What would the IDEAL spec ed classroom look like??? HELP!

I would wonder what your school philosophy is (what is in the IEP).
Do you have pull-out classes, full inclusion, team-teaching, study skills, social skills, resource only?

Four things:
(1) Clean and not tacky. If you post things on the wall, post them neatly. If they get faded or torn, take them down.
Some people, myself and daughter included, are sensitive to excess sensory input, visual or auditory or tactile. Things that people do to make a class room “fun” can be actively painful to us. A few-well-chosen things on the wall, in a moderate range of colours, is more attractive and more likely to carry information than hundreds of different neon-coloured things fighting for attention. And a quiet classroom where you can hear yourself think is the most likely to promote learning. Keep room to walk around freely without hitting/tripping over things.

(2) Materials to really *teach* reading. Effective phonics materials at all levels, total beginner to high. Start where the student is and have high expectations where they can go.
Textbook series that lead gradually from basic vocabulary to grade level or above reading — NOT just things that look fun or cute, but actual developmental teaching materials. It helps to have two or three series for extra practice and variety, and in a school you can usualy go and raid the book storage (in the building and sometimes gold mines at the board office.) Look for developmental workbooks too, and if they’re out of print lock the originals away and write only on copies.

(3) Real books to read once the students have learned how. Attractive, interesting books that have some content to them. NOT cutesy baby picture books with an impossible vocabulary load so the kid just memorizes the sentence to go with the picture, but real story books with limited vocabulary, various levels from beginner to advanced.
I find it most effective to have books, including texts, out on open shelves and/or wire paperback racks — the idea is to make this tempting.

(4) and if you’re responsible for math, good math materials including concrete and books and a good progression.

[quote=”Mitch”]I would wonder what your school philosophy is (what is in the IEP).
Do you have pull-out classes, full inclusion, team-teaching, study skills, social skills, resource only?[/quote]

Mitch, thanks so much for responding….based on my brief conversation with the principal (I’m currently teaching gr. 1 at a different school) I’m following IEPs & promoting as much integration into the “regular” classes as possible - for some students, this has been successful, for others, they are kept separated for most of the day (due to behaviour issues, etc). My class will be small in #s (6-10 students), made up of mostly MID children & multi LDs…I’m on my own as far as study skills, social skills, team teaching & resource…it’s all up to me….I’m looking forward to your expert opinions / ideas (I’ve been reading through all the postings & realize I have a lot to learn - many of you sound like you’ve been at this for years - I’m very excited to be a part of this field!!)

Thanks!

Hi Victoria….thank you for your response. I will take every tip you mentioned into consideration….I think it’s important to keep the “flashy” stuff under control to minimize distraction & sensory overload but, at the same time, I want my classroom to look bright, inviting & interest-piquing. I’m heading over to the school next week to see what type of literacy materials are available & will keep your suggestions in mind. As far as actual furniture goes, I’m thinking a larger-than-normal desk for everyone (lots of space to spread out), some larger surfaces for group conferences, & a “relaxing” area with some comfy chairs for reading, etc….anything I’m missing? Other suggestions?

One of the calmist 1st grade classrooms I’ve ever seen was where the teacher brought in several small lamps and set them up around the room, leaving the overhead flourescent lights off. You might want to think about setting up “offices”- a few quiet, private spaces for students who are especially distractable. One of our teachers uses stand-alone tents for children to read in— keeps down the visual distractions at least. She uses them as rewards that must be “purchased”— same for pillows, beanbags, etc. Someone recently posted about using large exercise balls for kids to sit on— they must move slightly to keep their balance so they get the “wiggles” out.

Whoo boy, would I *not* want a bunch of exercise balls in a room with behaviorally challenged middle schoolers on the first day.

