Stop Light This may look familiar. I talked about using this in my transportation post for final consonant deletion. I love multi-purpose therapy tools! I use this for a visual reminder for my students (mostly my preschool and kindergarten kids). I print out their names, add velcro and the goal is to stay on green the whole time. If they move to yellow then they can still earn their way back up to green, but if they get on red that means no sticker and I report back to their teacher/parents. Usually just getting on yellow puts them in check and they are ready to work after just that warning. You can also use terms like green choices (good choices) or red choices (bad choices). Thought Pails My friend Angela uses this with her groups and it does wonders. Blue or Purple sticks means she's having "good" thoughts about the student. Red or yellow sticks mean she's having "weird" thoughts about the student and they need to fix the issue. These visual reminders really seem to help. Token Boards I found this great resource along with many other visuals off elearning.autism.net. Some kids need a constant visual reminder of what they are working towards. These token boards are great with that. I will often use them with my younger kids working on articulation that just don't have the attention to task that is required to complete the drill practice. Here is another great visual from Live Speak Love I'm a big believer in positive reinforcement. When I see a student sitting quietly and doing what they are asked to do I try and make sure I tell them, " I like that Johnny is sitting with his hands in his lap." This usually encourages the other students to do what's being asked as well. What do you all do to promote making good choices? Leave a comment below so everyone can see!
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
special education, behavior, behavior plans, BIPs, writing a behavior plan
Brown Family Mission Statement They've taken the advice of Big Pappa Joe, but will they follow through? Of course this is all in fun, but what would your Mission Statement be for the Browns. Mine would be more of a list for Kody Brown. In my head it look like a blackboard, where he has to write out sentences. 1. I will keep my hands and feet to myself. 2. I will respect others. 3. I will take turns and share with my family. 4. I will put the needs of my family over my wants. 5. I will get a real job, spend less and save more. 6. I will remember to be a HUMBLE servant of my religious beliefs, and promise to never yell out "we're polygamists!" again like it's a High School sports team. 7. My hair will take a backseat to my children's' needs and airtime. 8. I will quit alternating between blaming others for my families disorganization and squawking that you want to bark orders and be obeyed. Be the head of the family, and mature about it. 9. I will behave as well as my children do. And remember to be thankful for the children I have-and spend more time with them. 10. Quite simply, I will grow up or change TV shows and put on a Peter Pan outfit. If Kody would change his behavior, the entire dynamics of the family would greatly benefit. After all, he is the HEAD of the family, planet, universe.....at least in his eyes. For Meri I have basically on point to make. If your family is your mission, remember this, Meri. Repeat after me: I will remember I wanted to follow the polygamist religion of my family, and could have had Kody one way or the other. I chose this path. I wanted this path and talked Kody into it. Kody would have married me and also stayed in the LDS. I CHOSE this, I will treat the other women like I should. I will also quit spending money on ridiculous things and save for the children of this family. Walk the Walk. I will now start behaving like an adult and follow the simple rules of kindergarten. Meri, you seem to be in the orange or red all the time! Turn that frown upside down! What would your Brown Family Mission Statement Be?
⬆️ LOOK HERE for our Self-Reg Resource Library, full of books, blogs, podcasts, courses and more. Start your Self-Reg learning journey here.
Guess what came in the mail today! My Yacker Tracker Deluxe ! I am so tickled that it came with smiley stickers. It seems to work well...
