Journal 16 & 17

Topic 16 & 17

School-wide systems for Tier 3 and including interagency collaboration

Bullying Prevention

The Basics

Bullying – exposing another person to either verbal or physical harm, or threatening to harm another person with the purpose of controlling the other person’s thoughts and/or actions (Throckmorton, 2005) School bullying is when a student or group of students behave in a way that is intended to harm their victim. Three conditions allow bullying to take place: a person who has the will to hurt others, a potential victim, and opportunity (Wright 2003). It is hard to get a true measure of how many students are bullied because bullying is not always reported by the victims due to fear of retaliation.


Strategies to Make a School Safer
Increase adult presence in the transition areas, hallways, stairways, and bathrooms, where bullying is most likely to occur2. Keep older and younger children separated during times where there are less adults present and bullying is more likely to occur3. Train all staff members how to handle bullying behavior and how to intervene when they witness bullying occurring4. Arrange classroom furniture so that there are not areas where bullying can occur outside of the view of the teacher or another adult


Bullying can be direct or indirect.
When bullying takes a direct form, the bully confronts the victim face-to-face. Examples of direct bullying would include situations in which the victim is verbally harassed or threatened, physically attacked (e.g., punched, kicked, pushed down), or socially embarrassed (e.g., taunted, refused a seat on the school bus).

In the case of indirect bullying, the bully attacks the victim’s social standing or reputation—usually when the victim is not around. A student is engaging in indirect bullying if he or she spreads malicious gossip or writes insulting graffiti about a classmate, or organizes a peer group to ostracize that classmate. Victims are at a particular disadvantage in indirect bullying because they may never discover the identity of the person or group responsible for the bullying.


Websites

www.kidpower.org
www.peacefulschoolsinternational.org
www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov

Preventing Bullying: A Manual for Schools & Communities
http://www.cde.ca.gov/spbranch/ssp/bullymanual.htm

Additional Readings
Ross, S., Horner, R.H., & Stiller, B. (2010). Bully prevention in positive behavior support. Retrieved January 10, 2010

How can I get started with schoolwide PBS if my school and/or district does not currently implement it?


Evaluating the Student Improvement Team/Behavior Support Systems in Your School: The Checklist for Individual Student Systems (CISS)

Topic 15

Topic 15
PBS Plans

The Basics

PBS refers to positive behavior supports. SWPBS is a school wide positive behavior support program that an entire school takes part in. Evaluation of these programs is essential to maintaining its effectiveness. The National PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports) website provides all the information necessary to evaluate a SWPBS plan. The first section is comprised of school wide evaluation tools. This also includes case studies and examples. The second section focuses on tiers 2 and 3. This section includes checklists and functional behavior assessments. The third section contains SIMEO tools. SIMEO represents Systematic Information Management for Educational Outcomes. This provides resources to schools, families, and students.

Additional Readings
· Baker, D. J., Blumberg, R., & Freeman, R. (2002). Considerations for functional assessment of problem behavior among persons with developmental disabilities and mental illness. In J. Jacobson, J. Mulick, and S. Holburn (Eds.), Programs and services for people with dual developmental and psychiatric disabilities (pp. 51-66). Kingston, NY: NADD.
· Duchnowski, A.J. & Kutash, K. (2007). Family driven care: Are we there yet? University of South Florida: Florida Mental Health Institute.

