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NISER & SIP Paraprofessional Series Session Four October 13, 2025

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NISER & SIP Paraprofessional Series
Session Three
October 6, 2025

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Session Three: Certificate of Completion 

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Session Three: Certificate of Completion 

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2025 Paraprofessional Series Session Two Slide Deck

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NISER & SIP Paraprofessional Series
Session Two
September 22, 2025

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Session 2 Certificate of Completion 9.22.25.pdf

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2025 Paraprofessional Series Session One

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NISER & SIP
Paraprofessional Series
September 15, 2025

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What I Want Future Teachers to Know About Students with Disabilities - Emily Ladau

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Thoughts on “special education,” inclusion, and teaching students with disabilities.

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What I Want Future Teachers to Know About Students with Disabilities

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TIES Belonging Resources | Creating communities of belonging for students with significant cognitive disabilities

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When Paul Kilkenny, a mentor teacher in East San Jose, California, works with teachers, he occasionally finds himself in the role of cheerleader. He notes,My teachers work with kids who are often in tough situations, and the kids can bring that same toughness into the classroom. When the teachers fi

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Session 1 Certificate of Completion 9.15.25.pdf

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Podcast & Article: How to Talk About Disability

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Podcast & Article: How to Talk About Disability

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Let's start with some numbers.

More than 1 billion people - nearly 15% of the world's population - experience some form of disability. In the United States alone, about 61 million, or 1 out of every 4 adults, live with at least one disability.

So it's probably safe to say that you know someone with a disability or might be disabled yourself. To be clear, these disabilities may not be physical or even visible: they could be learning, developmental or intellectual disabilities, or mental or chronic illness, to name a few.

But as common as disability is, not many people know how to talk about disability or how to interact with disabled people.

"To so many people, [disability] remains a mystery, this very scary and overwhelming topic," says disability rights activist and writer Emily Ladau. "We don't talk about it. We ignore it. We shy away from it. We hide it away. But that's not what we should do when it comes to disability, because it's just something that's part of what makes people who they are."

In her book Demystifying Disability: What to Know, What to Say, and How to be an Ally, Ladau shares thoughts on how both nondisabled and disabled people can collectively make the world a more inclusive and accessible place.

Ladau, a wheelchair user with multiple disabilities, points out that there isn't a single story of the disabled experience. She says, while it isn't disabled people's responsibility to educate people without disabilities about the nuances of living with a disability, progress is made through dialogue.

"I believe that offering honest and sincere guidance and conversation remains a key part of the path forward for the disability. That's how progress has been made by the powerhouse disability activists who have come before me. It's how we will continue forward," she writes.

We talked with Ladau about the sorts of guidance she would give to someone - disabled or not - who wants to be a better ally and help destigmatize disability in America.

What is a disability?

Disability is a natural part of the human experience, says Ladau. There's no singular experience of what it means to be disabled, and there's certainly nothing inherently bad or shameful about being disabled or having a disability. So the words disabled or disability? Use them. They are not bad words.

What is ableism?

Ladau defines ableism as "attitudes and actions that devalue someone on the basis of their disability." It exists in many different forms and places. Ableism can be as small as someone asking about your disability by saying, "What's wrong with you?" or as big as a lack of accessible public transportation that provides a disabled person a means to access employment, education or even healthcare.

One size doesn't fit all.

There is no one disabled community. As Ladau says, "If you've met one disabled person, then you've met one disabled person." Every person with a disability has a unique experience with their own disability. Within Ladau's family, for instance, she, her mom and uncle have the same rare genetic disability. But for each of them, the disability manifests and impacts them differently. One person's experience may inform another person's, but no singular experience reflects that of the entire community.

Learn and use the correct language.

"Language is one of the most important signals that we have to demonstrate our acceptance or rejection of a person's identity," says Ladau. In her book, she lists words that shouldn't be used and offers terms that should be used instead. Here's a rundown of some of her suggestions:

Being an ally requires constant work.

"Allyship is not about simply holding the door for someone or using the correct terminology and then washing your hands off it, calling it a day and saying, 'Hey, I was a good ally today,'" says Ladau.

It brings us back to the idea of reckoning with what a typical disabled person looks like and understanding how someone who is Black and disabled or transgender and disabled experiences disability differently than a white woman in a wheelchair.

"To me, being an ally looks like asking yourself 'Who's at the table?'" says Ladau. "It's a constant learning process and that can be challenging, but when we know better, we can do better."

Additional resources
Books Movies

Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (2020)

Sins Invalid: An Unshamed Claim to Beauty (2013)

Videos The podcast portion of this story was produced by Sylvie Douglis.

We'd love to hear from you. If you have a good life hack, leave us a voicemail at If you love Life Kit and want more, subscribe to our newsletter.202-216-9823 or email us at LifeKit@npr.org. Your tip could appear in an upcoming episode.

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Don't be scared to talk about disabilities. Here's what to know and what to say : Life Kit

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Do you find yourself avoiding conversations on disabilities? Worried you'll offend a disabled friend? A disability rights activist shares ways to be a better ally and to destigmatize disability in America.

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Fact or Fiction - Paraprofessional Respoonsibilities

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Fact or Fiction - Paraprofessional Respoonsibilities

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Paraprofessionals-also known as paraeducators or teacher assistants-can play a critical role in supporting elementary and middle school students with significant cognitive disabilities. Under the supervision of special or general educators, paraprofessionals provide support, deliver instruction, and collect data on academic, social, communication, behavioral, and daily living outcomes across school environments. Paraprofessionals often provide support in inclusive settings which offer numerous opportunities for students to learn alongside and interact with their peers without disabilities. This places paraprofessionals in a unique and impactful position to facilitate inclusion, advance learning, foster relationships, and promote a sense of belonging for students with significant cognitive disabilities.