*Updated February 2016* If you would like to read my new Three Part Series on Classroom Management for updated tips and FREEBIES, please click the photo below. Otherwise, scroll on down for this original post. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Teaching! The Lesson Plan Diva is hosting a Behavior Plans and Classroom Management Linky Party...Click HERE to check it out! I've only been teaching for four years, but in this short period of time, my classroom management style has changed drastically. My first year, I used a card pulling system, and my second year I used some counting techniques in addition to that. Half way through my second year, I stumbled upon some information about responsive classroom techniques and positive discipline on Proteacher. After trying out some new ideas, I have finally found my management style, and I love it! Nowadays, my classroom management is centered around daily classroom meetings and problem-solving. My students learn to monitor and change their own behavior through role-playing, responding to literature, and lots of student-centered conversation about the way we want our classroom to be. We no longer use cards, clips, rewards, or punishments, and the result has been much less stress for me:). At the beginning of the year, my students and I first talk about our hopes and dreams for the school year. We talk about the kind of classroom we want to have, and then we discuss a plan for creating that environment. We make our class rules through a series of discussions and brainstorming sessions. First, I have my students list all of the rules they think we might want to have in our room. Then, we go back and categorize the rules. Most of our rules fit under the same broad categories, so my rules are pretty similar from year to year. After giving each category of rules a title, we phrase the rules into "Our Class Promise," which is hung as an anchor chart and signed by everyone in the class (including me). The picture above is of our class promise from a few years ago--I wasn't as specific with it then. Every day during our class meeting time, we read our rules together (this year, I'm hoping to add actions to the rules so they will be more easily remembered by my kinesthetic learners). Here is an example of my classroom's promise: We promise...to be safe and careful, to be kind and respectful in our words and actions, to do our best first grade work, and to make ourselves proud by doing the right thing! Notice how that last rule encompasses lots of possibilities:) When we have problems in the classroom, I try to address them as respectfully as possible, and this can occur in a number of ways. Sometimes, I'll simply ask the child to remember our promise, and this will provide immediate correction. Sometimes, I'll ask a child to cool-down for a minute to reflect on his or her actions. This cool-down is not a punishment, but just a time to rethink, and the students are welcome to rejoin the class when they feel ready. Students sometimes go to cool-down without my asking--this works well for those who need a quiet time to reflect or avoid frustration. In solving behavior problems, I'll also sometimes ask a student if he or she wants the class to help him or her solve the problem, and we'll address it as a class during our daily meeting. The students practice "helping, not hurting," so this is the focus, rather than making the child feel bad. I also use logical consequences such as going back and walking when a student does something like running in the hall. During class meetings, we usually read our promise, share compliments and appreciations, solve any problems the kiddos are having, and do a team-building exercise. We might also read a story focusing on character education, or have a mini-lesson. The students learn things such as how to tell the difference between tattling and reporting, how to make I-statements, how to help friends solve problems, and how to use "The Wheel of Choice" to solve a problem. If a student has severe issues that cannot be solved during class meetings, I create a modified behavior plan for that child. This is a plan that involves the teacher, the student, and his or her parents. It takes some effort to stick with it, but I have found it really effective in helping students make positive changes. Here is what you do...talk to the parents and child about three small goals that you would like him or her to focus on. Also discuss a logical consequence that will occur if the child does not exhibit the particular behavior. Furthermore, discuss three rewards the child might like to earn if he or she reaches the goal. Record these items on the behavior chart. During class, monitor the child's behavior in regards to the goals and give him or her a smiley/sad face for every 30 minutes during the school day (I set a timer on the child's desk). In the first two weeks of using the plan, I ask the child to try for 50% achievement. If he or she is consistent in getting 50% smilies, we increase the goal to 75% for a few weeks, and then 95% for another couple of weeks. Each day the child reaches his or her goal, allow him or her to choose one of his or her rewards. I like to use free activities as rewards such as lunch with a friend, computer time, or extra centers time. The behavior plan is sent home each day and returned with a parent signature and comments as necessary. Because this plan involves teacher effort in monitoring and recording the student behavior, I usually only use this plan with one or two children at a time for about a 2 month period, as needed. I try to remember that the goal is improvement and not perfection, and that it takes time for the students to learn new behaviors. I know that was a ton of info at once, and really just a big overview, so if you want to learn more about classroom meetings, positive discipline, or responsive classroom techniques, see these wonderful resources, or feel free to ask specific questions and I'll do my best to answer! Also, if you'd like to use any of my documents, you are welcome to click on the pictures above to download them from google docs. Favorite Responsive Classroom and Positive Discipline Resources:
Hey everyone! Hope you are enjoying your Saturday. Mine has been spent cleaning, doing laundry, and of course, catching up on more school...