Review State Implementation and Scaling up of Evidence-based Practices
Read the KIPBS Research-based Case Studies

Topic 14

Topic 14
Culture Competence

The Basics
An integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief and behavior that is transmitted to future generations
The stories that are passed down within families that contain important knowledge, values and beliefs

Cultural Competence
1. Self awareness of one’s own culturally based behaviors, values, habits and beliefs
2. Knowledge of information specific to each culture
3. Skills that enable an individual to engage in successful interactions

PBS Planning Tools
Contextual Fit Survey
Quality of Life Questions
PC-PBS Checklist
Annie’s Competing Behavior Diagram
Annie’s Intervention Fidelity
Shannon's Competing Behavior Diagram
Shannon's Graph at Home
Shannon's Graph at School

Community Mapping Tool
Community Self-Assessment and Action-Planning Tool

Cultural Competence Information
Cultural Competence
Cultural Competence References

PBS Planning Systems in Schools
Checklist for Individual Student Systems (CISS)
Processing Student Requests for Assistance and Developing Behavior Support Plans
Using Community Action Planning to Support School-wide

Positive Behavior SupportOregon PBS Planning Tools
Oregon Overview of Targeted Interventions
Oregon Outline of SWPBS Implementation

SIT Team Referral Package
Individual Student Support System
Steps for Individualizing Student Support
Behavior Support Team Parts 1-3: Processing Requests for Assistance
Student Support Team Procedure
BSP Template
FACTS Form

Research Summaries Describing Interventions
Case Study List
Geoff Colvin’s Book
Research Articles on Interventions

Topic 12 & 13

Topic 12 and 13
Crisis Management Plans
Issues Regarding Seclusion and Restraint




Federal Policies and Legislation

March 3, 2010, Houses Approves Keeping All Students Safe Act (HR 4247).
By a vote of 262-153, the House passed the bill to protect schoolchildren from harmful restraint and seclusion. This bipartisan bill establishes, for the first time, federal minimum safety standards in schools, preventing harmful restraint and seclusion. The Keeping All Students Safe Act is the first national effort to address this problem.

Terms to Know

Protective or stabilizing devices include:

a) Adaptive equipment prescribed by a health professional, if used for the purpose for which the device is intended by the manufacturer

b) Seat belts

c) Other safety equipment to secure students during transportation in accordance with the public agency or nonpublic school transportation plan.

• Restraint - any method of restricting an individual’s freedom of movement, physical activity, or normal access to his or her body

• Seclusion - the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room or area from which the student is physically prevented from leaving.

• Time out - removing a student for a short time to provide the student with an opportunity to regain self-control, in a setting from which the student is not physically prevented from leaving.

Types of Time-out include:

o Inclusion - takes place in the classroom; access to instruction

o Exclusion - takes place outside the classroom; no access to instruction

o Seclusion - takes place in a special room or location and the student is prevented from leaving and has no access to instruction

Websites to See
www.ed.gov/emergencyplan
http://www.ready.gov/
www.fema.gov/kids/
www.redcross.org/services/disaster
www.nasponline.org

Preparedness

Good planning will facilitate a rapid, coordinated, effective response when a crisis occurs.
· Determine what crisis plans exist in the district, school, and community.
· Identify all stakeholders involved in crisis planning.
· Develop procedures for communicating with staff, students, families, and the media.
· Establish procedures to account for students during a crisis.
· Gather information about the school facility, such as maps and the location of utility shutoffs.
· Identify the necessary equipment that needs to be assembled to assist staff in a crisis.

Response

A crisis is the time to follow the crisis plan and make use of your preparations.
· Determine if a crisis is occurring.
· Identify the type of crisis that is occurring and determine the appropriate response.
· Activate the incident management system.
· Ascertain whether an evacuation, reverse evacuation, lockdown, or shelter-in-place needs to be implemented.
· Maintain communication among all relevant staff at officially designated locations.
· Establish what information needs to be communicated to staff, students, families, and the community.
· Monitor how emergency first aid is being administered to the injured.
· Decide if more equipment and supplies are needed.

Recovery

During recovery, return to learning and restore the infrastructure as quickly as possible.
Strive to return to learning as quickly as possible.
Restore the physical plant, as well as the school community.
Monitor how staff are assessing students for the emotional impact of the crisis.
Identify what follow up interventions are available to students, staff, and first responders.
Conduct debriefings with staff and first responders.
Assess curricular activities that address the crisis.
Allocate appropriate time for recovery.
Plan how anniversaries of events will be commemorated.
Capture “lessons learned” and incorporate them into revisions and trainings.