Paraprofessional facilitation involves arranging environments and activities or delivering strategies and prompts in ways that improve outcomes for students with disabilities (Brock & Anderson, 2021). For example, paraprofessionals may use a gestural prompt to remind a student to respond to a question, verbally encourage a peer to ask a question, or supervise a collaborative learning group that includes students and peers in a general education classroom. A list of paraprofessional facilitation strategies is shown in Figure 1. Research has shown that paraprofessional support that involves unnecessary proximity and excessive assistance can actually interfere with the peer interaction and class participation of students with disabilities (Giangreco, 2021). In contrast, high-quality paraprofessional facilitation intentionally finds a balance of appropriate support that increases students' engagement with peers by reducing too much reliance on adults.

When used correctly, paraprofessional facilitation has been shown to improve student outcomes across school environments related to behavior, peer interaction, social communication, and academic engagement. For example, paraprofessionals can help students with significant cognitive disabilities learn new skills or create opportunities for developing friendships. Although paraprofessional facilitation can happen anywhere in the school, this guide focuses on promoting peer engagement through increasing academic and social participation within inclusive classrooms. When a student increases their academic and social participation, they will have more opportunities to develop shared knowledge, skills, and experiences with their peers. This can serve a strong foundation for cultivating peer relationships and a sense of belonging in and outside the classroom.

Collaborating

The student's educational team members should be involved in planning paraprofessional facilitation. The special educator can lead collaborations between the paraprofessional and other team members. For example, a general educator can share lesson objectives and materials in advance so the special educator can modify materials and prepare the paraprofessional to support the teaching of key concepts and vocabulary. The speech-language pathologist can provide the paraprofessional with training on the student's communication systems and ways to support communication with peers. Physical and occupational therapists can work with the paraprofessional to enhance the student's participation in class activities (e.g., optimizing seating or standing support, using assistive technology tools for writing or typing). Families can share their priorities for peer engagement and determine what information about their child would be appropriate for the paraprofessional to share with the classmates. The family may also provide ideas for conversational topics the student would enjoy (e.g., jokes, hobbies, or family's upcoming trips). Depending on the desired outcomes and student's needs, additional school staff, such as school counselors and district behavior or assistive technology specialists, may be consulted for resources and support.

Planning

When planning paraprofessional facilitation, the team should consider the classes students attend, their learning goals in each class, the peers they are learning alongside, and the skills of the paraprofessional. Below are specific steps with questions for considerations. An example planning sheet is shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Paraprofessional Facilitation Planning Sheet

Identify Settings and Student Goals

The team should first review all of the classes the student is taking to determine the settings in which paraprofessional facilitation might be most beneficial. Paraprofessional facilitation can be most useful for increasing engagement with peers within inclusive classes that: (a) incorporate numerous hands-on activities, (b) use cooperative learning groups, (c) have abundant opportunities for social engagement, (d) rely less on whole-class instruction, and (e) are of high interest to the student with significant cognitive disabilities. However, paraprofessional facilitation can still be beneficial for students in almost every school setting, even when some of these features are not present.

Next, the team should identify prioritized learning goals aligned with the student's individualized education program (IEP), the general education curriculum, and the family's priorities. For example, it might be important for students to increase their initiations or responses with classmates, expand their social networks, increase their class participation, or experience a greater sense of belonging. Likewise, students might have goals focused on learning key course content, developing new skills, or increasing their academic engagement. It is important to keep each student's individualized social and academic goals in mind when planning paraprofessional facilitation. Doing this can make sure that your approach is always student-centered.

Consider the Setting

An ecological assessment can be a helpful approach for identifying times during each class when paraprofessional facilitation may be especially needed (Kurth et al., 2020). This involves working with general educators and the paraprofessional to examine the typical routines that make up each inclusive class. This might involve focusing on what happens at the beginning and the end of the class, during large-group work (such as lectures or whole-class discussions), during small-group work, during individual work, and during transitions or free time. For each routine, consider the following questions (Chung & Carter, 2013):

How do classmates without disabilities interact and participate?

How does the student with significant cognitive disabilities currently interact and participate?

How can the student with significant cognitive disabilities interact and participate in similar ways as the classmates do?

What can the paraprofessional do to facilitate the student's interaction and participation?

The answers to these questions can help identify opportunities for greater social and academic participation, as well as ways in which paraprofessional facilitation might be provided to promote greater engagement with peers.

Consider the Student and Peers

Gathering information about the student with significant cognitive disabilities will provide background knowledge that helps the paraprofessional connect the student with peers. It also helps with determining the type of support each student may need for peer engagement. While collaborating with the paraprofessional and general educator, special educators should consider the following questions: Which of the student's strengths and interests can be highlighted? What are the student's existing peer relationships and social network? Does the student have access to appropriate modes of communication to meaningfully participate? Does the student need additional prompts or training on social interaction? For a student who uses augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), does the communication device have the vocabulary needed to interact with peers during different activities?

Likewise, knowing about the student can help special and general educators recruit peers who will work and interact effectively with the student. It can also help the team determine what assistance peers may need from the paraprofessional to engage well with the student with a disability. Questions to consider include: What will the peers be expected to do when interacting or working with the student (e.g., participating in a cooperative learning group alongside the student, providing assistance within a peer support arrangement, providing communication support to a student who uses AAC)? What are the characteristics of peers that would make them suitable for these roles and responsibilities? What training, prompting, and other support will peers need to fulfill these roles and responsibilities?

