Things to Do the Spring Before School Starts

Things to do the spring before school starts:

See the CSC chair, special educator, or other specialists to find out what special students are coming up to your grade level and a bit about them.
See current teachers to find out what is working for them.
Find out all you can about the students, even though you may not have them all in your classroom. At this point you won’t know who will be with you, so you should compile a list of the possibilities.

Things to do before school starts:

Design your classroom to accommodate diverse learners. Use tables and desks in different configurations to create different workspace. Create a quiet space. Consider bringing in cushions and extra lighting for student use.
Gather materials for your TOOL BOX that match your grade level and possibly student needs.
Create a classroom discipline plan for all students that can be explained the first day. Consider how you will involve students in the creation of a management plan.
Create routines that you are going to use consistently for all students. Ideas to think about are how you will post assignments, assign learning centers, lining up students, curricular routines for spelling, writing, math, etc.
Plan how you will create a feeling of cooperation and friendship in your classroom. Design team-building activities (Kagan Cooperative Learning) that will help students to get to know each other at the start of school.
Assign each student a buddy or partner in your room for the first day. They are to help each other get to class, find the bathrooms, understand assignments, etc.
If you are in the states over the summer or ordering from a bookstore online, look for books on inclusive strategies to use in your classroom. Books on differentiated learning are also helpful.

Things to do the first day:

Great each student personally. Make a special effort to greet each special needs student in a positive way.
Do a team building activity to start the day.
Assign buddies or partners for the week.
Give directions, information, and assignments in small steps. Check the special needs student often to make sure they are keeping pace. Remind partners to check with each other to make sure they are on track.
Talk about your routines. Introduce one new routine each day instead of all at once.
Make sure everyone understands your classroom management plan and can show you they understand by telling it to each other, telling it to you, drawing a picture, or writing it out. You will keep reinforcing this all week.
If you have a paraeducator coming to your room with a student have them help with all students. You want them seen as a resource person with similar authority to yours in the classroom. They should be introduced to the class as another instructor in the room that is going to help them all.
Make an appointment with the paraeducator to go over the tasks they are responsible for in your classroom. The role of the paraeducator in your room is a joint decision decided by the special educator, the paraeducator, and you.

Things to do the first two weeks:

Change partners every week for the first four weeks. After that you can continue or make the buddy/partner program a voluntary program. For students who have this on their IEP you will need to keep the program going.
Help the special need student develop an organizational system to keep them organized for your classroom.
Get your own copy of the student’s IEP and review it carefully. Ask questions from the CSC chair or case manager. Ask to see the eligibility summary report for more information about the student. Schedule an appointment with the special educator to talk and plan for the student. If you have ESL or other special needs students see the specialists and get information about this student.
Consider reviewing the special needs student’s cumulative records for additional information.
Contact the parents of your special needs student and introduce yourself. Let them know that you have their student’s IEP. Find out what the parents want for their student in your room.
Experiment with seating to find the best location for your special needs students. Hearing impaired students should be away from a noisy hall or outside window. Vision impaired students should be in an area with the best lighting and have a clear view of you. Distracted students should be seated so you can have direct eye contact with them. They should be seated next to students who have good focusing skills. Students with health issues may need to sit close to the door to leave easily when needed. Students with behavior issues may do better sitting with friends who will tolerate their disruptions, close to the door and to you in case they need to leave, or with quiet students who won’t interact with them.
Make a list of all of the modifications from the IEP’s and check for similarities. Start with those when you implement the modifications.
Think of how ALL students in the room can benefit from the modifications you make.
If you are setting up literacy centers plan to accommodate transition, behavior, environment, and materials for special needs students.
For the more involved and difficult students, meet with the special educator to create a written inclusion plan that identifies who does what for this student. Make sure the parent sees this plan. You might consider having students in grades 4-12th be part of this planning session.
Decide on how you will grade the students and share that with parents and the special educator.
If the curriculum has to be modified, make the modifications needed for the first quarter and put in writing. Establish a routine to do this every quarter. Once the modified plans are done you will have a copy for your toolbox that you use from year to year.

Things to do the rest of the year:

Plan to teach diversity by helping students to see we are all unique individuals with unique needs. You can do this by assessing for learning styles, do”learning differences” activities, use video’s on disabilities and read books about children with disabilities. Make sure you preview all materials in advance for their appropriateness. Be careful to not single out or isolate any student with special needs. No student should be pointed out as having a specific disability unless the student’s needs are severe enough to warrant education the class specifically about the student. If that must be done, then the parent and the student should be in on the planning of this kind of information. Older students might be encouraged to share their learning needs with the class and explain their disability when appropriate. Any student in your room who bothers special needs students because of their disability, should be reminded of the laws concerning harassment. These students should be the focus of education regarding disabilities and diversity so they will be less likely to continue the harassment.
Maintain regular contact with the specialists by email, conferences, etc. You should have contact at a minimum of every three weeks.
Immediately, contact the parent and special educator if the student’s grade drops to a D or F.
Document your interventions for students having behavior problems. This documentation may be needed later on.
If you need assistance from a specialist, be sure that you are specific in what you need. Example: Do…How can I help this student learn his multiplication facts? Don’t…This student is failing math, what can I do about it?
Attend scheduled CSC meetings and come to them with your questions and your ideas about what the student needs. If changes need to me made on the IEP then ask for them.
At the end of the year, help the next teacher by jotting down what worked and didn’t work for the student. Pass the information on.
Think about what worked in your room and what didn’t work as well. Write it down and select at least one thing to improve on the next year.

Jan Osier, TIPS Coordinator, Bavaria District, 2003-2004