The most important thing to keep in mind when planning to meet the needs of students is that they are all unique individuals with unique needs. The diversity in human beings is beautiful. It is worth celebrating. Unfortunately, I don’t think teachers get enough training in teacher prep programs or
Learn which strategies to use with students who are engaging in escape or task avoidance behaviors in special education classes.
Mastering life skills is one of the most important things students can do. In special ed, practice at school can help those skills along!
Challenges with focus and attention can become a huge roadblock to learning for kids and young adults. Simply put, attention is critical to learning. If students can't focus on the lesson, they are going to struggle with understanding the new content. If students can't focus on the directions, they
Reducing Problem Behaviour using a function based intervention. Here I combined the first and then with the three star reward token boards and came up with this Behaviour Management Tool. Everythin…
Prepare for the school year by organizing your curriculum for your self-contained special education classroom.
Special educators need a pretty large toolbox of strategies and resources to support our learners. So often, our students can have significantly diverse needs and levels. On any given day, special education teachers might need to take student reading data, modify a math assessment, teach science wit
I have been CRAZY excited to share my classroom with ya'll this year. This is my third year in this classroom, and I'm in love with how it turne ...
If there is one I have learned in my years of working with paraprofessionals, it is that paras are teachers too. My paraprofessional is my right hand and my left hand. She is the glue that keeps us together. I realize that sometimes it is our first instinct to give them passive work because their
Do you use visuals in your classroom? Visual aids are hugely beneficial in preschool, kindergarten, and special education classrooms! Did you know that humans process images faster than words? It's true! That's why visual aids are such game-changers for these students. Especially for students who
I teach a 1st through 4th self-contained, mod/severe, special day class. I am going to highlight some of the key elements in my classroom.
Social stories can be a very visual and concrete way to teach students social skills. Some students naturally understand social expectations and ways to behave, and others need more explicit teaching. In my opinion, social stories do the explicit teaching when done correctly. Students need to be able to easily understand the social skill that ... Read More about Using Social Stories to Teach Social Skills and Appropriate Ways to Behave
Looking for fun and educational activities for your special education class? Check out these student-run business ideas!
Want to give your students some tech time? Try these six must-have apps for special ed to help teach as they have fun!
You aren't making these teacher mistakes in your special education class, are you? Here's 6 mistakes teachers and paras in SpEd make PLUS 5 easy fixes too!
When you teach in a multiple disabilities classroom, there is often a lot of equipment in a multiple disabilities classroom
Have you ever had to use a district curriculum that doesn’t really fit the levels or needs of your special needs student? It can be hard to make a purchased program work for our students, but it IS possible! To do so, though, we need to be flexible and creative….We totally rock flexible and creative, ... Read More about Modifying Curriculum For The Special Needs Student
What do you do as a special ed. teacher when a student with autism refuses to work? It depends on the function of the behavior! Learn the 12 Best Strategies!
If a student is unable to play with toys during structured leisure time independently, play supports are a great strategy.
This article will give you helpful tips and tricks on teaching music for special education classes in your elementary school.
Improve Outcomes for Students with Disabilities- The Teacher Nook podcast interview with Maya Bechi on teaching students in special education.
26 reading and autism ideas to help you figure out how to teach an autistic child to read and how to improve reading comprehension in a stress-free way.
Supporting kids with special needs works best when both regular education and special education staff work together. That's why it is helpful for all teachers to understand how they can modify and accommodate for students in their classrooms. For newer teachers, learning that you need to modify work
In the field of education, there are things known as executive functions. Executive functions are defined as cognitive processes that control, regulate and
Inclusion is more than simply having a child in the classroom. Here's what needs to happen to make the general ed classroom more inclusive so all children succeed!
Safety awareness can be a very abstract concept for our students… yet it is such an important one! We need to find ways to break the concept down into more understandable chunks and build the language needed for emergencies. Here are some ideas for breaking it down and build those crucial life skills. Personal Information ... Read More about Teaching Students With Disabilities About Safety
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We can find work that can be done at independent level for all students and I'd to show you how I do that.