Consider the Paraprofessional

In a collaborative spirit, special educators should also assess the current skills, mindsets, and support needs of the paraprofessional. These considerations will inform the paraprofessional training and coaching and determine the extent of support that the paraprofessional will need to effectively deliver facilitative strategies. Questions to consider include: How does the paraprofessional currently support the student in the inclusive class? What are the paraprofessional's views, motivation, and concerns on promoting inclusion and engaging peers? What training or support will the paraprofessional need to effectively facilitate and promote peer engagement? How will the paraprofessional evaluate and monitor their progress with implementing the strategies? What feedback will the paraprofessional receive and benefit from?

Implementing

The main steps for implementing paraprofessional facilitation to promote greater peer engagement include preparing the environment, preparing the paraprofessional, and having the paraprofessional use facilitative strategies with students.

Preparing the Environment

Based on the plan, special educators should work with general educators and paraprofessionals to create an optimal environment for engagement among students with and without disabilities. This includes considering instructional grouping, seating arrangement, and accessibility. Although facilitative strategies can be used during almost any instructional grouping, times of small-group work and individual work usually have more peer engagement opportunities than large-group lectures. Special educators can work with general educators to incorporate more group-based activities. The seating arrangements should allow the student and peers to easily work and interact together. The paraprofessional could sit behind the student rather than in between the student and peers. Likewise, the paraprofessional can float around the room or sit at a distance away from the student, approaching the student only when assistance or prompts are needed. If there is more than one student with significant cognitive disabilities who attends the same inclusive class, they should be seated separately to avoid potential stigmatization and to promote more opportunities for peer engagement. When considering the accessibility of content, activities, and materials, special educators can follow the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles (see also Posey & Hartmann, 2020). This involves optimizing the participation and learning of all students (with and without disabilities) by incorporating multiple means of representation (e.g., pictures or videos), engagement (e.g., hands-on activities), and action and expression (e.g., options for how students respond to materials and their learning). In addition, assignments can be modified to reduce task demands. It is easier for the paraprofessional to engage the student and peers in shared activities and conversations when the student has accessible materials with appropriate task demands, and when both closely align with what fellow classmates are doing and learning.

Preparing the Paraprofessional

Most paraprofessionals will need guidance and support from a special educator on using facilitative strategies effectively. The best way to prepare paraprofessionals to successfully implement evidence-based strategies is by combining initial training with coaching (Brock & Carter, 2016). Before the training, the special educator should observe the paraprofessional and the student with a disability in the inclusive classroom. This will provide information about class routines and social opportunities, paraprofessional's style and strengths, and potential issues or recommendations to be shared at the training. If feasible, the observation can be videotaped to allow the paraprofessional to watch their performance and self-reflect. Doing this might also facilitate collaboration and problem-solving among the special educator, general educator, and paraprofessional. After this observation, the initial training for the paraprofessional typically takes 60 to 90 minutes. An example of an initial training handout is shown in Figure 3. At the training, the special educator should:

Explain the purpose of paraprofessional facilitation by addressing the student's goals (e.g., promoting academic learning, social connections, and/or skill development)

Provide an overview of the facilitative strategies with specific examples

Model and role-play the strategies

Finalize a plan to implement the facilitative strategies

Figure 3. Initial Training Checklist for Paraprofessional Facilitation

Because paraprofessionals often feel underappreciated as members of the educational team, special educators should praise them for their past work, highlight the facilitative strategies they already use, and seek their input when developing a plan. Based on the student's support needs, some paraprofessionals may benefit from a reminder of their roles as a facilitator (not as a primary communication partner for the student). Others may need additional training on support strategies (e.g., learning about using a communication device and using different prompts). At the end of the training, special educators should also address any questions or concerns the paraprofessional may have.

Training for paraprofessionals does not have to happen all at once. Depending on the paraprofessional's current skills and roles, special educators might choose to focus on certain facilitative strategies initially. After the initial training, the special educator can follow up with coaching sessions, during which the special educator can praise the paraprofessional's use of the strategies, explain and model additional facilitative strategies, and discuss the paraprofessional's performance.

Paraprofessional Delivering Facilitation

After the training, the paraprofessional is ready to use the facilitative strategies to promote peer engagement through greater social and academic participation. The paraprofessional should ensure the student arrives at the class on time and stays for the entire period when possible. The paraprofessional and general educator may decide to change the seating arrangement so that the student can sit by particular peers. If this is the case, the paraprofessional can briefly introduce the peers and the student when they sit together for the first time (e.g., highlighting strengths and shared interests). Throughout the class, the paraprofessional begins using facilitative strategies based on the plan to encourage full participation and engagement with peers (Brock & Carter, 2016; Chung & Douglas, 2015). Facilitative strategies can include:

ensuring proximity to peers and appropriate access to materials;

ensuring the student sits next to peers;

ensuring the student has access to their communication device (and peers can hear/see the messages, even learning how to model use of the communication device when interacting);

ensuring the student uses the same or similar materials and tools as peers;

encouraging the student and peers to share materials and work together;

encouraging the student to move around the classroom with peers when applicable (e.g., getting materials or distributing materials for the teacher);

reducing paraprofessional proximity to allow the student and peers to interact and work on their own;

encouraging academic- and social-related peer interactions;

encouraging peers to interact with the student

encourage the student to interact with peers

providing information and support when needed

highlighting similarities between the student and peers

redirecting interactions to the student

monitoring and praising the student and peers;

praising the student and peers for interacting and working with each other

providing feedback or suggestions for future interactions

providing information to peers when needed

The paraprofessional can use a range of prompts, including verbal prompts (e.g., saying "You can ask..." "Why don't you..." "How about..." "Would you like to...") and nonverbal prompts (e.g., pointing to a peer, the student, or the device, or giving the student a thumbs up with a smile). When a peer initiates toward the student, the paraprofessional should allow time for the student to respond on their own, then provide prompts or models as needed.