Be ready to be firm and predictable — depending on the system, these kiddos will want to test you big time at first — and the big difference between tehir testing and other kids’ testing is that it could be that for the past couple of years, when they’ve tested the boundaries the boundaries have disappeared (and hence, they’re self-contained for behavfioural reasons). Ideally, the self-contained for behavior kids are there for the right reasons — but I’ve never taught in Ideally. The first thing you may want to ask is just what kind of boundaries you are allowed to set for those folks and how much (if any) support the admins will give you if you deem a certain behavior unacceptable for a certain student and, say, refer him/her to the office. Good admins will work with you and treat the kid like a ‘regular’ kiddo — others will say “SPECIAL ED YOUR PROBLEM” … it’s a whole lot better to find that out *before* a kiddo finds out that no, you can’t hold him to boundaries without his explicit permission (which is also possible but takes a lot longer and comes at the expense of lost academics and assorted other things).
And have a notebook for documenting behavior just for your own information and sanity — it helps a lot when figuring out how to help a kiddo, and when dealing with student, parent or admins.
And just to second what’s already been said about a simple meaningful classroom — tho’ you’ll want to find out what each kiddo needs. Do you know who you’ll have? Can you get in and see their IEPs?

Sue…thank you. Lots of excellent information to think about. Yes, I’ll be heading over to have a look at the IEPs next week…I know the principal well - she’s a huge spec ed supporter (has been teaching spec ed for years) & I know I can count on her back-up…apparently there is already a successful DD program in place so I will at least have another “ally” available. I agree that careful documentation is critical - I’m thinking a simple ABC chart may be most effective?? Thanks again for all the great tips….

Hi Rover….the grade one room you described sounds like a great plan for that age group(that is where I am currently). However, my new spec ed position will be in gr. 7/8….the tents & excerise balls probably out of the question (I shudder at the thought :) ). I totally get your point about keeping their environment calming & distraction-free…thanks for your help!

Okay, sounds like you’ve got a handle on things. It looked a little like you might have had some illusions :)

When I dove into 7th grade teaching, I was (pleasantly) surprised at just how badly they really did want the teacher to take charge and have high expectatoins for them — though that came after some trust-building time when we had quizzes and activities with extremely high success rates. (I didn’t ever, ever expect them to read independently either — then I figured out how to teach that… SRA Corrective Reading was an excellent option especially when my supportive principal let us make it a priority and move schedules around so we could group them by skill level).
The other major, major currency was “normalcy.” I used the “regular” book — well, mainly I wrote up my own lessons, but we used the regular book when we used a book — and even better, I was a “roving” teacher so we weren’t in The Sped Room. (And I didn’t have to make bulletin boards, hooray!!!) So — don’t make your room too “special” looking — at least on the surface!

Hi Sue…it’s going to be so hard to let go - I’m the queen of bulletin boards!! :) But I completely understand the notion of instilling a sense of normalcy in these students…at such a critical age, the need to “fit in” outweighs all else….I’ll do my best to limit the cutsey, flashy stuff (I promise!). Another question - is “Student of the Week” lame at this age?? I just think it’s a great opportunity to “shine” for a week - everyone needs a time to feel special, right?? Also, any suggestions as to effective strategies to teach appropriate social skills (particularly behaviour issues)….anything that really works / doesn’t work, etc….

Going on from what Sue said, start simple and build up. Get as much basic academic stuff as you can in the classroom to start with, and then add new things one or two at a time as treats and rewards. Kids will appreciate them more (and use them more) that way anyway.

Personally, the idea of tents and such in the class makes me wince. Things to trip over, places for kids to break rules out of sight (speaking of the bullying and clique threads among others) — urk.

A lot of people do the student of the week thing and yes, kids this age will usually go for it. Make sure the rewards are appropriate — a cool new folder or pen yes, a cute cartoon sticker probably not. Dollar stores have stuff teens like — take a teen advisor.
Also please think twice about what you are reinforcing and how — rewarding kids with a math-free day is highly counterproductive for one all-too-common example, and independent thought and action need to be reinforced and not just quiet conformism.

