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Students should be at the center of all behavior monitoring systems and they should be a large part of the development of these plans. Using tracker systems is one way to monitor behavior while providing supports. Targeting one or two goals (generally begin with one goal and add another once that is achieved), allows a student to see the focus of the tracker and be mindful of what behavior they are self-regulating. Trackers can consist of point systems with incentives (e.g., if X earns 16/20 points today he can spend 5 minutes with Ms. B; if X earns 16/20 points today, he can use the computer). Using motivating things, people or experiences can be a driving force in building self-awareness and in turn minimizing disruptive behaviors. Tracker systems also allow us to keep track of the personal coping skills and strategies students have benefitted from.

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Many students benefit from using slant boards when writing. A less expensive and low-tech option is to use a binder (ranging from 1" to 3") and a clipboard as slant boards to make literacy activities more accessible for a range of learners.

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Developed to help students "comprehend. create. communicate and achieve more," Inspiration uses visual mapping to  help students effectively structure thoughts and visually communicate material. Inspiration sparks critical thinking skills while using visual thinking and learning techniques to organize and integrate new knowledge into student's lives. Building critical thinking skills improves comprehension and retention.

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Kahoot! is a leader in building student engagement and fluency. Offering a range of plans, Kahoot! has tons of already created quizzes and games developed to give students space in their learning and expression. Teachers can also create their own quizzes using scaffolded supports to build fluency facts for math, to create mathematic word problems and modify the way this information is presented to students.

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Partnered with Google for Education, Snap&Read is a software program created to support the needs of students introduced to new texts. Alongside UDL Checkpoint 3.1, Snap&Read allows all learners to access and understand the material in front of them. Users have the option to level their reading and adjust the readability of the text without changing its meaning. Comprised with tools to remove distractions, maximize study time and provide autonomous learning opportunities.

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Using UDL framework, CAST Science Writer allows students to develop, organize and create science reports. This free program offers text-to-speech options, sentence starters, organization tools and guiding checklists.

Students are able to access science assignments with greater ease as CAST Science Writer scaffolds with writing and comprehension supports alongside UDL Checkpoint 6.2.

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Welcome to CAST Science Writer, the tool that supports students in writing lab and class reports. This tool is geared toward middle school and high school students. Check out the supports and help available in Science Writer described below. Or click the "Take a Tour" button above to see how Science Writer works.

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Providing students with a calm, restorative space, especially following a strong emotional or physical behavior, can be transformative. In these reflection spaces, students have access to stress toys (e.g., stress ball, chair bands) as well as calming supports (e.g., peppermints, pillows). Following a cool down, students can do a written or oral reflection of what occurred and create a plan of action for handling these feelings in the future.

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Highlighters and Post-Its are easily accessible low-tech materials that support students in annotating texts. Color-coding specific words (e.g., highlight nouns yellow and verbs orange) build categorization skills while also breaking down and illustrating content in more manageable ways. Supporting organizational and executive functioning skills in students eliminates barriers to success.

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UDL Checkpoint 5.3 - Build Fluencies with Graduated Levels of Support for Practice and Performance 

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UDL Checkpoint 5.3 - Build Fluencies with Graduated Levels of Support for Practice and Performance 

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Students learn best when material is scaffolded as they go. Providing options to build learner fluency suggests that students should have access to many opportunities that provide some freedom in building their learning. Providing differentiated feedback, providing various learning opportunities to exhibit understanding and providing students with supports throughout their learning lead to stronger fluency.

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UDL Checkpoint 9.2 - Facilitate Personal Coping Skills and Strategies 

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UDL Checkpoint 9.2 - Facilitate Personal Coping Skills and Strategies 

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Emotional regulation and maintenance is critical in supporting students. Managing frustration, appropriately responding to unwanted changes and self-regulation are of key importance in developing strategies to use in response to external and internal stressors and events. Differentiated coaching and feedback for students must be placed on managing frustration, developing coping skills and rewriting personal judgments of aptitude.

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UDL Checkpoint 4.2 - Optimize Access to Tools and Assistive Technologies

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UDL Checkpoint 4.2 - Optimize Access to Tools and Assistive Technologies

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There are many low-tech resources that can aid in supporting a student. However, it is important that learners understand how and why they are using these tools so they can build their abilities and therefore grow in their learning. Providing resources such as alternative keyboards or providing options for composition allows students to access the material at their level.

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UDL Checkpoint 3.1 - Activate or Supply Background Knowledge

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UDL Checkpoint 3.1 - Activate or Supply Background Knowledge

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In order for students to make academic gains when learning new information, it is important to provide all learners with a foundational understanding of background knowledge. Making connections to relevant prior knowledge through supports (e.g., concept maps, picture dictionaries, etc.), students are able to break through potential academic barriers.

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Online software program Grammar Fitness is an incredible way to have students break down barriers that prevented them from understanding symbols and new vocabulary in texts. Grammar Fitness supports students with disabilities as well as English Language Learners by providing leveled interactive exercises with a focus on grammar, vocabulary and sentence structure. Additionally, Grammar Fitness has many different programs ranging from elementary school to adult literacy and GED preparation.

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UDL Checkpoint 2.1 - Clarify Vocabulary and Symbols

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UDL Checkpoint 2.1 - Clarify Vocabulary and Symbols

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When working to build accessibility for all, educators must be mindful of the barriers that exist for students with disabilities in relation to understanding new vocabulary, symbols and semantics. Strategies such as pre-teaching vocabulary and symbols by using prior knowledge, providing graphic symbols and alternative text descriptions allows students to make sense of unfamiliar references within texts.

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UDL Checkpoint 5.2 - Use Multiple Tools for Construction and Composition

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UDL Checkpoint 5.2 - Use Multiple Tools for Construction and Composition

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Moving from the traditional look of education (e.g., pencil and paper learning) is essential in preparing learners for the future. There are an increasing number of media tools students can utilize to better express themselves and therefore better illustrate their learning. Allowing students to use story webs, outlining tools, web applications, manipulatives, etc. serves as a much clearer way to match student abilities and the demands of the task at hand.

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UDL Checkpoint 6.2 - Support Planning and Strategy Development

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UDL Checkpoint 6.2 - Support Planning and Strategy Development

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It is imperative that students with disabilities are supported in their planning and strategy development especially when working on long-term projects including science reports. CAST Science Writer supports students in creating goals and strategies for success when breaking long-term goals into reachable short-term objectives.

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UDL Checkpoint 6.3 - Facilitate Managing Information and Resources

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UDL Checkpoint 6.3 - Facilitate Managing Information and Resources

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It can be challenging for many learners to "chunk" information in ways that makes comprehension and problem-solving possible. To build students' working memory, it is important to provide many organization aids and scaffolds to make information readily accessible. Strategies include providing prompts, using checklists to monitor progress and using graphic organizers.

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One online program that allows students to present learned information in a variety of ways is Prezi. Prezi allows users to create their own template or choose from preset templates to show learning through images and voice recordings. Prezi gives learners to create and present more meaningful and memorable presentations which in turn is indicative of student mastery.