CPI Crisis Prevention Intervention
CPI is an international training organization that specializes in the safe management of disruptive and assaultive behavior. CPI provides safe behavior management best practices and innovative resources to professionals around the world who are committed to creating safe and respectful work environments.

Methodology: Provides a holistic system for defusing escalating behavior and safely managing physically aggressive behavior. CPI methods focus on effective communication and an understanding of human physiology during aggressive moments.
www.crisisprevention.com


Mandt Training
• Philosophy: The Mandt system is based on the principle that all people have the right to be treated with dignity and respect. All individuals have the right to a personal identity, the right to normalization, and the right to the least restrictive and most appropriate environment.

• Methodology: The Mandt System teaches the use of a graded system of alternatives, which use the least amount of external management necessary in all situations

www.mandtsystem.com

Topic 11: Social Skills Interventions for Groups of Students

Topic 11
Social Skills Interventions for Groups of Students

The Basics
Social skills are most often thought of as a set of skills that allow us to communicate, relate and socialize with others. One should note that social skills from one culture to another may be defined differently. Social skills include both verbal and nonverbal forms of communication.



6 Key Social Skills

Eye Contact
Remain Calm
Listening Skills
Empathy and interest in others’ situations
Knowing how, when and how much to talk about yourself
Building Rapport

Terms to Know
Social Stories™ and Comic Strip Conversations. These resources use stories and drawings to build social understanding.
Hidden Curriculum. These strategies involve directly teaching "unspoken" social rules.
Social scripts. This strategy involves teaching "scripts" for common social situations.
Computers and other technology. These interventions involve using videos, software, or virtual-reality programs to teach complex social skills, such as recognition of emotions in facial expressions and tone of voice.
Social skills groups. These groups offer an opportunity for individuals with ASDs to practice social skills with each other and/or typical peers on a regular basis.

Websites to See
www.behavioradvisor.com
http://www.modelmekids.com/
www.autismspeaks.com


Essential Ingredients
Make the abstract concrete
Provide structure and predictability
Provide scaffold language support (simplify language and group children by language level)
Provide multiple and varied learning opportunities
Include "other"-focused activities (with children always working in pairs or groups, and with cooperation and partnership encouraged)
Foster self-awareness and self-esteem
Select relevant goals (such that issues most central to ASD are addressed)
Program in a sequential and progressive manner
Provide opportunities for programmed generalization and ongoing practice (so skills are applied outside group setting)

Promising Strategies

1. Increase social motivation (foster self-awareness and self-esteem; develop a fun and nurturing environment)
2. Increase social initiations (use strategies such as making social rules concrete, for example, "stay one arm's length away from the other person")
3. Improve appropriate social responding (use modeling and role-playing to teach skills)
4. Reduce interfering behaviors (reinforce positive behaviors by, for example, maintaining behavior charts and reinforcing desired behavior with stars)
5. Promote skill generalization by orchestrating peer involvement, using multiple trainers, involving parents in training, providing opportunities to practice skills in naturalistic settings, and assigning "homework" -- having children practice between sessions
   
   Parents and Teachers can do a lot to help their children develop good social skills, from the first year of life to adulthood:
   • Model positive relationships within their own families. Kids learn a lot from what they see – with their friends, on TV, and, most of all, from their parents.
   
   • Encourage children to identify and share their emotions and to recognize others’ emotions.
   
   • Teach children to communicate desires assertively and without anger or whining. One way to do this is to respond to requests only if they are made in a friendly tone of voice – and to ignore them if they’re not, making sure to praise the specific behaviors you like.
   
   • Teach children how to listen to others and help them to see things from others’ perspectives.
   