An Occupational Therapist recently provided this program for a student that had trouble with having too much energy in the classroom. The Alert Program provided a system for the student to recogniz…
The breakdown of the types of prompts to be used with special learners.
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
Would you like to decorate your classroom with fun, hand-drawn anchor charts/posters? Do you simply not have the time to get them done? Well, you have come to the perfect place! I love making these engaging and appealing anchor charts. I also can draw/create any other topic you would like, just contact me directly and ask! My students absolutely love these posters and references them every day. Many of them are visual learners, so the colorful images really help them connect and remember what they have learned. This particular anchor chart is for readers/writers practicing "R" controlled vowels. These can be a little tricky for students, so using the "Bossy R" character seems to really help them understand the rule. It will be approximately 32 x 24 inches, and will be a copy of my original. **These will be copies unless asked otherwise for a custom poster. They are not laminated, and are printed on normal, anchor chart paper. I ship these out ASAP after being ordered, but please keep in mind once shipped, it is outside of my control. Therefore, if shipping does not meet your expectations, I highly encourage you to please reach out to me first, and we have always been able to work something out to make up for anything that may have occurred after I have sent your package, thanks so much!! Hope you love it :)
Teaching students to listen is no easy task. Sometimes, I feel like I am trying to herd a bunch of cats! I use a “Whole Body Listening” poster in my classroom. The speech pathologists and ABA teachers at my school introduced me to “Whole Body Listening.” They use a Whole Body Listening Social Story they created through Boardmaker to give the students an idea of what whole body listening looks like. The idea behind the social story is based on an article written by Susanne Poulette (Truesdale) called “Whole-Body Listening: Developing Active Auditory Skills.” As you know, many students on the spectrum struggle with eye contact while speaking. I have found that through my years of mainstreaming, the social story worked well for all of my students. It is a great way to remind students of what active listening involves. I decided to make these posters to refer to when I wanted my students to actively listen. The mini-posters can be cut laminated and taped down to students’ desk. These are great for non-verbal cues. Now, when I need students to listen, I simply say “Whole Body Listening.” Click the picture above to download my posters and class-made book activity for free. I have always used this book, Listen and Learn by Cheri J. Meiners as an introduction to listening in my classroom. Another adorable book is called Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns to Listen by Howard Binkow. Through a bit more internet searching, I found this book called Whole Body Listening Larry at School!. It was also inspired by Susanne Poulette's article. I think this book would be great to read to your students on the first few days of school. Please, do not make "Whole Body Listening" a rule. Most students cannot sit still for long periods of time. In my own classroom, I allow students to stand to do do work as long as they push their chair in and stand behind it. I find they like to stand during center time and while creating art projects. I also ask my OT therapists to borrow "Movin' Sit Cushions," these help the especially fidgety children by letting them bounce or move a bit in their chair while still sitting down. Another tip would be to place Velcro inside the student's desk. He/ she can run his/her fingers along the soft and hard Velcro instead of playing with things in his/her desk. I hope these freebies help your students! For more listening ideas and to link up with yours, go to Blog Hoppin' by clicking below. Here is a link for an article about Susanne Poulette. *Susanne Poulette, a New York speech pathologist coined the term "Whole-Body Listening" with this article (click {here} to read it): Whole-Body Listening: Developing Active Auditory Skills, Susanne P. Truesdale Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools Vol.21 183-184 July 1990.
I've been creating anchor charts to go with each unit. The charts hang around the room, hopefully reminding students of specific skills, steps, or formats. Two of the most recent charts are pictured here. Other charts are in this prezi.
Salam.. found this when i was looking for 'Bird Theme Activities'.I got these from home teacher . She is a really creative mommy. This can ...
