Wordless Wednesday: Reading for Meaning

 

How do you help your students read for meaning?

Movement Breaks with a little freebie!

I grew up in the 80's and honestly I don't remember movement breaks or kids having trouble sitting still during class.  My classrooms were the traditional desks lined up in rows.  Kids today aren't successful in that kind of classroom.  They NEED movement.  They really NEED it.  Allowing them to move helps kids learn:) 

 

  

What resources can be used to give kiddos a much needed sensory break?

Play dough is a great hands on learning tool.

 Alternative seating options that allow movement while learning.

 

I don't have these stools but they look cool.

 

I just got a few of these balls from WittFitt.  I can't wait to see if they help some of my very active kiddos.



Here are a few learning ideas that involve sensory.  (I found them on Pinterest)  I haven't tried them personally but I thought that they looked cool.

The theraband is a tool that helps control active feet. 

A movement grid is a tool that can be done whole class but it can also be used as a 

movement break for students who need it during whole class instruction.  I have been messing around with creating my own movement board.  Click the picture to snag it for yourself.

This a lot of the information in this post was obtained from a Shannon Samulski conference.  She has a background in special education.  Shannon Samulski has a blog called Interventions on the Go if you would like to check it out.

Until next time,

A SUPER SIMPLE INTERVENTION

I was lucky enough to attend the Ohio Kindergarten conference in Columbus, Ohio January 13th and 14th.  I was star struck to get to meet big named bloggers like Deanna Jump and DeeDee Wills.  I came back with a ton of great information that I am excited to try out.

Those of you who have followed me for awhile know that I am not a kindergarten teacher but I am an interventionist that works with kinders.  I firmly believe that early intervention is KEY in preventing academic difficulties in at risk students.

At the conference, I was also fortunate enough to get to hear Shannon Samulski speak who has a background in special education.  She has a blog called Interventions on the Go if you would like to check it out.  For her blog post about "Sandwiching" Information click here. 

Do you have that student who you could do everything even stand on your head and the information just does not ever seem to go into the student long term memory?  If you have ever had this happen to you then you will understand why I found the following information PROFOUND.  It is so simple.  Why did I not think of it???

Surround the brain with KNOWN information and it will help the UNKNOWN information STICK. 

As my teenager would say, "I know, right?"  It is so simple and makes total sense.

Are you ready for it?? It gets even simpler.  All you need are ten cards and a metal ring and you are ready to get started with this intervention.

1.  Assess the student to determine known and unknown information
2.  Write/type the known information on 7 of the cards and make sure that these cards have a symbol in the corner to show that this is KNOWN information.
3.  Then on the other three cards write/type three bits of information that you want your student to learn.
4.  Then hole punch and place on the ring using the following sequence: 
known known unknown known known unknown known known unknown known
5.  Once the unknown information becomes known either move the card to a known slot or remove it from the ring.

This intervention can be used for letters, sounds, shapes, colors, sight words, fry phrases, math facts, science concepts, social studies concepts, etc.  This intervention also has no age limit!!  It will work for kinders but it would also work for high school students.  The information being used would just be different.

Don't stress and think that every student in your class needs an intervention ring.  Only about 3-5 students from your class should need this intervention:)

I have a student in kinder that is struggling to retain her shapes, numbers, and sight words.  She does know 24/26 letters and sounds but still does not perform well on AIMS probes when she is timed.

Here are the cards I came up with for her intervention ring.  I am going to have a ring for sight words, one for shapes, and one for numbers. 

I put three stars on the concepts she still needs to learn so that we can color them in as she demonstrates she has retained it. 

I put a smiley face on the concepts she already knows.

I can't wait to get started using this intervention next week!  Just in case you want to try this super simple intervention yourself, I created a little something to get you started! An editable template so you can add your own concepts!!

Enjoy, friends!

If you would like a hard copy explanation about this researched based click here.
(**this was not created by me.  I located it on the internet.)

Temple Grandin & No More Meltdowns!

As an intervention specialist one of the coolest things is to see a person with disabilities become a successful member of society.  My mother teaches the multiple handicapped at a high school level and has always been one of my personal heroes.  I have a hard enough time juggling students with learning disabilities or students that have ADHD that interferes with their academics.  Teaching students with severe disabilities takes a special gift that I don't have but I truly admire those who do!  Therefore, when my mom wanted me to attend a Temple Grandin conference I jumped at the chance.

 Talk about an inspiration!  I have always wanted to hear her speak especially after seeing the HBO movie where Claire Danes plays Temple Grandin.  I was not disappointed!  We heard Temple speak Friday and she was fantastic!  It was so interesting to hear about autism from a person who was actually afflicted with the condition.  She showed pictures of her brain and the brain of an average person which visually showed differences and similarities.  It really hit home that we need to focus on the students area of strength and really encourage that area because it could become their profession one day which is what happened for her and the cattle industry.   We need to encourage students to become active members of society although it may be more comfortable to stay at home and play video games. 

 Pictured above Temple Grandin with the DVD of the HBO movie Temple Grandin.

Temple Grandin actually only spoke for an hour and half of the conference day and for the rest of the portion the presenter was Dr. Jed Baker who is a behavioral consultant in New Jersey.  He was fantastic.  It seems like behavioral concerns within the constraints of the general education classroom are only increasing instead of decreasing.  Since I am an intervention specialist, I am supposed to have ideas but behavior is not an area which I am extremely knowledgeable.

 Dr. Baker had great ideas and was able to present it with real life situations so that it hit home and made sense.  There is so much I am going to utilize from his presentation that I would be writing forever if I shared it all so I am going share the overall theme today.  The overall theme for his presentation was HOPE!  which really hit me because it is so easy to get bogged down with all the negativity that surrounds that student and the behavior.  But he emphasized the need to remain calm during a meltdown and make sure you hold onto the hope that the behavior will and can get better.  He emphasized that the students need to know that there is HOPE and OPTIMISM for a bright future.  One of the first things I plan on working on is Don't be a BULLY be a HERO.  I have already bought Melonheadz clip art to accompany my creations:)  So stay tuned!

Pictured above is Dr. Jed Baker with his book No More Meltdowns.  

I got a copy of the book and I am excited to check it out!

I would love to hear your thoughts, experiences, & insights about students with disabilities or behavioral issues in your classroom.