Evaluating Outcomes

Good paraprofessional facilitation can help students with significant cognitive disabilities meet their learning goals and experience fuller social participation within inclusive classrooms. It can also have a positive impact on participating peers and paraprofessionals. Special educators should consider how to evaluate these and other impacts, both formatively and summatively.

For Students with Disabilities

Depending on the goals of the student with a disability, direct observation may be one of the best ways that special educators can collect data. For example, special educators may want to work with paraprofessionals to document a student's initiations and responses toward peers (either on their own or prompted by paraprofessionals), on-task behaviors, work completion, communication with peers for different purposes (e.g., commenting, requesting, joking), number of conversational turns with peers, different words produced using speech or AAC, and/or numbers of peers who interacted with the student. Initially, such data should be collected more frequently to ensure paraprofessional facilitation has resulted in intended changes. This might also help teachers determine if additional training or coaching is needed. Beyond using direct observation, special educators or paraprofessionals can also ask the students to share their experiences in interviews or through questionnaires. Visual communication support can be provided for students with complex communication needs so that they can answer questions about their experiences. Parents of the students can also share if they notice any changes at home or in the community, as peer interactions and class participation may lead to relationship and skill development outside the classroom.

For Peers

Peers who have the opportunity to work with their classmates with disabilities may also benefit from the ongoing interactions and shared work. Special educators can collect data on how peers interact or communicate with the student with a disability (either spontaneously or prompted by paraprofessionals), their on-task behaviors, and potential spillover interactions outside of class. The paraprofessional can monitor peers' engagement with the student with a disability more formatively through periodic check-ins, and can also ask peers to share about their experiences more summatively at the end of the semester.

For Others

The ways in which paraprofessionals support students with disabilities in the classroom are likely to change as a result of using these facilitative strategies. Special educators should document the different facilitative strategies used by paraprofessionals during observations. Paraprofessionals can also record their own use of facilitative strategies using a self-monitoring sheet. Special educators can work with paraprofessionals to prioritize facilitative behaviors that are the most critical to the students' social and learning goals, as well as those that are feasible for paraprofessionals to self-monitor. Special educators should also seek out the perspectives and experiences of paraprofessionals and general educators using interviews or brief questionnaires. Hopefully, paraprofessionals will begin using the same effective facilitative strategies with other students they support or in different classrooms with the same student. Likewise, the ways in which general educators interact with students with disabilities may increase as a result of observing paraprofessional facilitation, promoting even greater peer engagement and academic and social participation.

Sustaining and Expanding

Paraprofessionals should begin using these facilitation strategies with one student in a single class. As the student and their peers become more comfortable and independent in their interactions and collaboration, the paraprofessional can fade their proximity, prompts, and praise. Peers can be an ongoing source of natural support and encouragement, which can also encourage other classmates to get to know the student with a disability. As the student with significant cognitive disabilities becomes less reliant on adult support, the paraprofessional can reduce their support, supervise groups of students, or assist the general educator by supporting all students (Giangreco, 2021).

After seeing some initial success, special educators can arrange paraprofessional facilitation for the same student in additional classes, or for other students and other paraprofessionals. In addition, paraprofessionals who have received training and are confident in their ability to facilitate peer engagement and student participation can begin using those strategies with other students, and even modeling their use for other paraprofessionals. As more paraprofessionals learn this approach, a larger number of students with disabilities can benefit from their application. To create a professional learning community, special educators, general educators, and paraprofessionals can share their accomplishments during team meetings and professional development workshops.

Specific Considerations

Across Ages and Grades

The nature of paraprofessional facilitation and the ways in which students interact with each other in the classroom will be influenced by many factors, including the ages of the students, the classroom context, and peer culture. Peers of different ages will need different types and levels of prompts and feedback from the paraprofessional. Early elementary peers may prefer to work as a group with the student with disabilities and will readily seek direction and approval from the paraprofessional. Middle school peers may seek more independence and want to keep some distance from a paraprofessional. Different grade-level content and activities have varied task and social demands for the student and their peers, which also means there are different opportunities for paraprofessional facilitation within these activities. For example, early elementary school classrooms often have rotating centers embedded with play activities, whereas upper elementary classrooms have increased demands for following directions and task completion. When developing the implementation plan, special educators and paraprofessionals should discuss ways for the students to interact in ways that are appropriate to the classroom, as well as typical of norms and expectations of peer culture (e.g., saying hello vs. giving a fist bump).

Individualized Supports

Students with significant cognitive disabilities often have a range of extensive support needs, including social, communication, behavior, physical, and medical support. When planning and implementing paraprofessional facilitation, special educators need to ensure paraprofessionals are familiar with the students' supports and accommodations, know how to facilitate peer engagement, and can provide other supports and accommodations. All support should be provided in the least intrusive and most age-appropriate manner that dignifies the student. For example, if a student uses a wheelchair, the paraprofessional can work with the general educator to create safe and spacious seating while maintaining proximity with peers. If a student uses a visual schedule of class activities, paraprofessionals may encourage the student to show peers how to use the visual supports. For students who use AAC, paraprofessionals may need to remind peers to allow additional time for the student to communicate, and may want to help the student and peers know how to work together to program new messages. For students with specialized health care needs, paraprofessionals may need to recognize signs to indicate that the student is fatigued and needs a break from working with peers. For students with behavioral support plans, paraprofessionals should monitor students' peer interactions and intervene if the student is demonstrating challenging behavior.