   • Help practice problem-solving by reflecting on everyday social conflicts. Kids often come up with their own solutions by exploring alternatives with an adult. The parent’s job is to help the child think through potential consequences of each choice, not to solve the problem for him or her!
   
   • Help develop friendship skills by discussing ways to be a good friend and by giving children lots of practice – through play dates and other social activities.
   
   • Be available and supportive.
   www.Aboutourkids.org
   
   
   References
   Interactive Autism Network

Topic 10: Function-Based Interventions

Topic 10
Function-based Interventions for Schools

The Basics
• Foundations in behavioral theory, applied behavior analysis, & positive behavior support
• Attention to environmental context
• Emphasis on function of behavior
• Focus on teaching effective, efficient, & relevant behaviors
• Attention to behavior of implementers


Federal Policies and Legislation
According to IDEA 2007, as presented by the Council for Exceptional Children, a functional behavior assessment is conducted when a behavior is determined to impede the learning of him/herself and others. A function-based intervention is put into place when the student is non-responsive to primary and secondary positive behaviors supports. The behavior should first be identified; data collected to show that current interventions are not successful, and finally the plan will contain a replacement behavior that can replace the current behavior. The function refers to why the student is doing what they’re doing. There are two major functions; to obtain something or avoid something. The function-based intervention is put into place and monitored to determine if it has replaced the original behavior with a positive or more acceptable behavior that still allows the student to acquire their needs.

ERASE Problem Behaviors

Explain - What is the problem?
Reason - What is he/she getting out of it or avoiding?
Appropriate - What do you want him/her to do instead?
Support - How can you help this happen more often?
Evaluate - How will you know if it works?

* I thought that this was a very creative mnemonic device to help remember how to help a problem behavior

Websites to See
www.Kipbs.org
www.pbis.org




Additional Resources
Competing Behavior Diagram: The competing behavior diagram is used to determine the setting events, antecedent, and the behavior. From there the team determines what the desired behavior is and the replacement behavior. This allows the team to document what they hypothesize and the effectiveness of the interventions.

FBA Team Steps
Collect information.
Develop testable hypothesis or summary statement.
Collect direct observation data to confirm summary statement.
Develop “competing pathways” summary statement.
Develop BIP.
Develop details & routines for full implementation of BSP.
Develop strategies for monitoring & evaluating implementation of BSP.

Topic 9: Parent Involvement

Topic 9
Involving Parents and Community Members




Federal Policies and Legislation
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB Act) reauthorized the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), and is based on four principles that provide a
framework through which families, educators, and communities can work together to
improve teaching and learning. These principles are accountability for results, local control and flexibility, expanded parental choice, and effective and successful programs that reflect scientifically based research. The parental involvement provisions in Title I, Part A of the ESEA reflect these principles. Specifically, these provisions stress shared accountability between schools and parents for high student achievement, including expanded public school choice and supplemental educational services for eligible children in low performing schools, local development of parental involvement plans with sufficient flexibility to address local needs, and building parents’ capacity for using effective practices to improve their own children’s academic achievement.
New reporting provisions added by the NCLB Act offer parents important insight into their children’s education, the professional qualifications of their teachers, and the quality of the schools they attend. The new legislation ensures that parents have the information they need to make well-informed choices for their children, more effectively share responsibility with their children’s schools, and help those schools develop effective and successful academic programs. Parents now will know their children’s academic strengths and weaknesses and how well schools are performing, and they will have other options and resources for helping their children if their schools are identified in need of improvement.

