Classroom
Safe, Healthy Environment
I believe one of the most important actions a teacher can take is creating and maintaining a safe and healthy classroom environment. For some students, school is the only place that stays consistent and teachers are the only adults that show genuine care for their well-being. Some steps that teachers can take to ensure their classroom is comfortable, safe, and healthy for their students throughout the whole year include:
being clear and consistent about what the rules, routines, and procedures are and what the lesson will look like for each day
giving the students a room tour at the beginning of the year, so they understand where things are and how the room is set up
working with all students to teach good social skills, such as kind peer review, effective group work, and respectful, attentive listening while another student is presenting
building good relationships with the students, parents, and colleagues to give the students a place where they belong and to build up your own list of resources to go to when you need help
serving your students with an empathetic heart and believing in the best of each student
organizing your classroom layout to foster learning and positive interactions between students; for example, as you can see below, I plan to set up my classroom in groups of four to foster peer discussion and team building. I also plan to have a corner set aside for students experiencing trouble with controlling their behaviors. Fall-Hamilton Elementary inspired me to do this in the video below to help minimize the struggles of students experiencing trauma who need a space to calm themselves down
I designed my classroom to meet the needs of all my students. I chose to put my students in table groups to encourage conversation and team building. I added a "Reading Corner" for students who finish work early to receive positive reinforcement. They can choose to read, write, draw, or in special cases, play games on their iPads or computers. I have two different bookshelves to choose from so that I can organize them appropriately. I also added a Peace Corner, which we learned about in the Fall-Hamilton video, to give my students a space to calm down when they feel emotions rising up that they cannot control. There is a small chart to fill out about how they were feeling, a 5-minute timer to keep them on track, and some fidget toys and coloring pages to let them do something for those 5 minutes before returning to the class. Next to the Peace Corner is an area to turn in homework or in-class work, and at the front, I have my desk and a whiteboard that will have our schedule written up every day. On the wall above the Reading Corner, I will put posters up with our classroom rules, routines, and procedures in case the students need a reminder throughout the year. I have the back wall open for various projects throughout the year, like mapping out a book plot and important symbols on a big sheet paper.
Reaching Low SES students
Many students from low socioeconomic statuses experience trauma or at least an inconsistent homelife. With the help of the Peace Corners and clear, consistent expectations, I hope to reach any low socioeconomic students that attend my class. I will also work to use vocabulary that all students will understand or leave room for questions about vocabulary or concepts that are unfamiliar to my students.
Reaching Students with Disabilities
I will have different support systems set up within my classroom to help students with disabilities depending on the disability. I will have a non-negotiable rule for my students to respect each other and their different learning levels. For students with behavioral disabilities, I will have a Peace Corner set up to allow them a space to calm down. I have the room set up in table groups to make it easier for students with physical disabilities to move around throughout the room than if the desks were in rows. I will have opportunities for students to receive extra help with the lesson during lunch or independent reading for both students who are struggling and those with Learning Disabilities who need extra help. I will also provide opportunities like reading a test or homework aloud or having an audiobook available for a student with visual impairment or dyslexia. I plan to teach engaging lessons for students who struggle with ADHD and update my students about the schedule but stick close to it the whole year for any students with anxiety. I will document behavior or academic issues among students who are not diagnosed to inform their parents first to see if it could stem from a big change at home and later the school counselor and other school personnel to begin looking into an IEP or 504 plan. I will enlist the student's other teachers to keep data on the student's behaviors to determine whether he/she will need an IEP- a written document for a student with disabilities, between the ages of 3 and 26 years old, who receive special education programs and related services -or a 504 plan- the accommodations and services that will allow a child to access the curriculum who have a documented disability that impacts learning in the general education classroom.
Reaching English Language Learners
When reaching English Language Learners, I hope to give them opportunities to learn the content in my class without worrying about understanding English perfectly. I will give them resources in their language to compare to the English instructions and resources. We will also have a lot of conversations about the content because it is easier for ELLs to learn English and the content in a social, verbal setting.
Legal Issues
As was discussed in the section on reaching students with disabilities, I will have students with IEPs and 504 plans. It is important to understand what this will look like, so I will use this section to go over the key ideas, laws, and policies that relate specifically to individuals with exceptional learning needs.
IEPs: Individualized Education Programs are written documents for students with disabilities between the ages of 3 and 26 years old, who receive special education programs and related services. The purpose of an IEP is to identify each student's needs, develop reasonable learning goals, and document the services the school district will provide to help the student achieve these goals. IEPs come from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which requires certain information to be in an IEP, like where the student is at, goals the student has made, a student's progress in achieving said goals, and more.
504 plans: For children that do not meet state and federal eligibility requirements for special education programs and services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), they might be eligible for accommodations or services through Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Students must have "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities" and parents must give consent for the school to evaluate a child for a 504 plan.
Least Restrictive Environment: Students with exceptional learning needs must be placed in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), which could mean anywhere from the general education setting to instruction in hospitals or institutions. Schools typically have special classes or programs that could be determined as the student's LRE, or the student could learn from home. The LRE is determined by the IEP team, including the parents.
FAPE: Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) is the policy that students with a disability are entitled to free public education that provides programs and services to meet the student's unique needs and provides him/her with an educational benefit.
IDEA: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a federal civil rights law to protect the rights of children with disabilities who meet requirements for special education services and the rights of their parents. Core principles of IDEA include procedural safeguards, parent (and student) involvement, appropriate evaluation, Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE), Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), and Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).
Safeguards: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a federal law for special education, and it includes protections for parents and students called procedural safeguards that must be provided to the parents in the form of a document. Procedural Safeguards protect parents by ensuring that the school must keep parents informed, parents have options if they disagree with a school decision, and personal information is kept confidential.