Depending on the ages of peers, they may have different questions about a student's different supports and accommodations. Special educators and paraprofessionals can work with the family and the student to determine what information that they feel is appropriate to be shared with peers. Paraprofessionals may work with the student to explain their own support needs when appropriate. At a class-wide level, special educators and paraprofessionals might work with general educators to consider having an opportunity for each class member to share their strengths and support needs.

Cultural Responsiveness

Considerations of culture should be embedded in all instruction, including planning and implementing paraprofessional facilitation. It is important for special educators and paraprofessionals to get to know the student and involve their family throughout the process of planning and implementing paraprofessional facilitation-from identifying goals to evaluating outcomes. When the cultures of families and students are different from the cultures of paraprofessionals and educators, the team should brainstorm ways to value and integrate the cultural differences in supporting students' peer interaction and class participation. For example, special educators can work with general educators to include culturally responsive materials that honor the students' experience and interests. When identifying peers, special and general educators should take into account the student's preferences, needs, and cultures. Some students may want to work with peer partners of a different gender, while others may prefer same-gender peer partners or those with similar cultural backgrounds. Also, paraprofessionals should incorporate and value the students' primary language whenever possible-including spoken language or the use of AAC.

Case Application

Shawn is a tall fifth-grader with autism who loves to wear bright-colored t-shirts with funny phrases. He is a hard-working student who always wants to please his teachers and other adults on his educational team. Shawn communicates using mostly single words and gestures. One of his IEP goals is to respond to Wh-questions and share information. His speech-language pathologist has been working with him to use an aided AAC device, specifically Proloquo2Go on an iPod touch. Shawn carries the iPod touch on his wrist and has started to use it to initiate and respond when prompted. His parents value inclusion and want him to have more opportunities to interact with his classmates in fifth grade. One of Shawn's favorite activities is library class twice a week, when all students have free time to choose and read books in the library.

Prior to learning about how paraprofessional facilitation could promote peer engagement, Mr. Thomas, a paraprofessional who provides support to fifth graders, would help Shawn choose a book and direct him to sit by a long table with another student who also had a disability. As Shawn would read the book, Mr. Thomas would sometimes ask Shawn to identify objects using his AAC device. Sometimes Mrs. Brown, the classroom teacher, stopped to say hello. However, Ms. Lewis, the special educator on Shawn's team, recently attended a professional learning session and gained some new ideas on how to better promote inclusion outcomes for students. One of the strategies presented was paraprofessional facilitation, and she thought it could be an effective, feasible way to increase peer interactions for Shawn.

Ms. Lewis decides to talk to Mr. Thomas and Mrs. Brown, who are both on board. She also calls Shawn's parents, who are excited about supporting increased interaction with Shawn's classmates. Ms. Lewis works with the team to identify a goal for the library class, "initiate and respond to Wh-questions with peers" which is aligned with Shawn's existing IEP goals and the family's priorities. The team also develops a plan to recruit two male classmates, a request from Shawn's parents, given that he has two big sisters and they want him to have more male models. Mrs. Brown also provides a list of grade-level books that she thinks Shawn and his peers may enjoy. The team decides that the speech-language pathologist will provide Mr. Thomas with training on Shawn's AAC device and the use of aided language modeling. This will also be a strategy that can eventually be taught to Shawn's peers as well. Finally, Ms. Lewis meets with Mr. Thomas to brainstorm specific opportunities and strategies to prompt peer interactions for Shawn.

After obtaining parent permission, Ms. Lewis and Mr. Thomas meet with the peers to provide a brief orientation. Mr. Thomas takes photos of the peers and programs their names in Shawn's AAC device. On the first day of implementing paraprofessional facilitation, Mr. Thomas makes sure Shawn and the two classmates are at the same table. He prompts Shawn to use his AAC device to say hello using the names of peers. He encourages Shawn and his peers to look for books together. As Shawn and the peers read together, Mr. Thomas models ways they could ask each other questions about the book, and how Shawn can use his AAC device to respond. When a book is finished, the peers walk with Shawn to return the book. There are a few minutes left for Shawn to tell knock-knock jokes.

Mr. Thomas continues to use different strategies to facilitate interaction and engagement during library time, as well as during other activities in fifth grade, following the plan he developed collaboratively with Ms. Lewis and Mrs. Brown. After three weeks of this more intentional paraprofessional facilitation, Shawn has developed a new routine, and he and his peers need few reminders from Mr. Thomas. Shawn is even more eager to go to the library class, read different books with his peers, and share the newest knock-knock jokes that his sisters update weekly. Their laughs draw attention from other peers (and occasionally a side-eye from Mrs. Brown). When Ms. Lewis hears about this from Mr. Thomas, she is happy that Shawn has become more a part of the fifth-grade class community.

