If you are tired of searching for a solid reading program, look no further. Pathway to Fluency is a complete and comprehensive Science of Reading
Kids and young adults need social-emotional skills to be successful at school, home, and for the rest of their lives. These are the skills that help kids build confidence, understand their own strengths and weaknesses, collaborate with others, navigate social situations, develop strong relationships
Simple DIY water xylophone takes a couple minutes to make and is a great sound activity, experiment, and music activity for kids too!
Executive functioning skills are getting a lot of attention right now in education. Honestly, it's not even the amount of attention that they deserve, though. Executive functions are essentially the building blocks for completing all tasks in life (in school and beyond). If you think of executive
What is non-traditional education? We explore the reasons why someone may not want to study through traditional avenues. Study an online course with ADL today!
Many of our learners who have multiple disabilities we are often somewhat limited in what sensory pathways we can use to teach new skills or build cognition. Our students may be deaf, blind, have reduced tactile sensation, be unable to eat or even taste foods by mouth or be unable to participate in most vestibular and proprioceptive activities because of medical conditions like orthostatic hypotension or brittle bones. These means that the sense of smell may be the most powerful means of accessing our students skills. Most of us are sure to include the sense of smell in our cooking lessons, passing around the vanilla extract or onion for every one to sniff. Yet how can we include the sense of smell in other areas of the curriculum. 1. Consistently call attention to the scent of items in natural settings, if possible pairing the scent with another sense such as touch or hearing. Have your student notice the smell of the crayon while feeling its shape and making the movements for coloring hand over hand. Notice the odor of the playground ball as you roll it and bounce it. Observe the smell or the toothpaste and hand soap while doing activities of daily living. 2. If at all possible consider embedding scent into a visual schedule/calendar box system. A few drops of an essential oil like evergreen or gardenia can be added to the "outside" symbol, a minty toothpasty kind of smell added to the ADLs symbol or a lemony smell for vocational tasks that involve using citrus scented cleaners. 3. Ask people to try to stick to the same perfume, aftershave, scented lotion or or even deodorant so students can associate a person with a scent. 4. Attempt to embed scents into theme units. Learning about India? Introduce each lesson with the smell of curry. Learning about gardening? Introduce each lesson with the smell damp soil (put some in a baby food jar). Think about this when you plan out your unit. 5. Using a systematic program (such as Every Move Counts) do a preference assessment on your student's favorite scents. You can then use this scent to reinforce learning activities. For example teaching switch use using a scent diffuser and an environmental controller.
Supporting kids and teens with challenging behaviors in the classroom. Teachers and parents can use this guide to come up with strategies and techniques to help when kids don't follow directions or act out in challenging ways. It also includes a link to a free cheat sheet!
All kids benefit from practicing mindfulness. Who wouldn't love the kids and young adults we work with to become more focused, calm, in control, and self-aware? Mindfulness is a technique that can help teach and strengthen those abilities over time. By practicing mindfulness, people can learn to bec
Kindness is an important social skill the plays a huge role in creating a positive learning environment for all. When we have kinder students, kids are better able to work together, share, express differing opinions in respectful ways, and help each other when someone is in need. To help teach a
Children love exploring with magnets, and these magnet mazes and pathways let them experiment while working on coordination & problem solving.
As a middle school special educator, social skills have been one of my favorite areas to teach. These skills are so important but often get left behind, especially in the upper grades. These are a number of roadblocks to teaching social skills to kids and young adults, including now having enough ti
Social scripts, also known as stories, are one of the most effective and simple ways to provide support to kids with autism. A social script is a short narrative written in first person that discusses one problem situation. So, they come in especially handy for really any situation that comes up. So
This career cluster is focused on planning, managing, and providing education and training services, and related learning support services.
If you are tired of searching for a solid reading program, look no further. Pathway to Fluency is a complete and comprehensive Science of Reading
Science fair projects don't have to be a headache - here are tons of fun and easy science fair project ideas for all ages! Science Fair Projects for Kids
First grade is a very important year where students are building a strong foundation in their journey for mathematical proficiency. One of the most
12 interactive and fun games to teach self-control and build self-regulation skills for kids and teens. Strong skills for self-control are the foundation for success in and outside of the classroom.
Kids and young adults need social-emotional skills to be successful at school, home, and for the rest of their lives. These are the skills that help kids build confidence, understand their own strengths and weaknesses, collaborate with others, navigate social situations, develop strong relationships
If you are tired of searching for a solid reading program, look no further. Pathway to Fluency is a complete and comprehensive Science of Reading
Relationship building is the single most important way you can impact a child's life. So often, kids actually can't learn from someone they can't connect with. I'm also convinced that building a strong relationship with a kid or young adult diminishes a huge number of behavior challenges. Many times
The proprioception sense helps with coordination and strength. Learn more about developing the body awareness sense.
