Sensory integration in the school setting is crucial in a special education classroom.  It involves creating an environment suitable for students with sensory processing challenges.  In a sensory supportive classroom, students can effectively process and respond to sensory input, which can significantly enhance their learning experience. By incorporating sensory integration techniques into your classroom, you can can reduce anxiety and improve learning.  Sensory integration also allows students to thrive academically and socially. Ultimately, sensory integration creates a more i ..read more

I believe teaching life skills ia crucial part of any special education program.  As special education teachers, our goal is to build independence in all areas for our students.  There are a variety of life skills components and these will vary depending on the age of your students.  Primary grades will focus on toileting, hygiene, personal information and independence while high school students will focus on money skills, vocational skills and cooking skills.  Depending on the grade level you teach, and the abilities of your caseload, you will be able to determine which li ..read more

Functional communication is one of the most important skills for any student.  Being able to communicate basic needs and wants is an essential life skill.  It should be a pillar goal for special education teachers when designing their special education program.  Today we will discuss how to build effective communication skills within the classroom across different social settings with the use of visual supports, alternative communication and nonverbal cues. When starting with communication skills in the classroom, start with working on communicating for preferred items. &n ..read more

Teaching students expected behaviors and social emotional skills is important to create a safe learning environment for students.  Social emotional learning plays an important role in schools because it helps equip students with skills outside of academics, builds emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills. School staff work hard to teach the whole child and to create safe learning environment.  SEL fosters empathy, understanding and inclusivity within the school setting.  Today’s post I am going to talk about social emotional learning curriculum available to you. If you wa ..read more

Today’s post is all about supporting the emotions of your students in the school setting.  A big job of special education teachers is teaching students to identify their emotions, regulate their emotions and be successful and independent within the school day.  Today I am going to discuss how you can support your students within the school setting.  I will discuss how to set up a calm down kit and calm down area in your classroom. Why is a Calm Down Kit a Valuable Tool?  Calm down kits in the classroom are an invaluable resource for supporting emotional regulation and crea ..read more

Visual supports are a great way to build independence within your special education classroom.  Students thrive off of visuals and visual aids.  Visual supports help with classroom management and help support your daily routine.  Visual supports can be used in a variety of situations and over time you can build your collection of visual supports.  Why Use Visual Supports One of my favorite quotes I came across as a new teacher was one said by Temple Grandin. She said “I’m a visual thinker, not a language-based thinker.  My brain is like google images.”  I often t ..read more

Today’s post is all about using visual schedules in your special education classroom.  Visual schedules are visual supports to help students become independent within the classroom setting.  They display the daily schedule and help with smooth transitions within the classroom.  There are a variety of ways you can set up your visual schedule depending on the needs of your students. What is a Visual Schedule? A visual schedule is a list of activities that will be happening within your school day.  Essentially, it is a daily schedule full of visual cues of different kinds to ..read more

Todays post is going to be all about a differentiated calendar routine in a special education classroom.  It is one of the most common classroom routines we see in most elementary settings.  While each classroom may do it different, the same skills are mastered in the end.  In a special ducation classroom with students at various levels, differential is key.  Today, I will discuss all things differentiation.   I choose to do my Calendar routine as a whole class right before the kids go to lunch.  Following our second round of work centers, students check the ..read more

Today’s post is going to be about morning meeting in a special education classroom.  Morning meeting is one of my favorite times in the classroom because we all come together to greet one another.  Sometimes the natural conversations that spark during morning meeting are some of the best we have as a class. What is Moring Meeting? Morning meeting is the first thing that happened every single day in my classroom.  In primary grades, some classrooms may refer to morning meeting as circle time.  They are the same thing, just a different name. &nb ..read more

Today’s blog post is all about a daily schedule in a special education classroom.  Now that you have developed your physical space and bulletin board layouts, It’s time to get into the nitty gritty of schedules. You can read more about my actual visual schedules for students HERE.  Today’s post will focus only on the actual schedule within my classroom. Where to Start With Your Schedule Setting up a classroom schedule is no easy task for any special education teacher.  Start with your non-negotiables such as school specials such as PE, computer lab, library and music.  For ..read more