Terms to Know
Accountability: No Child Left Behind holds schools and school districts accountable for results. Schools are responsible for making sure your child is learning.
Public School Choice: No Child Left Behind may let you transfer your child to another public school if the state says that your child's school is "in need of improvement." Your school district may pay for transportation for your child. Contact your child's school district to find out if your child has this opportunity.
Extra Help with Learning: No Child Left Behind may also provide your child with free tutoring and extra help with schoolwork if the state says your child's school has been "in need of improvement" for at least 2 years. This extra help is often referred to as Supplemental Educational Services. Contact your child's school district to find out if your child qualifies.
Parental Involvement: No Child Left Behind requires schools to develop ways to get parents more involved in their child's education and in improving the school. Contact your child's school to find out how you can get involved.
Supplemental Educational Services (SES): This is the term No Child Left Behind uses to refer to the tutoring and extra help with schoolwork in subjects such as reading and math that children from low-income families may be eligible to receive. This help is provided free of charge and generally takes place outside the regular school day, such as after school or during the summer.

Websites to See
www.Nea.org/parents

www.ncpie.org




Additional Resources
Given a list of concerns that might impede parent involvement in schools, the barrier named by the highest percentage of schools was lack of time on the part of parents (87 percent) (figure 12).
Lack of time on the part of school staff created barriers for 56 percent of schools, and 48 percent indicated that lack of staff training in working with parents was a significant barrier.
Lack of parent education to help with schoolwork, cultural/socioeconomic and language differences between parents and staff, parent and staff attitudes, and safety in the area after school hours were considered barriers in a higher percentage of schools with poverty concentrations and minority enrollments of 50 percent or more than in schools low on these characteristics.
Resource: www.nces.ed.gov

Topic 8: Collaboration

Topic 8
Strategies for Encouraging Group Collaboration

The Basics
Collaboration is working together for a common goal. In education, teachers, parents, students, and administration, work together to benefit the students. The most common type of collaboration lately has been special education teachers going into the general education classroom and working with their students in the classroom instead of pulling them out for services.


Also, in cooperative learning small groups provide a place where:
learners actively participate;
teachers become learners at times, and learners sometimes teach;
respect is given to every member;
projects and questions interest and challenge students;
diversity is celebrated, and all contributions are valued;
students learn skills for resolving conflicts when they arise;
members draw upon their past experience and knowledge;
goals are clearly identified and used as a guide;
research tools such as Internet access are made available;
students are invested in their own learning.

Federal Policies and Legislation

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that a continuum of placement options be available to meet the needs of students with disabilities. The law also requires that:
"to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities ... are educated with children who are not disabled, and that special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular environment occurs only when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be attained satisfactorily." IDEA Sec. 612 (5)
One of the educational options, that is receiving increasing attention, is meeting the needs of students with disabilities in the regular classroom.

Resource: http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content2/Including.Students.html

Terms to Know

FAPE: Free Appropriate Public Education; special education and related services provided in conformity with an IEP; are without charge; and meets standards of the SEA.
IFSP: Individualized Family Service Plan
LRE: Least Restrictive Environment; requirement to educate special needs children with children who are not disabled to the maximum extent possible.




Additional Resources
Characteristics of a Collaborative Classroom
1. Shared knowledge among teachers and students
2. Shared authority among teachers and students
3. Teachers as mediators
4. Heterogeneous groupings of students

Challenges of Collaboration
1. Classroom Control
2. Preparation Time
3. Individual Differences
4. Individual Responsibilities
5. Conflict of Values



References
http://www.arp.sprnet.org/admin/supt/collab2.htm

http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/coopcollab/index.html

Topic 6: PCP and Wrap-Around

Topic 6

Person-Centered Planning and Wrap-Around

The Basics

PCP
is a process designed to assist someone to make plans for their future. It is used most often as a life planning model to enable individuals with disabilities or otherwise requiring support to increase their personal self-determination and improve their own independence. This ultimately leads to greater inclusion as valued members of both community and society.

Wrap-Around

Wraparound services are family and child-centered, and they can take place in variety of settings, not just one place. Services are defined by the Behavior Treatment Plan, or Behavior Care Plan. Progress is monitored with data, updated regularly and reevaluated every three months. Also, wraparound services are often very personal. Some families may need to adjust to new persons actively joining their daily activities.

