Friday, March 27, 2020

Taskbox Time: Basic Sorting Tasks

Basic sorting tasks can be a great way to teach foundational skills such as colors, shapes, or visual attention. They can also be a great independent task for students. When first introducing a structured work system, we often recommend that teams use basic fine motor or sorting tasks as the assigned work so that effort can be focused on teaching the sequence of the structured work system and less effort is needed for the tasks. Today's Taskbox Time has a variety of basic sorting tasks that can easily be replicated for use in your classroom!




Button Sorting
Kirsten Johnson
Greene INC, Greene County

Colored Peg Sorting
Kirsten Johnson
Greene INC, Greene County

Colored Counter Sorting
Jamie Minnish
Prass Elementary, Kettering

Lakeshore Magnetic Cookie Sorting
Debi Gnau
Mad River Early Childhood Center, Mad River

Ocean Animal Sorting
Jamie Minnish
Prass Elementary, Kettering

Letter Bead Sorting
Kirsten Johnson
Greene INC, Greene County 
Plastic Link Shapes Sorting
Kirsten Johnson
Greene INC, Greene County 



Color Swatch Sorting
Taylor Ruef
Stevenson Elementary, Mad River

Colored Tile Sorting
Annette Black
Springfield High School, Springfield

For more sorting task ideas don't miss our previous posts:




Most of these taskboxes can be made simply with common household and office supplies. The Target dollar bins and Dollar Tree also offer affordable materials for easy taskbox assembly. Other organizations provide donations. In the Miami Valley, many teachers volunteer at Crayons for Classrooms or attend the Montgomery County Material Reuse Facility's Teacher Shopping Days.


For more ideas check out some of our favorite structured work system books.

 
 

Monday, March 23, 2020

Around Town Round Up: Meeting the Needs of Students with Autism During Specials Using the Ziggurat Model

Specials classes, or Integrated Arts, can be found in many of the schools we coach. These classes often include PE, Music, Library, or Art. In some districts you may also find Technology or Computer Lab or STEM. Specials teachers have the unique role of serving all students in the building across multiple grade levels. This is no easy task! Additionally, they teach students at all ability levels so they are responsible for differentiating their content to best meet the needs of each student. To assist in planning for this differentiation, today's Around Town Round Up highlights examples from across the Miami Valley that can be used in Meeting the Needs of Students with Autism During Specials using The Ziggurat Model.


The Ziggurat Model



The Ziggurat Model was developed by Dr. Ruth Aspy and Dr. Barry Grossman as a framework for designing comprehensive interventions for individuals with complex needs. When coaching teams, we often refer to this model to help in prioritizing interventions and making sure all of the student's needs are met. For more information on The Ziggurat Model visit: www.texasautism.com.

Sensory Differences and Biological Needs
Consider the sensory demands of the specials environment. How will the student be impacted by auditory, visual, or tactile input? Many students with autism may struggle with loud noises, changing acoustics, wide open floor plans, visual clutter, unexpected physical contact, or touching certain textures. Consult with the student's OT for their specific sensory needs. For more information about each sensory system don't miss our Sensory Systems Overview.


Music Room with Acoustic Panels

Child Using Rubber Gloves While Painting

Noise-cancelling Headphones for Students
Trotwood ELC, Trotwood

Reinforcement
Students with autism are often unmotivated by customary rewards. During Specials, look for ways to engage the student either through incorporating special interests (such as technology), creating hands-on learning opportunities, or developing a specific reinforcement system.
Rock Climbing Wall
Eric Bostick
Beverly Gardens Elementary, Mad River

Online Music Game from QuaverMusic.com
Pam George
Washington Primary, Piqua

PE Repetition Checklist Reinforcement System

PE Behavior Contract
Laurie Maravetz
Schaefer Middle School, Springfield

Structure and Visual/Tactile Supports
Structure can be calming and organizing for individuals with autism because they understand what to expect and can predict the outcome. This is especially important during Specials class because typically these classes do not occur daily throughout the year (often biweekly or quarterly) so it is difficult to establish and remember a daily routine. Also, individuals with autism often process visual information twice as fast as their neurotypical peers. Therefore, incorporating structure and visual supports to the Specials classroom can ease anxiety and help students with autism participate more readily. There are a variety of ways to incorporate these supports including:

incorporating visual and physical boundaries to structure the physical environment,
Art Table Labels
Lindsay Carter
Kleptz ELC, Northmont

Colored Spots for Musical Instruments
Pam Horner-Sherman
Demmitt Elementary, Vandalia
Numbered Assigned Seats
Pam George
Washington Primary, Piqua



Colored Dot Assigned Seats
Pam Horner-Sherman
Demmitt Elementary, Vandalia
Art Supply OrganizationDebi Gnau
Mad River Early Childhood Center, Mad River


using visual sequences to structure the class time,
Art Class Daily Visual Schedule
Lindsay Carter
Kleptz ELC, Northmont

Individual Specials Schedule
Heather Balkcom
Washington Primary, Piqua


using visuals to communicate activity expectations,
Art Activity Visual Sequences
Lindsay Carter
Kleptz ELC, Northmont