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
We Enable Strategic Outcomes through Leadership, Learning and Change Interventions Get in Touch! Read Our Blog Leadership Development Leverage two decades of leadership experience to facilitate strategic leadership workshops and build leaders through customized interventions. Explore Change Consulting & Facilitation Facilitate large scale strategic change programs to clarify and implement goals, focus areas and strategy - Page 5
This value set of six visually stimulating board games targets good social skills and behavior. The six games included in the set cover Morals, Manners, Empathy, Showing Emotions, Friendship, and Managing Emotions. Each game supports the development of social and emotional skills and the consolidation of those already learned. This set of social skills: board games for autism provides a comprehensive approach to promoting the social and emotional skills that underpin effective learning, positive behavior, regular attendance, staff effectiveness, and the emotional health and well-being of students. Includes 6 games made from durable cardboard measuring 16¼" x 11½", 24 colored counters, 1 die, and 1 spinner.Small parts, not for children under 3 years old
Tantrums Don’t Help Me Fix a Problem is a social story created by TAP. This particular social story is written to help children understand why tantrums will not fix their problem. It also hel…
Have you ever had a class that just tried your patience day after day? Have you ever felt like you could walk away from teaching forever tom...
In my classroom and in my role as an autism & low-incidence disability coach, few days go by when I am not trying to decipher student behavior. After working with hundreds of students and thousands of educational professionals, I have developed a 5-step system for behavioral intervention that has worked really well. In today's post, I will walk you through each step to help you with solving problem behaviors that may be impacting student success in your classroom. Step 1: Determine the Function of the Behavior It is essential to know what motivates a student’s behavior in order to implement function-based interventions to address the same function. If the intervention doesn’t meet the same need as the function, then it will not be effective. There are 4 main functions of behavior. Sensory: Sensory-motivated behavior does not depend on others and may occur when the student is alone and without any demands being placed on them. Some examples could be humming, chair tipping, or hand flapping. Sensory-motivated behaviors are sometimes referred to as "automatically-motivated" behaviors because the reinforcement is automatic and doesn't rely on others. Escape: Escape-motivated behavior results in avoiding or postponing aversive or unpreferred activities. A student may elope to escape a sensory overwhelming environment or they may start throwing lesson materials in an attempt to get staff to terminate task demands. Attention: Attention-motivated behavior results in immediate attention from others such as a peer laughing when a student makes funny noises or a paraprofessional giving a big emotional reaction when pushed. Tangible: Tangibly-motivated behaviors result in access to preferred items or activities. For example, a student may climb shelving to gain access to a favorite musical toy or they may steal food from a classmate who still has some of their snack left. Tangibly-motivated behavior is sometimes referred to as "access-motivated" behavior because it allows the student access to what they want. When determining the behavioral function, if 3 or more functions are within 1-3 points of each other or all of the scores are relatively high, then the function of the behavior is determined to be communication because the student is using the behavior to communicate a variety of functions or needs. These scores can be determined using a behavioral assessment. I have several favorites that are all FREE! After reading about each option below, click on the links to be directed to options for each tool. Motivation Assessment Scale (MAS): this is a quick 16-question survey that is user-friendly and focuses on a single behavior. It is my "go-to" because it is so easy to use and can be done quickly during a team meeting or I can give it to various members of the team and average the scores to get multiple perspectives on the same behavior. Functional Assessment Screening Tool (FAST): this is another quick option that tends to be a favorite amongst BCBAs. It is also relatively user-friendly and focuses on a single behavior. Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA): this is the most comprehensive option when done well. I emphasize done well because too often I see FBAs completed just to fulfill a paperwork requirement, completed by an outside agency that truly doesn't know the student, or completed and never visited again. What a waste! A good FBA requires a team effort and lots of mindful data collection and analysis. For this reason it can be pretty time-consuming which can make it more challenging to get done. Once the assessment is completed, the function with the highest total score (relative ranking of 1) is the primary function of the behavior. If there is a tie or if there is another function within 1-3 points of the primary function, then this is considered the secondary function. Step 2: Choose a function-based behavioral intervention Once the function has been determined, select an intervention that will meet the same motivation. Interventions may change the way staff responds to the behavior and/or may teach the individual more appropriate ways of getting their needs met. Function-based interventions should be implemented with fidelity across all staff members and environments. Plan to implement this intervention for a minimum of 4 weeks. A foundation of my Function-Based Behavior Intervention Cheat Sheets and Implementation Plan is the cheat sheets themselves which take 25 different behaviors and provides behavior intervention ideas for each of the functions of behavior for quick reference. Step 3: Design the Behavior Plan What do you want the student to do instead of engaging in the problem behavior that will meet the same function? It is important to determine a replacement behavior that says what the student will do NOT doing something or refraining from the problem behavior is not a replacement behavior. The replacement behavior needs to be functionally-equivalent to the problem behavior in order for it to be effective. Once you choose a replacement behavior, there are 5 steps you can follow to effectively teach the behavior. This framework can be used when developing a student's Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP). 1. Direct Instruction: The replacement behavior needs to be explicitly taught to the student so that they understand the expectation and begin to see the benefit or how the behavior may be equally or more effective in meeting the desired function. 2. Practice: In a structured setting, set up opportunities for the student to practice the skill. Then, as appropriate, proactively schedule opportunities for the student to practice the skill in the context of their typical daily routine to promote generalization. 3. Priming: Prime the student to remind them of the replacement behavior especially before times or events that have been previously challenging. Determine consistent verbal and/or visual cues that can be used across all team members. 4. Prompting: In the moment when the student is engaging in problem behaviors and/or needs a reminder, prompt the student to use the replacement behavior. Determine consistent verbal and/or visual cues that can be used across all team members. 5. Reinforce: The replacement behavior itself should be highly reinforcing because it should meet the same function of the problem behavior. It is critical for all team members to immediately acknowledge and honor the use of the replacement behavior so that the student knows it is equally or more effective than the behavior. Additional praise or reinforcement for using the replacement behavior can also be beneficial. Step 4: Collect Behavior Data It is important to monitor the student’s behavior to determine the effectiveness of the function-based intervention so that you can make data-driven decisions about continuing or adjusting the intervention. My Function-Based Behavior Intervention Cheat Sheets and Implementation Plan includes 4 different data collection sheet options to ensure all team members are using the same data collection method for increased fidelity. 1. Antecedent-Behavior-Consequence (A-B-C) Checklist: Records antecedent/events (A) that immediately precede the target behavior (B), and the consequences/ events (C) that happen immediately following the behavior. I love this checklist version because it is MUCH more time-effective than anecdotal notes. 2. Scatterplot: Records when a behavior occurs at ant time within an interval of time (typically 10-15 minutes) 3. Frequency Data: Records the number of occurrences of the target behavior 4. Duration Data: Records the amount of time in which a behavior occurs Take data for a minimum of 4 weeks once the function-based intervention is introduced to have enough data to analyze for effectiveness. Step 5: Analyze Behavior Data Review the collected data to determine the level of progress based on the data patterns. Below are some general guidelines: Mastery The target behavior(s) have been extinguished The target behavior(s) have been greatly reduced to a level that is no longer significant Adequate Progress The target behavior data is steadily decreasing The replacement behavior data is steadily increasing Slow Progress The target behavior data is decreasing but the rate is slow The target behavior data has plateaued The replacement behavior data is increasing slowly Inconsistent Progress The target behavior data is not consistently decreasing The replacement behavior data is not consistently increasing No Progress The data trend has remained consistent with initial tracking for either the target behavior (remains high) or the replacement behavior (remains low) The target behavior data is increasing Make data-driven decisions about the effectiveness of the function-based intervention using the available data. For easy reference, more in-depth explanations, and the cheat sheets mentioned above. Head over to my TPT store to grab my Function-Based Behavior Intervention Cheat Sheets and Implementation Plan.