Teaching Students who are Low-Functioning: Who are they, what do you teach them, and how do you get them included in academics?
Adapting curriculum is an ongoing dynamic process that modifies the program to meet the learning requirements for students.
We live on visuals in the special ed world. You want to use them all the time, but how?Here are 5 steps to becoming a master at using visuals daily!
Teaching Students who are Low-Functioning: Who are they, what do you teach them, and how do you get them included in academics?
Have you been curious about how to set up your elementary autistic support classroom? Join me as I give you a
Tips that work...in fact, if you're not doing these 5 things, then you're doing it wrong. Find out the 5 instructional strategies for Autism you need to do!
Student strengths start IEPs in a positive way. Here is a list of student strengths to use on your next IEP.
Teaching Students who are Low-Functioning: Who are they, what do you teach them, and how do you get them included in academics?
Best tips for how to teach kids with autism! Explore easy strategies, including visual aids, daily routines, positive reinforcement, and more.
A blog for Preschool, Special Education and Autism for Behavior Management, Classroom ideas and Resources
Are you struggling trying to find functional life skills curriculum in your special education classroom? Read on to learn more...
Apps for special education are always changing, but these 10 are perfect for the 2021-2022 school year. Do you have them installed?
Although I didn’t prefer virtual teaching (did anyone?!), it did lead me to discover websites that I used in my classroom even when we weren’t strictly virtual anymore! I’ve compiled a list below of my favorite free websites I use in my special education classroom. I’m always looking for ways to increase engagement and interaction
This visual choice board is a simple social emotional learning resource for your special education or inclusion classroom. Providing a student with this file folder visual support may allow him to express his needs without having to find the words. While this visual was designed for students with autism, it can be beneficial for any struggling students. Even verbal students can have trouble retrieving the words or articulating what they need. Offering this simple visual can aid a student in saying "I feel confused. I need help" or "I feel frustrated. I need a break." Contents: 6 pages of feelings cards 15 feelings in a variety of image options 1 page of needs Sentence starters File folder labels Prep instructions Suggestions for use This is not meant to be a choice board for 'wants' which is why toys, computer, iPad etc is not provided. Rather this is a support to use when a student is struggling, overstimulated, frustrated, overwhelmed, sick, upset, tired, confused etc. Teachers, paras, aides and therapists who have built a relationship with a student can often guess what the student feels and needs in these moments. However, responding to an outburst, problem behavior or refusal with what they are likely looking for reinforces an improper way to request those things. This visual support can help students learn to ask appropriately! ⭐ Teachers like you love this resource ⭐ This resource was a great addition to the communication support I use for my students. I was able to choose a few options at a time for them to choose from and the product comes with many pictures for wants/needs. I love this resource! This has been super helpful with SEL learning and helping kiddos identify what they need and avoiding meltdown. It was easy to put together and it has been a great addition to my classroom! This has been great for my non-verbal and limited verbal to express their needs! The choices are great and it makes a perfect connection between feelings and needs. As we move toward more and more SEL practices, this resource is great at helping students identify how they are feeling and what they can do to help themselves. Other Visual Supports to transform your classroom Behavior Management Flip Book Behavior Management: Self-Calming Book and Choice Board Visual Schedules Bundle Art Visuals and Schedules Music Visuals and Schedules PE Visuals and Schedules Stay up to date! Click here to follow my store and be the first to know about new product releases. Thanks for stopping by!
I work with the Multiple Disabilties population and this blog is about multiple disabilities classroom setup with covid-19 recommendations.
Special education teachers have a lot on their plates. Take a look at my 10 websites for special education for tips, tricks, and resources.
What do you do as a special ed. teacher when a student with autism refuses to work? It depends on the function of the behavior! Learn the 12 Best Strategies!
Want the best methods for teaching a nonverbal autistic student? Here are 15 neurodiversity-affirming strategies for non-speaking kids.