[ Also please think twice about what you are reinforcing and how — rewarding kids with a math-free day is highly counterproductive for one all-too-common example, and independent thought and action need to be reinforced and not just quiet conformism.[/quote]

Hi Victoria - I couldn’t agree more - the same goes for punishments - taking away gym or recess can be so counterproductive - most kids are in desperate need of that physical outlet. I’m thinking of incorporating a token economy in the form of “money” that can be earned through completion of work, thoughtful acts, chores around the classroom, etc & can then be used as “cash” at a classroom store (dollar store items) every Friday…I’m hoping it will serve 2 purposes: postive behaviour reinforcement & teach them about banking/budgeting….anyone have any thoughts on this??

The store is too complex and time-consuming for me.

I used grades as my “tokens of reinforcement” and it worked — but I dare say if it hadn’t I’d have at least considered the token deals — though not without a plan to grow out of it. Lots of my kiddos were stuck at the “what’s in it for me” moral develop;ment stage (or community development stage depending on which article I was reading :)) but I’d give A’s out all day — you’d get an A if you read this paragraph with fewer than X mistakes (different for different kiddos but always totally attainable… and you’d have ten other chances to get an A anyway — but funny thing, they didn’t pick up on that, they focused and read and demanded to see me write A’s in the grade book…. I counted each A as one point over a baseline of 80 or something like that for their ‘daily class grade” that was 20% of their grade… oh, yea, since my classes were small I wrote each kid’s name with four spaces under their name and a whole row was that daily grade, another row the quiz grades, another row for attendance.)
Since the question was about the room, I did suspect you’d be into bulletin boards :D :D — and hey, go for it — use your strenghts, eh?? Just keep the “cool” quotient in mind.
I think delivery is the key for awards … but I’m not sure —singling somebodyo out for a week.. the way adolescents twist things, could be that you end up with everybody *but* the awardee feeling like a LOSER. though it would also depend on things out of your control like whether they had already filed “student of the week” as a “LITTLE KID” thing. Tho … awards and tokens too often become a game — more of a “can you figure out how to manipulate this” thing that the smart kids want to barf over. (If you’ve got all 90 IQers in there… well… I dunno, my idealist self would want to try to make ‘em rebels anywahy :)) In my opinion, genuine spontaneous recognition of things well done is more important. It’s definitley a STYLE thing though - I have known fantastic teachers that do it that way. I just am not that organized :) And these guys probably aren’t old enough to be jaded about it *yet* but boy, my high schoolers unfortunately automatically assumed that anytime they were told “good job” there was an un spoken “well, good job for a functional retard” as part of it. It took objective PROOF of progress (and a lot of sniffing around to find out what they considered “proof”) and lots of it to get past that.
And chekc out my website for lessons & stuff, too.

Hi Sue…again, you’ve raised some excellent points. I think that considering the make up of my group (MID, many functioning at a gr. 2 - 3 level), I can probably get away with the “gimmicky” stuff…..&,yes, anal could be my middle name. I wrote the definition on organization…it’s the only way I can function (I plan on doing lots of mini-lessons on this very topic!). The pros & cons of “bribes” has always been a source of interest for me - I agree that, at some point, they will need to be weaned of this extrinsic reward system & hopefully make the successful transition to an inner locus of control & a sense of pride & accomplishment….however, I also feel that “bribes” are a part of the real world - so many of us wouldn’t be gainfully employed without the allure of the pay cheque…anyway, enough of the philosophical stuff….thanks again for all the great tips…it’s so nice to have a place to find support & guidance!

One last thing - Sue, amazing website!!! FULL of great information. I’ve just finished adding it to my (short) favourites list - thanks!

Just a few ideas:
Try to make the environement warm and invitng,
Have space for a vareirty of work options. Group and individual.
Have resources for the studnets to use so theri are no excuses why work cannot be doen. For example a shelf with paper, pens, markers,
hole punch, etc.

