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LDAA - Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta | Alberta Canada

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December 5, 2022 to May 16, 2023 - On going registration and recorded live sessions...

The Science of Reading is an eight-part series developed in 2021/22 for educators to enhance...

Overview

On going registration offered between Oct 1, 2022 - Aug 31, 2023. The Learning...

Learning Disability Awareness Month is in October. During the month of October, our goal is...

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Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta LDAA | ADHD, Dyslexia, LD Assessment

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The Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta (LDAA) is a registered charity and non-profit organization of parents, professionals and other concerned people dedicated to maximizing the potential of people with learning disabilities.

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Structured Word Inquiry - Dr. Peter Bowers

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Structured Word Inquiry - Dr. Peter Bowers

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WordWorks Literacy Centre

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Upcoming SWI On-Line Workshops with Pete

Two new on-line courses hosted by EduSpark (live and recorded)

One new on-line session hosted by Reading with TLC (live and recorded)

One new on-line course from WordWorks (real-time only, not recorded)

November 2, 7-9 pm EST "Hot Topic Webinar" hosted by Reading with TLC (live and recorded) $40. Info and register .

This same series has hosted talks by David Kilpatrick, Louisa Moats, Maryanne Wolf, and Jan Hasbrouck.

5-Session General SWI Course for the Seriously Curious

Nov 9, 15, 22, 29, Dec 6 (Wednesdays, North America)

(7:30 - 9:30 EST 4:30 - 6:30 PST)

Click HERE for a video describing the course.

2-Session Spelling-Out Orthography Course

Dec 5 & 12 (Tuesdays, North America)

(7:30 - 9:30 EST 4:30 - 6:30 PST)

Click HERE for a video describing the course.

See video below for an interview on this topic with Pete.

Understanding the Tools of SWI & Teaching How the Written Word Works (Special 2-session version 3 hrs ea)

Nov 19 & 26 (Sundays in Australia & Thailand)

11:30 am - 2:30 pm (Melbourne)

7:30 am - 10:30 am (Bangkok)

Nov 18 & 26 (Saturdays in North America)

4:30 pm - 7:30 pm PST

7:30 pm - 10:30 pm EST

Click HERE for a flyer with more details. Email Pete < peterowers1@mac.com> to register or inquire.

New video on "Spelling-Out Orthography"

For more on this key practice in SWI lick HERE for a recent video in which Shawna Pope-Jefferson interviews me on "Spelling-Out Orthography."

This is an in-depth hour-long talk that includes discussing videos of young students using this process. To jump directly to that part of the video, click here.

See my webpage with many resources and videos on this topic HERE.

Consider these messages about the effect of my courses:

1. Click THIS LINK for details about my on-line and in-person PD, fees etc.

New videos of tudents 'spelling-out orthography' for reading and spelling.

Explore my archive of WordWorks Newsletters and Special Publications at THIS LINK.

Here are a couple of recent special publications about learning in my courses with many orthographic concepts and resources to support your learning.

Click for my most recent special publication of a teacher new to SWI having great success with her pull-out group.

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Upcoming SWI On-Line Workshops with Pete Two new on-line courses hosted by EduSpark (live and recorded) One new on-line session hosted by Reading with TLC (live and recorded) One new on-line course from WordWorks (real-time only, not recorded) November 2, 7-9 pm EST "Hot Topic Webinar" hosted by Reading with TLC (live and recorded) $40.

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ADDitude - current research, information & resources to support students with ADHD

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ADDitude - current research, information & resources to support students with ADHD

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Classroom Strategies for Teachers of Students with ADHD or LD

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An educator who understands ADHD and learning disabilities can make a meaningful difference in children's lives. Become that inspiring teacher your students will remember into adulthood with these ...

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Council for Exceptional Children - Paraeducator resources

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Council for Exceptional Children - Paraeducator resources

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The Stepping Stones Group is transforming solutions for school districts nationwide!

We have a proven record of success in delivering special education services, both in-person and virtually. Whether your district needs short-term or full-time personnel, we provide professionals who are licensed, certified, trained, and ready to assist.

Related Services:

Speech-Language Pathologists

Occupational Therapists

Physical Therapists

School Psychologists

Social Workers

Special Education Teachers

Reading Specialists

Teachers of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

Teachers of the

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Paraeducators are critically important to schools, teachers, and students-and they face unique challenges in classrooms they work in every day. Here are some of the resources that CEC has developed for paraeducators and the teachers and Administrators who work with them.

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What Works Clearinghouse | National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments (NCSSLE)

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Provides trusted information about education effectiveness. The Find What Works page highlights those interventions with research evidence that meet WWC standards; this page can be used to identify those interventions that focus on student behavior. The student behavior topic area includes interventions that examine the evidence of effectiveness of programs, curricula, and practices whose purpose is to foster positive behavioral ou

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Dr. Shelley Moore is an accomplished teacher, researcher, consultant, and storyteller who is dedicated to championing inclusive education for all students. Learn more about her work and how she is making a difference in the field of education.

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Developmental language disorder in the classroom

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By Caitlin Malli (she/her), speech language pathologist, Saanich
There is a hidden disability that you may see in as many as two children in every classroom. This disability is called…

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Click to Enlarge

There are so many pieces to the Science of Reading that it can be difficult to know where to start. Here are a few highlights about what the Science of Reading IS and what it IS NOT. This knowledge will help you on your journey to teaching all children, including those with diverse needs and cultural backgrounds, to read.

What it IS

A Collection of Research

Research, over time, from multiple fields of study using methods that confirm and disconfirm theories on how children best learn to read.

Teaching Based on the 5 Big Ideas

Phonemic Awareness - The ability to identify and play with individual sounds in spoken words.

Phonics - Reading instruction on understanding how letters and groups of letters link to sounds to form letter- sound relationships and spelling patterns.

- The ability to read words, phrases, sentences, and stories correctly, with enough speed, and expression.

Vocabulary - Knowing what words mean and how to say and use them correctly.

Comprehension - The ability to understand what you are reading.

Ever Evolving

There is new research and evidence all the time. As populations, communities, and approaches evolve, so should practice.

What it is NOT

A program, an intervention, or a product that you can buy.

The Science of Reading could be considered an approach to teaching reading that is based on decades of research and evidence. It is NOT a specific program.

Phonics-based programs that drill phonics skills.

Phonics is an integral part of teaching reading based on science, but it is just one of the five big ideas that should be taught so all children can learn to read.

Complete and no more study needs to be done.

As with any science, it is never complete. We can always know more. More study happens all the time and researchers, teachers, and families can work together to bring the best research into classrooms.

National Center on Improving Literacy (2022). The Science of Reading: The Basics. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Special Education Programs, National Center on Improving Literacy. Retrieved from http://improvingliteracy.org.

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If you prefer, read the text-version of the infographic. Click to Enlarge There are so many pieces to the Science of Reading that it can be difficult to know where to start. Here are a few highlights about what the Science of Reading IS and what it IS NOT.

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Brady, S. (2011). Efficacy of phonics teaching for reading outcomes: Implications from Post-NRP research. In S. Brady, D. Braze, & C. Fowler (Eds.), Explaining individual differences in reading (pp. 69-96), London: Psychology Press.

Denton, C. A., Fletcher, J. M., Taylor, W. P., Barth, A. E., & Vaughn, S. (2014). An experimental evaluation of Guided Reading and explicit interventions for primary-grade students at-risk for reading difficulties. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 7(3), 268-293.

Ehri, L., Nunes, R. S., Stahl, S., & Willows, D. (2001). Systematic phonics instruction helps students learn to read: Evidence from the National Reading Panel's meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 71, 393-447.

Foorman, B., Beyler, N., Borradaile, K., Coyne, M., Denton, C. A., Dimino, J., Furgeson, J., Hayes, L., Henke, J., Justice, L., Keating, B., Lewis, W., Sattar, S., Streke, A., Wagner, R., & Wissel, S. (2016). Foundational skills to support reading for understanding in kindergarten through 3rd grade (NCEE 2016-4008). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from the NCEE website: http://whatworks.ed.gov

Kilpatrick, D. (2015). Essentials of assessing, preventing, and overcoming reading difficulties. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

McCardle, P., & Chhabra, V. (Eds.). (2004). The voice of evidence in reading research. Baltimore, MD, Paul H. Brookes.

National Early Literacy Panel (NELP). (2008). Developing early literacy: Report of the National Early Literacy Panel. Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy.

National Reading Panel. (2000). Report of the National Reading Panel. Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction. Bethesda, MD: National Institute of Child and Human Development.

Seidenberg, M. (2017). Language at the speed of sight: How we read, why so many can't, and what can be done about it. New York: Basic Books.

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Structured Literacy Instruction: The Basics

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Structured Literacy prepares students to decode words in an explicit and systematic manner. This approach not only helps students with dyslexia, but there is substantial evidence that it is effective for all readers. Get the basics on the six elements of Structured Literacy and how each element is taught.

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Harkla - Sensory, Autism & ADHD resources

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Harkla - Sensory, Autism & ADHD resources

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Podcasts, mini-courses, resources and community - presented by 2 OTs!

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Learning New Words Students adding English to the languages they know must expand their vocabulary at twice or three times the rate of their English-speaking peers. In order to achieve this, an effective vocabulary program should include the following three components: Extensive reading of

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Math Equals Love - Full of free math tools & reference charts

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Math Equals Love - Full of free math tools & reference charts

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What is the Goal of the Math Teaching Resource Index?

Looking for math teaching resources? This math teaching resource index has you covered! My goal with this website is to recreate a comprehensive collection of resources for teaching secondary mathematics from middle school math to calculus.

My hope is that this website will become your one-stop-shop for lesson plans, activities, and more. I hope this math teaching resource index will help you save time planning your math lessons.

My goal is to curate a collection of engaging and effective resources for teaching math concepts from arithmetic to calculus. Get inspired and find new ways to make math fun for your students.

Who is the Math Teaching Resource Index for?

Whether you're a seasoned math teacher or just starting out, this math teaching resource index has something for everyone. From printable worksheets and online activities to video tutorials and interactive games, this collection of resources is designed to support and enhance your math instruction. Start exploring today!

This is my attempt at collecting all of the math teaching ideas I have shared over the years on my blog in an easy to search index sorted by mathematical categories. I am also in the progress of adding other resources from various websites with the goal of becoming a go-to resource for math teachers when planning lessons.

How is the Math Teaching Resource Index Organized?

Resources in the math teaching resource index are organized into six broad categories. Click a category to

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Math Teaching Resource Index | Math = Love

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Save time planning math lessons with engaging resources from arithmetic to calculus. Make math fun for your students with the featured activities.

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2013 AB Education Guiding Document on assessing and improving inclusivity in schools. Surveys & discussion guides.

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Useful tools and resources are listed here. You can identify and apply the appropriate tools and techniques for creating and evaluating learning content.

If you have any questions or suggestions on this topic, please contact Jinhee Choo or teaching@business.illinois.edu.

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Useful tools and resources are listed here. You can identify and apply the appropriate tools and techniques for creating and evaluating learning content. If you have any questions or suggestions on this topic, please contact Jinhee Choo or teaching@business.illinois.edu.

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Introduces the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) international standard, including WCAG 2.0, WCAG 2.1, and WCAG 2.2. WCAG documents explain how to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities.

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Universal Instructional Design (UID) recognizes seven principles that, when followed, can help instructors to design accessible teaching and learning activities, environments and materials, and create learning experiences that respect and value diversity.

Seven Principles of UID

At the core of UID is the concept of inclusiveness and equity. Instructional matters and activities should:

1. Be accessible and fair

2. Be straightforward and consistent

3. Provide flexibility in use, participation and presentation

4. Be explicitly presented and readily perceived

5. Provide a supportive learning environment

6. Minimize unnecessary physical effort of requirements

7. Ensure a learning space the accommodates both students and instructional methods

UID Resources

The University of Guelph is well known for its work with UID and has compiled the following set of valuable resources:

UID Project at the University of Guelph

This project, funded by the Learning Opportunities Task Force, researched and applied UID principles across a number of Guelph courses. Read the Evaluation Report on the Universal Instructional Design Project at the University of Guelph (PDF).

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Universal Instructional Design (UID) recognizes seven principles that, when followed, can help instructors to design accessible teaching and learning activities, environments and materials, and create learning experiences that respect and value diversity. At the core of UID is the concept of inclusiveness and equity.

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Open Education Resource (OER) Accessibility Toolkit

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Open Education Resource (OER) Accessibility Toolkit

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Video and multimedia open resources can help to convey concepts and can bring information to life. In this section, we provide recommendations to guide your inclusion of accessible multimedia content.

What Is Multimedia?

Multimedia includes: videos, audio, animations, slideshows

File types: .mp3, .mp4, ppt., etc.

Before You Begin

What Type of Multimedia Are You Including?

Before you can determine what you need to do to make media materials accessible, you need to understand what is required for different types of multimedia. Consider the following questions:

1. Does your multimedia resource include audio narration or instruction? If so, you should: Provide a complete transcript of all speech content and relevant non-speech content in the resource.

2. Does your multimedia resource include audio that is synchronized with a video presentation? If so, you should: Provide captions of all speech content and relevant non-speech content in the resource.

3. Does your multimedia resource include contextual visuals (e.g., charts, graphs) that are not addressed in the spoken content? If so, you should: Provide audio descriptions of relevant visual materials in the resource.

Who Are You Doing This For?

This work supports students who:

Are deaf or hard of hearing

Are blind or have low vision

Have a form of cognitive disability

Are in a location where they cannot play or hear audio

Are not native-English speakers and need written-word formats to support understanding

What Do You Need To Do?

Transcripts

Consider what your students would get out of your multimedia resource if they were not able to hear the audio portion, or if they had difficulty understanding your spoken word. A text transcript provides students with equivalent information to the audio content in a multimedia resource.

As you work on developing your text transcript, keep in mind the following recommendations about what to include:

1. Speaker's name

2. All speech content: If there is speech that is not relevant, it is usually best to indicate that it has been excluded from the transcript. For example: "[A & B chatted while slides were loading]."

3. Relevant descriptions about the speech: Descriptions that convey emotions, mood, etc. are usually provided in brackets. For example: "Don't touch that! [shouted]."

4. Descriptions of relevant non-speech audio: These are usually provided in brackets. For example: "[metal pipes crashing to concrete floor]." Background noise that isn't relevant can be left out.

5. Headings and sub-headings: Where they will make the transcript more usable or easy to navigate, headings and sub-headings can be helpful aids, especially when the transcript is long. When including these, put them in brackets to show that they were not part of the original audio. For example: [I

Transcripts and third-party videos

If you are not producing your own video resource but are planning to embed video materials from a third-party source (e.g., YouTube), be aware that not all third-party sources include transcripts. While services like YouTube technically support transcripts, not all contributors to YouTube include these. If you select a video resource that does not already have a transcript, you will need to produce one yourself.*

Copyright note: Producing your own transcript for a third-party video could infringe on copyright, depending on how the video has been licensed. Before you proceed with producing a transcript for media materials you did not create yourself, you should contact the copyright holder of that material to obtain permission to do so.

Timed text captions are essential to opening up a world of information for persons with hearing loss or literacy needs by making the readable equivalent of audio content available to them in a synchronized manner. Globally hearing loss affects about 10% of the population to some degree. It causes disability in 5% (360 to 538 million) and moderate to severe disability in 124 million people. Timed text captions also be helpful for learners whose native languages are languages other than the primary language of the media or who have cognitive conditions that benefit from visual.Captions are the text that is synchronized with the audio in a video presentation. Captions are important when people need to see what's happening in the video and get the audio information in text at the same time.

The work you put into creating a text transcript for a video resource can be repurposed to provide the captions. Keep in mind the following recommendations about what to include in your captions:

1. All speech content: If there is speech that is not relevant, it is usually best to indicate that it has been excluded from the captions. For example: "[A & B chatted while slides were loading]."

2. Descriptions of relevant non-speech audio: These are usually provided in brackets. For example: "[metal pipes crashing to concrete floor]"; "[background music by XXX plays]." Background noise that isn't relevant can be left out.

Text captions can be uploaded to YouTube and other platforms along with the video to create a timed text file in SubRip (SRT) format. Additional best practices for timed captions include:

Each caption frame should not be on screen for less than three seconds.

Each caption frame must not be on screen for less than two seconds.

Each caption frame should not exceed more than 2 lines.

Each caption frame must not exceed more than 3 lines.

Each line should not exceed more than 32 characters

All caption frames should be precisely time synched to the audio.

When multiple speakers are present, it is sometimes helpful to identify who is speaking, especially when the video does not make this clear.

Non-speech sounds like [MUSIC] or [LAUGHTER] should be added in square brackets.

Downloadable Transcripts

For both audio and video transcripts, consider including a text file that learners can download and review using tools such as word processing, screen reader, or literacy software. All learners can use transcripts of media-based learning materials for study and review.

Audio Descriptions

Consider what your students would get out of a multimedia resource if they were not able to see embedded visual materials critical for comprehension. Audio descriptions are helpful if visual content (e.g., a chart or a map) in a video or presentation provides important context that is not available through the audio alone. Actions that are only visible on screen without any audible equivalent are not accessible to learners who have visual impairments.

When describing visual elements in your multimedia resources, keep in mind the following recommendations and guidelines.

1. When contextual visual content on the screen is not described in the audio itself, you will need to provide an audio description that is an objective description of the visual element. Example:

To help students fully grasp a concept that you are trying to convey in your video, you have included some contextual visual references (e.g., maps, charts, physical demonstrations of a process). However, you realize after making the video that the audio portion does not describe these visuals in enough detail for a student with visual impairments to be able to access all of the concepts you intended to convey.

In this case, you would need to record an audio description of the visual material that provides enough detail to provide students like Jacob with the same content available to visual learners.

2. Whenever possible, avoid creating the need for audio descriptions in the first place by being proactive at the time of recording. If you pay attention to contextual visuals during the recording of the media piece, you may find opportunities to convey the visual content within the spoken material itself; you will not need to provide audio descriptions of the visual content after the fact. Example:

You are recording a video or presentation that includes a chart that tracks coal production in British Columbia, and as part of the presentation you want to focus attention on specific data in the chart. The narrator or presenter might point to sections on the chart and say:

"As you can see, metallurgical coal projection increased by 3 million tonnes over these two years."

In this case, audio descriptions would be necessary to provide the missing context to students with visual disabilities; these students cannot see the data on the chart that tells visual learners what the production figures are and for what dates. However, if the narrator or presenter instead says:

"This chart illustrates that metallurgical coal production in B.C. increased from 23 million tonnes in 1999 to 26 million tonnes in 2001,"

the visual content is conveyed through the audio and no audio description will be necessary.

Accessible Media Resources

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Video and multimedia open resources can help to convey concepts and can bring information to life. In this section, we provide recommendations to guide your inclusion of accessible multimedia content. Multimedia includes: videos, audio, animations, slideshows File types: .mp3, .mp4, ppt., etc. What Type of Multimedia Are You Including?

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Alice Keeler - Teacher Tech - Paperless is not a Pedagogy

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Alice Keeler - Teacher Tech - Paperless is not a Pedagogy

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Gamification can be engaging, engagement matters for learning. By incorporating game elements such as points, badges, and levels, educators can make the learning experience more interactive, enjoyable, and memorable. One way to incorporate gamification is through the use of gamified choice boards.

Motivation is among the important predictors of student academic achievements, which influences the effort and time a student spends engaged in learning (Linehan, Kirman, Lawson, & Chan, 2011)
Dichev, C., & Dicheva, D. (2017). Gamifying education: what is known, what is believed and what remains uncertain: a critical review. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 14(1), 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-017-0042-5

OTIS & Alice Keeler - March 21st 3pm Eastern

Register for FREE with OTIS to join Alice Keeler on March 21st for a webinar about Gamified Choice Boards.

