Special Education in

West Fargo Public

SchoolsAugust 2019

In WF we believe...

Our programming focuses on student needs

Relationships with students matter

Plans and programming need to be followed

Students will do it if they can

Outcomes

1. Basics in SPED Law and WF Special Education Services

2. People you need to know to support student who require Special Services

3. Understand what information is important and navigate where to find this information

4. What to know when working with students who have disabilities

Outcome 1Basics in SPED Law and WF Special Education Services

Individuals with Disabilities

Act (IDEA)

Individual Education Plan (IEP)

Legal Document

Student Access to Education

Developed by a team

Must be followed

14 disability categories

Common Disability Categories

ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder

ED – Emotional Disability

OHI - Other Health Impaired

OT - Occupational Therapy

PT - Physical Therapy

SI - Speech Language Impaired

SLD - Specific Learning Disability

VI - Visually Impaired

ID – Intellectual Disability

SLD or LD-Learning

Disabilities- core subjects &

instruction in area of

disability

ID-Intellectually Disabled

(Cognitive impairment)

Some reg. classroom- work

on functional skills

MI-Multiple Impairment-

significant impairments-

multiple paras- work on self

care & functional skills (6

MI rooms)

ED-Emotionally Disturbed-

Mental Health concerns-

generally students are

mainstreamed

Autism-Social skill deficits-

most are mainstreamed

SLP-Two areas:

Speech: Voice, fluency,

articulation

Language: understanding

affected at various levels

Resource Room-instruction in

area of disability; may help

with classroom assignments by

preteaching, re-teaching or

tutoring

IEP: What to expect:

Special Education Classroom

Types of Programs in WF

Resource Room

Comprehensive Student Support Program (CSSP)

Structure Learning Classroom (SLC)

What do you want to

remember?

Outcome 2People you need to know to support student who require Special Services

People you need to know

Special education teacher(s)

You are a team to deliver and educate students with special needs.

These people know details and history about your student(s).

Parents

Your best resource for how to work with your student(s).

Paraprofessionals and Behavior Technicians

Likely the people that will support our students with special needs the most.

The role of the Paraprofessional

IS

To support the student

with special needs

One-on-one

Group support

Time aligned for student

decided by the team

IS NOT

Prepare lesson plans;

Develop curricular materials;

Provide direct instruction in

place of a teacher;

Introduce new content or skills;

Assign grades to students; or

Serve as substitute teachers.

The role of a Behavior Technician

A Behavior Technician (BT) is a highly trained

paraprofessional in the area of behavior.

BTs are placed in both Structured Learning Classrooms

(SLC) and Comprehensive Student Support Programs

(CSSP).

Who will you go to

for support with

students with special

needs??

Outcome 3 Understand what information is important and navigate where to find this information

• Individualized Education Plan

• PLAAFP

• Goals

• Accommodations

• Positive Behavior Support Plan (PBSP)

• Designed to utilize positive interventions

And

• Provide educational team with a plan if

behaviors escalate

IEP: What to look for

IEP: What to look for• Primary Disability

• Gives you an idea of what struggles student may have

• Example

• LD: Math/Reading

• ID: Cognitive Functioning

• Regular class may be for social inclusion or academics leveled

so they can achieve

• SI: fluency, articulation, language

• AUT: social difficulty, abstract math and language

Sometimes paired with LD

• Accommodations/Modifications

• Can be specific items that the students are allowed to use to complete

tasks

• Can be modified assignments

• Length, type of response, additional time to complete

• Can be how/who to pair in groups or when/how to call on to respond

verbally

• Goals

• Specially Designed Instruction aligned to needs of the student

Accommodations

Goals

Positive Behavior Support Plans

On the IEP…

What is important to

know and follow through

on?

Positive Behavior Support Plan

Why is it important?

What you need to know?

Positive Behavior Support Plan

Accepting “No” when the teacherSays, “No.” Social Skill

Mature ThinkingSocial Skill

No Use ofProfanitySocial Skill

Appropriate BusBehavior – Social

Skill

ReportingOther Students’Behavior – Social

Skill

Clear CommunicationSocial Skill

Dressing to yourSchool code – Social

Skill

What you HAVE to know to work with an

effective Positive Behavior Support Plan (PBSP)

The team has looked at what the FUNCTION/PURPOSE of the behavior is.

A behavior does not just “happen.”

There are no bad students – you just need to teach them better ways of getting their needs met!

