Monday, October 25, 2021

Organization Station: Delegating Responsibilities to Paraprofessionals

In many special education classrooms, paraprofessionals are essential team members who ensure the safety of students, assist in learning activities, and aid the teacher in managing classroom tasks. Often when we encounter teachers who are overwhelmed by their workload, we recommend looking at the tasks they are trying to handle by themselves and determining which can be delegated to their paraprofessionals. Not only does this reduce burnout but it also allows the paraprofessionals to learn more about the ins and outs of the classroom and increases the sense of teamwork and classroom community. Today's Organization Station features some of the ways we have seen responsibilities delegated to paraprofessionals in our referral classrooms. 


Learning Activities

Paraprofessionals can assist during learning activities through assisting students during inclusion and group activities or leading their own small group or 1:1 learning. Clearly communicate expectations through schedules, lesson plans, and zoning plans

Daily Center Schedule
Jackie Vollmer
Driscoll Elementary, Centerville

Daily Center Schedule
Amy Beanblossom
Arcanum Elementary, Arcanum-Butler

Daily Detailed Staff Schedule
Amy Beanblossom
Arcanum Elementary, Arcanum-Butler

Additionally, provide materials and space for paraprofessionals to organize what they need to successfully support students. 

Staff Lesson Materials
Jackie Vollmer
Driscoll Elementary, Centerville
Inclusion Student Materials
Mandy Schetter
Northmoor Elementary, Northmont

Math and Reading Practice Materials with Directions
Jamie Minnish
Prass Elementary, Kettering

Data Collection

In many of our classrooms, paraprofessionals share the workload when it comes to taking student data. This is a great way to help students work on skill generalization across staff and it can be so helpful for lightening the load of the intervention specialist. 

IEP Goal Sign Up Board
Tim Sullivan
Springfield High School, Springfield

Daily Traveling Data Collection Sheet
Mandy Schetter
Northmoor Elementary, Northmont

AAC Vocabulary Programming List
Jackie Vollmer
Driscoll Elementary, Centerville

Student Goal Visual Reminders
Karyn Smith
Tri-Village High School, Tri-Village


Material Preparation

In the special education classroom, there never seems to be a shortage of materials that need prepared by making copies, laminating, or assembling. Then, finding time to store or organize these materials takes time too! Delegating this responsibility allows paraprofessionals to preview learning materials and better understand where everything is located within the classroom. Having a designated system for material preparation ensures that staff always know where to go to find what needs to be done. This is perfect for those last-minute times when a student may be absent or staff has time during a whole group lesson (if they aren't needed to help with students at that time of course!). 


Staff Communication Corner with Material Prep Organization and Materials
Molly Magoteaux
Kleptz ELC, Northmont

Folders for Copies and Lamination
Jamie Zimmer
Kettering Middle School, Kettering

Material Prep Organization
Lindsey Woods
Fairborn Primary, Fairborn

Material Prep Organization
Rylie Jarrett
Stevenson Elementary, Mad River


Daily Tasks

Often classroom teachers' heads are spinning with all the things that need to be remembered and decisions to be made. This can make it challenging to remember daily tasks that are not part of the learning routines. Delegating these tasks to paraprofessionals can make sure nothing is forgotten throughout the day!

AAC Charging Reminders

Papers for Daily Folders
Jamie Minnish
Prass Elementary, Kettering

Weighted Vest Schedule
Nicia Cook
Kenwood Elementary, Springfield

Student Schedules for Setting Up Interactive Visual Schedules
Amy Beanblossom
Arcanum Elementary, Arcanum-Butler

For more ideas on working with paraprofessionals, don't miss our previous posts:






Tuesday, October 19, 2021

Taskbox Time: Seasonal Taskboxes

Do you have students who master taskboxes quickly or get bored easily with repetitive tasks? Seasonal taskboxes are a great way to incorporate basic skill practice in a novel way each season! Today's Taskbox Time features taskbox ideas from across the Miami Valley for every season!