Have hands on materials that students can work with in order to get concepts and to study for tests. You can make these and change as necessary.

Change reference materials as students need in their classes. For example extra info on the Civil War if that is what they are studying. These materials should have a variety of reading levels.

Good luck!

Alice…thank you for responding. Your ideas are all very good. I think a big part of my job will be instilling life skills training (hence the name of the position :idea: ) & therefore, I’m looking for some creative / effective ideas for teaching those basic skills such as budgeting, food preparation, household management, etc…..anyone???

Have you checked out STAGES assessment software available from Assistive Technology, Inc? (http://www.assistivetech.com/p-stages.htm) STAGES is divided into seven stages of language and cognitive development.
Stage 6 is an assessment tool for life-skills and then offers specific software recommendations for this population. It is a great tool and worth looking into.

What a neat opportunity! I also had a similar situation with my current position. My program serves students in grades 7-12th. Although I had to use an existing room that was once the home ec. room. So I have 3 stoves in the room and one area of cupboards, counter, and sink. It has taken 3 years, but I finally have a room that is pleasant to look at - We cover the stoves with a board and material to make a shelf for textbooks, I have two computer stations (all connected to good printers and the Internet), we work at tables, but have places for individuals to work as well, a couch and coffee table for relaxed work. I believe in spoiling my kids, so we often have food. Brain research supports keeping learners well fed and hydrated, so we have cold water when it’s warm and hot chocolate when it’s cold! I keep a “Mr. Coffee” pot for coco, hot tea (for me), and instant soups (some of the kids need an afternoon snack).
We also are relaxed about wearing our shoes while working in the room. Basically I try to make the room as comfortable and relaxing, yet a work station. Kids know they are expected to work when they come in, but we all might as well be comfortable! I also like to display motivational posters and art prints. Check with your administration. Think “what would I want/need to be comfortable. Let the kids give you ideas too. They love to create their own place. Special needs kids need a place where they feel safe, loved, and successful! Good luck![/b]

Scott! It sounds like our situations are very similar - my new classroom was also the home ec / shop area….so we’re also equipped with a fully functioning kitchen area! I think I will definitely take your advice & try to keep the area as comfortable & inviting as possible…I love the idea of the couch & coffee table (I’m only hoping budget allows for it!!)….also, areas for group work as well as individual / quieter areas for those who need a distraction-free environment….as September approaches, I’m really getting excited about this opportunity to do something “different”….I also love your idea about keeping some hot drinks & snacks available…I want my students to feel like the “lucky ones” - I’ve had other posters comment on the need to keep as much normalcy as possible / to try & not focus on the fact that my classroom is any “different” than the others….while I’m in full agreement for the sake of self-concept, I also think I would be naiive to assume that my students don’t already get the fact that they’re different from the others - I want to try to instill a sense of “yeah I know I’m different, but I’m okay with that”….idealistic? Probably - but I’m willing to give it a shot……by the way, Scott, if you’ve got any more good ideas in regards to actual lesson plans, etc. I’d love to hear them!!!

Somewhere in between making the hot chocolate and serving it and cleaning the cups and arranging the nice furniture and cleaning the spilled chocolate off the couch and awarding the student of the week prizes and keeping up the star charts and … and … please make sure to find the time for that dull teaching stuff.
If your students are functioning at Grade 2-3 level, why? Are they truly limited in ability, or have they fallen through the cracks where nobody found time to do the hard dull slogging work of teaching them?

