Instruction for Children with Special Needs

I’m a primary school special educator in a large school district where students transition to several different upper elementary schools when they leave second grade.  Due to the size of our district, it’s nearly impossible to meet with all of the receiving teachers for my students at the end of the school year.  I’d like these teachers to know more about my kids before they start in the fall.  I know they’ll get the IEPs, but I wondered if you had any suggestions on how I can help the new teachers learn about my students?

I have a great team in my classroom but sometimes we are not on the same page when it comes to providing preventative or consequential interventions with students. One person might talk too much to a student giving attention to behaviors of concern and inadvertently increase the behavior, while another person may not do enough. Sometimes the basics of student interactions are just not there. What can I do to make us a more cohesive team with our interventions?

I have a great team in my classroom but sometimes we are not all on the same page when it comes to providing preventative or consequential interventions with our students. One person might talk too much to a student, giving attention to behaviors of concern and inadvertently increasing the behavior while another person may not do enough. Sometimes even  the basics of student interactions are just not there. What can I do to make us a more cohesive team with providing  our interventions?

As a math teacher, I must have students practice new problems daily. We typically use paper or worksheets I have prepared. When this part of class begins, I have some students who just sit and do not participate. They are not disruptive but there is also no attempt to try the problems. I know they can probably do the work – or at least attempt it. I do have a few other students who just start talking during this part of class. Is there any way to change these behaviors or motivate them to try the problems?

I am a paraprofessional who works with a student in regular education settings and in a Support Room. He has a very hard time working. I’ve learned many strategies and have used them with some success but sometimes he will just groan and refuse to work. The other day he was doing so well and had finished 3 papers but refused to do the last one. I know he could do it but he just wouldn’t think and fill in the answers. What do I do in those cases?  I hate to just say he doesn’t have to do it – that seems like going backwards and giving in.

The students in my Life Skills class need more practice with social skills, but they always seem to clam up in those unstructured times like lunch and in between classes.  Is there something I can do to help them have more opportunities to interact?

My older middle school Life Skills students need some community-based work experiences, but our school is located in a rural area without many opportunities nearby.  What can I do to help them learn some beneficial work skills?

I am a 5^th and 6^th grade Learning Support Teacher and have several kids that struggle with reading comprehension and just can’t seem to  go back into a text to find an answer to a question when needed.  They just give up… At times I have highlighted where they can find some answers but that is time consuming and I’d like them to become more independent!  Any ideas?

I have a student in my class whom I know is very bright, but his test scores sure don’t show it!  He’s attentive during class and participates on occasion, so it seems like he’s following along but then freezes on the exam.  What can I do to help him prepare more effectively?

What do I do when my student keeps her head in her desk playing when I’m teaching and the class is doing a worksheet? She won’t answer me when I correct her.