If you are tired of searching for a solid reading program, look no further. Pathway to Fluency is a complete and comprehensive Science of Reading
Learn how the auditory system works, signs of auditory processing issues, and strategies to use for over-response and under-responsive auditory processing.
Working with kids and young adults who are oppositional can be challenging. Being oppositional might mean refusing to do work, breaking rules, and engaging in other challenging behaviors. The truth is, many kids can be oppositional from time to time, so many of these strategies work with all learner
Solutions for Social Emotional Learning & Executive Functioning
Strategies and supports for executive functioning challenges can make all the difference, especially for students who struggle with task initiation. This is such an important skill, since it's like the motor in allowing us to get started on all tasks and assignments. When someone is struggling to in
Social skills are a critical element to helping kids succeed socially, emotionally, personally, and even academically. These are the skills are the behaviors that help kids join in conversations, collaborate with peers, develop lasting friendships, self-advocate when they need help, and so much more
There's more to development than milestones. Track your child's play and social skills, coordination, daily activities, and self-expression abilities.
One of the great things about living in the middle of North Carolina is that you are nearly an equal distance between the beach and mountains. (I lean towards mountains if you’re wondering and I’d say that, while not uncommon, it’s the minority position.) As we near the end of the school year, some of […]
If you are tired of searching for a solid reading program, look no further. Pathway to Fluency is a complete and comprehensive Science of Reading
Being able to de-escalate and defuse situations with kids and young adults is an extremely helpful skill. Kids and young adults who become emotionally overwhelmed or irritated in a situation may begin to express their emotions in challenging ways. Some examples of these behaviors might include aggre
Do you know that a part of the brain is responsible for your Language and Speech Areas? Lateralization of the brain: In human beings, it is the left hemisphere that usually contains the specialized…
Special educators need a pretty large toolbox of strategies and resources to support our learners. So often, our students can have significantly diverse needs and levels. On any given day, special education teachers might need to take student reading data, modify a math assessment, teach science wit
Have you heard that the brain is plastic? Brain plasticity or neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to reorganize, change, and grow new neural pathways throughout the lifespan. But did you know that cognitive exercises can play a significant role in plasticity? This can be a game changer for individuals with dyslexia and other learning disabilities, because these learners can actually strengthen weak areas of cognition. What is Cognitive Remedial Therapy? Cognitive Remedial Therapy is an approach that uses focused cognitive activities to improve core neurocognitive abilities such as attention, working memory, mental flexibility, planning, processing speed as well as visual, auditory, sequential and simultaneous processing. Can Cognitive Remedial Therapy Erase Deficits? Much like a personal trainer can strengthen a weak tendon or muscle through targeted, repetitive workouts, a learning specialist or educational therapist can enhance and improve cognition, through focused mental exercises. There is a three step process. First, assess a student’s cognitive processing abilities. This information can be gleaned from psycho-educational or neuropsychological reports. Second, you want to define the cognitive processing weaknesses. This can be determined by locating the lowest cognitive test scores. And third, you want to implement focused exercises that commence at one’s current ability and gradually increase in difficulty. What are the Tools for Success? You can create and implement your own exercises, or you can use a bundle of activities and games created for students with dyslexia. Again, be sure to follow the three step process. First assess cognition. Second, define weaknesses. And third, implement exercises. For the best results, do the activities for 10-15 minutes, 3 times a week. Come Watch my Video on Cognitive Remedial Therapy I hope you found this helpful! Please like, share and comment on the video! Cheers, Dr. Erica Warren Dr. Erica Warren is the author, illustrator and publisher of multisensory educational materials at Good Sensory Learning. She is also the director of Learning to Learn and Go Dyslexia, in Ossining, NY. To learn more about her products and services, you can go to https://godyslexia.com/, www.goodsensorylearning.com, & www.learningtolearn.biz · Blog: https://learningspecialistmaterials.blogspot.com/· YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/warrenerica1· Podcast: https://godyslexia.com/· Store: http://www.Goodsensorylearning.com/ · Courses: http://www.learningspecialistcourses.com/· Newsletter Sign-up: https://app.convertkit.com/landing_pages/69400
Relationship building is the single most important way you can impact a child's life. So often, kids actually can't learn from someone they can't connect with. I'm also convinced that building a strong relationship with a kid or young adult diminishes a huge number of behavior challenges. Many times
Kids and young adults need social-emotional skills to be successful at school, home, and for the rest of their lives. These are the skills that help kids build confidence, understand their own strengths and weaknesses, collaborate with others, navigate social situations, develop strong relationships
If you are tired of searching for a solid reading program, look no further. Pathway to Fluency is a complete and comprehensive Science of Reading
