiences with peers with a range of abilities. It has allowed my kids with lower IQs the opportunity to see skills modeled by peers with higher IQs and it has allowed my kids with higher IQs the opportunity to be leaders (which they would have not been able to do in the typical classroom). But now they want to limit us to only serving students with the educational disability of "Multiple Disabilities". In my classroom of 9 last year only 4 of them were labeled MD. The rest had a CD or Autism label. Of my kids labeled CD and Autism, half of them were non-verbal and all of them were 1-2 years (if not more) behind grade level. Where are these kids supposed to go? We have ISs in the other buildings but they are generally doing all inclusion. Additionally, of my kids with an MD label, half of them were only with me for pull out and not all day.

      Fellow special educators and parent readers, how does your district meet the needs of identified students? Do you like the system your district uses?