Summer
Pineapple Water Bottle Straw Task (Fine Motor)

Ocean Animal Subtraction Task (Math)
Laura Frank
Valley Forge Elementary, Huber Heights

Fruit Sorting Task (Sorting)



Fall
Buckeye Necklace Task (Fine Motor/Vocational)
Kirsten Johnson
Greene INC, Greene ESC

Spider Rings on Pencil (Fine Motor)
Debi Gnau
Mad River Preschool, Mad River

Spiders in Yarn Web Tong Task (Fine Motor)
Tracey Cooper
Tecumseh Elementary, Clark ESC




Winter
Candy Cane Pipe Cleaner Beading Task (Fine Motor)
Robbie Whorton
Trotwood High School, Trotwood-Madison

Mitten Sort Task (Sorting/Vocational)
Laurie Maravetz
Schaffer Middle School, Springfield

Holiday Cookie Sort Task (Sorting)
Debi Gnau
Mad River Preschool, Mad River

Calendar Picture Matching Task (Matching)

Felt Christmas Tree Task (Fine Motor)
Rylie Jarrett
Stevenson Elementary, Mad River

Valentine's Day Heart Tangram Task (Matching/Math)
Debi Gnau
Mad River Preschool, Mad River




Spring

Garden Glove Match with Clothespin Task (Matching/Fine Motor)

Easter Egg Matching Task (Matching/Fine Motor)

Baby Animal Packaging Task (Packaging)

Easter Egg Figuring Packaging Task (Packaging)

Monday, October 11, 2021

A-LIST Spotlight: Mandy Schetter, Intervention Specialist- Northmont

It is with great pleasure that we feature Intervention Specialist, Mandy Schetter from Northmoor Elementary in Northmont on today's A-LIST Spotlight. Our A-LIST stands for Autism & Low-Incidence Support Team and is comprised of a regional network of select professionals who exhibit “best practices” in serving the needs of students who have autism or other complex, low-incidence disabilities.


Last year was Mandy's first year at Northmoor and our first opportunity to work with her for several student referrals. Our entire team was incredibly impressed with how well Mandy managed an unprecedented school year. She demonstrates great professionalism and dedication to her students. 


Individualized Supports
Mandy remains flexible to her student's unique needs while maintaining high expectations. This is no easy balance! Mandy is also always willing to problem-solve and brainstorm with our team which makes her an excellent ACT partner! 

Individualized, interactive daily schedule with student pictures and incorporating special interests

Sensory Menu created with individual student input which provides an easy visual for staff and for the student and helps with student buy-in because they helped to create it. 

Morning routine visual with visual timer

Contingency maps for helping students think through the outcomes of their choices which can be individualized to their specific needs. 

Paraprofessional Management
Mandy also demonstrated great leadership as she managed her paraprofessionals and developed a cohesive team. This is such an important aspect to running a successful classroom. 

This daily data collection sheet stays on a clipboard that classroom staff keep with the students. They take notes on services, behaviors, needs, and work that needs to be completed. Since their staff members don't stay with the same student all day this helps them to communicate. 

Each student has a "go bag" that is filled with reinforcers, visuals, fidgets, etc that are suited for that student. This helps staff members be prepared in the inclusion setting where they don't necessarily have easy access to the tools used in the resource room. 



Congratulations, Mandy! Your staff and students are lucky to have you and we are fortunate to have the opportunity to collaborate with you!

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

Sensational Social Skills: Effort PoP Card

This blog will focus on the important skill of putting forth effort. We often hear from our teachers that a student has potential but does not put forth the effort to do their best. The student may quickly rush through a task just to get it done, without taking the time to do it right.  This student may be lacking motivation. Or, the student may be lacking important skills such as the ability to visualize the outcome or the ability to persevere through a challenging task using their inner coach.

We will share strategies for teaching students to put forth effort using the Pillars of Performance (PoP) framework. PoP is a framework we use to help students acquire and apply social skills. These pillars include: PRACTICE, PRIME, PROMPT & PRAISE.  We have created a series of PoP cards to directly teach critical social skills.  

First, introduce the concept of effort with a social narrative like the one below:

Social Narrative:  Effort means you try hard to do something the best you can.  Finishing a task is important, but it is also important that you do a good job.  When you give someone your best effort, you show you care. A successful person knows how to use effort to do quality work that makes them feel proud.  Giving your best effort can be hard when the task feels very difficult or really boring.   There are tricks you can use to make this happen. When you give your best effort you will feel happy and proud!

 

Click the image below for a free handout of the Effort PoP card.  Print, cut, and laminate the card to use as a visual support when teaching this skill.

 


Let’s PRACTICE!

Practice makes perfect. In order to master any skill, you need to deliberately practice the skill. This makes it much easier to apply the skill in the moment when you need it the most. Try some of these practice activities to strengthen skills. Repeat, repeat, then repeat.