I have a student right now, age 20, actually graduated from high school, passed the provincial tests I am not sure how, but can’t manage to pass classes in college or get into any training programs. He’s a twin, sister bright and wonderful and he apparently always ran second-best. He went through elementary school without learning to read; guessed at a few words and was passed on. In junior high someone actually did teach him to read, using some of the same books I like very much, but it was too little, too late; he graduated with about Grade 4-5 reading, lots of small errors, and Grade 2 spelling. Lord only knows how he passed the provincial math exam, which is at the level of the community college classes I taught in the US.
He and I are working on AVKO spelling, reviewing phonics — he is vague on vowels and poor on middle syllables, and reading “Hatchet” — he’s inaccurate, guesses all those little words and endings, but getting very much better.
BUT — he is fascinated by the psychology of the character, remembers everything we read and all our other discussions, visualizes the story, and asks very penetrating questions. He’s actually a pleasure to work with. He wants our next book to be a deep psychological novel as well.
Now, if he had had more help in his special ed earlier when he was working on that Grade 2-3 level …

I have another one, age 18, who is apparently PDD (wasn’t a well-known diagnosis at the time), socially very out of it, uneven work habits. His school experience was very bad, I am told. He was weak Grade 2 level when we started, is now managing upper elementary material. We haven’t gotten to a novel yet but he is doing basic grammar, short articles on factual material with comprehension questions, and writing the occasional paragraph with guidance. I’m going to start him on AVKO too next week. He is hard to work with, but once he gets an idea he remembers it for good. If he had had some effective teaching in middle school when he was at that Grade 2-3 level instead of waiting until he was superannuated out …

For both these young men, the life skill they really really need is to read well enough to do employment training. The first can get into college classes, but can’t do things accurately enough or write clearly enough to show his genuine ability and he fails. The second flunked out of adult ed because he didn’t have the basic skills needed to start the courses. Both are mostly unemployed because there are no ditch-digging jobs around any more; they need literacy.

My theory is that if a kid takes extra time to understand and has to work hard to get a concept, then he needs *more* teaching time, not less. Nice atmosphere is of course desirable, but please don’t let yourself get distracted from your goals.

Hi Victoria - let me assure you, teaching is my number one priority - I’m now in my 8th year &, coming from a successful year in grade one, I’m very familiar with the importance of setting a solid academic foundation (just served as primary math leader as well)….however, I think the “extras” are part of the whole “hook” that motivates kids to a) come to class b) want to learn c) curious & eager to learn more d) feel good about themselves…..for me, making my classroom a (yes, I’ll dare say it) fun, creative & challenging place to be is absolutely critical - makes my job of teaching a lot easier when my students can’t wait to see “what’s next?” I’ve worked with severely behaviourally challenged kids (to the tune of attempting to set the school on fire by lighting their own clothes - while still wearing them), profoundly developmentally challenged kids (non-verbal, non-ambulatory), & I’ve been in the “regular” classroom - motivation is the key…& if that includes hot chocolate & student of the week starts, I’m all for it!

I learned through experience just how genuinely important those emotional touches can be (not through any single dramatic story… I don’t learn that fast!). There really is a lot to be said for a warm, structured environment…. tho’ with the folks older than 12, they’re sometimes highly suspicious of overt warm fuzzes (but hey, as long as they’re not *cute* you’re okay!)

Emotional touches yes — one reason I don’t work well with large groups and prefer to be a broke private tutor. I make friends with my students and we have real conversations — which then leads to trouble with the parents who think we aren’t “working” because the kid is actually happy, but that’s another story.

However, junior high is a whole different deal from primary, and time is a luxury. These kids are already four to six years behind their classmates in reading, and I fear to even ask about math. Again, the life skill they most need is to be able to read well enough and to deal with numbers well enough that they can get training and find a job. They have also had seven or eight years of building up defense mechanisms against being taught and of developing every kind of avoidance behaviour. Reading in a positive atmosphere, great; a pleasant atmosphere that is more a club than a workspace, a problem. I’ve seen the distractors take over so often that it’s a concern.

That’s very true — you always hear about the ones who misbehave to disguise reluctance to expose their difficulties & fears of being exposed as “stupid” — but there are just as many who use more subtle tactics.
And you can never please everybody … but boy, it’s a neat thing when you see the difference you can make.

Okay - so to sum it all up…..a definite balance needs to be acheived between the cheesey stuff (also been called emotional, tacky, etc :) ) & the hard core teaching….comfortable yet not cozy, functional yet not impersonal, interesting yet not distracting….am I getting there??? I’ve also been told to ensure I remain focused on my goal of TEACHING (as opposed to getting caught up in all the feel-good stuff), that these students need intense, individual instruction starting at the basics & building from there - as far as reading goes, start with the decoding & phonics & build up to some high-interest, low-vocab books…mathematically, lots of manipulatives & real-life problem solving (budgeting, etc)……how’s I do? I really want to extend a HUGE thank you to all of you who guided, directed, suggested & offered your help….I feel as though I’m on the right track…..THANKS!!!

YEa, you’ve summed it…
It really, really helped me that our school did some assessment mid-year — I’d be forced to look at those IEP goals one more time and re-focus on priorities for *that kid* instead of, say, my curriculum.
It’ll be fun :-)

So many awesome ideas. Just thought I would check back in with my two thoughts of the day! With only 2 days left of school this year it is about all I have left!

The exercise balls have worked GREAT all year! I teach 6-12 ED/BD and LD. I have had students lay on their stomachs doing their work on the floor. I have had them laying on their backs, doing work on clipboards over their heads and students gently rocking while they are reading, but my rules have been that if you aren’t working, you loose your ball. It has worked wonders. I will be continuing this next year.

I agree 100% with all the extra ‘pretties’ hanging from the walls and ceilings in some classes. I do have learning posters and learning bulletin boards in my room. One example: DNA is written out, syllables are separated and colored, and my students get to look at it day after day (our biology teacher has it on about 6 different tests).

One thing that hasn’t been mentioned is allergies. I have been in countless classrooms where the teacher has so much perfume on that I can hardly breath. Many classrooms allow class ‘pets’. Other schools are dusty, dirty and moldy. I think teachers as professionals should be more cognizant of allergies that many students have. There are children who go home daily with sinus headaches or inflammation. Just a thought at the end of a LONG school year!

Yes, think about allergies!! I am severely allergic to perfumes and when people use hand lotion in public — personal grooming which really belongs in the bathroom anyway — the smell can literally gag me. I literally cannot talk and have trouble standing. Please do NOT use “air fresheners” which can lead to asthma attacks as well as sinus pain and headaches.
And avoid food rewards; as well as being questionable teaching technique (very short term positive, medium to long term very negative results) you may be making an allergic kid very sick. I had quite a few arguments with my daughter’s school and had to pull her out of Brownies because of this — Brownies is not worth a night vomiting, aspirated vomit, and bronchitis, is it?

I kept class goldfish and a lizard, which are allergy-safe for most people, and finches which are Ok if nobody has a feather problem. Furred animals are a problem, and I have trouble with hamsters because I’m allergic to the wastes. You have to really clean those cages every single day, or don’t keep the animal.

About things hanging from the ceiling —
(a) do it nicely please, or don’t do it — I’ve been in classes where the ceiling tiles were all pushed around and full of breaks from people sticking things up all over, and tacky doesn’t begin to describe it; yuck
(b) I went to substitute in a class once where the teacher had tree branches, each with a kid’s name on, with all sorts of little things stuck to them, hanging all over the class. The little primary kids could duck them but an adult was risking having an eye poked out. It meant it was impossible for the teacher to actually move around the class and teach, not to mention the cleaning staff being totally unable to clean. Again, yuck. And also illegal, nasty safety hazard if you have to evacuate. Please think in advance and make decor that is both attractive and practical.

Just wanted to suggest that my tutor for my child uses reading games at the end of the session as a reward for doing all the work. If she goofs off too much she will run out of time and not get to play a game.I’ve noticed my child had gotten alot of candy and toys from school and it usually comes out during her after school tutoring sessions, and I’m sure she probably played or eaten some of it during school which doesn’t help her attention during school or her tutoring lessons.