In this session, join Alice Keeler to explore two popular topics in education: gamification and choice boards. Choice boards allow for increased student agency and amplify student voices by giving them different options for how to connect with the content. This is also a great way to differentiate learning and allow students to demonstrate mastery of a topic in a way that is best for them. Learn how to make this even more engaging and fun by gamifying the board!

Why Choice is Engaging

Providing students with choices in their educational journey can significantly impact their engagement, motivation, and overall learning experience. Choice empowers students by allowing them to take control of their learning process and personalize their educational path.

Choice is a fundamental aspect of human nature, and research has shown that when individuals feel a sense of control over their decisions, they are more likely to be motivated and engaged in their pursuits (Patall, Cooper, & Robinson, 2008).

Benefits of Choices

Increase motivation:

When students are given the opportunity to choose, they are more likely to be intrinsically motivated, leading to increased interest and engagement in their learning (Assor, Kaplan & Roth, 2002).

Enhance relevance:

Allowing students to select topics, activities, or projects that align with their interests and passions makes learning more relevant and meaningful to them.

Foster ownership:

Providing choices enables students to take ownership of their learning process, increasing their investment in their education.

Develop decision-making skills:

Offering choices in the classroom helps students develop crucial decision-making and problem-solving skills that will benefit them throughout their lives.

Cater to diverse needs:

Choice in education allows for differentiation, accommodating the varied cognitive preferences and abilities of students within a classroom.

The Role of A Locus of Control

Locus of control refers to an individual's belief in their ability to control their life events and outcomes [3]. In education, fostering a sense of locus of control can lead to increased motivation, self-efficacy, and resilience. By providing students with choices, teachers can help them develop an internal locus of control, where they feel empowered to take charge of their learning and believe that their actions have a direct impact on their success.

What is a Choice Board

A choice board is a visual organizer that presents students with various options for learning activities, assessments, or projects. These boards can be used to differentiate instruction, address diverse learning preferences, and provide opportunities for students to take ownership of their educational journey. Choice boards can be created using various formats, such as grids, menus, or even digital platforms like Google Slides.

Identify learning objectives:

Determine the key learning objectives for the lesson or unit that the choice board will address. This will help guide the selection of appropriate activities and ensure the board remains focused on the content.

Choose a format:

Decide on the format of your choice board, whether it be a grid, menu, or digital platform. Consider the resources available to you and your students, as well as the ease of access and use.

Develop diverse activities:

Create a range of activities that cater to various cognitive preferences and abilities. Consider including tasks that involve different levels of complexity, types of thinking (e.g., analytical, creative), and modes of expression (e.g., writing, speaking, creating).

Set clear expectations:

Provide explicit instructions for each activity on the choice board, including the expected outcomes, resources, and any necessary guidelines. This will help students understand what is required and reduce confusion.

Balance challenge and skills:

Design tasks that are both challenging and achievable for students, promoting a sense of accomplishment and motivation to continue learning.

Incorporate student interests:

When possible, include activities that are relevant to students' interests or that allow them to explore topics they are passionate about.

Encourage collaboration:

Include activities that promote teamwork and collaboration, helping students develop interpersonal and communication skills.

Gamified Choice Boards

Gamification has become a popular approach to boost engagement, motivation, and overall enjoyment in the learning process. By incorporating game elements into choice boards, educators can create an even more dynamic and captivating experience for their students.

Badges and rewards:

Award digital or physical badges to students for completing specific tasks or reaching certain milestones on the choice board. These badges can serve as a visual representation of their achievements and motivate them to continue engaging with the content.

Level up:

Organize the activities on the choice board into different levels, with each level offering progressively more challenging or complex tasks. Students can advance through the levels as they complete activities, providing a sense of progression and accomplishment.

Team-based activities:

Incorporate team-based tasks into the choice board, where students can collaborate with their peers to complete challenges or compete against other teams. This promotes social interaction, teamwork, and communication skills.

Quests or missions:

Turn the choice board into a series of quests or missions that students must complete to "unlock" new challenges or advance in the game. This narrative-driven approach can make the learning experience more immersive and engaging.

Feedback and reflection:

Provide students with regular feedback on their progress and achievements in the gamified choice board. Encourage them to reflect on their learning and identify areas for improvement or new challenges they want to tackle.

Research on Gamification and Choice Boards

Assor, A., Kaplan, H., & Roth, G. (2002). Choice is good, but relevance is excellent: Autonomy-enhancing and suppressing teacher behaviours predicting students' engagement in schoolwork. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 72(2), 261-278. https://doi.org/10.1348/000709902158883

Dichev, C., & Dicheva, D. (2017). Gamifying education: what is known, what is believed and what remains uncertain: a critical review. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 14(1), 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-017-0042-5

Lee, J.J., & Hammer, J. (2011). Gamification in Education: What, How, Why Bother? Academic Exchange Quarterly, 15(2), 1-5.

Patall, E. A., Cooper, H., & Robinson, J. C. (2008). The Effects of Choice on Intrinsic Motivation and Related Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis of Research Findings. Psychological Bulletin, 134(2), 270-300. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.134.2.270

Rotter, J. B. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs: General and Applied, 80(1), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0092976

Exciting Gamified Choice Boards for Your Classroom

Do you want to make learning more fun and exciting for your students? Gamified choice boards are the perfect way to do that! They mix the best parts of games and choice boards to create an engaging learning experience. Let's learn about how you can create a gamified choice board for your classroom.

Making Your Choice Board More Fun

First, you can add points to each activity on the choice board. By giving different tasks different point values, students will feel excited as they earn points for completing activities.

Next, think about giving badges or rewards to students who finish specific tasks or reach certain goals. Badges are a cool way for students to show off their achievements and encourage them to keep learning.

Another idea is to create levels on your choice board. Start with easier tasks and move on to more challenging ones. This way, students will feel a sense of progress as they complete activities and move up the levels.

Besides that, you can introduce time-bound challenges. For example, students can race against the clock to complete tasks. This adds excitement and a sense of friendly competition to the learning experience.

Moreover, consider creating a leaderboard to show students' progress and achievements. This can inspire students to engage with the choice board activities and compete with their classmates.

In addition, you can include team-based activities where students work together to complete challenges. This helps them learn how to work together and communicate with others.

Lastly, turn the choice board into a series of quests or missions. Students will enjoy the adventure of completing tasks to unlock new challenges.

Gamified choice boards are a great way to make learning fun and engaging for your students. By using these ideas, you can create a choice board that gets your students excited about learning. So go ahead, try these tips, and watch your students enjoy the thrilling experience of gamified choice boards!

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Choice has many benefits to students in education to increase their motivation, efforts, and engagement. Gamified choice boards bring together the power of choice and the power of fun. Join Alice Keeler as she explains some options for creating a gamified choice board.

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Future of Teaching & Learning: Key Trends & Emerging Technologies

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Future of Teaching & Learning: Key Trends & Emerging Technologies

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This report profiles key trends and emerging technologies and practices shaping the future of teaching and learning and envisions a number of scenarios and implications for that future. It is based on the perspectives and expertise of a global panel of leaders from across the higher education landscape.

Read full report: PDF | Other materials

Anticipating the Future of Teaching and Learning

Anticipating the future is human nature, but it can be risky. In our first major revision of the Horizon Report's methodology, EDUCAUSE recognizes and embraces that challenge. We've recast the report by updating its methodology and structure, while keeping its essential purpose of looking at what will most impact teaching and learning in the future.

New this year! For the educational technologies, you'll find we've moved away from the time-to-adoption structure of the past and in its place have offered evidence, data, and scenarios that inform what the future might look like. You'll also find a new section that illustrates the way the findings identified in the report are having an impact on different sizes and types of institutions around the world.

Our goal was to create a report that will enable you to learn, plan, and act on all that is influencing higher education teaching and learning, now and in the future.
Read more about the new Horizon Report on page 4 >
Trends: Scanning the Horizon

This section of the report describes the trends that are currently influencing global higher education teaching and learning and will continue to shape the future.

Read more about these trends on page 7 >

Emerging Technologies & Practices

This section of the report details six emerging technologies and practices that are beginning to have a significant impact on the future of postsecondary teaching and learning. Included in this section are college and university exemplar projects demonstrating the impact of the technologies and practices.
Learn more about the emerging technologies and practices on page 13 >
Possible Scenarios (In 10 Years)

This year's report paints brief but evocative portraits of four possible future scenarios for postsecondary teaching and learning.
Read the possible future scenarios on page 32 >
Implications: What Do We Do Now?

This brand-new section features nine Horizon panelists reflecting on the report's findings and illustrating the ways in which issues overlap, diverge, and intersect in different parts of the world and at institutions of different sizes and types.
Read the essays exploring key issues in global higher ed on page 37 >

Mind Map

The Horizon Report mind map is a new visual representation of key concepts found within the report, with connections to related community exemplar projects. This resource will be useful for quick familiarization and easy sharing with colleagues in your organization and serves as a springboard for deeper exploration into the full Horizon Report.

Download the Emerging Technologies/Practices and Influential Trends, 2020 mind map now.

Reports and Supporting Materials

*This translation was produced by the Korea Education and Research Information Service (KERIS). If you have questions about this version, please contact Hyoeun Shin ([email protected] )

**This translation was produced by Multimedia Kontor Hamburg (MMKH). If you have questions about this version, please contact Helga Bechmann ( [email protected] ).

Expert Panel

The 2020 Horizon panel was comprised of 54 higher education experts from around the globe. See the Expert Panel on page 58 >

Issues, Technologies, and Trends Resources

Higher education leaders and decision makers use the annual Issues, Technologies, and Trends resources-the Top 10 IT Issues, the Strategic Technologies and Trends, and the Horizon Report-to know what's important and where to focus their IT planning and management activities. When viewed together, these resources provide a more complete and nuanced guidance on institutional IT priorities.

EDUCAUSE Horizon Report is a trademark of EDUCAUSE.

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This report profiles key trends and emerging technologies and practices shaping the future of teaching and learning and envisions a number of scenarios and implications for that future. It is based on the perspectives and expertise of a global panel of leaders from across the higher education landscape.

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Full of resources

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Julie Stern

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Learning that Transfers - Julie Stern

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National Centre for Universal Design

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National Center on Universal Design for Learning

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AB Education

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Making sense of universal design for learning

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CAST

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Teachings in Education

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Think Sheets - a positive way to tackle problem solving

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Think Sheets - a positive way to tackle problem solving

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Paula Kluth

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1. everyone is welcome
2. see rule #1

Welcome to Inclusion Rules!

After nearly 10 years with my PaulaKluth.com, I'm excited to unveil my new site and provide you with even more inclusion-related resources and tools. The purpose of this new site is to promote inclusive schooling and offer lots and lots and lots of ideas for those working hard to create classrooms for all every single day. Whether you are a self-advocate/advocate, educator, paraprofessional, administrator, or parent, I want you to be able to find content here that is thought-provoking and helpful.

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Inclusion Rules is dedicated to inclusive schools and communities. Explore free resource, books by Paula Kluth, and contact Paula Kluth Consulting.

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Scaffolding Powerful & Meaningful Inquiries

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Scaffolding Powerful & Meaningful Inquiries

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TC² webinar: Scaffolding powerful and meaningful inquiries

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Foothills Playlist Conceptual Reasoning in Math

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The Complete Guide to Spiralling, Interleaving, Mixing & Spacing Math Class

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Do your students struggle to retain their learning from math class? Are you finding yourself having to reteach because students don't have the prior knowledge for today's lesson? Then spiralling and interleaving is perfect for you! Take some time and explore the complete guide to spiralling math class!

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Challenging Learning & Building Resiliency and a Growth Mindset

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I have three kids ranging from older elementary to high school. Each one of them is handling distance learning differently. My daughter, who is also the youngest, initially felt overwhelmed at the list of assignments that popped up each Monday and the scheduled meetings twice a week. However, once we walked her through the process of breaking down tasks and estimating work time, she was able to create a weekly schedule for herself. I even taught her about the planning fallacy and why we should take our initial estimation of time and multiply it by 1.5 to get a more accurate sense of how long things will take. My middle son decided to do as much of his work on Monday and Tuesday as possible to free up time later in the week. Meanwhile, my oldest son has chosen to go the "deep work" approach by focusing on one subject each day.

Their favorite parts of school have varied as well. My daughter loves her virtual meetings. My middle son prefers working asynchronously and enjoys it when teachers create tutorial videos and let students jump ahead if need be. Meanwhile, my oldest is working his hardest in his engineering class where they are doing a PBL unit based on a design challenge. Here, he is working on his computer while he has FaceTime open for hours as he talks with his friend.

Seeing distance learning through the lens of my own children is a reminder that each child is different. There is no single right way to do distance learning - an idea I explore in this video:
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While there is no instruction manual for distance learning, there are some universal ideas that can guide us as we design distance learning experience. One of these core ideas is student voice and choice. One of the best things we can offer students in this time of social distancing is a sense of autonomy and control over their learning. If you look at the following diagram, there is a progression in student agency where they move through compliance to engagement to empowerment as they have greater choice and control over their learning.

Note that too much choice can be a problem. Students can feel overwhelmed when things are too loose. Children need expectations, which is why agency and compliance still have a place. Moreover, choice can be overwhelming. As Barry Schwartz wrote in the classic Paradox of Choice, "Learning to choose is hard. Learning to choose well is harder. And learning to choose well in a world of unlimited possibilities is harder still, perhaps too hard." We do a disservice when we provide "unlimited possibilities" because it is simply too much choice for our brains. For this reason, it can help to create structures for student choice. One option is through the design of a choice menu.

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Four Approaches to Choice Menus

Choice menus have been around for years with different names, including "choice boards" and "learning menus." Regardless of the terminology, the idea is the same. Create structures that provide choices for students in their learning tasks. However, as mentioned before, choice often exists on a spectrum from teacher-directed (less autonomy) to student-directed (more autonomy). The following graphic is a continuum of choice menus with four different levels.

I want to point out that these do not to be sequential or linear. You don't have to start at a Level 1 and then move to a Level 4. But there is this idea that you may want to start at a more teacher-centered approach to get students used to the idea of choice and then move toward a Level 3 or 4 over time.

Level 1: Embedded Choice
Choice Level:
Mostly Teacher-Directed
Description:
With this first level, students all work on the same main assignment or project. Here, every student is working on the same learning targets and tasks for the majority of the assignment. The entire class has common grouping (individual, partners, or small groups) and generally works at the same pace. However, within this assignment, the teacher provides options on a sub-task.

So, in a language arts class, students might all do the same reading and answer similar questions but they have a menu of options for how they present their answers. They might record a podcast, make a slideshow, do a sketchnote, film a video, or write a blog post. Another variation of this might be that every student is writing a blog post but they have a list of topics they can select. So, they don't have a choice in the final product but they do have a choice in the topic.

In a math class, students might have the same set of word problems but they select from the menu. Or they might work on the same word problem but have a menu of options for how they solve the problems. For linear equations, this might include graphing, creating a table, or using an algorithm. Another time, they might all solve the same problem but they have a choice in how they share their answers with classmates.

The core idea is that most of the assignment is the same but there is one element where a choice menu is embedded. This is ideal when you first introduce a concept or skill and you want to make sure every student has the background knowledge they need before moving on. It can also function as a way to introduce choice to students without overwhelming them. Later, they'll move toward higher levels of choice and autonomy until they end up with something like a Genius Hour.

Level 2: Simple Choice Menu
Choice Level:
Somewhat Student-Directed
Description:
This builds on the last idea with a key variation. Instead of having a common assignment and embedded choices, students have a common objective but a choice in assignments. This might include choices in grouping, choices in topics, and choices in the products they create. So, students might do independent reading with whatever novels they choose to read. Afterward, they can select any number of book report prompts that the teacher provides. If you're interested in trying these out, I have partnered with Presto Plans to create a set of alternatives to book reports. Each one has a sketch video and a set of handouts. They've already been optimized for online and distance learning classroom.

The simple choice menu is ideal for a classroom where students are all mastering the same standard. If the standard is is skill-based but topic-neutral, students have leeway in choosing their own topics (or choosing from a list of topics) but less freedom in the skills they practice. For example, with Wonder Day, every student engages in research, reading, and writing. Other times, the standard might be topic-based and conceptual but there is more freedom in the skills students master and the products they create. Here, students might learn about World War II but the simple choice menu could include making a comic book, creating a virtual museum, or doing a diary of a soldier.

If you want to create this type of chart, I would recommend putting this onto a Google Document and using the icons from Flat Icon. You can hyperlink the icon and use the same hyperlink under each icon. Using the internal Bookmarks and link functions, you can have one single document that has each of the assignment options below it. You can then submit this an attachment on the common assignment in Google Classroom. Another variation of this is the Tic-Tac-Toe option which Catlin Tucker and Kasey Bell have both done a great job demonstrating. Here, students select an assignment in each row to get a "Tic-Tac-Toe" for a completed assignment.

The key idea is that there is a common learning target but freedom in everything else.

Level 3: Advanced Choice Menu
Choice Level:
Mostly Student-Directed
Description:
Advanced choice menus take the last idea another step forward by having students self-select the standards or learning targets. The following is an example of an advanced choice menu. Students begin by selecting their grouping (partners, small group, or independent). Next, they select the specific learning targets. This is ideal for students who need additional review of certain content. It functions as a built-in intervention. After deciding on the learning target, students find related resources that they explore connected to the learning target. These might be tutorials, examples, articles, podcasts, or videos. Finally, students select from options in how they will present their learning. You can find out more about it here. Here's a table that spells out how it works:

In a math class, you might have a student choose to work with a partner. Both partners decide to work on dividing fractions. When they look at the list of curated resources, one partner chooses to watch a tutorial video while another partner chooses to read an online tutorial. Next, they complete a task where they are dividing fractions and then they select the video option where they show how they solved the problems together. Although they are working miles away from each other, they are able to share their videos with one another and with the teacher on Flipgrid.

While the table works well for this option, a more advanced variation would be to do it as a Google Form, with students selecting an option that leads to a new set of options. So, in science they might choose a learning target on adaptations. When they click submit, it takes them to the specific resources on adaptations. Once they select their resource to learn about adaptations, they click submit again and go to the form with the options for how they will share what they learned.

Note that this option works best with secondary students who have a solid background knowledge of their topics or a solid understanding of the skills. This type of choice menu can easily overwhelm students, which is why I would recommend using one of the first two options before moving to this one.

Level 4: Independent Project
Choice Level:
Entirely Student-Directed
Description:
Independent projects require a shift from choice to freedom. Instead of relying on teachers for to provide a menu of options, students select the grouping, decide on the topics, ask their own questions, engage in their own research, find their own resources (rather than selecting from a curation), and ultimately create their own products.

One option is a Genius Hour project. Based on Google concept of 20% Time, the goal is to provide students with 20% of their class time to learn what they want. They choose the content while also mastering skills and hitting the academic standards.
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With Genius Hour, students own the entire journey. They choose the topics based upon their own geeky interests. It doesn't have to be a traditionally academic area. They might like fashion or food or sports or Legos or Minecraft or deep sea creatures. They can then match these topics with topic-neutral standards. Students ask the questions and engage in their own research to find the answers. Along the way, they design their own plan of instruction. They decide on the resources and activities. Each student sets goals and engages in self-assessment. They work at their own pace and set their own deadlines. Students decide on the grouping. Some work alone. Others work in pairs or small groups. In the end, students figure out what they will make and how they will share their learning with the world.

A word of caution: It's not a free-for-all. The best Genius Hour projects have systems and structures that empower students to reach their full potential. I find it helpful to break Genius Hour into phases and have students document it with a Genius Hour Journal. This could be done on a Google Doc or it could be done as a podcast or video. I love this quote from Austin Kleon:

In some cases, students might not finish their Genius Hour projects. They might even hit failure. But failed projects are also a learning opportunity:
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Here's a video you can use with your students.
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Another option would be something like a Wonder Day project, where students can choose their grouping, choose their topics, create their own questions, engage in research, and ultimately create either a podcast, video, slideshow, or blog post where they share their findings. Here's a chart you can use to help walk students through the choices.