Acknowledgment

All rights reserved. Any or all portions of this document may be reproduced without prior permission, provided the source is cited as:

TIES Center is supported through a cooperative agreement between the University of Minnesota (# H326Y170004) and the Research to Practice Division, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education. The Center is affiliated with the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) which is affiliated with the Institute on Community Integration (ICI) at the College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota. The contents of this report were developed under the Cooperative Agreement from the U.S. Department of Education, but do not necessarily represent the policy or opinions of the U.S. Department of Education or Offices within it. Readers should not assume endorsement by the federal government. Project Officer: Susan Weigert

The National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) leads the TIES Center partnership. There are six additional collaborating partners: Arizona Department of Education, CAST, University of Cincinnati, University of Kentucky, University of North-Carolina-Charlotte, and University of North Carolina-Greensboro.

TIES Center, University of Minnesota, Institute on Community Integration, 2025 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55414Phone: 612-626-1530
www.tiescenter.org
This document is available in alternate formats upon request.

The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity employer and educator.

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TIES Peer Engagement Practice Guides | A Guide to Implementing Paraprofessional Facilitation

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Paraprofessionals-also known as paraeducators or teacher assistants-can play a critical role in supporting elementary and middle school students with significant cognitive disabilities. Under the supervision of special or general educators, paraprofessionals provide support, deliver instruction, and collect data on academic, social, communication, behavioral, and daily living outcomes across school environments.

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Fading Paraprofessional Support: Strategies for Success in Inclusive Classrooms • Inclusive Schooling

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Dr. Julie Causton & Dr. Kristie Pretti-Frontczak creating inspiring & innovating PD to districts. It is possible to create joyful and inclusive schools where all students flourish!

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‘3 Before Me’ requires that when students are stuck, they must first try to solve the problem in 3 different ways before asking the teacher.

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Paraeducator Collaborative Reflection Sheet (1)

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Our true capabilities are evident not in what we can do on our own, but rather by what we can do when given the right opportunities and support. To be supported means having the individualized resources needed to reach one's full potential and thrive in everyday life. Supports are a bridge-they help people go from where they are to where they want to be. Supports can involve changes to the physical environment, adapted materials, technology, or other tools. But feeling supported is more than these resources-it is a social experience. Students are most likely to feel supported when they are part of a community in which they are known personally, where people see their potential, and where they are provided the assistance they need to be successful. However, teachers sometimes struggle to know how to support the potential of students with significant cognitive disabilities. Or, teachers may provide numerous supports without a strong student-centered plan, resulting in students receiving more support than is actually needed. When students receive the right types and amount of support from teachers and peers to reach their full potential, it provides assurance that their presence and involvement is truly desired. It reminds them and everyone that they belong.

What Does It Look Like?

Andi always works with Brittany and Gretchen, two classmates who are part of her peer support arrangement. Ms. Davis, a paraprofessional, provides periodic support to all three students as they work together during English class. Andi prefers working with her classmates "just like anyone else," rather than always sitting next to an adult.

Mr. Walker enjoys getting to know each of his 3rd grade students at a personal level. When he learned that Joseph loves drawing, he worked with Joseph's autism support teacher, parents, and the principal to make sure that support was in place so that Joseph could be part of the afterschool art club.

Treshon and his friends love to play basketball during recess. With input from the physical education teacher and Treshon's physical therapist, the students made some simple changes to the way they play so that Treshon could fully participate while using his wheelchair.

Ms. Bowman never wants to haphazardly plan students' supplementary aids and services. She conducts observations, gathers feedback from team members, and has conversations with the student to learn what support is working and where more support is needed. All of this work helps the IEP team carefully plan the individualized system of support that meets each student's needs and helps students reach their full potential.

What Can You Do?

Rather than relying primarily on paraprofessional or adult support, consider how peers can provide natural support to students with significant cognitive disabilities. Be sure to encourage peers to provide support as a classmate or friend, not as a teacher or "helper."

Identify support that would be beneficial to all students in a classroom (sometimes called "universal supports") and support individual students might need (sometimes called "individualized supports"). Combining universal and individualized support can help teachers more feasibly meet the educational needs of all of their students.

Learn how to use an ecological assessment to individualize support planning in inclusive school settings, such as classrooms, cafeterias, or playgrounds. An ecological assessment helps educational teams identify needed support by examining the demands in specific settings and comparing them to students' individualized strengths and challenges.

Ask students about their goals for school and the support they think would help them reach these goals. Use visual supports (such as pictures) as response options for students who may have trouble communicating their ideas on their own.

Questions for Reflection

Reflect on a time when you felt deeply supported and on a time when you did not. What distinguished these two experiences? What impact did each have on your sense of belonging?

This week, look for instances when students seem to be receiving just the right amount and types of support. What lessons can you learn from these situations that could be applied to other students, activities, or goals?

Some types of support can be stigmatizing and stand in the way of belonging. Talk with other teachers or service providers at your school about their approach to supporting students with significant cognitive disabilities throughout the day. How can support can be provided that enhances belonging without increasing stigma?

Attribution

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TIES Center is supported through a cooperative agreement between the University of Minnesota (# H326Y170004) and the Research to Practice Division, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education.
See our full attribution statement in 'Creating communities of belonging for students with significant cognitive disabilities'

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Our true capabilities are evident not in what we can do on our own, but rather by what we can do when given the right opportunities and support. To be supported means having the individualized resources needed to reach one's full potential and thrive in everyday life.