They are often using a tactic that gets them their immediate need because it has worked in the past

If you want things to run smoothly in your classroom, find out what the student is getting from the behavior.

List of the Functions of the Behaviors

(It’s a lot smaller than you would think)

Attention – I love being class clown because everyone pays

attention to me!

Tangible – I do this behavior because I want a specific thing

(game, candy, toy, etc.).

Escape/Avoidance (If I do this behavior - then I can escape

this situation (of math? English? Science? etc.) or avoid ever

having to do math/English/Science/etc.

Sensory – Hardest to identify correctly-look to see what is in

IEP or ask the student!

Implementing when/what

we know (FBA/BIP)

• Teams have developed these plans

• The plans are not optional

• Not a good area to “experiment” in

• If you are struggling with the plan, talk with a special

education teacher and/or administrator. He/She can give you

more background than is on the IEP.

FBA: Functional

Behavior

Assessment

BIP: Behavior

Intervention Plan

Physical Restraint

Don’t do it unless CPI* certified

Call the office instead!

Report offense to the office

CPI: Crisis Prevention

Institute (intervention)

• Any method of one or more people

restricting another person’s freedom of

movement

• can be as simple has grabbing and

holding a wrist

• Can be as major as a two person

hold

Seclusion• Involuntary confinement

of a student alone in a

room from which the

child is prevented from

leaving

• Don’t do it!

• Call office and ask for

help.

Where to Find• Sub Folder

• Principal/Special Education Case-Manager

• Other teachers that currently work with the student

When in doubt: Ask! • Prevents problems in the classroom

• Save you time/effort

• Avoid missteps in carrying out IEP

Where to Not to Find• Other students

• Teachers who do not currently serve

student

• Input may not be up-to-date

• Violates FERPA

Information regarding student

On the IEP…

What is important to

remember regarding

Positive Behavior

Support Plans?

Outcome 4What to know when working with students who have disabilities

Executive Dysfunctionimpairment or deficits in the higher-order processes that enable us to plan,

sequence, initiate, and sustain our behavior towards some goal, incorporating

feedback and making adjustments along the way.

How Executive Dysfunction look in students?

Behavior inhibition

Struggles with Planning

Self-regulation

Mental flexibility-adjusting to change, “rule police”

Common Causes of Meltdowns

Change

New people

Misreading situation

Anticipations/expectations not met

Not understanding the language

Sarcasm

Directions that differ from the norm

Not allowed to leave a situation that is causing

anxiety

Emotional Regulation

Reaction to change can be different and/or more

intense than peers’ reaction

Unstructured time is more difficult to navigate

Stimuli May get overstimulated by loud noises, lights, strong tastes or

textures, because of the heightened sensitivity to these things.

With lots of other kids, chaos and noise, please try to help find

a quiet spot to which he can go for some "solace".

Unstructured times (such as lunch, break and PE) may prove to

be the most difficult for the student. Try to help provide some

guidance and extra adult help during these more difficult

times.

Allow student to "move about" as sitting still for long periods of

time can be very difficult (even a 5 minute walk can help a

lot). When able, utilize sensory items such as therapy ball,

heavy lifting etc.

Best Practices

Getting and Giving Directions

Am I making myself clear? Explicit?

Have I made a lot of impromptu changes?

Is writing the steps out indicated on IEP? Consider even if

not on IEP

Do I set a deadline (or a mutually agreed upon deadline)

GO Visual!

Classroom-Adjust Communication

Be aware of your own communication style and how it can affect students

Omit sarcasm

You get “buy-in” from an ASD student when you demonstrate your knowledge in an area.

Don’t fake knowledge. Admit not knowing everything!

In times of crises implement Low and Slow technique.

Lower your voice (calm, cool, collected)

Take things slowly (give processing time)

Do not assume getting right up next to the student is what is needed. Be aware of the student’s need for space.

Classroom-Transitions

Prepare by cueing (next activity, time remaining)

be sure to have attention before you cue

Slow and organized…methodical

If any mishaps try to clarify what occurred and

why. Make it a learning experience.

Processing Time

Allow for extra time in processing. If need to probe, do so with explanation: “I don’t know where you are in the process, but I want to check if you are still with me on this.”

Interruptions can cause them to lose train of thought and they will most often start the whole process over again.

If there is not enough time for them to finish, tell them when they will get the time and don’t go back on your word.

Instructional Programs

Reading Mastery

Connecting Math

Bridges Intervention

ACE