If you'd like to download the Wonder Day or Wonder Week (a deeper dive) project, you can check them out for free here.

Even so, there will be mistakes. You'll have to experiment.

Ultimately, student choice is a long journey. We are in the midst of social distancing and experimenting as we go. Some students might be at a place where they can only handle the first or second levels of choice menus - and that's okay. The important thing is that they are seeing how much you are honoring their autonomy and agency. In the end, when we provide students with choice, they are empowered to be be self-directed learners, engaging in creativity and critical thinking. In other words, they own the learning.

This next week, I'll be running a webinar taking a deeper dive into this subject. Together, we will explore four different choice menus you can do in your online classroom. I'll walk you step-by-step through each type of choice menu so that you can craft a practical choice menu for your students. You can sign up here.

Distance Learning Toolkit

If you want to learn more about distance learning, please check out the toolkit and eBook below.

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4 Ways to Craft Choice Menus in Distance Learning Classes

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I have three kids ranging from older elementary to high school. Each one of them is handling distance learning differently. My daughter, who is also the youngest, initially felt overwhelmed at the list of assignments

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Each strategy has a dedicated page on this site in one of the five learning phases where we believe it can be best used to activate thinking. Some strategies are very specific and small in scope. Other strategies represent a larger grouping of ideas and those pages will highlight a variety of tools and techniques that fit within the 'strategy'.

Strategy pages are filled with a variety of information that will help teachers thoughtfully implement the strategy including:

A full descriptor a each strategy including what it is, tips for implementing it, how it might be modified, assessment guidelines, etc.

Videos and/or online examples of the strategy in use within content areas

Graphic Organizers and Blank Templates to save teachers time!

Links to research studies, websites, and articles for more information

The strategies were sorted into five phases for ease of use of this resource. However, teachers need to use their professional judgement to decide where the strategy makes the most sense in their lesson planning. For example, a WORD SORT can be a highly effective tool to introduce new vocabulary before launching an activity or reading a text. Students can sort words they know and do not know, make predictions what the text will be about and can be very helpful for the teacher to see how much background knowledge students have. Alternatively, a word sort can be used at the end of a unit to consolidate learning, apply and/or transfer understandings and review of key terms before a summative assessment.

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Each strategy has a dedicated page on this site in one of the five learning phases where we believe it can be best used to activate thinking. Some strategies are very specific and small in scope. Other strategies represent a larger grouping of ideas and those pages will highlight a variety of tools and techniques that fit within the 'strategy'.

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Rethinking what it means to Learn - Student Agency

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Rethinking what it means to Learn - Student Agency

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by Paul Solarz

When I first sat down to write about student agency, I needed to do a little research. This wasn't a term I learned in college (I'm old), and although I have participated in Twitter chats about it, I'm never really certain that I completely understand what every edu-jargon term means!

According to Getting Smart, "Agency" is:

the capacity and propensity to take purposeful initiative- the opposite of helplessness.

Okay, so I have a starting point. If we want our students to develop agency, then we need to prevent our students from being helpless! I like it.

One website that really helped me understand student agency was Education Reimagined. In this blog post, Jennifer Davis Poon explained that there are four distinct components of "agency." It might be helpful to say "for myself during this period" or "for myself on this assignment" after each component below:

1. Setting advantageous goals

2. Initiating action toward those goals

3. Reflecting on and regulating progress toward those goals

4. A belief in self-efficacy. That is, whether one believes they can act with agency actually enhances or diminishes that agency.

As we all know, the importance of specific educational philosophies, practices, and teaching styles ebbs and flows over time. Something that is "essential" today might be discouraged in ten years, and then will likely be back en vogue in twenty! Certainly, changes need to be made in order to keep up with technology, our advancing society, and the way students learn today, but those are not always the reasons that huge changes in teaching happen. Often, changes occur due to new legislation passed, incentives from textbook publishers, or having to bring in the newest, greatest gadget for learning!

When I first started teaching in the late 1990's, I entered a school district that allowed their teachers nearly full-autonomy for running their classrooms. The programs that were purchased for us were there if we wanted to use them and if we preferred to meet our standards and objectives in different ways, we were strongly encouraged to do so. Now this might seem hard for a new teacher, but I had excellent mentors, an excitement for teaching, and the willingness to spend my evenings and weekends creating high quality lessons! I replaced nearly every lesson handed to me with my own, and within a year or two, created a classroom that stoked my fire for teaching and teaching well!

You see, I was given agency by my administration. I was encouraged to think for myself, not be told what to do and how to do it. I used the needs of my students as the focus of my unit and lesson planning, rather than the need to get through all of the curriculum (but I still got through most of it). I was provided guidelines and tips for planning out our school year, but was told that it needed to be flexible and that meeting my students' needs was the most important consideration. I LOVED being a teacher! I LOVED being trusted to make the best decision I could! I LOVED being creative with my lessons, integrating subjects, and using the techniques I learned in college and my masters program to make learning more fun and permanent! Agency was the main factor in my happiness as a teacher.

It wasn't long before I realized how important autonomy was to me. I wondered about how my students might handle autonomy within our classroom. Would they take advantage of a "longer leash" in negative ways? Would their productivity diminish if I let them make choices and help their peers when they needed it? Would their immediate academic progress slow down at the expense of improving their student agency skills?

I decided I had to find out. Right then and there I decided that academic perfection would not be my teaching goal, but rather academic growth combined with an ability to apply real-world skills independently, would be.

In order to do this, I had to create a classroom environment where students worked together, made decisions freely, were held accountable for their actions and assignments, and were treated with respect and trust. Completion was not always our main goal, but on-task behavior and strong effort were always required. If someone in class needed your help, I preferred that you fell behind in an attempt to help them move forward. Our mantra became, "Finishing first or being the best isn't what we do in here. When we make it to the top of the mountain, we're only successful if we're standing next to all of our classmates!" Competition was no longer trying to be better than our peers, but rather trying to be better today than we were yesterday. Personal growth, not winning at others' expense was our goal.

I also had to shift how I taught. I couldn't spend all of my time at the front of the room, lecturing or leading discussions. I needed to give my students directions and get out of their way so they could start making decisions without consulting me. I just needed to be sure that my students understood the rules of the school and our classroom, my expectations for their behavior, and the directions for the lesson. They also needed to know the order for asking for help was peers first, then me if needed. I was a resource, but not the only resource or first resource they should consult in the class. Since students were asking each other for help, had the directive to always try to help each other, and were allowed the time to give help to their classmates (since completion wasn't our main goal), students began working together as a team.

But, what was I supposed to do with all my newfound free time? I was no longer lecturing in front of the class. I wasn't necessarily pulling small groups during all of these collaborative lessons (although I certainly did pull kids during many). I was free to do anything I wanted! That's where I learned the value of giving students immediate, personalized, intentional feedback.

All of this extra time allowed me to walk around, observe my students working together, and formatively assess their understanding of the skills and concepts. It also allowed me to do a few other things that were extremely important:

I was able to ask my students questions that either led them in a new direction or helped me understand their way of working or thinking. Whenever I learned a better way of doing something from my students, I usually asked them to announce it to the class if they were willing, and I added it to my toolbox of tricks for the future!

I was able to learn when to give support and when not to. Many times, giving students the opportunity to make mistakes and then learn from those mistakes is more valuable than doing the task perfectly the first time. I just had to make sure that I checked back in with them to see that they eventually got onto the right path.

I was able to provide feedback to individuals, groups, and the whole class when they were doing a great job, when they misunderstood a direction, when I messed up explaining a direction, etc.

Lesson planning needed to change. Instead of my students filling out worksheets, reading textbook chapters, and listening to me tell them what they needed to know, I began to implement project-based learning, simulations, and long-term explorations. These activities allowed me to integrate subjects, get students working in partnerships or teams, and required much of the thinking and talking to happen by the students, rather than the teacher! Students were now beginning to develop agency. The skills of knowing what to do, how to do it, what to do when you're stuck, meeting deadlines, monitoring progress, changing directions when things aren't going right, making decisions freely, and knowing that ALL of this is their responsibility (not the responsibility of the teacher, parents, or peers).

I wanted to develop students who could think for themselves. I wanted to build their confidence, but not through false praise and easy work. They needed to accomplish tough tasks without feeling like anyone helped them more than setting them up for success. I wanted students to make mistakes and learn from them. I didn't want to shelter them from struggles and failures to protect them. They needed to know that it's all part of the learning process. I just wanted to provide my students a safe environment to take risks, make mistakes, and learn from those mistakes. I wanted to be my students' acrobatics net, in case they fell trying to do the academic version of a Triple Layout, Uprise Shoot into a Full Twisting Double Shooting Star. (Those are real trapeze tricks - I had to look them up! Thanks Wikipedia!)

Our classroom began to transform. Instead of a classroom of 25 students and a teacher, it started to look more like a 21st Century Start-up. Students worked all over the room, sitting on bean bag chairs or working at standing desks. Everyone was talking, and each conversation was completely authentic and prompted by each student. Disagreements happened occasionally, but were quickly settled due to the importance we placed on classroom community, social-emotional learning, and strategies for dealing with conflict. After all, we were like a family, and although we may disagree sometimes, we care about each other!

Twenty years later, I've gotten better at my craft. Despite the shrinking levels of autonomy teachers are given today in my school district, my students have HUGE amounts of autonomy within our extremely structured classroom. (Students need structure in order to be successful when the teacher is no longer thinking for them!) They think for themselves, but understand the rules and expectations of our classroom society. Just like the real world, students know that purposely breaking the rules comes with consequences, but unlike some parts of the real world, students know this is a safe place to learn and grow and be. And that's why providing your students with autonomy so they can develop their agency skills is so important. I hope you will continue to encourage your students to make decisions freely and be supportive of students when they make mistakes! And they WILL make mistakes! 🙂

For more information on creating a "student-led classroom" like the one I described above, please check out my book, "Learn Like a PIRATE," available on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble stores around the U.S. or online.

- Paul Solarz - 4th and 5th grade teacher

Final thoughts - According to Renaissance.com,

Student agency is NOT...

A free-for-all for students: They need your guidance, and sometimes too many choices can be counterproductive instead of inspiring.

Lacking accountability: Students must demonstrate mastery of concepts and skills.

A replacement for an expert teacher: While students choose their own direction, they will still require course-correction along the path to mastery.

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by Paul Solarz When I first sat down to write about student agency, I needed to do a little research. This wasn't a term I learned in college (I'm old), and although I have participated in Twitter chats about it, I'm never really certain that I completely understand what every edu-jargon term means!

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Understood.org

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Universal Design for Learning (UDL): A teacher’s guide

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UDL stands for Universal Design for Learning. When you teach using UDL, your lessons are designed in flexible ways to meet the needs of individual learners. Read more about UDL.

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Student Centred Learning - Building Agency

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Student Centred Learning - Building Agency

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Edutopia video

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Student-Centered Learning: Building Agency and Engagement

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Peek inside a high school where teachers act as facilitators and students are directors of their own learning.

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Success Criteria

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One of the ways we can power up success criteria is through combining it with a 4-square criterion reflection. This tool provides a great way for students to self-assess themselves against the success criteria for the lesson, as well as support teachers in providing targeted and meaningful feedback on the elements being focused on rather than the process as a whole. Check out the 4-square criterion reflection tool >>>

Click to access more information about the 4-square criterion reflection

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Success criteria are the measures used to determine whether, and how well, learners have met the learning intentions (AITSL). According to the NSW DEC ' Strong Start Great Teachers ' document,...

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FSD PD - April 30, 2021

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Students are Agents of their Own Learning

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Students are Agents of their Own Learning

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FSD PD - April 30, 2021

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FSD PD - April 30, 2021

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Youcubed - Jo Boaler

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We have been collaborating with our 2 neuroscience advisors, Christian Battista and Lang Chen, on new papers releasing the fascinating new evidence on the ways our brains learn mathematics, that are shared on this page.

In the labs at Stanford they have developed some really interesting new knowledge on the ways brains work mathematically. Prof Vinod Menon and his team have shown that our brains are made up of 5 different networks that are involved when we think about maths. Two of the networks are visual pathways - one is the ventral and one the dorsal visual pathway. Neuroimaging has shown that even when people work on a number calculation, such as 12 x 25, with symbolic digits (12 and 25) our mathematical thinking is partly visual.

The different evidence that is coming from the neuroscientists tells us that our brain wants to think visually about maths. Building students' mathematical understanding doesn't just mean strengthening one area of the brain that is involved with abstract numbers, it means strengthening connections between areas of the brain and strengthening the visual pathways.

We at youcubed believe that every mathematical concept can be represented visually to students, and that this would help them greatly. In our teacher paper, called "Seeing as Understanding," we not only discuss the visual research but also include visual activities for all grade levels. Some of the other papers and news articles share some fascinating new research on the importance of fingers. The visual activities shares different K-12 visual math activities, as examples of ways to make maths more visual.

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We have been collaborating with our 2 neuroscience advisors, Christian Battista and Lang Chen, on new papers releasing the fascinating new evidence on the ways our brains learn mathematics, that are shared on this page. In the labs at Stanford they have developed some really interesting new knowledge on the ways brains work mathematically.

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Ministerial Order - PD Playlist

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Inclusive Education

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Companies seeking out potential employees with autism

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Many adults with autism have a hard time finding a job, but more companies are discovering the unique skills and potential people with autism offer. Anderson Cooper reports.

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Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) - Canchild information

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Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) - Canchild information

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Learning Transfer - Grasp the Structure of Life in 3 Steps...

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Learning Transfer - Grasp the Structure of Life in 3 Steps...

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Julie Stern

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Grasp the structure of life in 3 steps!  

How does physical exercise impact how I feel? 
How can teamwork impact our day? 

Overview:https://t.co/WI8p5XwCFN
PreK:https://t.co/whkvOrkROM
Elem:https://t.co/Ls920BoqTN
Middle:https://t.co/a6q3bCPbQu
High:https://t.co/XVIBQ9ycXs

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Grasp the structure of life in 3 steps!  

How does physical exercise impact how I feel? 
How can teamwork impact our day? 

Overview:https://t.co/WI8p5XwCFN
PreK:https://t.co/whkvOrkROM
Elem:https://t.co/Ls920BoqTN
Middle:https://t.co/a6q3bCPbQu
High:https://t.co/XVIBQ9ycXs https://t.co/5azX2s5CQw

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Grasp the structure of life in 3 steps!

How does physical exercise impact how I feel?
How can teamwork impact our day?

Overview:https://t.co/WI8p5XwCFN
PreK:https://t.co/whkvOrkROM
Elem:https://t.co/Ls920BoqTN
Middle:https://t.co/a6q3bCPbQu
High:https://t.co/XVIBQ9ycXs pic.twitter.com/5azX2s5CQw
— Julie Stern (@JulieHStern) April 9, 2020

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Grasp the structure of life in 3 steps!  

How does physical exercise impact how I feel? 
How can teamwork impact our day? 

Overview:https://t.co/WI8p5XwCFN
PreK:https://t.co/whkvOrkROM
Elem:https://t.co/Ls920BoqTN
Middle:https://t.co/a6q3bCPbQu
High:https://t.co/XVIBQ9ycXs https://t.co/5azX2s5CQw

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.original_text
Grasp the structure of life in 3 steps!  

How does physical exercise impact how I feel? 
How can teamwork impact our day? 

Overview:https://t.co/WI8p5XwCFN
PreK:https://t.co/whkvOrkROM
Elem:https://t.co/Ls920BoqTN
Middle:https://t.co/a6q3bCPbQu
High:https://t.co/XVIBQ9ycXs https://t.co/5azX2s5CQw

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.metadata.attachment_props.text
Grasp the structure of life in 3 steps!  

How does physical exercise impact how I feel? 
How can teamwork impact our day? 

Overview:https://t.co/WI8p5XwCFN
PreK:https://t.co/whkvOrkROM
Elem:https://t.co/Ls920BoqTN
Middle:https://t.co/a6q3bCPbQu
High:https://t.co/XVIBQ9ycXs

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For Computational Thinking and Computer Science

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Software for learning for Students with Complex Needs

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Software for learning for Students with Complex Needs

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Create a consistent, engaging learning environment

Unique Learning System is a one‑of‑kind solution designed specifically to help students with special learning needs master their state's extended standards. From one convenient, cloud‑based platform, educators deliver differentiated, standards‑aligned content enhanced by powerful assessments, data tools, and evidence‑based instructional support. Students from pre-K through transition have the advantage of consistent, high-quality instruction, a motivating interactive learning environment, engaging symbol support, and a path to independence.

See how ULS incorporates the Science of Reading

Easily maintain and demonstrate compliance

Administrators, teachers, therapists, paraprofessionals, and parents all benefit from the powerful supports within Unique Learning System that help them meet the ultimate goal: helping every student gain meaningful access to learning and develop greater self-sufficiency. Built‑in assessment tools and resources provide insight into each learner's knowledge, abilities, and needs as they progress. And extensive data related to that growth informs instruction and documents mastery toward IEP goals and standards.

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Simplify complex daily roles to increase educator satisfaction

Teachers, imagine starting the school day without the rush to create materials for multiple levels of learners, prepared to provide every student with access to their state's extended standards, knowing what standards that day's lessons will address-and how, and having clear insight into every student's needs and learning level to ensure they continue to progress. From one convenient and powerful solution, you can create opportunities for your students to succeed in school and life.

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Drive positive student outcomes across all content areas

With research guiding our work every step of the way, we help educators address the needs of the whole student from one easy‑to‑navigate solution that provides instruction across the content areas for pre‑K-transition. Students can chart their own course to academic success with access to extended learning standards and the same concepts as their peers in general education. And they gain pride and confidence through differentiated lessons that enable each to participate in rigorous daily instruction at the appropriate level with evidence‑based supports.

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Teach and learn anytime, anywhere

Like n2y's Total Solution, Unique Learning System is both simple and powerful-easily working with existing technology and seamlessly adaptable to future systems. Its cloud-based content and features reach students no matter where they learn throughout the day: in school or at home.

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What's Included?

A one-year Unique Learning System license provides:

Unlimited access for one service provider and 15 students to one grade band of differentiated lessons, and standards-aligned content for ELA, math, social studies & science, and transition. Designated to ensure standards mastery, grade bands include Pre-K, Elementary (K-2), Intermediate (3-5), Middle School (6-8), High School (9-12) and Transition.

Student View access from any location

Use of the powerful Goals, Preferences and Skills (GPS) assessment hub and resulting student data and reporting

Access to regular updates and additions

Time-saving, easy-to-use platform that integrates with other n2y solutions

24/7 access to our comprehensive Knowledge Base that shows how to use Unique Learning System, including Getting Started, FAQs, and support articles.

There are different levels in Unique [Learning System], and each student is on the level that [enables them to] achieve the maximum. We do monthly Checkpoints to see where they're going, and it shows me that when students need specific help, we get right on it.

Louella Broussard

Teacher

Acadiana High School, LA

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Unique Learning System is the #1 U.S. special education curriculum! Standards-aligned, individualized instruction for measurable student growth and independence.

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Yeah! You’re here! Let’s take a look at all the stuff I have for you. First, let’s get something out of the way. I’ve noticed that whenever people say the name of this site to me, they’ll trail off like this, “Cult of…” That hesitation! They don’t know how to say pedagogy. So here you

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Functional Math Skills that support independence

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Functional Math Skills that support independence

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Thoughtco

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Functional math skills are those skills that students need to live independently in the community, care for themselves, and make choices about their lives. Functional skills make it possible for students with disabilities to make choices about where they will live, how they will make money, what they will do with money, and what they will do with their spare time. To do these things, they need to be able to count money, tell time, read a bus schedule, follow directions at work, and know-how to check and balance a bank account.

Functional Math Skills

Before students can understand numbers and numeration, they have to understand one-to-one correspondence. As they count, they need to be able to match each item or items to a corresponding number and understand that the number represents a matching or a corresponding number of items. One-to-one correspondence will also be helpful in such household tasks as setting the table and matching socks. Other functional skills include:

Number recognition: This includes recognizing and being able to write the 10 digits, and then recognizing place value: ones, tens, and hundreds.

Skip counting: Skip counting by 5's and 10's to 100 is important for understanding time (such as five-minute increments on an analog clock) and money. Teachers can use a hundred's chart or on a number line to demonstrate skip counting.

Operations: It's vital for students to have a grasp of addition and subtraction.

At a later point, if your students have an understanding of these two operations, it may be possible to introduce multiplication and division. Students with special needs may not be able to develop the ability to do the math operations themselves independently, but they can learn how the operations are used in order to use a calculator to do calculations, like balancing a bank statement or paying bills.

Time as a functional skill involves both understanding the importance of time-such as not staying up all night or not missing appointments because they don't leave enough time to get ready-and telling time on analog and digital clocks to get to school, work, or even the bus on time.

Understanding time requires comprehending that seconds are fast, minutes almost as fast, and hours much longer. Students with disabilities, especially significant cognitive or developmental disabilities, may have behavioral outbursts because they are "stuck" on preferred activities, and don't realize they will miss lunch. For them, building an understanding of time may involve a visual clock, like a Time Timer, or a picture schedule.

These tools help give students a sense of control over their schedule and an understanding of what happens and when during their school or even home day. Parents may also benefit from having visual schedules at home. For children with autism spectrum disorders, it can help avoid long periods of self-stimulatory (stimming) behavior, which may actually undermine progress they are making at school.

Teachers can also pair telling time with understanding the concept of time, for example, that 6 a.m. is when you get up and 6 p.m. is when you eat dinner. Once students can tell the time to the hour and half-hour, they can progress to skip counting by fives and telling time to the nearest five-minute interval. A geared clock, such as a Judy clock -where the hour hand moves when the minute hand goes around-helps students understand that both hands move together.

Money, as a functional math skill, has several levels of skill:

Recognizing money: pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters.

Counting money: first in single denominations and later mixed coins

Understand the value of money: budgets, wages, and paying bills

Measurement

Learning measurement for students with special needs should involve length and volume. A student should be able to use a ruler and even perhaps a tape measure for length and recognize inches, half and quarter inches, as well as feet or yards. If a student has an aptitude for carpentry or graphic arts, the ability to measure length or size will be helpful.

Students should also learn volume measurements, such as cups, quarts, and gallons. This skill is useful for filling tubs, cooking, and following directions. When cooking is part of a functional curriculum, a knowledge of measures of volume will be helpful. Students should be able to choose what they will cook, and find and read recipes. Familiarity with measuring volume will help students who want to pursue work in culinary arts, such as a kitchen assistant.

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Functional Math Skills Help Kids With Disabilities

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Functional math skills are those skills that students need to live independently in the community, care for themselves, and make choices about their lives. Functional skills make it possible for students with disabilities to make choices about where they will live, how they will make money, what they will do with money, and what they will do with their spare time.

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Video Tutorial

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Verona Area School District: School & Community United for Excellence...

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Handwriting Without Tears K-1 Curriculum Video

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Podcast by Paula Kluth

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Dr. Paula Kluth is a consultant, teacher, author, advocate, and independent scholar who works with teachers and families to provide inclusive opportunities for students with disabilities, and to create more responsive and engaging schooling experiences for all learners. Paula is a former special educator who has served as a classroom teacher and inclusion facilitator. Her professional interests include differentiating instruction, active learning, and inclusive schooling.

She is the author of numerous books and products including Universal Design Daily, 30 Days to the Co-taught Classroom, Don't We Already Do Inclusion?, From Text Maps to Memory Caps: 100 More Ways to Differentiate Instruction in K-12 Inclusive Classrooms, and You're Going to Love This Kid!. Paula is also the director of a documentary film titled We Thought You'd Never Ask: Voices of People with Autism.

Inclusion includes:

Environments and spaces where kids get educated together.

Experiences rich in opportunities to learn from and with eachother.

The supports needed help all children be successful.

Inclusion isn't something that you sort out once and then you've got it all figure out.

It isn't one and done.

And it isn't accomplished by putting kids with disabilities in a regular classroom with an educational assistant velcroed to their hip and pulled out of class for all kinds of special services.

Presumed competence and a growth mindset is the guiding light of inclusive education. But do our actions support this belief or show that perhaps we presume incompetence and an expectation that kids won't grow?

Genia: Welcome to the Good Things in Life Podcast, the podcast that helps parents support their children with intellectual disabilities to build a good inclusive life and community. I'm your host Genia Stephen. This week's podcast is part of a series about inclusive education. The episode is sponsored by Good Things in Life's upcoming course with Marilyn Dolmage called Belonging in School: The What, Why and How of Inclusive Education. You can learn more about this foundations course by going to goodthingsinlife.org/bis for Belonging in School. Dr. Kluth is a consultant, teacher, author, advocate, an independent scholar who works with teachers and families to provide inclusive opportunities for students with disabilities and to create more responsive and engaging schooling experiences for all learners. Paula is a former special education teacher who has served as a classroom teacher and an inclusion facilitator. Her professional interests include differentiating instruction, active learning, and inclusive schooling.

Genia: She's the author of numerous books and products including Universal Design Daily, 30 Days to the Co-Taught Classroom, Don't We Already Do Inclusion?, From Text Maps to Memory Caps: 100 More Ways to Differentiate Instruction in K-12 Inclusive Classrooms, and You're Going To Love This Kid! Paula is also the director of a documentary film titled We Thought You'd Never Ask: Voices of People With Autism. Today, I'm talking with Paula about her book, Don't We Already Do Inclusion? I love this. I think that the book is really helpful. The concepts are really provocative and really important. Now, you'll hear at the beginning of the interview that the, it's a little bit scratchy. Stay with it. It evens out, the quality evens out I promise. Let's get right into it.

Genia: Paula Kluth, thank you so much for joining me today on the Good Things in Life Podcast. I'm thrilled that you're here. Good morning.

Paula: Good morning and thank you for having me. I'm really excited we have been able to connect.

Genia: Yeah, me too. Me Too. I wonder if you could start, Paula by talking a little bit about yourself, introducing yourself and explaining what your relationship has been with people with disabilities and their families.

Paula: Oh, I'd love to. I am a former school teacher, so my background in this work comes from teaching kids with and without disabilities. I was a teacher in both of the high school and elementary school. And I went on to become a, you know, have various roles, an inclusion facilitator. I work a little bit on adult services, went back to school and was a university professor. And in all of these roles on [inaudible], most recently I've been working as a consultant. I've left being a professor, I've been gone for quite a few years. [inaudible] consultation with schools and with family organizations roles. You know, the work has been driven by the words and experiences and the teaching the people with disabilities and their families. And it goes all the way back to, you know, my very first years as a teacher.

Paula: So much of what I learned, I mean I certainly had, you know, value my education and, you know, thought the course work was helpful, but nothing really compared to and being very patiently supported by families and by people with disabilities. And one of several families, especially in my first year, who took me under their [inaudible], really, well that's really helpful for me because [inaudible] had moved away pretty far away from any home [inaudible]I, we, we would do IEP meetings in people's living rooms. And I did plenty of home [inaudible], I think in part because a lot of families were so, you know, [inaudible] and be heard. And I felt the [inaudible] really happy to work with families who so wanted to embrace the collaboration. And I would, you know, [inaudible] I guess opens the wrong word, but really, you know, energized by the educational, those kind of more informal educational experiences.

Paula: I was not shy about asking questions. I was at first, cause I didn't want to look incompetent, but later on, you know, that became such a tool in my own education was just to ask question to really, you know, use the, the generosity of spirit and the teachings of folks that I was, you know, in air quotes "supporting". That was just so illuminating. So, later on when I was writing and I was teaching, I just always continued to put that at the heart of the work, which I think the field I think has done and in many cases may at least the scholars I am interested in and in the work [inaudible] then it has been the, this, the words and the experiences of people with disabilities and their families, that have been the most central to my own work and has been most inspirational for me as a teacher.

Genia: Yeah. It's interesting what you're saying about the being open to asking questions and that that being, that that was sort of a journey, you know, for you that it wasn't totally the case. One of the things that I, when I'm talking to parents about working with school teams, one of the things that I often encourage is for people to assume good intent and to forgive in advance and to say, you know, "We're figuring this out. I know you don't have all the answers and that's okay. I really want to figure it out with you." You know, so letting people know that you, that you don't expect everybody to have all the answers all the time. And that, that, that doesn't mean that you respect them any less, skilled educators and team members.

Paula: Yeah. You know what, I hate to interrupt, but I just, I had a wonderful, one of my many wonderful mentors and that'll, you know, hope, I hope many listeners may know is a woman named Anne Dolan who was a professor of mine in undergraduate and later in graduate school. And she used to say just that, whether as a researcher or as a practitioner that it's okay to say, I don't know. And that's not always, you know, sometimes that is shocking for folks to hear. It's like, "Oh, I can say that." And, and actually I think you're absolutely right. Genia but sometimes people will respect you more if you say, I don't know. Let's, let's investigate this together. Let's look at this.

Genia: Yeah. One of the things that really tipped the scales in my experience for myself as far as trusting the school team was when they came to me and said, "We've discovered that something's been going terribly wrong and, and we wanted to, you know, tell you all about it and tell you, and have you help us figure out what to do next." And that, you know, just that the fact that they were willing to do that, and I think, you know, that was not early in our, early in our school experiences. You know, we were been working with the team for a while. But still that kind of, the willingness to say, "I don't know", but also "We messed up" is really powerful I think in establishing trust relationship.

Paula: No doubt about it.

Genia: So Paula, let's talk about your book, Don't We Already Do Inclusion? I love the title. [inaudible] the title is, you know, it's really provocative. And I think it, I'm, I Imagine that part of the reason for that title is the recognition that people are not always sure really what inclusion is, but I'd love to hear your, your thoughts. Where did the title come from and what does it mean?

Paula: Yeah, well, you hit it on the head. It means a few different things, but one of them definitely is this idea, you know, are you talking about what I'm talking about? What is inclusion? And also an acknowledgement that that folks may think this is a set of behaviors or this is, you know, it's a trajectory of training or it's, you know, some skills that, that we, we learned about one time and now we're done with it. And it actually came from, I think, you know, it was probably a moment that was intended to be humorous, but as an administrator said to me, you're here again. You know, we already, we did that last year, we did inclusion last year. I think we're doing multicultural things this year, you know. And I mean probably [inaudible], but you know, it had been, there had been enough in spirit that, you know, around those themes that I thought right, this idea that, "Oh we've already covered that.

Paula: And for me too, I think it was a bit of a, it was a time for me to, when I was writing it, I was thinking, you know, it's time for me to come back to it too because I had kind of had that attitude. I had written early on in my career about inclusion and I had done inclusion workshops. Like this is what inclusion is and here are the related behaviors and here are the, some of the strategies. And then I thought to myself, okay, we all know what that is. Erroneously, I thought that, and we all have that basis. Now it's time, cause people would say, "Okay, get on with it, get on with it. How does it look?" So then I wrote a book about co-teaching and I wrote a book about universal design for learning. And I wrote books about, you know, about the, you know, classroom, teaching strategies broadly.

Paula: And, I thought, okay, this is what people really need. And then, you know, a couple of years ago, I just started to notice that I do need to return to my roots. I do need to talk more probably about inclusion against, because A, yes, all the different interpretations of what is inclusion to you. And B, things have evolved in that time. You know, I'm almost 50 years old. So, when I started out what we thought was high quality inclusion is not what we think is high quality inclusion today for very good reason. So, I really wanted to speak to that and I wanted to talk about, you know, even if you, you know, if somebody said to me, you know, I, you, I was their professor when they were a young teacher, you know, when they were a new teacher. And I said, well, I hope that you aren't still following the advice that I gave way back then.

Paula: Even though it was me. And you know, you, you, you, you're interested in my work. I hope that you're, you know, that you're evolving. And my own thinking has evolved as well. For example, I think my expectations for all students have changed and I understand what's possible not only as kids get more access to inclusive environments, but also because technology evolves and the research is illuminating and all those kinds of things. So, it was really a, you know, a return to the roots, so to speak. And it's been really delightful to have some of these conversations.

Genia: I wonder if you could talk a bit about just what you were saying about how, sorry. I'm fumbling here a little bit because my head is swirling with some, some thoughts. So, I've, I've been in the world of inclusive education my entire educational life because I have a sister that's three years younger than I am that has an intellectual disability. And so, you know, 30, 38 years ago, I guess, or maybe 35 years ago, my family was fighting just for an inclusive placement, you know, so we kind of early days where there were still lots of human rights cases and, you know, everybody really just trying to get a placement.

Paula: Right.

Genia: So, I remember the conversations there and at that point there was still a thought that inclusion really was a placement decision.

Paula: Right.

Genia: We know of course now that just having a child in a room is not inclusion. So I'm, and I'm thinking about what all the listeners, all the different versions of inclusion that the listeners might have or ideas around inclusion that the listeners might have at that they may not even know they have. Because just like you're saying, we kind of think we've got that without really necessarily unpacking it. So, I wonder if you could talk a bit about what does that look like? What does inclusion look like? If you were to sort of sketch it out, you know, and we know that the, I'm not talking about the how, but what does it look like? How do you define?

Paula: And there's, and, and I want to add to at the end of this, um, about some things that are, as you said about, people may not understand that full picture today. Some things that are not inclusion. I think that's also important to talk about.

Genia: Yeah. Right.

Paula: Right. So, I think one of the things that, you know, for me, inclusion, you know, one of the big misconceptions for me is that inclusion is about square peg round hole. That like as you said, getting kids to have to, kids have to be in those environments. Everyone's, you know, sitting in their seat facing forward so to speak. And I have a student that does, that you know, is not capable of that, has all kinds of struggles and therefore, you know, you're just making somebody fit into a model that is maybe, maybe it's even inhumane because you know, the, the student requires movement or the student requires a different way of learning.

Paula: And it's, it's not educationally sound. So, I always say, you know, what we're looking for is preferred environments. I'm sorry. What we're looking for is environments where kids with and without disabilities are being educated together. We are looking for students getting, you know, since special ed education is that a place we're looking for students getting their supports and services inside of those spaces. And inside of those experiences, there's inclusive classrooms and those inclusive learning experiences including related services. Inclusion is also about, you know, as a mindset. It's also about students having experiences that are only as special as necessary. And I'm going to give some qualifiers around that, but it's a mindset about, you know, from the time that students arrive until the time that they leave. Thinking about how we design the entire day. So, I, you know, in the book I talk about things like, you know, I am, part of the reason for the book is I was visiting inclusive schools and I put that in air quotes "because of this example". But where kids with disabilities would arrive in the morning and all the other kids are playing on the playground and all the kids with disabilities would arrive on specialized transportation and come into the school early to get set up and sometimes even go into a special room and kids would all get, you know, maybe they would take some time to get a picture schedule set up or somebody would get into a stand or whatever was needed.

Paula: But, I just remember being at that school and saying, how come every single kid using specialized transportation had to come in early? And they said, oh, we just give them, we give, we give them, we just give him time to get set up. And I said, you know, if kids do need time to get set up, they absolutely should get it. If you really do need more time to eat your breakfast, then you should come in early, if that's necessary. Absolutely. Do need to be in a space where kids are not bumping into you to get your schedule set up and get into your classroom. You should get it. But just because you arrived in specialized transportation and have a certain label, it doesn't mean that you should come in early. And that's that the, it's a micro example of something that's more special than it needs to be.

Paula: You should get what you need and that, what everybody else gets with the same perceived ability level or, or, or, or label. And so, I always talk about, you know, every time they all do anything, whether that's kids on the autism spectrum or kids with Down syndrome or kids with learning disabilities, but every time they all do everything, you've lost the I in IEP.

Genia: Yeah.

Paula: And it's, there's a lot of those little moments in schools where that's an inclusive school, but that's, that's not inclusive so that if you need a specialized support, we provide it for you. But if you don't, then you should be doing what other kids are doing. And that means you should be outside playing on the playground. Even to the point, I was just talking to a young lady this weekend with cerebral palsy and we were, I was talking about that example and I was saying, you know, we should be able to, we should be, if we're not there moving towards kneeling school buses.

Paula: Cause I'm sure we're, you know, in many cases, we are, kids with disabilities are taking the transportation that their neighbors are taking in their siblings and that should be able to include kids with complex needs and kids with physical disabilities. So, even going back to that very example of kids and specialized transportation, we want to see those models evolve as well. So, that inclusion is from the moment that you leave your home. I'll hope in your home as well. And then from a school he experienced, I should be all day long. So you know, it is about, you know, considering all that's happening in those, you know, kind of like that, you know, our, our traditional definition of, as you said, the inclusive classroom, that those experiences are, are varied and appropriately challenging that you get your supports and your services. But it's also about this broader context of what is inclusion. And as you so elegantly brought up as well, just because you're in that space doesn't mean it's inclusive.

Paula: So, the other part of inclusion and this kind of push back on this criticism of round peg square hole is that sometimes it will look very different for different kids. So, you know, it may mean that when I talk about preferred environments or material, environments that all kids get to access. In some cases, I mean, I'm working with a student in the high school where that student has a very different looking schedule. He, he goes to a double period for lunch because it takes him so long to eat. And then the second period, he actually gets some peer tutoring right inside the cafeteria. He has in the past, he's not getting it now, but in the past he's had physical education twice a day because of a body that does not always work well for him and really a lot of need for movement.

Paula: I've had kids where we've had, you know, we've had them, I mean all kinds of permutations of this take classes that are intended for students who are a little bit older, even enrichment classes just because we feel that though that that material for some reason as a special interest of the students. So, even jumping over tracks and doing really unique things. So, in a second grade classroom I was in, I, I wrote, I wrote, I wrote about a kid in a different book where he, when he first came to school, he was so active. So, we always went to physical education with every single, you know, second grade classroom. So, it's inclusion. He's not doing exactly what his class "is doing". But he's going into spaces that are for general and special education students. He's, if he needs something a bit different to do some studying or to do some, you know, he needs to do some quiet work. Maybe he can do that in a, in the, in the school library that we want to keep kids in classrooms, in educational environments where there are kids with and without disabilities receiving those educational services. And um, and so that can look very different for different kids. We may get creative, but we want to keep those markers in place that these are valued environments for. All

Genia: Right. And when you were talking about how your perspective or your insight into inclusive education has evolved over time. One of the things you said is that watching the kids and, and what, um, what the kids are doing and how the kids are, I can't remember exactly how you said it, but what I, what I heard, which may not have been what you said, but what I heard was essentially the better we get at inclusion, the more kids thrive. Now. You definitely didn't use those words, but yeah. I'm wondering if you can talk a little bit about that. Like what do you see happening for kids when inclusion has done well?

Paula: Well, I didn't exactly say that, but I do believe it. Um, and you're right. Um, I see what happens. You know that there has been a lot of changes in the field since I've been in it. Um, we have had, we have seen the emergence of this thing called universal design for learning, which essentially, you know, instead of saying, let's adapt for a couple of kids who may need something different, let's look at classrooms and learning experiences and say, "How can this from the get go from the ground up, be more accessible to all learners?" So that's been really exciting and I think we've seen kids be able to thrive in those environments when we see that there's more choice available when technology is personalized. I mean, Gosh, I never thought I'd see the day all of these kids with the look we're walking around with little computers in their hands.

Paula: I couldn't have imagined that even when I came out in the field so that the text can be exactly right for me. And without a teacher having to cut and paste, literally cut and paste as I did to make them, to make the, the, the textbook, uh, right for you. Um, we see that, um, the evolution of the things like, uh, you know, well, I mean, touch screen, the only the iPad came out. I can't tell you how many emails I got. And um, you know, just phone calls from parents and teachers and um, you know, just individuals with disabilities themselves. I mean, people were saying, you're not going to believe this kid that we have known for years. He's much more competent than we thought he was. And now we have the iPad and you can communicate in this way or that way.

Paula: Well, I mean that's just the tip of the iceberg of what we're going to see in technology. So that has changed what we thought was possible for individuals. And then I think, you know, the other piece that's changed a lot is that the research itself has shown us that kids are capable of so much more, they do better when they are inside inclusive classrooms. And that in turn, I think, I hope, uh, at least based on the numbers that we're seeing has, has, uh, has encouraged us to move forward, to be bolder with, um, our, the work and inclusive schools to include a wider range of kids. And, and they keep surprising us. I mean, when we begin, we do more and more of that and, and we get, we keep being surprised in all the best ways. So, um, we, you know, I, I think that's, that that's going to continue to change.

Paula: You're going to see that in the, you know, the last say, four or five decades of research, if they've shown us every, anything they've shown us that our expectations have never been high enough. And I think that is true today. And we're starting to see the very first graduate. Uh, I mean, and then not saying individuals, but I mean larger groups of kids who had been included throughout their school career and they do look different. Um, they have had different opportunities. Um, I think you'll see, you know, literacy levels will look different. Job opportunities are gonna look different. Social relationships are looking different. People are getting married, people are going to college. We just didn't see that. And some of these things, presuming competence all the way through, so much of this is surprising to me. So I just cannot wait for the next, you know, the next a collection of surprises.

Paula: They're coming. And they've been delightful, um, and, um, you know, expend a really exquisite, I mean to see what happens when you give kids these expectations and then pair them with, um, rich and inappropriate learning experiences. You know, and I always say, if you think that you've, um, you know, if, if you think, you know, we've sort of seen this tipping point, we haven't even begun to see what is possible, not just because of the expectations rising, but again, because of the field itself, what's happening in, um, in technology, what's happening in the design of curriculum. And I think even the, the changing and the expectations of schools themselves, you know, we are going to have a really a personalized approach to educating kids that's only started right now. Um, but that we are going to be able to give kids what they need in ways that we previously couldn't have. And I think that's gonna change a lot of the landscape as well.

Genia: So, where does your, where does your book fit into that vision of sort of a, of a, um, exciting, exciting future with, you know, even more, um, unforeseen successes and, and growth? Where does your work contribute?

Paula: Um, you know, the, the book is really meant to, it's very action oriented. So I mean, some of the steps are really sort of about this, you know, raise your expectations. I mean, one of the simplest things that I say that just in the book, but when I'm presenting and teaching is that it isn't enough. You know, we presume competence is such a big, um, you know, it's such a guide, guide, guiding light or guideposts of our work today. And you know, that I love that. I love that we talk about, um, you know, the idea of a holding those high expectations, but we can't talk about that in a vacuum. And so what I always, I always ask teachers, you know, raise your hand if you have high expectations for all kids. And of course everybody raises their hand. And I say, well, you know, of course you're not going to, especially if you're, you're principal's here, you're not going to not raise your hand to make that joke.

Paula: But I say, if you really believe that, and then you look at the research that we have on inclusive education, then having high expectations means that you will advocate for inclusion. That's what it means. And so if you handed the race and you are not a staunch advocate advocate for inclusive education, um, then there is a, there is a disconnect here between your beliefs, um, and you know, the appropriate practice and you need to remedy that because it's not just about hope, it's we know what to do, we know what to do. We know kids need access to those experiences and those spaces. So that's one thing. The book is really meant to have that action orientation. So when I went back and I used that example from that school, um, where the kids are on the playground and some of the kids were going in early, I thought there's a lot of sort of micro moments.

Paula: Where kids, even in inclusive schools are not getting the experience that's most appropriate. So here's a hundred little behaviors that we can engage in and the book's broken down into classroom. 25 ideas for classroom, 25 ideas for schools, 25 ideas for districts, 25 ideas for communities. And basically I want PTOs and steering committees and teacher teams and book clubs to sit down with that book and everybody pick some ideas. Let's pick some ideas and let's start, um, plugging away at how do we can, how we can create change if our hand is in the air and we, we know we're saying we have high expectations for all kids, then we have to look at these all the way across the school day and through the school year. What can we do to create, um, you know, experiences that are, um, more robust and create a classroom that rise up to meet the needs of these kids and to push ourselves forward and thinking about inclusion with a capital I.

Paula: And what I mean by that is that it's not just about disability either. And we talk about inclusion today, right? We mean race, we're talking about gender identity, we're talking about families, newcomers, immigrants. How, how are we doing as a school to really be inclusive? So even if we do all the best things for kids with disabilities, we are not meeting the promise of inclusive education. If we have massive, you know, opportunity gaps. Um, and if we have, if kids, you know, families don't feel welcome, for example, so, um, all families. So, so that was really my intention is to say, if you really feel you don't know how to make this happen, whether you're a parent, whether you're an occupational therapist in the school, whether you're the librarian, here are a hundred ideas, pick one. Or pick them off or pick every single one.

Genia: So do you see in your work schools that really are, um, achieving capital I inclusion?

Paula: I work with a lot of schools that are, had that as a goal. Um, you know, this is a thing. I don't know that it's, um, you know, I think it's a, it's the work that we do. Um, you know, I think that the, the minute I, this sounds, I don't want this to sound negative, but I want it to sound positive, but it's not a place that we go with the work that we do. So I don't know that, you know, if there's, if there are schools that would say we did it. We, you know, um, you know, this has been actualized. We've got it all together. It, like you said earlier, which was, that was beautifully said. You know, this idea that you're always kind of striving, you're always moving towards this. Um, and I, so I think it's understanding that this is a commitment that schools have to make every day.

Paula: Um, and probably some schools feel like on some days they have it, they're nailing it and you know better than they are on other days. Um, I know lots of schools that are making really fantastic efforts on a regular basis and understand these intersections. Um, and I think, um, probably, you know, in the, I, I, you said earlier that you felt so much, um, satisfaction in a strange sense when the teacher said something's gone wrong. I feel the same way about schools. If they say, "Oh, we've done it, we're inclusive, we've solved the problem." I think, "O-oh". Um, where I'd rather hear that, you know, like every day this is the commitment that we make. And I think it's hard to do. I think it's hard to do well. Um, folks saying, "We have a lot of work to do", and I say, "Good for you. That's the best place you can be and keep striving." You know, this is the work we do every single day.

Genia: What really interests me about this and the reason I asked the question is because, you know, we have decades and decades and decades of research that shows that inclusive education benefits all children,

Paula: Right.

Genia: That's even though nobody's doing it perfectly.

Paula: Right.

Genia: It just speaks in a really positive way to me about, about the value of, um, what can be achieved even when you never arrive. But you're, you're just working on it. Like the, and I think for educators and for families, um, it can, it can be demoralizing, you know, because it is hard. It's really hard to, to, to make it work. And as you said it, you know, some days are better than others. Um, but just the effort itself according to the research makes a difference. Really makes a difference.

Paula: That's right. And having that mindset, which is, you know, growth mindset is very big here at American school. I think it has taken up and you know, in Canada and, and, and, and your, and other places as well. But this idea that we're not there yet um, but my mindset is this is where I'm headed and I'm going to increasingly, you know, try to acquire those skills. And I mean, I remember when that first hit, when Carol [inaudible] work, um, on mindset first hit, I, my kids were getting worksheets and all kinds of materials weekly about, you know, changing their mindset and getting into a growth mindset. And I just remember one day that, based on my child's school, but I remember thinking like, you'll know school should get to talk about growth mindset with kids if they're not inclusive. Um, you know, if, don't tell me that you can't include a kid and then sent home growth mindset worksheets to your students.

Paula: Um, you know, this is, this is exactly the mindset we need to have, which is, you know, if we don't know how to do this, we have to figure this out. If we don't know, we don't have resources for those kinds of kids, we need to figure that out. We need to get those resources. But that's really important. And the other thing I think is, you know, I am so sensitive to the fact that, you know, when I share all that research, I just say, do I think this is easy? No. I think it's hard and it's demoralizing when we see teachers leaving the profession in droves. Um, you know, we have a "teacher shortage" here. Um, well a lot of people are saying it's not a shortage. We have plenty of teachers. They just, they just don't want to work in these conditions.

Paula: They need more pay, they need more resources. They need to be treated professionally. And the only thing I can say is that I, you know, I do wish that we had more support for teachers. But the good news I will say about, uh, doing this work is that we have to, we have no choice but to collaborate and education these days. And because it is a lonely profession and because it is hard work um, the good news is that, you know, the goals that we have around equity and goals that we have around inclusive education, all of these things do require that we work together and we can lean on each other. So these kinds of movements are all intersecting. They are not different. Uh, you know, if to say, yeah, this is another, it's another thing on my plate. It's the same, it's all the same plate.

Paula: I mean we're looking at trying to make sure that all kids achieve at high levels the same kinds of practices that we are interested in and invested in for inclusive education or the same kinds of practices we should be invested in for school improvement for all. Um, so that's the kind of good news is that it is hard work and we need each other more than ever. Um, we need to draft off of each other's expertise more than ever. So those are gifts that inclusive education actually bring to us, and we should be exploiting those kinds of things. I don't think it's easy and I don't think it's, there's enough probably education and support available in all places for all teachers. Um, but I do think that if we, if we can continue to move in this direction and, you know, and if this moves us out of silos and gets us into cooperation with one another, there's all kinds of great benefits we're going to see, not just for kids with and without disabilities. Um, but for all kids and quite frankly for teachers, because I think there is a lot of isolation cells in the field and I think there is a lot of struggle in learning some of these new competencies. So we're going to have to not only learn, learn from each other, we're going to have to start, you know, uh, probably doing more collaborative teaching and, um, and collaborative planning up maybe more than we ever have. And those can actually reap some other sort of lovely benefits.

Genia: Right. Yeah. It's interesting. I love, and I'm excited that we've reached a point in which thinking about in inclusive education and, um, related to disability really is being recognized at least by some people in some circles as the, um, as the model really for addressing all kinds of issues within our community around, um, you know, just community development and, uh, inclusivity. And so, you know, you listed a bunch of, um, a bunch of identity related, um, and experience related with that that can leave people feeling, um, excluded from their communities. And meaning that we, we don't, as communities, we don't get their gifts, they don't get to contribute their gifts, which means their, we, you know, we're at a, at a deficit here. So, I love that, you know, as other, um, social justice movements have moved forward, we've really seen the, the negative impacts of, um, discrimination on the dominant culture.

Genia: Not because people are denied the opportunity to contribute and be meaningful members of their community. And that recognition is now happening around disability. I don't think it's particularly pervasive, that recognition, that's not experience. But I do feel like it's an exciting, um, it's an exciting thing that there is some recognition of it. And when I think, again, over my, my lifetime, um, I now have a 13 year old son that has disabilities um, but I've been around thinking about these issues for a really long time. One of my frustrations is often why are we still having the same conversations now that my parents were having 40 years ago?

Paula: Yeah.

Genia: But this there, but there are some, some pieces that come through where I think that that's different. That's, that's different.

Paula: Right.

Genia: Yeah.

Paula: Yeah. And I, and I actually think even, you know, in [inaudible], it's so slow changing that, that that's what's hard about it. And so it can be hard to kind of listen carefully and say, okay, well maybe there is some evolution there. Um, and I think not just in beliefs, I think, you know, the practices will also drive that. So I think that how we think about the classroom has changed too. Even though it can be hard to perceive. So I do think the intersections of, you know, how we do this work and why we do this work and intersections of, you know, different, um, uh, in, you know, there's always a, you know, what is the hot topic in education today? But I do, I actually do think that used to be about, "Oh, it's multicultural education", you know, here that we're going to focus on this. I do think that is evolved quite a bit and as you said, um, that we're having conversations that are, um, kind of constantly intersecting and you know, we're not thinking about these things as one-offs.

Paula: Um, so I think that's helpful. May not be perfect, but it's evolving in that direction. And then at the same time, I also think that the practices are evolving too. Like I, you know, I, I just was thinking the other day how unusual I was giving the example of how hard it is to adapt when the teacher is lecturing all day or their kids are always in a whole class discussion, how hard it is to adapt anything. And I used to give that example and uh, people would kind of like sigh heavily, you know? Yes. So true. But now, you know, I realize, uh, in talking to teachers, even though it's, you know, some places, especially with high school, it's changing slowly. It is unusual to be in classrooms where, you know, there aren't small groups often, you know, working together with kids don't have some kind of project going on where there is an agency and personalization and kids are accessing materials in different ways.

Paula: I mean, I just went to my own child's, um, high school, uh, back to school night and the desks were all sort of, uh, the furniture was arranged so that kids could easily get into groupings. And I'm like, you know, that's, that's, I don't know if it's the norm, but I mean, it's definitely moving to being, certainly not unusual at all.

Genia: Right.

Paula: And so those are things in my career that have changed a lot that we didn't see the desk swinging around easily so that kids could go into these group kinds of discussions. And, you know, we certainly didn't have the technology so that students could create all this whole range of interesting products together or separately. The different ways in which kids are being assessed, that's evolving pretty quickly. Um, the different ways that we would teach kids. You know, the round Robin reading was still a thing when I was even a new principal, we still saw that that would be so unusual to walk into a classroom.

Paula: So, I mean, the beliefs are changing and quite frankly, the practices really are evolving into, um, you know, and into, uh, you know, new faces and new expectations. Um, so that, you know, there is room for diversity and in those old ways of teaching and learning, uh, that were heavily teacher driven, it was very hard to find this basis for a diverse learner or how we might have different kids may get different things. So yeah, it creeps along sometimes and then all of a sudden you, you know, you've turn around and you say, "Oh yeah, there's movement." And that, that's satisfying.

Genia: Yeah. It's very satisfying and very hopeful.

Paula: Yeah.

Genia: Yup. Um, so Paula, who is your book for? Who's the book written for?

Paula: Well, it's definitely, um, you know, it's an attempt to reach every stakeholder that's involved in inclusive education. But the, um, I think most of the ideas can be used by almost any stakeholder. So if you're a school principal, you could probably make all hundred of those ideas happen in one year, way, shape or form. However, the 25 ideas that are, uh, highlighted for community, those were more intended that things that maybe if you were a part of a parent teacher organization or if you were, um, you know, part of an advocacy group, um, those, you may not be able to impact the 25 classroom ideas as much but, um, yeah, those 25 ideas in the community section are definitely things that you could have some control over and tried to drive or direct. So I, even though I spliced teachers, you know, loosely teachers are, you know, that can, can sort of think about those things in the schools, in this classrooms, chapter a section.

Paula: And that's, you know, maybe admin administrators might think about the school ideas and district folks could think about district. There's a ton of overlap. So everything from, um, and again, you know, really it talks about not just school. So it's everything from if you really want to have inclusion, you have to go and you have to massage and celebrate the businesses in your community that hire your graduates, um, from your inclusive schools to talking to your community library about how inclusive the library is to, um thinking about what is your spelling me, you know, how, how inclusive are, is your, um, field day or all those kind of extra curriculum. So it kind of looks at every aspect and says, just take bite-size, you know, pieces and just try to chip away at those as a way into helping people understand and interrogate the larger thing that is inclusive education.

Paula: So it's my hope that, you know, a student council could take, you know, many of these on. And I've made that suggestion many times. Um, you know, that there are items here that definitely almost any stakeholder group could examine. So that's the hope is that there's something for everybody. And, and I tell folks, you know, this is, uh, not a, I'm not, I mean, there are things you can do on your own, but it really is also designed like get out there with partners in groups and, you know, take this on together. And because it's my hope that not only is this something we can do collaboratively, but that as we've said earlier, that these ideas will address those intersections. That this is not just about supporting, if you will, 10 to 20% of the population. This is really about all kids and all communities.

Genia: Right. Um, and it sounds like there would be a lot of content in the book that would be really relevant to parents who are committed to creating an inclusive life for their child, both in and outside of school.

Paula: Yeah. That was the intention. It was because, because I was, I was speaking to so many family groups. I'm like, well, what can we do? And I said, listen, as a parent myself, I have faced those meetings. I have cried in my kitchen. I have felt powerless. Um, I don't have children with disabilities, but I'm an advocate and I want the things that a lot of my colleagues and friends want that had children with disabilities. And, um, I've been turned down for every [inaudible] you could imagine. So I have fought through my PTO. I have fought through up, you know, parent groups. I have fought through as an individual, you know, room mother. I mean, you know, every, every place that you can think of. Maybe fighting's not the right word, but I have tried to create change, um, in all of these ways. And I'm not saying there's any one that has been more effective than the other. I think they're all necessary. It's a big, it's big work.

Genia: S,o if you are a parent who feels like they are in a state of fighting, you know, um, we can cut, we can think of a different, different words. You know, they're there to advocate. They're, they're crying in their kitchen or they're just feeling really, really uncertain about whether or not, um, you know, when they're, when they're thinking about where their child will go to school and what school will look like for their child, they're just feeling a little bit uncertain about whether or not pushing for inclusion is the right way to go. Um, what advice do you, or maybe advice is not the right, I don't want to frame what you're going to say, but why should parents, those, those parents who are feeling nervous or one out, why should they feel confident that I'm choosing a vision of inclusive education is absolutely the right way to go?

Paula: Well, I mean, there's so many reasons and truly that question could be another whole podcast, right? Cause it's so rich. Um, but I will say this and it's probably similar to what, uh, to your own feelings and what other folks have said is that we just don't have any research that suggests that other placements even come close. That [inaudible] not only have we found expectations have been too low. Uh, but we have found that pulling kids out of these, you know, they're, they're neighborhood schools and pulling kids out of general education classrooms, um, has not offered us this promise of, you know, being more specialized or being safer or being more of a community. And in fact, what we have found is that, um, students do better academically when they're included. We find that, um, they do better as it relates to related skills. In other words, the IEP, they do better on their IEP objectives. It's hard to learn social skills outside of the social context. It's hard to learn communication skills outside of being, having lots of competence, authentic communication partners. Um, it is kids do better if they have more robust friendship networks when they're included. Um, and we could go on and on. Um, but what we know is that, um, you know, the, this trajectory, this narrative is only going to become, um, heartier.

Paula: I mean, we have a study coming out in 2020. No, it couldn't come up yet this year. I shouldn't assume to say that by Sandy Cole out of Indiana. To my knowledge, it's not published yet. And we have a yet another study where she [inaudible] developmental twins. She looks at kids who were and were not included. Um, and she got data from the state of Indiana and looked at those test scores and she found that overwhelmingly kids who were included did better. So, um, you know, I don't, I don't envy somebody that has to, as we say, fight, advocate, whatever, however you want to say it, it has to go through this process where it doesn't feel comfortable or even feels horrible. However, I can only say what I, what I say to teachers, it's harder to say to a parent because, um, you know, it's just, it's 24 hours and it is their life.

Paula: But I always say to teachers, this is hard work, but we know it's better. And once you have this in front of you, so, you know, I know it's really hard, but our hands are tied. Now that we know what's better, this is the work that we have to do. For families, I think that they have to do what they can do um, in this way of advocacy, but I'll say something else to kind of soften that blow. Cause I think it is hard to say that to a family who's trying to live their life and make dinner and everything else is, it's really important to remember, you know, I've had this mom come to my conference and she, her daughter was 17 years old and she was just so upset because like the ship had kind of, she felt the ship had sailed for her daughter.

Paula: She did end up going back and getting some inclusive experiences later. But I said, listen, inclusion is not about just school. Inclusion is a church. Inclusion is work. Inclusion is family reunions. Inclusion is, you know, when you're at the playgroup. So it's never, it's never too late and it's never too early. And let's just say something happen in perfectly at middle school. You know, there's always another best to hear. Like it's, this is just life goes on and so does inclusion and, um, there's always new opportunities. So, you know, you can't always control what you have in front of you at any one moment. You know, tried to get your kid included in boy scouts and that didn't work out and it can feel terrible, but there's always another opportunity for this. So, um, we didn't feel like, oh my gosh, my child's leaving school and it didn't happen. Life does go on and so do inclusive opportunities. And, um, and we're hoping that for parents, uh, you know, that, that this only gets easier as everybody wakes up to what families have always known.

Genia: Excellent. Thank you. Paula, if people wanted to learn more about you and your work, how would people find you?

Paula: We have sort of a one stop shop. There's lots of different, you know, products and things like that, but there, you know, even I forget sometimes the right title for things. So the website's the one stop to kind of find all of this information. So it's just my name, my websites, my name, um, and it's paulakluth.com. And there are lots of free articles over there. Um, we have, um, a tip of the day on the website. Um, and I have a youtube channel too, which is somewhat new. So if you'd rather listen versus read. Um, there's all kinds of free videos out there. And I do a couple a year, I have a series called Off the Page where I explain some of these ideas about, um, inclusion and related practices. Um, so you can look at Paula Kluth is the name of the channel for that. I have a Facebook page, you know, social media, Twitter.

Paula: So there's lots of places to learn and, and I encourage people if they want to read, I have lots of books on this topic. Go to your public libraries, that's what they're there for. Um, so you don't have to go and buy a bunch of resources, go to your public libraries and have those, you know, secure those resources because I want them in everybody's hands and not just, you know. But tending is an advocating, you does not always extra money for books.

Genia: Right. Yeah.

Paula: So there's lots of ways to get information and nobody should feel like they have to go and buy a library to get it.

Genia: Excellent. Well, I'll make sure that the link to your website and your social media accounts are in the show notes and the show notes and can be found at goodthingsinlife.org/039. Paula, thank you so much. It's been a real pleasure speaking with you today. I'm really grateful.

Paula: Thank you. I'm, I'm glad we finally got to connect and thank you for all you're doing to get this information to families. Um, you know, as my, my dear friend and colleague Patrick Shores always says families are the gold standard and uh, and it is one group that doesn't get all the support that they need either. So thank you for what you're doing. I sure do appreciate it.

Genia: Thank you.

Genia: Well that was pretty great ey? I really enjoyed my conversation with Dr. Kluth. Now there are a number of opportunities coming out from Good Things in Life that I want to tell you about around inclusive education. On November 24th, Norman Kunc and Emma Van Der Klift are giving a free online presentation called You can't learn to swim in the parking lot of the pool! And this provocative conversation about education and opportunity will really, I think, stretch your imagination and really brings some things into clear focus around inclusive education and around opportunities and high expectations for kids with disabilities. It's going to be great. Plus Emma and Norm are really funny, um, and great storytellers. So it's also going to be really entertaining. You can find out about that at goodthingsinlife.org. And then on September 30th, there's another live free event by Erin Sheldon called Helping students with disabilities to belong in school: Understanding what it means to be a student.

Genia: And in this presentation, Erin is going to talk about how we can understand what, what is a student. You know, and how do all kids fill that role of student and how you can help kids to belong and be accepted for who they are, both sort of socially with their peers and also as, um, as a learner. So, that's going to be really informative as well and very exciting so that again, you can register for that free online event at goodthingsinlife.org. And we are also offering a um, foundations course. You've heard me talk about it before. I'm really excited about this course. It's called Belonging in School: The What, Why, and How of Inclusive Education. I'm working with Marilyn Dolmage on this. And Marilyn and I just spent the weekend at her lovely cottage on the shores of Lake Huron in Ontario, working on refining the content for this course, and it is going to be really powerful. Even if you feel like you already have a foundation in inclusive education, this course is going to be amazing and hugely valuable. You can get information on that course or sign up for the wait list so that you're sent information at goodthingsinlife.org/bis for Belonging in School. Next week on the Good Things in Life Podcast, I will be speaking with the engaging and insightful Shelley Moore. I look forward to seeing you then.

To get an email about new podcasts so that you never miss an episode sign up here.

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Special thanks to Paula Kluth for joining me this week. Until next time!

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Paula Kluth: Don't we already do inclusion?

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Dr. Paula Kluth discusses what inclusion is and isn't. Hint: it isn't one and done. And it isn't accomplished by putting kids with disabilities in a regular classroom with an educational assistant velcroed to their hip and pulled out of class for all kinds of special services.

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Inclusive education does away with the practice of segregating students with learning and/or physical challenges from the rest of the student body. While the practice of inclusion places extra demands on students and facility logistics, there are numerous benefits to all students, both disabled and non-disabled.

Teachers in inclusive classrooms must incorporate a variety of teaching methods in order to best reach students of varying learning abilities. This has benefits even for those students who would be placed in a traditional classroom, as this increases their engagement in the learning process. Even gifted and accelerated learners benefit from an environment that stresses responsiveness from all students.

Perhaps most importantly, inclusive classrooms encourage open and frank dialogue about differences as well as a respect for those with different abilities, cultural backgrounds and needs.

Despite the benefits, there still are many barriers to the implementation of inclusive education. A UNESCO article, "Inclusive Education," outlined many of them, including:

Attitudes: Societal norms often are the biggest barrier to inclusion. Old attitudes die hard, and many still resist the accommodation of students with disabilities and learning issues, as well as those from minority cultures. Prejudices against those with differences can lead to discrimination, which inhibits the educational process. The challenges of inclusive education might be blamed on the students' challenges instead of the shortcomings of the educational system.

Physical Barriers: In some districts, students with physical disabilities are expected to attend schools that are inaccessible to them. In economically-deprived school systems, especially those in rural areas, dilapidated and poorly-cared-for buildings can restrict accessibility. Some of these facilities are not safe or healthy for any students. Many schools don't have the facilities to properly accommodate students with special needs, and local governments lack either the funds or the resolve to provide financial help. Environmental barriers can include doors, passageways, stairs and ramps, and recreational areas. These can create a barrier for some students to simply enter the school building or classroom.

Curriculum: A rigid curriculum that does not allow for experimentation or the use of different teaching methods can be an enormous barrier to inclusion. Study plans that don't recognize different styles of learning hinder the school experience for all students, even those not traditionally recognized as having physical or mental challenges.

Teachers: Teachers who are not trained or who are unwilling or unenthusiastic about working with differently-abled students are a drawback to successful inclusion. Training often falls short of real effectiveness, and instructors already straining under large workloads may resent the added duties of coming up with different approaches for the same lessons.

Language and communication: Many students are expected to learn while being taught in a language that is new and in some cases unfamiliar to them. This is obviously a significant barrier to successful learning. Too often, these students face discrimination and low expectations.

Socio-economic factors: Areas that are traditionally poor and those with higher-than-average unemployment rates tend to have schools that reflect that environment, such as run-down facilities, students who are unable to afford basic necessities and other barriers to the learning process. Violence, poor health services, and other social factors make create barriers even for traditional learners, and these challenges make inclusion all but impossible.

Funding: Adequate funding is a necessity for inclusion and yet it is rare. Schools often lack adequate facilities, qualified and properly-trained teachers and other staff members, educational materials and general support. Sadly, lack of resources is pervasive throughout many educational systems.

Organization of the Education System: Centralized education systems are rarely conducive to positive change and initiative. Decisions come from the school system's high-level authorities whose initiatives focus on employee compliance more than quality learning. The top levels of the organization may have little or no idea about the realities teachers face on a daily basis.

Policies as Barriers: Many policy makers don't understand or believe in inclusive education, and these leaders can stonewall efforts to make school policies more inclusive. This can exclude whole groups of learners from the mainstream educational system, thereby preventing them from enjoying the same opportunities for education and employment afforded to traditional students.

Overcoming the many barriers to inclusive education will require additional funding, but even more importantly, it requires the change of old and outdated attitudes. Studies support what many classroom teachers know by experience: that the benefits inclusion provides to all students easily justifies the effort.

Photo Credit: Nicolas Buffler/Flickr

Philip Murphy works at Bisk Education with the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania and their department offering Online Teaching Degrees. You can read his tweets by checking out @burgseo.

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The Biggest Barriers to Inclusive Education | Think Inclusive

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Inclusive education does away with the practice of segregating students with learning and/or physical challenges from the rest of the student body. While the practice of inclusion places extra demands on students and facility logistics, there are numerous benefits to all students, both disabled and non-disabled.

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People with Dyslexia know they may not get it right the first time - they are resilient and see failure as a learning opportunity....

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Dyslexia Is A Gift That's Helped Me In Business - Minutehack

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Interviews with small business owners and entrepreneurs on the secrets of their success

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Everything you never knew about the ADHD brain

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Everything you never knew about the ADHD brain

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Misinformation about attention deficit disorder (ADHD or ADD) abounds among the patients at my busy practice. Many think medication alone will control their symptoms. Others believe that ADHD will not affect their lives once they have graduated from college. And almost none fully understand the way the ADHD brain works to produce the symptoms they experience. To help, I have developed the Intersection Model - a framework that can be used throughout an individual's life to make sense of behaviors, impulses, and emotions, and to create strategies to manage them.

ADHD and the Prefrontal Cortex

At the center of the intersection model is the prefrontal cortex (PFC). It is responsible for thinking, thought analysis, and regulating behavior. This includes mediating conflicting thoughts, making choices between right and wrong, and predicting the probable outcomes of actions or events. This vital region of the brain regulates short-term and long-term decision-making. In addition, the PFC helps to focus thoughts, enabling people to pay attention, learn, and concentrate on goals.

In my model, the PFC is the intersection through which attention, behavior, judgment, and emotional responses run (I call them cars or messages). A person with ADHD will likely react to whatever is in his focus at that moment - in other words, the faster car or stronger message. For people with ADHD, the PFC is unregulated; there are no traffic lights or stop signs controlling which message (car) gets through first. You could be the smartest, most motivated student ever, but if the teacher says "This species of dog..." and your thought switches to "I wonder what my dog is doing right now?" you get distracted.

ADHD and Fickle Focus

This unregulated intersection may explain why your attention wanders. Say you're in the kitchen cleaning up and find something that belongs upstairs. You take it toward the stairs, but get distracted by the unfolded laundry you see in the living room as you walk by. You may think, "I forgot to do that," and jump to folding laundry, forgetting that you were heading upstairs (not to mention cleaning up the kitchen).

People with ADHD get distracted because whatever is in their focus in the moment cuts off other, weaker messages. This can happen in mid-conversation, when a word triggers a thought that leads a person to another subject entirely.
[Self-Test: Could You Have ADHD?]
ADHD and Time Management

Judgment runs through the PFC, as well. When you say, "That'll take me five minutes to finish," that's a judgment call. "I'll be there in a half hour" is a judgment call, too. We can't see time or feel it. Understanding time, conceptualizing time, isn't as strong a message in the ADHD brain as the emotion behind a looming deadline or an unfinished task.

A person with ADHD might freak out about a deadline, saying, "Don't talk to me, I have all these things to do and no time to do them!" Or the person says to himself, "This task is going to take forever," and then uses that as a reason to procrastinate. If the person would just get started, the task would take maybe 10 minutes. In this case, the fastest car in the intersection is the emotion behind the judgment of how long it will take to meet the deadline.

ADHD and Emotional Regulation

Emotions run through the intersection of the PFC, bringing quick mood changes. "I won the lottery 10 minutes ago. Isn't that great? But now my sink is overflowing. OMG, why does this always happen to me?" Impulsive anger (or sadness, or excitement, or worry) seems to come from nowhere, when actually the emotion is a quick reaction to an event that just occurred (in this case, the sink debacle). That is what is dominating the person's focus at that moment.

In the ADHD brain, whichever emotion is in focus at the moment becomes the faster car. This is why those with ADHD express emotions more intensely than may be justified for a given situation. In females with ADHD, this emotionality is often misdiagnosed as a mood disorder.
[Free Download: Unraveling the Mysteries of Your ADHD Brain]
ADHD and Behavior/Impulsivity

Adults with ADHD self-medicate or spend too much money on unnecessary items, looking for quick gratification instead of bigger, more sustaining rewards. They may cling to a strategy even after it's proven ineffective, and rush through tasks, making errors in haste. This mindset leads to negative feedback from the world around them, interpersonal difficulties, and job or school troubles. Such inflexibility and impulsivity have a cumulative demoralizing and isolating effect.

In response, the individual with ADHD develops a mindset that focuses on the negatives, which exacerbates the situation. When we say, "Nothing is getting better, so it's pointless to try" or "They're not going to like me anyway, so why try to be friends?" it can lead us to stop trying because we perceive the situation as something that will only end in failure.

The faster car metaphor plays into being chronically late. If you are on your way out the door to go to work, and say, "I have 15 minutes left, I can just do this one thing," you make yourself late to work. If you didn't have ADHD, you would stop and think, "Oh, I have 15 minutes, but that's not enough time to do this thing, or I'll be late to work like last time." If you have ADHD, the stronger message isn't that you were late for work last time, but the desire to play a video game for a couple of minutes or phone a friend about going out on the weekend right now. And you are late for work - again. You keep doing the same things over and over because past experiences are being cut off by what is in your focus at the moment.

Why People with ADHD Feel So Anxious

As ADHD expert William Dodson, M.D., writes: "The vast majority of adults with an ADHD nervous system are not overtly hyperactive. They are hyperactive internally. Most people with unmedicated ADHD have four or five things going on in their minds at once."

The current thought regarding individuals with undiagnosed/untreated ADHD is that they tend to overcompensate for their difficulties with an anxiety-like response, such as racing thoughts, sleep difficulties, nervousness, and excessive worry. This overcompensation might look like this: You start heading to work and think, "Did the garage door actually close? I don't remember seeing it close. What if I kicked something, which tripped the sensor and the garage door is open? A thief is going to see that there aren't any cars in the garage and that no one is home. He's going to come in and take all my stuff. And when he leaves, he's going to let the cats out. I'm never going to see them again. I love them and I can't live without them. I have to go back and check. But I'll be late for work. What am I going to tell my boss?"

As I've said, people with ADHD often forget things that aren't in their focus, so these anxious thoughts are an attempt to keep these items (cars) in the intersection, so that the person doesn't forget about them. Holding many things in your mind creates a lot of tension, a traffic jam of sorts. Whenever too many things - thoughts or emotions - try to pass through the intersection at the same time, you're apt to feel anxiously overwhelmed and shut down. For instance, when trying to clean a cluttered room, with many items demanding your attention and none of them sticking out as more important than the other, you don't know what to do first, so you don't do anything.

It's frustrating when you go to the store for paper towels - and come back with everything but paper towels. Buying paper towels is the fastest car when you enter the store, but when you see the delicious looking pasta salad or the shiny red apples, they become the faster cars and overtake the paper towels - unless you've written down "buy paper towels" on a to-do list and read it.

ADHD and Regulating Emotion, Maintaining Motivation and Performance

Everybody likes to do things that are important and interesting, and that they're good at. We don't like things that are boring, frustrating, and not important. The problem is that those definitions change.

Let's say school is important to you. You spend all your time in the library studying, on your way to a 4.0. You have one more exam left, but you studied, so you should be fine. The test, and the motivation to do well, is the fastest car in the intersection. Right before you walk into the exam room, however, you get into a fight with your best friend - and you get a C on the exam. You studied and you tried your hardest, but the fight was the stronger message during the test.

"You could do this yesterday, so why can't you do it today?" The individual with ADHD hears this a lot during his lifetime.

ADHD, Mood Disorders, and Low Self-Esteem

In addition to having variable moods, individuals with ADHD tend to have difficulty staying happy or satisfied. If you keep reacting to everyday bad experiences (remember the overflowing sink?) and don't realize that those things are daily stressors - you've handled things like this before, you will have to handle things like this again - it will be hard to feel happy. In the ADHD brain, negative messages cut off positive messages. We don't think, "Well, I have my health" and pull that thought out during stressful times. Some with ADHD go from one negative experience to another, and are never satisfied with their performance.

Every person's ADHD affects him or her differently, but symptoms and behaviors can be explained through the Intersection Model. You can use this understanding of your ADHD brain to your advantage. You can find ways to erect a few stop signs or traffic lights, to make positive messages stronger and keep them in your focus longer, and improve your overall functioning and sense of self.

"Are You Criticizing Me, Again?"

The intersection model affects our relationship with partners. Here's an example from my life:

Every Tuesday night, I come home and ask my husband if the garbage is ready, because it gets collected on Wednesday morning. Every Tuesday night, he gets defensive: "I did this and that, and this...what do you expect?" For him, the stronger message is "I am being criticized again." Those with ADHD are more likely to hear criticism when their partner merely asks a question.

Think of how many negative messages a child with ADHD receives throughout his life: 20,000 more criticisms by sixth grade than his non-ADHD counterparts. My husband was diagnosed with ADHD in grade school, so he's always heard, "You can do this, why can't you do that?" "Sit down," "Be quiet." His nickname in high school was 'Slacker'.

I can change my tone of voice, jump up and down, remind him that we have this fight every single week, but it doesn't matter. He's still defensive. I ask him: "Do you think I'm criticizing you for not taking out the garbage?"

"Yeah."

"Nope! I'm just wondering if it's done, because, if not, I'll go do it myself."

"Oh...OK! How was your day?"

My husband and I have lived together for 13 years, and this happens once a week. Because if I don't ask that second question, we're not talking about the same thing. I'm wondering if the garbage is ready to be collected, and he thinks he is hearing the same childhood criticisms again; he thinks he is having something he didn't do pointed out to him again. In his brain, that is one of those fast cars likely to cut off any other car with a different interpretation of the situation.
[Free Webinar: What Neuroscience Reveals About the ADHD Brain]
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Everything You Never Knew About the ADHD Brain

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Imagine hundreds of cars approaching an intersection that has no traffic light or stop sign. This is what happens to the ADHD brain every day where the prefrontal cortex (the intersection) is unable to properly regulate your various thoughts and feelings (the various cars approaching the intersection).

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Guiding Principles

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Inclusive education means that all students attend and are welcomed by their neighbourhood schools in age-appropriate, regular classes and are supported to learn, contribute and participate in all aspects of the life of the school.

Inclusive education is about how we develop and design our schools, classrooms, programs and activities so that all students learn and participate together.

Inclusive education is about ensuring access to quality education for all students by effectively meeting their diverse needs in a way that is responsive, accepting, respectful and supportive. Students participate in the education program in a common learning environment with support to diminish and remove barriers and obstacles that may lead to exclusion.

Inclusive education is carried out in a common learning environment; that is, an educational setting where students from different backgrounds and with different abilities learn together in an inclusive environment. Common learning environments are used for the majority of the students' regular instruction hours and may include classrooms, libraries, gym, performance theatres, music rooms, cafeterias, playgrounds and the local community. A common learning environment is not a place where students with intellectual disabilities or other special needs learn in isolation from their peers.

Effective common learning environments:

Enable each student to fully participate in the learning environment that is designed for all students and is shared with peers in the chosen educational setting;

Provide a positive climate, promote a sense of belonging and ensure student progress toward appropriate personal, social, emotional and academic goals;

Are responsive to individual learning needs by providing sufficient levels of support and applying student-centred teaching practices and principles.

Common learning environment: an inclusive environment where instruction is designed to be delivered to students of mixed ability and with their peer group in the community school, while being responsive to their individual needs as a learner, and used for the majority of the students' regular instruction hours.

Inclusive Education Canada is guided in all of its actions by principles that are consistent with its values and beliefs. Every action will be tested against these principles. Every action, statement, policy, or publication will honour and promote the principles of:

Our Values & Beliefs

All members of the human family are full persons. Our human essence cannot be reduced to words, labels, categories, definitions or genetic patterns. Every person is unique. No one can be replaced or copied. All persons are ineffable.

All persons are entitled to respect. Respect requires recognition of and concern for the dignity of every person. Dignity is fragile. It must be protected from all harm.

All persons have inherent dignity. Dignity belongs to us just because we exist. It is not something we earn or receive.

All persons have inalienable dignity. Dignity cannot rightfully be ignored, diminished or taken away.

All persons have equal dignity. Dignity does not depend upon physical, intellectual or other characteristics. Neither does it depend upon the opinions that other people have about these characteristics.

All persons have inherent and equal worth. Our value as persons is neither earned nor accumulated. It is unrelated to health status or any genetic or other personal characteristic.

All persons have inherent capacity for growth and expression. Every person has the right to be nourished physically, intellectually, socially, emotionally and spiritually.

All persons are entitled to equal access and opportunity. Equality demands protection from all forms of discrimination or harm, and access to the supports necessary to enable equal participation.

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What is Inclusive Education? - Inclusive Education

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Inclusive education means that all students attend and are welcomed by their neighbourhood schools in age-appropriate, regular classes and are supported to learn, contribute and participate in all aspects of the life of the school. Inclusive education is about how we develop and design our schools, classrooms, programs and activities so that all students learn and participate together.

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The progression videos are a series of videos that show how math concepts build and grow through the grade levels. Here is a post that gives a "behind the scenes" of what it takes to make the videos.

Click on the image below to watch the progression video and download the resources.

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When grief and trauma go hand in hand, many of us feel like lost ships in a stormy sea. We talk about the saddest parts of grief, how to help each other stay connected, and how to come out never the same, but perhaps even stronger on the other side. Find out more...

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When grief and trauma go hand in hand, many of us feel like lost ships in a stormy sea. We talk about the saddest parts of grief, how to help each other stay connected, and how to come out never the same, but perhaps even stronger on the other side.

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Audiobooks for Schools

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Executive Functions & Twice Exceptional Coaching - Seth Perler 

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Executive Functions & Twice Exceptional Coaching - Seth Perler 

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"2e twice exceptional" "executive function" adhd add asd education school

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SETH PERLER - Executive Function & 2e Coach

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Parents, Teachers- Free Student Success Toolkit see my blog here: http://sethperler.com/ ABOUT MY CHANNEL I'm Seth Perler & I help complicated students who s...

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Backwards Design - Multiple entry points for all students

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Backwards Design - Multiple entry points for all students

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5 Moore Minutes

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Backwards Design: A great way to move forward!

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5 Moore Minutes

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Ontario Teachers Federation

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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) | Teach Special Education

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Aggression Management Anger/Frustration Management Anxiety Management Articulation Skills Attendance Strategies Attention Skills Assistive Technology Skills Blind/Vision Impaired Bullying Management Skills Central Auditory Processing Deafness Depression/Sadness Management Disengagement/Motivation Strategies Eating Disorder Strategies Emotional Regulation English Language Skills Executive Function Fine Motor Skills Gambling Disorder Grief Management Gross Motor Skills Hearing Intellectual

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Teaching Strategies for Students with Complex Needs

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Teaching Strategies for Students with Complex Needs

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Ontario Teachers Federation

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Teaching Strategies for Students with Special Needs | Teach Special Education

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Ontario Teachers Federation - Gateway to Special Education

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Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) | Teach Special Education

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Aggression Management Anger/Frustration Management Anxiety Management Articulation Skills Attendance Strategies Attention Skills Assistive Technology Skills Blind/Vision Impaired Bullying Management Skills Central Auditory Processing Deafness Depression/Sadness Management Disengagement/Motivation Strategies Eating Disorder Strategies Emotional Regulation English Language Skills Executive Function Fine Motor Skills Gambling Disorder Grief Management Gross Motor Skills Hearing Intellectual

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Hearing Impairment - Strategies & ILP accommodations

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Hearing Impairment - Strategies & ILP accommodations

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Hearing Impairment | Teach Special Education

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Aggression Management Anger/Frustration Management Anxiety Management Articulation Skills Attendance Strategies Attention Skills Assistive Technology Skills Blind/Vision Impaired Bullying Management Skills Central Auditory Processing Deafness Depression/Sadness Management Disengagement/Motivation Strategies Eating Disorder Strategies Emotional Regulation English Language Skills Executive Function Fine Motor Skills Gambling Disorder Grief Management Gross Motor Skills Hearing Intellectual

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Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education & Training 

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Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education & Training 

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Inclusive Teaching & Specific Disabilities

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Information on Inclusive Teaching, including guidelines for developing and delivering inclusive courses, support strategies for working with students, summaries of guiding legislation and standards and more.

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Teaching Students with Hearing Impairment & Deafness

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Teaching Students with Hearing Impairment & Deafness

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Inclusive Teaching: Deaf and Hearing Impaired

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Inclusive teaching practices for students with hearing impairment

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Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

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Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

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Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

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Sign up for free membership to access the FREE downloadable resources to support your district's vision program on the Free Printable pages located under "free printables" in the navigation bar .

Paid member pages are unlocked with a purchase. Here you will get access to resources you have paid for including the TVI's Guide Complete Set bonus pages, interactive activities and recorded presentations. You can purchase access in the VI Store.

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Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

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The mission of Teaching Students with Visual Impairments is to: address and encompass all aspects related to educating students who are blind or visually impaired from diagnosis and referral to adaptations and unique instruction; provide all persons invol

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Best Practices for Teaching Students with Down Syndrome

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Best Practices for Teaching Students with Down Syndrome

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Thought Co

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Down Syndrome is a chromosomal abnormality and the most common genetic condition. It occurs in approximately one in every seven hundred to one thousand live births. Down Syndrome accounts for approximately 5-6 percent of intellectual disabilities. Most students with Down's Syndrome are between the mild to moderate range of cognitive impairment.

Physically, a student with Down's Syndrome is easily recognizable due to characteristics like a smaller overall stature, flat facial profile, thick epicanthal folds in the corners of their eyes, protruding tongues, and muscle hypotonia (low muscle tone).

First identified as a discrete disorder with a set of similar symptoms/characteristics which are related to the presence of extra chromosome 21. Those characteristics include:

Short stature and shortened bones

Thick tongues and small oral cavities

Moderate to mild intellectual disabilities

Low or inadequate muscle tone.

Inclusion: Students with special needs should be full members of age-appropriate inclusive classes to the extent they can be. Effective inclusion means that the teacher must be fully supportive of the model. The strategies you use to reach and teach the Down's student will often be beneficial to many learners in the classroom. The inclusive environment is less likely to stigmatize and provides a much more natural environment for the students. There are more opportunities for peer relationships to occur and much of the research states that full integration works better.

Building Self-Esteem: The physical characteristics of a student with Down's will often result in a lowered self-esteem, which means you will need to take every opportunity to boost self-confidence and instill pride through a variety of strategies.

Progressive Learning: Students with Down Syndrome usually face many intellectual challenges. Strategies that work for mildly disabled students and/or students with significant learning disabilities will also work with Down's students. Much literature has stated that most individuals with Down Syndrome do not progress beyond the intellectual capabilities of a normal developing six-to-eight-year-old (Kliewer 1993). However, always strive to move the child progressively along the learning continuum-never assume the child isn't capable. Solid intervention and high-quality instruction have been proven to lead to improved academic achievement for your students. Use a multi-modal approach which works best for all students and use as many concrete materials and real world authentic situations as is possible. Employ language appropriate for student understanding, speak slowly when necessary, and always break tasks into smaller steps and provide instruction for each step. Remember, a student with Down Syndrome will usually have a good short term memory.

Minimize Distractions: Students with special needs are often easily distracted. You'll need to employ strategies that work to minimize distractions such as keeping the student away from the window, using a slightly more structured environment, keeping the noise level down, and having an orderly classroom where students are free from surprises and know what your expectations, routines, and rules are. Direct instruction in short periods of time along with smaller chunks of activities will help to support learning. Introducing new material slowly, sequentially and in a step-by-step fashion will help to ensure maximum learning occurs.

Employ Speech and Language Instruction: Children with Down Syndrome can suffer from serious problems such as hearing difficulties and articulation problems. Sometimes they will require speech/language intervention and a great deal of direct instruction. In some cases, augmentative or facilitated communication will be a good alternative for communication. Use patience and model appropriate interactions at all times.

Today's classroom has many special needs students, and the inclusive model is often the best model and one supported by research. The inclusive classrooms lets all students learn what it means to be a full member of a school community. Treat all students as valued learners. Although many teachers don't have experience working with children who have Down Syndrome, they have been teaching these students very well for a long time.

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Best Practices for Teaching Students with Down Syndrome

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Down Syndrome is a chromosomal abnormality and the most common genetic condition. It occurs in approximately one in every seven hundred to one thousand live births. Down Syndrome accounts for approximately 5-6 percent of intellectual disabilities. Most students with Down's Syndrome are between the mild to moderate range of cognitive impairment.

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KidsHealth Classroom

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As a child care provider, you play an important role in children's lives, especially when it comes to food and fitness. To make things easier on you, KidsHealth and Sesame Workshop present the Healthy Habits for Life Child Care Resource Kit.

These hands-on activities use Sesame Street characters to help you show your students how to eat right and be active.

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As a child care provider, you play an important role in children's lives, especially when it comes to food and fitness. To make things easier on you, KidsHealth and Sesame Workshop present the Healthy Habits for Life Child Care Resource Kit.

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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

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Down syndrome is a condition in which a person has an extra chromosome

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Resources for Educators

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Inclusion

Inclusion means all students learn together, in the same class, for the majority of the day. Students with Down syndrome learn and grow best when they are included in regular educational procedures, just as any kids. Inclusive teaching allows all students to learn from each other and gain an appreciation for the uniqueness of all people.

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Down Syndrome Education, Teaching Students in School - CDSS

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Inclusion means all students learn together, in the same class, for the majority of the day. Students with Down syndrome learn and grow best when they are included in regular educational procedures, just as any kids. Inclusive teaching allows all students to learn from each other and gain an appreciation for the uniqueness of all people.

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What is Down Syndrome?

In every cell in the human body there is a nucleus, where genetic material is stored in genes. Genes carry the codes responsible for all of our inherited traits and are grouped along rod-like structures called chromosomes. Typically, the nucleus of each cell contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, half of which are inherited from each parent. Down syndrome occurs when an individual has a full or partial extra copy of chromosome 21.

This additional genetic material alters the course of development and causes the characteristics associated with Down syndrome. A few of the common physical traits of Down syndrome are low muscle tone, small stature, an upward slant to the eyes, and a single deep crease across the center of the palm - although each person with Down syndrome is a unique individual and may possess these characteristics to different degrees, or not at all.

How Common is Down Syndrome?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately one in every 700 babies in the United States is born with Down syndrome, making Down syndrome the most common chromosomal condition. About 6,000 babies with Down syndrome are born in the United States each year.

When Was Down Syndrome Discovered?

For centuries, people with Down syndrome have been alluded to in art, literature and science. It wasn't until the late nineteenth century, however, that John Langdon Down, an English physician, published an accurate description of a person with Down syndrome. It was this scholarly work, published in 1866, that earned Down the recognition as the "father" of the syndrome. Although other people had previously recognized the characteristics of the syndrome, it was Down who described the condition as a distinct and separate entity.

In recent history, advances in medicine and science have enabled researchers to investigate the characteristics of people with Down syndrome. In 1959, the French physician Jérôme Lejeune identified Down syndrome as a chromosomal condition. Instead of the usual 46 chromosomes present in each cell, Lejeune observed 47 in the cells of individuals with Down syndrome. It was later determined that an extra partial or whole copy of chromosome 21 results in the characteristics associated with Down syndrome. In the year 2000, an international team of scientists successfully identified and catalogued each of the approximately 329 genes on chromosome 21. This accomplishment opened the door to great advances in Down syndrome research.

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What is Down Syndrome? | National Down Syndrome Society

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What is Down Syndrome? In every cell in the human body there is a nucleus, where genetic material is stored in genes. Genes carry the codes responsible for all of our inherited traits and are grouped along rod-like structures called chromosomes.

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Stokke

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How to Use the Tripp Trapp® High Chair From Stokke®

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Humanware

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Saltillo

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A robust 60-location addition to WordPower, designed to support language development and bridge the gap between core and fringe vocabulary.

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12 things to remember when working with students with challenging behaviours

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12 things to remember when working with students with challenging behaviours

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Think Inclusive

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Let's face it. Some students are hard to work with for a litany of reasons. Maybe you are experiencing a challenging year in your classroom. Before you throw in the towel or give up hope, read this list of DOs and DON'Ts when encountering students who push you to the brink.

DO know your students crave your love and attention even though they may not know how to ask for it (you can still love and not let them" walk all over you")
DO NOT get discouraged that you are not doing enough for them (sometimes progress is slow but there is still progress)
DO expect them to communicate with you (it just might mean you have to "listen" to their behavior instead of them using conventional means)
DO NOT take it personally when they display challenging behavior ( remember...it is not about you)
DO have high expectations for their academic work and their behavior (they need someone to believe in them)
DO NOT "poke the bear" when there is no need to (no...I'm not saying students with challenging behavior are bears - it is only a expression)
DO allow them to explore things that they are interested in (special interests and hobbies can unlock creativity when used wisely)
DO NOT give up on them...ever ("When you have exhausted all possibilities, remember this - you haven't." ― Thomas Edison)
DO take an interest in who they are (invest some time in really getting to know their likes and dislikes)
DO NOT forget to offer multiple ways for them to show what they know or to communicate how they feel (can you say Universal Design for Learning?)
DO enjoy their happy and/or joyful moments (sometimes they are few and far between)
DO NOT forget to play lots of music in the classroom and have fun (we all need a little more fun ya know?)

I hope these 12 reminders have inspired you to keep going even if you feel lost and hopeless. In addition to the above suggestions, I would recommend finding someone to talk to that you trust. We all need to share our frustrations in a safe place and be encouraged in our teaching practice.

Thanks for your time and attention.

Photo Credit: Rusty Clark

What are some helpful strategies that have been effective for you when working with challenging students? Tell us about them in the comments section below!

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12 Things To Remember When Working With Students With Challenging Behavior | Think Inclusive

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Let's face it. Some students are hard to work with for a litany of reasons. Maybe you are experiencing a challenging year in your classroom. Before you throw in the towel or give up hope, read this list of DOs and DON'Ts when encountering students who push you to the brink.

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Think Inclusive

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Indicators of a Successful Inclusive Education Program

Although different schools have unique ways of implementing inclusive education, there are certain key indicators that are typically available in successful programs. Causton & Tracy-Bronson (2015) lay out some indicators of inclusive schooling environments as:

Natural Proportions - If students with disabilities are approximately 12% of the school population, ideally 12% of any one classroom would be comprised of students with disabilities.

Co-planning - Special and general education teachers, including related service providers, plan on a weekly basis about upcoming lesson units and assessments.

Co-teaching - Also referred to team teaching or collaborative teaching, two teachers (one special and one general education) work together in a "flexible and coordinated way" carrying out accommodations and modifications for students who requires special education services. The two teachers, as well as paraprofessionals, have the responsibility to educate all students in the classroom.

Community Building and Culture - Inclusive classrooms are ones that everyone feels accepted and that they belong. One way to create community in the classroom is to have "ice-breaker" activities that facilitate the students getting to know each other's likes and dislikes. Classrooms that help all students feel connected are part of a culture that embraces diversity and difference.

Differentiation - So much of differentiation is about the special and general educator planning on what strategies to use with each student. Every time student are working on similar topics but accessing it a different way, differentiation is happening. Inclusive schools make differentiation a top priority with their academic instruction.

Students Do No Leave to Learn - In a successful inclusive education program, students do not leave the general education classroom to work on specific skills or subject areas. Since special education services are portable, interventions can occur with the context of the general education classroom.

Grouping and Seating are Heterogeneous - Students with and without disabilities should be evenly mixed throughout the classroom. While it sometimes appropriate to have groups of students with the same ability, the process should be flexible.

Engaging Instruction - Educators should plan lessons that are engaging and have every student in mind. What if you planned your lessons with the hardest to reach students in mind? When we plan for the students who are the hardest to reach, we end up reaching everyone (Moore, 2016).

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What Does Inclusion Look Like? Inclusion is Belonging | Think Inclusive

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Although different schools have unique ways of implementing inclusive education, there are certain key indicators that are typically available in successful programs. Causton & Tracy-Bronson (2015) lay out some indicators of inclusive schooling environments as: Natural Proportions - If students with disabilities are approximately 12% of the school population, ideally 12% of any one classroom would be comprised of students with disabilities.

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Why isn't Accommodating the same as Inclusion?

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Why isn't Accommodating the same as Inclusion?

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Think Inclusive

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I am fortunate that the students in my school provide the opportunity for me to revisit my commitment to inclusion over and over again. Each time I work with students, teachers and families to ensure that every child is fully included in a class, program or experience, I have the unique opportunity to stretch my own boundaries as I reflect on the evolving nature of true inclusion.

More than anything else, I have learned that simply accommodating a student's needs is not inclusion. Don't get me wrong, making appropriate accommodations is an essential strategy in working with students who have a wide variety of needs. But there's more to inclusion than that.

Let me give you an example:

A teacher divides a class into study groups. A written copy of the text is given to each student in the group. The teacher decides that since this is a discussion-based activity, the text can be read aloud to a student who is blind and he/she can still fully participate.

What's wrong with this?

Put yourself in the scenario. Are you typically the one who says (when something is read aloud), "Let me see that, I missed half of what you said."? If so, you are probably a visual learner. (Click here to learn more about discovering your own learning style.) This is how Braille can function for a student that is blind; it's her way of "seeing" the text for herself.

Having the text read aloud is a reasonable accommodation, but it is not fully inclusive.

Here is another example:

Students work in groups to explore leadership and community building. They engage in an activity that relies on social cues and interactions and is almost entirely visual. Half the group must build a structure without speaking. The other half receives a list of behaviors to observe, and are each assigned a student in the building group to secretly watch. Is it possible to reasonably accommodate this activity? You might add a listening role for a student with vision issues; but what about the student who is unable to read social cues? What about those who have hearing impairments or processing issues? Adding roles for students with disabilities might seem like a reasonable accommodation, but it is not fully inclusive. Reworking the activity in a way that enables every student's participation without "tacking on" an extra role is how this will shift from accommodating to including.

Inclusion is about belonging. Reasonable and appropriate accommodations can help us to integrate our students, but intentionality and planning is needed to ensure that every student belongs-all the time.

What is the best way to think about the relationship between accommodations and the inclusive classroom? Tell us about it in the comments section below!

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Why Isn't Accommodating the Same as Inclusion? | Think Inclusive

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I am fortunate that the students in my school provide the opportunity for me to revisit my commitment to inclusion over and over again. Each time I work with students, teachers and families to ensure that every child is fully included in a class, program or experience, I have the unique opportunity to stretch my own boundaries as I reflect on the evolving nature of true inclusion.

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Writing for Students with Significant Disabilities

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Writing for Students with Significant Disabilities

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Think Inclusive

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What does writing for students with significant cognitive disabilities look like? How can we engage them in the process of writing?

It is important not to mistake tasks that develop matching, memorizing, copying or fine motor skills with the learning process of writing. Students with disabilities need to experience the same processes as those without when developing writing. They need to scribble and explore and progress from being emergent to conventional writers.

Writing also supports the development of reading skills. Above is a diagram of the "Whole to Part Literacy Framework" which outlines the need to develop skills in word identification, language comprehension and print processing in order to achieve the goal of silent reading with comprehension. Guided reading, writing and developing communication system skills all fall under the "language comprehension" umbrella. The writing tasks that we do with the students that I work with cross between developing communication skills, communication system skills and engaging in and learning the writing process.

Below is an outline of some of the things are now embedded in to writing programs for students, some things that we are developing as part of their writing programs and a couple of things that I am looking to add to writing programs this fall. Some of these things are done in general education classes drawing on content from those subjects, some fit right in to the literacy structures that exist in classrooms as all students have choice in their writing and some are done in a one-on-one or small group direct instruction setting. Many have only been added in the past two years after I had attended workshops and courses by Linda Burkhart, Karen Erickson, David Koppenhaver and Caroline Musselwhite. Before that the "writing" we were doing was the practice on matching, memorizing, copying and fine motor skills I referenced a the beginning of this post.