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Video: The Importance of Presuming Competence (Shelley Moore)

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Video: The Importance of Presuming Competence (Shelley Moore)

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Classroom Management Tips: Remain Calm & Respond Right When A Student Challenges

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Classroom Management Tips: Remain Calm & Respond Right When A Student Challenges

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10 Behavior Management Strategies for Educational Assistants & Paraprofessionals

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10 Behavior Management Strategies for Educational Assistants & Paraprofessionals

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5. Daily physical activity

Exercise is an important tool to help students manage both their physical and mental health. Exercise is an effective treatment for mild to moderate depression, anxiety, and stress. Exercise releases endorphins that make you feel good. It promotes neural growth and releases tension. It also allows students to focus on physical activity and interrupt negative thinking. As an added benefit, it improves memory, enhances self-esteem, and improves sleep.

Take your students for a walk through the halls; use the fitness facilities in your school. Even jogging on the spot and doing push-ups and jumping jacks can boost endorphins and reduce tension.

Participate in physical activity with your students. Be a role model for positive behavioral change. Build daily physical activity into the school day. Make moving a lifelong habit.

6. Mindfulness and breathing exercises

Mindful breathing is the process of focusing your attention on your breathing and nothing else. You concentrate on the process of your breath moving in and out of your body. The results of mindfulness are stress relief, decreased blood pressure, and improved sleep. It has been used to help in the treatment of depression, eating disorders, anxiety, and substance abuse.

There are many examples of breathing exercises that can be found on the Internet. Here we offer one strategy to get you started.

Balloon breathing:

Inhale fully. Place your hands on your belly and breathe in slowly through your nose.

Feel your belly fill up as if it's filled with a giant balloon.

Exhale fully. Open your mouth and blow all of the air out of your body.

Let your belly get flat like an empty balloon.

Repeat five times.

7. Catch them being good

Sometimes negative behavior is the only way that students can communicate their needs to you. It may be the only way they know how to get your attention. Instead of reinforcing the negative behavior, try to catch them being good. The goal here is to praise the positive behaviors and neutralize or ignore the negative behaviors.

Steps for catching a student being good:

Identify the negative or disruptive behavior (one or two behaviors).

Identify the times when the negative or disruptive behavior occurs in the classroom.

Identify fixed time intervals through the course of the day in which you will assess to see if your student is engaging in negative behavior.

If, at those fixed intervals, the student is not engaged in the negative behavior, praise them or reward them.

If, at those fixed intervals, the student is engaged in the negative behaviors, ignore the behavior (if at all possible).

Direct your attention to those students who are acting appropriately and give them praise/rewards.

8. Model prosocial skills

Prosocial skills are those behaviors that we engage in that benefit others. These behaviors include cooperation, sharing work, sharing toys, and emotionally supporting others who are in distress.

Students who have behavior disorders often have not developed strong prosocial skills. You can support prosocial skill development by:

Being a positive role model. The more that students see positive adult interactions, the more likely they are to engage in such activities themselves.

Talking through common social situations and providing feedback about appropriate social interaction.

Role-playing. Have students act out social situations and appropriate responses.

Encouraging structured social play between peers. Play is one of the best ways to encourage sharing, cooperation, and helping.

9. Offer choices instead of giving orders

Offering students choices instead of giving an order elicits their cooperation. Choices communicate that their EA/paraprofessional respects them and their opinions. It provides an opportunity for students to build responsibility and be empowered.

Use these guidelines when offering choice to your student:

Provide two positive options.

Be clear and specific.

Make sure that both choices are acceptable and feasible.

When your students are comfortable making choices, modify this choice by using the "First/Then."

You can use First/Then in this way:

Present the student with a work task that needs to be accomplished.

Give the student a choice of two options that they would like to engage in after the work task is completed. It could include:

Computer time

Time in the playground

Coloring/drawing

When the student has completed the work task, allow them to engage in the second "reward" task.

Using First/Then promotes delayed gratification. It enforces the idea that first work has to occur before they are rewarded with a choice task.

10. Alter the volume and cadence of your voice

Often we overlook how we can affect the emotional state of our students. Emotions can be infectious. When we are angry, aggravated, excited, anxious, or nervous, these emotional states can impact the state of escalation of our students.

If you notice that your student is escalating and becoming visibly agitated, try these techniques to control your own emotions:

Lower the volume of your voice and speak more quietly. As you speak more quietly, your student will have to become quieter to hear you.

Alter the cadence of your voice and speak more slowly.

Modulate your tone of voice and be calm and supportive.

Simplify your vocabulary.

Remember that as your student starts to escalate, they're starting to lose rationality. Speaking loudly and quickly will increase their agitation.

Final thoughts

We've offered some skills to develop in order to help you respond to escalating behavior. When you're in the presence of an escalated student, the first thing to realize is that you are actively managing the crisis situation. You are controlling your own behavior. You are making decisions that will impact how the situation unfolds.

Remember, the outcome of the situation will be impacted by the strategies that you use to de-escalate the agitated student.

Take a deep breath and calm yourself. Don't react to the situation. Use the strategies described above to respond to it. Use your tool kit to help support your student.

Jennifer Taylor is a long-time behavior learning assistance teacher. Michael Edward and Abu Jabbie are both experienced Educational Assistants. They work in a specialized program that's designed to meet the needs of students who have severe behavior disorders.

Jennifer has extensive experience teaching students with special needs and First Nations students. She has a master's in Education with a focus on School Improvement and Leadership, specifically looking at interventions that improve the school experience for at-risk youth. Jen has been a CPI Certified Instructor since 2007.

Michael has a nursing background and has worked extensively with individuals with mental health disorders. Michael has a bachelor's degree in Health Education from the University of Benin in Nigeria. He has worked in school, institutional, and group home settings. He has been a CPI Certified Instructor since 2015.