No....this mini series isn't about getting married....in the special ed world, we know that elopement is just a fancy word for running away. This is one of the most challenging behaviors to deal with in a school setting as it is disruptive and can be very dangerous. As a consultant in a school district, this is one of the most common issues I get called in to help with. As some of you may already know from reading my blog, I do not like to be put in a position where I have to be re-active on the fly to challenging behavior. I would rather PREVENT the behavior from occurring in the first place...and then if the behavior still occurs (which it most likely will), I want a specific plan laid out so everyone in my classroom knows what to do. This mini series of posts will cover identifying function/replacement behavior for elopement, simple to implement prevention strategies, and creating a safety plan. As we discussed in my last post, identifying the function of the behavior and teaching a replacement behavior are key ways to reduce elopement, but today we will talk about some simple strategies you can implement to prevent the behavior from occurring in the first place. 1) Arranging the environment. The student who elopes should be seated away from the door. Use furniture to make the door slightly harder to get to (not saying you should block the door with furniture, but if you use furniture to define the different spaces in your room, you most likely will avoid having a straight shot pathway to the door). You may want to consider placing some window chimes on the door so you can hear when it opens as well...this may not prevent elopement, but will at least speed up your reaction time if it does occur. 2) Visuals. As I mentioned in my last post, keeping visuals by the door or easily accessible around the room can help your student communicate their wants/needs. This may help to increase functional communication and also decrease running. Two visuals I always keep by my door are one for "water" and "bathroom." I have had a few students who don't run often, but when they do, it is for one of these two reasons. Having these visuals by the door is a prompt for them to grab one and bring it over to me or another adult before leaving the classroom. If your student seems to be running out of the room to visit a certain person/classroom or to get access to something, put a picture of the person or object right by the door. Then, when they pick this up and give it to you (you may need to teach them to do this), make sure to honor their request and at least go look for the person or object they are requesting. It may also be helpful to have visuals on the door such as a stop sign or a visual reminder to ask a teacher before leaving the classroom. 3) Increase engagement in the classroom. You want your classroom to have it going on and be the place all your students WANT to be. Find activities that are motivating and related to your students' interests. If your student loves Pokemon or angry birds, make their handwriting worksheets with pictures of these characters and have them write words related to these topics. Find ways to incorporate academics into hands-on activities or games (my kids always loved cooking!). If the function of your student's elopement seems to be for escape, try reducing the amount of demands that are placed on him or her during the day or reducing the amount of work he/she has to complete (these can always be faded back in later...but for now, let's just see if it makes a difference in reducing this dangerous behavior). 4) Always reinforce the appropriate replacement behavior. I know I mentioned this earlier, but it is that important. We can't expect our students to change their patterns of behavior unless their requests are honored. Remember, if it is easier to get what they want by running, they will continue to run. We need to make the replacement behavior the easier option in order to get them to decrease running. 5) Schedules. Have a visual schedule to increase the predictability of the day for your student. If you think running needs to be a part of their day, schedule it into their day at regular times. 6) Schedule in attention. If your student seems to be running to gain attention, try giving them attention regularly to prevent them from needing to run in order to get some face time with you. You can download apps on your phone for interval training or use a Motivaider to provide you with reminders. For instance, if you set your interval app to go off every 10 minutes, when you feel the vibration, you can simply walk over to the student, give them a little attention, and then go back about your business. In ABA, we call this noncontingent attention which basically means the student doesn't have to do anything to get the attention...you are just giving out some freebies to try and prevent them from needing to engage in an inappropriate behavior in order to get it. 7) Communication within your building. Talk to your administrator as well as staff that your student comes in contact with when running. For example, make sure the cafeteria staff know not to give him snacks when he comes in without an adult (yes...this happened) or tell staff who encounter him in the hallway to call for back up, but avoid interacting or chasing the student (especially if you think the function of the behavior is for attention). If the severity of the behavior warrants it, you may want to send an email to staff within the building letting them know what to do if they see the student without an adult present. 8) Staff coverage. Any students who elope should be accounted for by a staff member at all times of the day. Make sure that on your staff schedules they know not only what activities they are doing during the day, but also what students they are assigned to. As much as I love my Fitbit steps, I would prefer NOT to get them from running after students. Let me know if you have any other tips that worked for you in your classroom. Email me [email protected] with pictures and I would love to add them to this post!