Daily PE Stretches Visual Sequence
Eric Bostick
Beverly Gardens Elementary, Mad River

Individual Art Schedule
The Autism Helper


Lyric Visual Supports
Pam George
Washington Primary, Piqua


and providing models and exemplars.
Painting Idea Folder
Lindsay Carter
Kleptz ELC, Northmont


Task Demands
For many students Specials, or Integrated Arts, can be a favorite part of the day. They often enjoy the freedom to engage in fun activities and interact with friends. However, this time can often be challenging for our students with autism who struggle to manage the changing sensory, social, and task demands. Prioritize the purpose of Specials for the individual student. Are they working towards mastery of the academic content or are they focusing on social interaction? Consider ways to reduce demands so that the student with autism can be more successful. Some ideas include:

  • Reduce social demands by allowing the student to work independently while peers work in groups
  • Reduce task demands by allowing the student to do mastered, repetitive tasks during group activities
  • Reduce sensory demands by incorporating sensory supports
  • Consider alternative tasks that can be completed if the student becomes too overwhelmed in class
  • Reduce the length of time the student attends Specials
  • Pair the student with a familiar or preferred peer buddy to provide assistance and modeling


Skills to Teach
Sometimes there are specific skills practiced during Specials that the student may need additional direct instruction and practice with. Consider all of the skills needed to be successful with class activities. Determine which skills the student may still need help with. Ask related service providers to prime students on needed skills. The Speech and Language Pathologist can teach important social skills like waiting and turn taking while the Occupational Therapist may provide ideas for addressing sensory needs or teach prerequisite fine motor skills, and the Physical Therapist can assist with motor skills needed for PE activities and Music dances.

Waiting and Turn Taking Visual SupportsKaty Philpot
Rosa Parks ELC, Dayton
Mistake Options Visual
Lindsay Carter
Kleptz ELC, Northmont

Being A Good Loser Social Story
The Autism Helper

Specials can also be a great time to incorporate multisensory lessons to accompany material learned in class. Collaborate with general education teachers and intervention specialist to develop cross-curricular activities for students to help with generalization of core concepts and skills.

Emotions Art ProjectsAngela Shelton
Rosa Parks ELC, Dayton


Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Executive Functioning Forum: Perseverance


Perseverance is required for an individual the follow through on a given task especially when experiencing difficulty or distractions. It may be referred to as goal-directed persistence or having a growth mindset and it is an essential executive functioning skill especially as students get older and face increased challenges. Today’s Executive Functioning Forum will provide tips and examples for teaching Perseverance.


Introduce the Concept of Perseverance
Talk to students about perseverance and identify situations where it is important to persevere. Include both academic and social examples such as writing a research report, completing a science fair project, participating on a sports team, advancing through a long video game, or mastering a difficult musical piece. Encourage students to share personal examples of times when they persevered to complete a difficult task. Help students to see the real-world application of perseverance through making connections to personal experiences or examples from books and movies.





Teach Goal Setting and Planning
In order to persevere, you need to know what the end goal will be. Directly teach goal setting. Start will small, manageable goals (such as completing an assignment) and build up to broader, long-term goals. Provide visual tools to help students set goals and develop a plan towards achieving the goal.

Homework Agenda

Success Ladder Project Planning
Colleen Williams
From the Inside Out
Novel Pacing Guide
PERSIST Strategy
ADHD Journey

Provide Scaffolding and Reinforcement
First start with tasks you know the student will be motivated to persevere through. Build upon their strengths and what they can do well. This will build confidence and positive momentum towards achieving goals and working towards more difficult tasks. Scaffold the amount of assistance you provide so that the student is able to succeed and slowly fade support when the student begins to demonstrate competency.
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Special Interest Writing Prompt
Lori Bicknell
Mound Elementary, Miamisburg

Pokemon Progress Monitoring
Ice Cream Progress Monitoring
Bobbi Jo Chapman
Snyder Park Elementary, Springfield

Differentiated Goal Progress Monitoring
Stephanie Foreman
South Vienna Elementary, Northeastern



Incorporate Perseverance into Daily Life
Perseverance should be incorporated into the daily classroom culture. Encourage a growth mindset and frequently use associated vocabulary. Develop reinforcement systems that require students to accumulate “points” or tokens to earn a desired reward. Provide rationales so students understand the end goal and real-word connection. Develop portfolios for student work so they can see all the growth they make over the school year.

 
Classroom Mission Statement
Annette Stine
Kyle Elementary, Troy
Classroom Token Economy
Allysson Rudnicki
Tipp High School, Tipp City




·      
Teach Coping Strategies
Teach students what to do when things don’t go as planned. Give time to practice calming strategies for when they need a break in the moment before trying again.

Mistake Options Visual
Lindsay Carter
Kleptz ELC, Northmont

Calming Sequence
Rachel Hatton
Normandy Elementary, Centerville


Teach Pre-Requisite Executive Functioning Skills
When a student is able to persevere towards an end goal, it also requires them to be able to plan, prioritize, initiate, and sustain attention throughout the task. These are all separate executive functioning skills which may require direct instruction and practice. For ideas check out our previous posts: