Another rant from the classroom

[malkin]

...

He has rudimentary spoken language. Yes, no, thank you, time, etc. He has had a "talker" (device that with him, but at least in my class, he has only used it when the para-professional who accompanies him prompts him.

This is not unusual. There have been studies of users of augmentative communication that show that most of the most elaborate systems are used only with professionals. As one of these professionals, this makes me crazy because we should be promoting communication that users will actually use!

... And the mom and her advocate got upset when we suggested that the resource department case manager should be developing these materials, not the classroom teachers.

I don't understand why the mom team would react to this--because it isn't your job, it isn't your training, and it IS the sped job and the sped has specialized training. I see your role as providing your lesson plans to the team and then they can develop specialized instruction which will be based on your lesson and include the student's present level and an objective for him and an activity that will lead to the skill. If he can only partially sort then his activity will be working on sorting items related to the lesson and then possibly patterning or something.

It is important to lay it out so that it is obvious that this student's activity is related to the classroom theme (e.g. he is making an ABABAB pattern from pictures of different kinds of stars) because that is the right level for him rather than doing the activity that the others are doing because that would be impossibly difficult and inappropriate for him.

I have found that some of the most intense and needy parents can be calmed by a very simple daily note home. "Note" sounds like you had to write something, but we have set them up so teachers just circle a comment that describes some aspect of a behavior of interest.

The sad thing to me is that a ton of energy will be spent on documentation that will cover your behind in case mom files a due process complaint and that energy could otherwise have been spent on teaching.