Visualize- Help your student practice the art of visualization. Teach your student to visualize the outcome of the task. Provide them with a visual model or exemplar. Help them visualize how they will feel when they are proud of their work.   Talk about what that looks like. When you create a visual representation of something, you activate parts of your brain that help with motivation, awareness and creativity. That is why some of the most successful athletes, artists and people practice visualization. To teach the art of visualization, start with fun activities such as visualizing what the best ice cream sundae would look like. Teachers often use visualizaton as a strategy to help students with reading or story comprehension. One of the most common ways to teach students how to visualize is to describe it as creating a picture or movie in our mind. Encourage your student keep a positive mindset as they visualize the future.

                                                                                                                                     


Push Yourself- Teach your student to be his/her own coach. Teach the use of an inner dialogue. Create a script they can say aloud or to themselves. If you hear your student making negative comments, teach them to replace the negative thought with something positive. To practice, identify a task that can be a trigger for frustration such as math or writing.  Set a visual timer for 3 minutes. Ask the student to engage in the task for 3 minutes. The student has to show genuine effort for 3 minutes. If the student stops trying before the 3 minutes is up, the timer is reset. When the student is able to show effort for 3 minutes the student gets a small reward.  After a short break, set the timer again. Gradually, the time can be increased. Click on the handout below to learn more about replacing negative thoughts and creating a growth mindset.

Growth Mindset Bulletin Board
Jenna Woelfer
Brantwood Elementary, Mad River


Use a Calming Strategy- Help the student identify a quick in-the-moment calming strategy such as deep breathing or palm presses. Practice this regularly so it can be used when needed. By implementing this calming strategy at the start of the task and as needed throughout the task, the student may be better able to stay calm and focus. Here is one example of a calming strategy you can try:



Quality Checklist- When the main focus is finishing a task, it is easy to rush through without thinking about quality. Create a quality checklist that breaks the task into small, sequential steps and includes quality assurance steps such as check punctuation or check with the teacher.  This provides structure for students with poor executive function skills. By adding a preferred activity at the bottom of the checklist you can motivate them to get through it. 

Time to PRIME!

Use the priming bullets on the Effort card to review the strategies you have practiced. What do they visualize happening when they are done? What self-script can they use to coach themselves to do their best. If these strategies are fresh in the mind of your student, the student is more likely to apply the strategies. Make a point of reviewing these strategies prior to starting a challenging or non-preferred task. Present the quality checklist with steps needed for completion. Be sure to identify what will motivate the student to put forth effort and write it at the bottom of the checklist. Next, have the student engage in the calming strategy for a minute or more.  These are all strategies that have been practiced so the student should be very familiar with how to implement them. The priming session should be a positive pep talk to review these strategies and instill confidence in your student.  If the student does not like to talk about it, simply give them the card as a visual reminder. By priming the student, you are setting them up for success.


PROMPT

Even with a priming session, the student may become distracted or lose motivation while working on the task. Use the Effort card as an in-the-moment, nonverbal prompt to get back to work. If the student is easily frustrated, prompt or model the use of the calming strategy.

Consider other nonverbal prompts such as walking by and tapping on the checklist, pointing to the specific step they should be working. If they are unmotivated, point to the reward or positive comment written at the bottom. Avoid engaging in verbal prompting as this may open the door for off-topic conversation or argumentative behaviors.

 

Give PRAISE!

Our final pillar is the most important. We know that in order to increase any skill we need to actively reinforce the skill.  Any time you notice that the student is putting forth their best effort on task, give them praise. Look for natural breaks to give praise so that you don’t distract from the task.  You can devise a subtle way to reinforce such as giving thumbs up or a written note.  It will be important that you follow through with the reward that was written at the bottom of the checklist. Facilitate intrinsic reinforcement for your student by developing pride in their work and accomplishments. Some students are motivated by adult approval while some older students may be more motivated by peer approval. Determine what motivates your student to do their best. Here is a Forced Choice Reinforcement Inventory to determine what reinforces your student:



That’s it! Those are the 4 pillars to teach your students how to give their best effort. Each pillar is important in supporting the application and generalization of this critical skill. Taking the time to implement all 4 pillars will result in the outcome you want. It may take some time so be patient and have fun with it. Teaching the skill with a positive attitude will help the student develop a positive association with the strategies. Developing your student’s confidence and ownership of the goal will help your student succeed.