Alternate Pencils

Many students with complex needs either cannot or have significant difficulty using a pencil. Alternate pencils offer the opportunity for students to do letter-by-letter generative writing.

One no-tech Alternate Pencil is an eye gaze board (example above). To use this system, the student first gazes to one of the five clusters of letters. Once the student has picked the cluster they want, they then do a second gaze to one of the five areas and use the color coding system to say which color of letter they would like to write from the initial cluster. That process generates one letter that the person working with the student would write down.

For example, a student might gaze to the cluster of letters in the top right hand corner. This means he/she wants to write the letter P, Q, R, S or T. The student then gazes to the top left hand corner which means that he/she is choosing the yellow letter from the first cluster of letters indicated. The letter the partner writes down is "Q".

Another no-tech option is a flip chart. An example of this is included above. The top of the chart contains clusters of letters. This process requires that the student that is doing the writing has a definitive yes and no response. This could be using switches or any body action. We try to encourage head movement sideways for no and up or down for yes as that is generally universally understood but if that is not possible then we find whatever is going to work. In the letter-by-letter approach we would ask a continuous string of questions starting with "A?". If the answer is no, we ask the next letter. If the answer is yes, we write it down. Once we write a letter down we continue by asking that letter again and keep moving through. The process can also be done in clusters - asking the student if he/she wants one of the letters on the first page and if he/she says yes then go through the letters one at a time. This is partner-assisted step scanning process is one that is familiar to our students that we use this method of writing with as we use it for choice making and when communicating with P.O.D.D. books (have written about these before but will be adding a new post about these again soon).

A couple of less complex alternate pencils that can be used with student who have more functional use of their hands but still struggle with the fine motor aspect of printing include options like letter stamps, magnetic letters, letter cards, letter stickers, keyboards...etc. There are several options for keyboards for those with fine motor challenges. The example above is the "Big Keys" keyboard. IntelliKeys is another option that offers a lot of versatility including making tactile representations.

The point of using alternate pencils is to allow student access to a way to generate letter-by-letter writing right from the "scribbling stage" of writing. A student does not have to be able to generate what we call "real words" to use an alternate keyboard just as a student doesn't need be able to write whole words before they start using a pencil. In fact, a child will use a pencil for a long time before they generate conventional words. Alternate pencils create the same opportunities for exploration or students who cannot hold a pencil. When we use alternate pencils, we always work with the student to pick something that we are going to write about through some of the approaches outlined below (Weekend Words, Experience Books, Photo or Picture Captions, Remnant Books) or we pick a topic with the student related to something that he/she is reading or studying. Once we have a topic, we start writing and let them generate whatever series of letters they are going to generate. We do not direct or interfere and when the student is done we "read" what they have written about (make the letter sounds) and then talk about their topic with them.

Writing is one part of a student's comprehensive literacy program. At the same time as a student is working on writing, they are also spending time doing word work and self-selected and guided reading. As they develop skills in these areas, they will move towards more conventional writing in a similar process as a scribbling child moves towards it. By allowing "scribbling" we are setting a student up for autonomous, generative writing rather than just copying.

The Center for Literacy and Disabilities Studies offers further information and resources on Alternative Pencils.

Using Remnant Books for Writing Topics

A remnant book is very similar to a scrapbook. The book contains tactile items, short explanations and/or pictures that represent experiences, activities, places, people, etc. that make up a student's narrative. Remnants might include things like souvenir that were bought, an item from nature, a receipt from going somewhere, packaging from a toy. The remnant is placed in the book along with a picture (if possible) and a short explanation on a sticky note. The short explanation is just so the communication partner would have something to talk about. It is not meant to be "perfect writing".

A remnant book is meant to be used to facilitate and encourage social interactions and conversations. The items in the book give a focus for the conversation and allows for the same type of "what I did last night" or "remember when" conversations that other students have regularly.

Using remnant books requires commitment from home and school as the idea is to ensure that a student's stories are recorded so that they can be talked about at different times. Ultimately a remnant book should travel between home and school and be added to anytime there is a story worth sharing. Although it is nice to have a an actual physical article, it is not necessary every time.

The remnant book can be used either as a way to facilitate conversations or as a resource to pick topics to write about. When using it for writing, the student would choose a story that he/she wants to write about and then alternate pencils would be used to create a picture of writing related to that object. The advantage of having the topic is that when the student is done writing we are able to have a conversation about what they wrote the same way as we would have conversations with other emergent writers who came to us with a picture they drew and emergent writing (scribbling) under the picture and wanted to tell us what they "wrote". In this way, students come to understand the process of writing in the context that makes sense because there is a purpose of writing - to tell a story.

We watch closely for signs of connection during this process. If we see word approximations or even single letters related to the topic emerge, we talk about these with the student. At the same time, we do not interfere too much as we do not want to disrupt he process of writing. We do also at times demonstrate using the alternate pencil for our own writing - so we pick a topic and go through the process as a demonstration so that the student can see what we are doing in generating words.

Note: We also add to the remnant books ourselves when an activity happens at school that would be something that can be a story to share at another time. This opens up opportunities for "how was your day at school" conversations at home.

Picture of Photo Captions

Pictures and photographs can be used a topics for writing in the same way as the pages and topics from a student's remnant book can be used. Photographs have the added motivational factor of being personalized. Pictures can be tied to any topic or just pictures of things that a student likes or enjoys. For a student who is included, topics the pictures or photos could be linked to vocabulary of the topic that is being studied in that class. Again, students are allowed to generate their own writing using their alternate pencil and what they write is added as a caption. If these are topic books for curriculum areas, we do also put the typed word in and sometimes include a PEC representation, a written definition and/or put the pictures in a talking photo album (like the one pictured at the right) and record the word or the definition of the word. For personal choice topics that are more related to a student just writing a story of their choosing, we do not add in all of these things and let the final piece of writing stand as the student's writing.

We can also do this activity online by using Quizlet and making cards with images on and then having the student use an alternative pencil to caption those images.

Weekend Words

This one that we have not yet tried. I was introduced to it through the Literacy for All Community of Practice that we have been involved in for the past two years. The idea is for parents to send a list of 5-10 Weekend Words to school each Monday morning. The words are meant to represent the student's weekend activities, interactions, feelings...etc. When it is time to write, the words are used just like the Remnant Book items or the Photos and Picture Captions outlined above.

On a side note, there is an excellent opportunity for communication here too as the words could start a conversation using the students communication system and there may perhaps be a need for messages to go back and forth to get more clarity. We use step-by-step communicators with some of the students I work with for messages to go back and forth between home and school. We are currently working on ensuring that the messages that go home on these are more student-driven and this might be a good step in to that as in the conversation to figure out the weekend words we might discover together some more questions that we need to ask and then can work to figure out the details of those questions and record it so that the conversation can continue at home.

Writing Book for Tar Heel Reader

Tar Heel Reader is a "collection of free, easy-to-read, and accessible books on a wide range of topics. Each book can be speech enabled and accessed using multiple interfaces, including touch screens, IntelliKeys with custom overlays and 1 to 3 switches." Students may also write and publish their own books using picture from the huge collection at Flickr or pictures they upload. The books can be on any topic and are very easy to write.

When writing books for Tar Heel Reader we move away from using Alternative Pencils and use the student's communication system instead. This means we are generating either sentences word by word or the student is giving general ideas and we are putting them in to words or sentences. This is because whatever books we finish should go up in the public library although you do have the option to just permanently leave them in draft form.

Because books are so easy to produce on Tar Heel Reader it is a great place to make accessible reading-level appropriate books for students on any topic of their choice so books can be made related to curriculum content of general education classes. It is often hard to find the time to do this but if it is being done as a writing activity, the book then is stored publicly for any future students taking that same class to access as they need it.

Make Your Own Class Newspaper with news-2-you

We have been using news-2-you for three years now. I've posted about it several times on this blog before. This past year they added a new feature that allows you to interactively create your own symbol supported class newspaper that mirrors the format of the current events paper that you get each week if you subscribe. It uses a series of interactive screens with questions about what will go in to the news story. The process involves a lot of communicating, choice making, and thinking as to construct the news story you need to be able to come up with the details of the event you are writing about. Once you are finished answering the questions on the interactive pages, it prints off in newspaper format.

This is a great process as you can embed listening comprehension in to the process. We have started with the city newspaper, found a story that is interesting, read the story and then answered the questions, picking out the key details of the story, using the students communication system through the whole process.

Writing Cards Using P.O.D.D. Books (Could use any communication system or partner assisted scanning process)

Authentic writing tasks are always a hit... particularly if you send something out and something comes back! This is something we did very extensively three years ago when we were in a fully self-contained setting. Parents sent in a list of important dates throughout the year and we would spend time every couple of weeks making and writing cards and then mailing them out. It was embedded in to a personal calendar learning process. At that point we did not yet have P.O.D.D. communication books. Our communication approaches were much more restrictive and so we relied on students agreeing or disagreeing with what we believed should be on the cards.

The P.O.D.D. book offers a lot more extensive vocabulary and allows the student to be a lot more autonomous in generating the message. Again, because this is a card that will be sent to someone, we do, for the most part fill in the blanks between the words the student picks using his/her P.O.D.D. book. We also have moved towards buying a pack of multi-purpose cards and using them rather than making the cards so that we are focusing on the writing and communication processes rather than the arts and crafts component. This becomes one of several options that the student has to choose from when it comes time to work on writing.

Mad Libs - Using P.O.D.D. Books (Could use any communication system or partner assisted scanning process)

This one is probably more a communication activity than a writing activity as there are a lot of opportunities to move through the P.O.D.D. book to choose different words that fall in to categories. I'm not sure how much explaining Mad Libs need but the basic idea is that you start with a page where you generate words that fall in to different categories - noun, name of a person, description word, action, adjective...etc. and then once the list of words is generated, it gets transferred to the Mad Lib story (an example to the left) and then you can read the story with the words that were put in to it.

In the reading process there are again opportunities to work on both comprehension and communication and the Mad Lib itself could become a remnant for a students Remnant Book if it is particularly funny.

My Story Maker and Read-Write-Think

My Story Maker is an interactive story making website from Carnegie Library. Students are able to make many choices. A note that the visuals for the choices are relatively small and the choices could not be hooked up to a scanning system so choices have to be done through partner assisted scanning if a student cannot access the mouse of a computer.

The student has any number of choices during the process of writing the story. Each time a choice is made, both the element in the picture an a line of text explaining what is happening are added to the story. A student can create a whole story without ever writing anything but they can also go in and edit or add to any of the text that comes up when elements are added.

When the story is done, it can be read online or it can be printed off and made in to a personal little book. This is an activity that works well with a whole class as it is pretty naturally scaffolded and works great for student who are not sure what to write about. Younger kids really liked the way the books came out looking like real stories and every student comes out with a similar looking books that can be shared. For students working on partner assisted scanning there are countless opportunities for that throughout the creation of the story.

If using this for story writing, it is worth thinking about adding in a "planning" stage that is not so visually stimulating before writing the story. There are a lot of great interactive planning tools to do this on the Read-Write-Think Website. This website has many other ideas for writing and communication. For example: Bio-cubes, Essay Map, or Trading Card Creator.

First Author Writing Software

This is a new product and I have just started exploring the trial version that I got. It looks promising particularly as a way to have student doing work on content-specific curriculum with minimal time needed for set up. Because the video does such a great job of explaining it, I'm just going to include an outline form the website and the video...

From the Don Johnson Website: "First Author is a software tools that supports beginning writes, especially those with special needs, across all phases of the writing process. as a computer-based writing environment it operates in parallel with exemplary models of writing instruction. First Author provides the writer with essential accommodations such as picture prompts, word banks, on-screen keyboard, auditory feedback and other tools to ensure a successful writing experience. It is accessible to all students, including those with severe speech and physical impairments."

Exploring the website I also found a document on First Author Writing Measures that hold a lot of potential as a writing assessment tool for this population of students.

A version of this article was originally published on the blog: Eliminating the Box.

Monica Braat is an Inclusive Learning Consultant. Passionate about Awareness of Privilege, Inclusion, Equity, Literacy & Communication Rights, Neurology, Shanker Self-Reg and UDL. You can follow her on Twitter or on her blog.

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Writing for Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities

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What does writing for students with significant cognitive disabilities look like? How can we engage them in the process of writing? It is important not to mistake tasks that develop matching, memorizing, copying or fine motor skills with the learning process of writing.

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AB Education

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English
French-language content for this topic on Alberta.ca is currently being developed. Information will remain available on the Alberta Education website until this is complete.

Français
La page correspondante en français est en cours de préparation sur le site Web Alberta.ca. Pendant cette période de transition, l'information qu'elle contient demeure disponible sur le site Web du ministère de l'Éducation.

Overview

Social-emotional learning focuses on helping students develop social-emotional skills that are essential for:

working with others

building resiliency

achieving goals

reducing bullying and risk behaviours (substance use)

Social-emotional skills are foundational for success in school and in life.

The Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL) has identified 5 connected sets of competencies:

Self-awareness

Recognizing emotions and assessing ones' strengths and challenges.

Self-management

Controlling emotions and impulses, managing stress, self-motivation and setting and achieving goals.

Social awareness

Identifying others' emotions, showing empathy and understanding other perspectives.

Relationship skills

Building healthy relationships, communication skills, conflict resolution, working, playing and learning with others.

Responsible decision-making

Making wise choices and evaluating potential consequences.

Foundational ideas

Placing value on the following ideas is important for effective social-emotional learning practices. Social-emotional learning is fundamental to building the following traits:

positive social behaviour

health and well-being

ethical development and citizenship

motivation

academic learning

Social-emotional skills need to be taught and can improve with opportunities to practice in different contexts.

Social-emotional learning requires a long-term, whole-school approach that involves families and community partners.

Research-based evidence

Research shows that students receiving quality social-emotional learning instruction showed:

better academic performance
achievement scores were an average of 11 percentile points higher than students who did not receive social-emotional learning instruction

improved attitudes and behaviours

greater motivation to learn

increased time devoted to schoolwork

better classroom behaviour

fewer disruptive behaviours
less noncompliance, aggression and disciplinary referrals

reduced emotional distress
fewer reports of student depression, anxiety, stress and social withdrawal

Examples

Social-emotional practices will vary depending on the needs of the students and the resources and priorities of the school community. A whole school approach builds on the instruction of social-emotional outcomes in Alberta's Wellness Programs of Study.

The following fictional examples show what social-emotional learning could look like in practice.

Elementary school

Teachers work together across grade levels to include social-emotional learning into daily instruction. Activities include:

read-aloud stories on related topics

guided discussion

role playing and problem-solving

opportunities to reflect on and demonstrate learning through writing, art and presentations

Students can take home materials that reinforce social-emotional learning with families.

Monthly school events highlight specific social-emotional skills, reinforce new learning and introduce ideas for using skills across different contexts.

Middle school/Junior high school

At the beginning of the school year, school staff work together to create a shared understanding of social-emotional learning. They use this to develop strategies for using social-emotional competencies in academic and extra-curricular activities. School wide events use the language of social-emotional learning and focus on positive relationships and responsible decision-making.

High school

School staff develop learning modules that reinforce social-emotional competencies. English teachers work together to plan literature projects that explore social-emotional learning at each grade-level. School publications, signage and events use the language of social-emotional learning.

Resources

Supporting documents

Social-Emotional Learning Resources Fact Sheet (PDF, 144 KB)

Social-Emotional Learning Video Conversation Guide (PDF, 698 KB)

External resources
Centre on the Developing Child at Harvard University The Society for Safe and Caring Schools and Communities Alberta Family Wellness Initiative

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English French-language content for this topic on Alberta.ca is currently being developed. Information will remain available on the Alberta Education website until this is complete. Français La page correspondante en français est en cours de préparation sur le site Web Alberta.ca. Pendant cette période de transition, l'information qu'elle contient demeure disponible sur le site Web du ministère de l'Éducation.

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AB Education

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AB Education

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K-5 Math Curriculum based on Eureka Math

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Zearn Math | Top-rated Math Learning Platform

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Learning with Zearn helps math make sense. Students explore math through pictures, visual models, and real-life examples. Log in to your Zearn account.

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Empowering Math Teachers

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Knowledgehook - An Instructional Guidance System for Math Teachers

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Leaders support math teachers by providing a digital instructional guidance tool.

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G Fletchy

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The Make Math Moments Academy

YOUR ROADMAP TO AN INSPIRING MATH CLASS
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Make Math Moments | Empowering Teachers with Math Activities

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The Make Math Moments Academy YOUR ROADMAP TO AN INSPIRING MATH CLASS Create memorable math moments daily with access to curiosity rich tasks, in-depth PD video trainings, and a system for making these moments a reality. Join the Making Math Moments Academy now. Your first 30 days are for free.

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How exams are unfair for Neurodiverse Learners

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How exams are unfair for Neurodiverse Learners

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I had the pleasure of talking at Haberdashers Girl' school Teaching and Learning conference recently about how the exam system has become increasingly unfair for children with #dyslexia #ADHD #dyspraxia #SLCN #ASD - students with specific learning difficulties whom many now call neurodiverse.

A few of the shared traits for such students are speed of processing and working memory difficulties. It stands to reason that exams which require students to memorise lots of information, retrieve it and hold it in their short term memory to manipulate are harder if memory is impaired. Furthermore, exams are timed which of course affects those who take longer to read and think things through. Another element which affects many students is anxiety, this can have a dramatic impact on a students' ability to succeed when the brain shifts into flight or fight and can only function in a procedural rather than declarative way.

It's not fair is it? Why have we gone backwards with exams and removed any help such as visual prompts, open book, formulas and coursework? Through no fault of their own, students who were born with a developmental difficulty have the odds stacked against them during their school years. Not because they don't know stuff but because the measure of what they know depends on strategies which they struggle with. The people who have designed these exams are likely to be good at memorising, retrieval and thinking at speed. It does not however mean their knowledge is deeper.

An example I gave in my talk (and I do this quite regularly) is stand in front of Shakespeare's sonnet 18. I have tried to memorise this for over a year and in front of an audience, under pressure I cannot recite the whole sonnet. I can do the first stanza and the final rhyming couplet but no more with automaticity. I can however do it if I spend a long time writing it out, using the rhyme scheme to trigger my memory; I can also do it if the audience help me like the prompt in stage plays. So I stand there and recite the sonnet I have tried so hard to memorise, my heart begins to race and I feel under pressure. With the help of my audience I get through with about three reminders I think. When people tell me I just need to try harder, spend longer and then I will know it, I find this frustrating. Like remembering the alphabet and my times tables and the fourteen other poems I need for GCSE English Literature, and the periodic table for Science and the formulas for maths ....I would spend all day, every day memorising these and they wouldn't stay - like the sonnet, my memory fades quickly, retrieval needs prompting and while I'm trying to do all this, I'm not learning, I'm not thinking, I'm just trying to do something I can't do rather than concentrating on what I'm really good at which is analysing poetry, talking about subjects, being curious and thinking.

I know that sonnet well, I know every word, I love the rhyming couplet which is so powerful. I understand the rhyme scheme, the structure of this type of sonnet and the iambic pentameter. I just. Can't. Recite. It. Without prompts. And this is why open book and other prompts which help memory are so important for students like me. It does not affect knowledge. The picture below shows a visual prompt my partner keeps with him as a paddlesports coach, he is an extremely experienced and accomplished teacher but this just helps him remember the activities he might need. It's useless to me as I have no knowledge of what's on the sheet. It's not cheating - if a student doesn't know the poems or how to use a periodic table, the prompts mean nothing.

What are we testing in our students? Memory or application of knowledge? It's just not fair.

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It's not fair! How the exam system sets up neurodiverse students to fail.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I had the pleasure of talking at Haberdashers Girl' school Teaching and Learning conference recently about how the exam system has become increasingly unfair for children with #dyslexia #ADHD #dyspraxia #SLCN #ASD - students with specific learning difficulties whom many now call neurodiverse.