EnVISION a Collaborative Approach to Service a Student with Vision and
Complex/Comprehensive Need
Sammi ZaunerTracy Parent
Charyn Beaumont
Consider This:
For students who have vision issues, the Vision and/or the Orientation/Mobility teachers will be the most consistent teachers that a child will see throughout their school career, often years in succession…..
Consider this:
Yet they are often not considered or are an after thought during the common or central planning times to collaborate with other teachers.
Question One
What challenges have you overcome to provide inclusive education and materials for your students?
Question Two
What are some example of ways you have found to communicate effectively with teachers/teams?
Question Three
How do you collaborate/co-plan with teachers for using paraprofessionals, materials and resources in your students’ classrooms?
Question Four
What are some examples of materials/differentiated strategies that you use?
For example:-tactile object schedule, modified activities, etc.
Steps to Promoting Collaboration
● Create a culture for collaborative and cooperative conversations. -Structure and streamline consistent planning and communication methods -Discuss Shared Leadership and Responsibilities -Common goals, values and mission -Equality and Role Release (sharing the load)
-Shared IEP goals/lesson plans/accommodations/modification
● Create ways to support educational team so they see you as valuable and accessible resource!
Scheduling Collaborative Meetings
● Nothing breeds collaboration as much as being present during planning!
● Find a common time! SCHEDULE that time in!● Relationships will develop given time and lots of
practice● Meetings need to be well organized, orderly,
productive.● Set an agenda prior to the meeting to maintain
focus● Ongoing log should be maintained to see what
has been done and where the next meeting needs to start
Collaboration and Cooperation Questions● Who are team members? Who is lead administrator on
team?
● When/where/how will we meet?
● How can team work collaboratively ?
● How will roles and responsibilities shift?
● Discuss wh? of communication: What to add? When/How often to update? Schedule out important times (IEP, SRC)
Communication and Planning Methods
● Discuss/set up options to open up lines of communication.
-Google Docs & Google student website -SAT team meetings/Grade level -Lunch meetings -Dialog notebook -”Stolen” meetings (back of room/on the spot) -Make and Takes -Lesson plan binders (or electric versions - live binders, website, etc.) -Comprehensive Classroom (mini team) -Email & Electronic Discussion tools
Informal Planning and Evaluation Tools:
Survey: On a scale of 1-10 o How well do you think IEP objectives are being met?o How well do you think you are meeting needs of all students?o How do you feel about the amount of para support student
receiving?o How is support for materials, instructional strategies?
Questionnaire:o Details of gains made by student?o What is working?o What is not working?o What are your needs?o What is the priority?
Sharing Responsibilities for StudentsTeachers may feel they “Own” certain students“Yours” and “Mine” language Working together and sharing responsibilities can change language to “Us” and “Ours”
Image says keep calm because we are a team with color swirls
Shared Leadership: Distributed Functions
-Change task and relationship of traditional “lone leader” and spread among all group members
-Team members can rotate completing certain tasks-All participate in discussion & decision: shared
expertise
-Facilitate transition -Delegate specific roles to members-Systematically switch roles
Sharing Responsibilities for Students
Show how you can help and make it better!!!Help increase expertise and awareness for all: -Academy 39 classes for teacher training -Para trainings (Planned and on the spot)
-Appy hour- Family/team all invited!-Promote student involvement (show how)-Team members can co-create activities/materials, co-treat, co-plan, co-observe-Shared Lesson Plans and provide materials, etc.
Ways to Share Roles/Work Together
Resource Provider- share instructional resources
Switch off who is being the lead and who is doing the supporting
Data Coach- How to use the data collected, explain the data you take for the student and what the outcome will look like for the students.
(Kluth and Caffero)
The Team: Student Involvement
Families often marginalized or feel intimidated. Get their input!!!
Don’t forget importance of student!