Abu Jabbie is a long-time EA who has worked in school, institutional, and group home settings. Abu immigrated as a refugee from Sierra Leone in 2004. He attended the University of Winnipeg and studied Economics. He is trained as a Child and Youth Worker.

Both Michael and Abu are skilled EAs who have the ability to connect with students to build therapeutic relationships.

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10 Behavior Management Strategies for Educational Assistants & Paraprofessionals | Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI)

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With these strategies, you'll build a go-to tool kit for handling and preventing behavior problems.

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Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Nervous System

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Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Nervous System

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Parasympathetic & Sympathetic Nervous System

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Our nervous system plays a huge role in our response to stress. The nervous system can be sub-divided as follows:The Central Nervous System (CNS) is made up of the brain and spinal cord, and the Peripheral Nervous System consists of all the nerves that run from the brain and spinal cord, throughout the body.
The Peripheral Nervous System can be further divided into the Somatic Nervous System - which carries sensory signals from the body to the CNS and motor signals from the CNS to skeletal muscles; and the Autonomic Nervous System - which regulates autonomic functions that tend to be beyond our conscious control, such as our heartbeat, temperature regulation and digestion.
The Autonomic Nervous System can be sub-divided into the Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) - the more stimulatory and energy-expending system, which controls things like the ‘fight or flight’ response; and the Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS) - the more calming, energy-conserving system, which controls things like, rest, digestion, repair and reproduction. For example, if you’re scared, the sympathetic nervous system causes your heart rate & blood pressure to increase, and it sends blood to your muscles, to allow you to fight or flee. However, if you’re relaxed and eating a meal, then your parasympathetic nervous system becomes more active, and slows your heart rate, encourages digestion, and rest. Unfortunately, many of us live in a sympathetic-dominant state the majority of the time. This can lead to sympathetic dominance, which correlates with many other health issues, such as poor weight management, food cravings, impaired sleep quality, low moods, and reduced self-esteem.
The sympathetic nervous system is usually driven by adrenaline. Much to our body’s inconvenience, it isn’t able to tell the difference between adrenaline amping you up from a physical threat, or your body responding to that massive cup of coffee you’ve just consumed.
It’s important to recognise the balance between these branches of the nervous system. We want to have a synergistic balance between both systems to ensure we’re able to respond to danger when necessary. On the other hand, we also want to relax, rest, digest when we are eating a meal, and slow down when we’re getting ready for sleep. To make changes to our health and tap into our parasympathetic nervous system, it’s important to recognise the signs that indicate we’re in a sympathetic state in the first place: Is your tongue currently sitting at the roof of your mouth? This is a strong indication that your body is currently in a sympathetic state. This is also a great tool to use to check and see where your body is at. Remember that at times we certainly want our tongue on the roof of our mouth — like when we’re running away from a lion in the wild or even whilst reading and concentrating on this article. Do you suffer from the afternoon slump? This is a good sign that there is a significant cortisol dysregulation in the body, which is directly correlated with a body that consistently sits in a sympathetic state. Are you waking in the morning feeling fatigued and unrefreshed? Those individuals who find themselves in sympathetic dominance also struggle to experience good-quality, deep sleep throughout the night. Hence the low energy levels when waking in the morning. Would you describe yourself as ‘tired but wired’ upon getting into bed at night? This again is a significant sign that your body is in a sympathetic dominant state. It is also another good indicator as to why you are also not waking refreshed in the morning. Those who have a beautiful balance between both the SNS and PNS are ready for bed and sleep around sundown and wake feeling refreshed and ready to take on another day at sunrise. Now for the most important points of the article, here are some ways you can really activate your parasympathetic nervous system: Breathwork is one of the easiest ways to activate our parasympathetic nervous system. Diaphragmatic or box method breathing is highly effective and can be done anywhere, anytime and free of charge! Try implementing these breathing techniques before consuming a meal to optimise the digestive processes and absorption of nutrients. Spending time outdoors and getting your daily dose of vitamin D from that beautiful midday sun is a fantastic way to reset your nervous system and down-regulate the body’s sympathetic response. Vitamin D absorption is always greater in areas of the body that wouldn’t usually see the sun. (YES! We are thinking the boobies!) Magnesium baths - well what aren’t these babies good for? If you suffer from poor-quality sleep, a magnesium bath before bed, with some beautiful vetiver and lavender essential oils added, is going to be an absolute lifesaver for your nervous system. Both meditation and yoga are heavily supported with wonderful research on their positive impact on the nervous system and many other areas of individual health. A daily 10-20 minute meditation and 1-3 yoga sessions each week will really help you to strengthen your nervous system and tap out of a sympathetic dominant state. In summary, it’s imperative that we understand the two predominant sides of the nervous system that come into play in our day to day life, our sympathetic (fight or flight) and parasympathetic (rest & digest) nervous systems. The balance between these two should be a focus for us all on a daily basis to ensure we achieve overall endocrine and adrenal nourishment! REFERENCES
McCorry, L. Physiology of the Autonomic Nervous System. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education. 15 Aug 2007; 71(4) 78. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1959222/
Tindle, J, Tadi, P. Neuroanatomy, Parasympathetic Nervous System. Statpearls. 15 November 2020; 1(3). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK553141/
Giuliano, R et al. Parasympathetic and sympathetic activity are associated with individual differences in neural indices of selective attention in adults. Psychophysiology. 1 August 2018; 55(8). https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29624675/

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How Anxiety Leads to Problem Behavior - Child Mind Institute

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Children who have outbursts or tantrums may seem angry or oppositional. But they are often very anxious. And they may not even know why they are upset.