Students in Wilmette are formally/informally involved in participation of IEP meeting
Paraprofessionals: Keys to Success
● Resources: Para handbook● Include in meetings when
possible● Train and provide them access
to all info, adaptations,lessons, etc.
● Meet with them weekly ● Keep in “Loop”● Solicit their info, feedback,
suggestions● Show appreciation and validate
their work!
Image is of handout provided to Paraprofessionals
Paraprofessionals: Keys to Success
● Teach paras to fade support!!!● Key is to teach independence● Hovering paras can have negative effect
o (Giangreco et.al 1997) Decreased peer interaction Interference with instruction Dependence on adults
● Answer: Create a FADING plan!
Image of the word communication and picture of a key
Fading Adult SupportWork together to get ideas from team on areas to fade.
-Presume Competence-USE PEERS!!!!! ie: walk with peer to class,Sit with peers at lunch, have peers help problem-
solve-Provide adapted materials promoting
Independence -Teach student to ask teacher to clarify directions -Others?
Functional and Community-Based Objectives in General Education
-Create co-teaching opportunities-Teacher and Vision Itinerate/O&M,
- LBS and Vision, Related Services and Vision. Paras!-Identify IEP Objectives-Identify Curriculum Content, Environment -Create activities that support both curriculum and IEP
objectives to support student with visual needs-Shared lesson plan with grid of accommodations,
modifications, tools, materials, environment, teacher support, peer interaction.
-SETT
Working Together: Integrating Functional or Community based Objectives into General Education
Examples:-Will follow a schedule using tactile objects/
braille/modified visuals/auditory device-Will initiate a conversation with a peer-Will increase time-on-task-Will initiate, sustain and complete a task-Will ask for a break when over stimulated-Will use guided reach -Will explore tactually to prepare for pre-braille skills Image of a sensory
activity that has red and white balls to demonstrate blood cells
Functional Cooking Curriculum Mixed With Vision Instruction
Expanded Core Curriculum anyone?Explain to the team the adaptions your student needs so that they can implement and teach the proper vision accommodations inside of their already planned lesson.
-Provide or inform the team about the variety of cooking utensils that would be beneficial to make the student more independent.
Image of ScrapTrapper and Nylon Knife
Full Team Approach On Communication
Collaborating with your student’s speech pathologist and classroom teacher to learn how the student’s uses his/her communication system or device. This could include a variety of different communication modes.
-Provide your expertise to customize their speech output device to make sure it is visually appropriate
Image of PEC binder, PEC symbols and audio choice board as communication devices
Social Stories Supply ideas for tactile images to enhance social stories.
Provide information on how the child’s visual impairment may affect social situations and how to best address these concerns with the child and family.
Two images of colorful social stories with tactile graphics
Open Line Of Communication
Inform team of any changes in students vision
Take note of errors that are observed during the school day to inform O&M to be addressed in next lesson
Image of Cell phone with contacts with text opening the lines of communication
Combined Lessons
Field trips can often be mixed with ECC instruction
General Education Many lessons can link to social studies, math and science curriculums
Comprehensive Field TripsECC and Life skills field trips go hand in hand
Image of student working on orientation and mobility skills walking down a nature path.
Professional Development
Combined lessons to teach to general education staff
For example:Sighted GuideSafety and Environmental
AwarenessClassroom Modifications
Transportation Issues
Combined effort to ensure proper transportation needs and accommodations are addressed
Such as:-Contrasting bus signs-Communication with bus company -Communication with teachers that provide bus
duty-Parent communication-Routes to and from school, in and out of buildings-Crossing Guards
Image of yellow school bus
Team Approach-United Front!
Always support each others decisions in front of student and parents
When communicating possible changes in vision or needs:
Collaborate on message to be sent to parents Send message or hold meeting together
Collaborating with Behavior Specialist
-Work together to figure out whether lack of progress because of behavior or vision
-Create vision lessons that also take into considerations best behavioral instructional strategies that mesh with vision teaching.