Resource: www.dpw.state.pa.us

Federal Policies and Legislation

The transition services that school districts are required to provide under Chapter 285 continue to be defined by the federal IDEA 2004. IDEA 2004 defines transition services as a "coordinated set of activities designed to be within a results-oriented process that is focused on improving the academic and functional achievement of the child with a disability to facilitate the child's movement from school to post-school activities."2 Under IDEA 2004, transition planning must take place for the student who is 14 years of age and, if needed, the IEP Team must include appropriate goals related to postsecondary training, education, employment, and independent living skills in the student's IEP.3

Popular Person Centred Tools (PPCT)

*PATH- For people who are indecisive on what to do in life.
1. The dream
2. One year on
3. Now
4. Enroll
5. Growing stronger
6. Actions
7. First steps

*MAPS- It is a tool which builds a shared commitment to help the focus person move towards their dream and away from their nightmare. MAP can be used when we want to learn from a person’s past to help shape their future.

*One-Page Plans- provide a capacity description of a person focusing on what others like and admire about them, what’s important to them and what we need to know or do to provide good support.

*Living Descriptions include:
How to communicate with the person
Who supports the person best
Routines and rituals
Staff roles and responsibilities
Dreams
Decision making agreements
Health information
Relationship circle

Resource: www.inclusive-solutions.com


Websites to See

http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/edi/pcp/index.html

www.kipbs.org

Person-Centred Checklist

Kansas Rehabilitation Services

Journal 4

Topic 4

Assessment and Screening

The Basics

Testing and assessment is ongoing with children in special education programs. Some are formal, normed and standardized. Formal tests are used to compare populations as well as evaluating individual children. Some are less formal and used for ongoing assessment of a students progress in meeting his or her IEP goals. These can include curriculum based assessment, using chapter tests from a text, or teacher made tests, created to measure specific goals on a child's IEP.

www.specialed.about.com

Federal Policies and Legislation
IDEA 2004 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) outlines specific guidelines for screenings and evaluations. Including:
“3. Clarify that screening for instructional purposes is not evaluation.

The screening of a student by a teacher or specialist to determine appropriate instructional strategies for curriculum implementation shall not be considered to be an evaluation for eligibility for special education and related services.
[34 CFR 300.302] [20 U.S.C. 1414(a)(1)(E)]”
“5. Add a requirement that evaluation procedure be administered in form that is most likely to yield the most accurate information.

Each public agency must ensure that assessments and other evaluation materials used to assess a child under Part 300 are provided and administered in the child’s native language or other mode of communication and in the form most likely to yield accurate information on what the child knows and can do academically, developmentally, and functionally, unless it is clearly not feasible to provide or administer.
[34 CFR 300.304(c)(1)(ii)] [20 U.S.C. 1414(b)(3)(A)(ii)]”


Terms to Know

1. Intelligence Testing- Intelligence testing is usually done individually, although there are group tests used to identify students for further testing or for accelerated or gifted programs.

2. Standardized Testing- tests used to evaluate large groups, such as schools or entire school districts.

3. Curriculum based assessments- are criterion based tests, usually based on what the child is learning in the curriculum.

4. Criterion-Refrenced Tests- A test in which questions are written according to specific predetermined criteria. Student is not compared to others.


5. Norm-refrenced Tests- This type of test determines a student's placement on a normal distribution curve. Comparing students to one another.

6. Reliabilty- a test is considered reliable if it allows for stable estimates of student ability.

7. Validity- refers to the extent to which a test's content is representative of the actual skills learned and whether the test can allow accurate conclusions concerning achievement.


Websites to See

www.rubrics4teachers.com

www.naep.org

www.nciea.org


Kansas Special Education Assessments

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV)
BASC - Behavior Assessment System for Children
Woodcock Johnson III (WJ-III)

Response to Intervention (RTI) Tiers

Tier I- Interventions beginning in the classroom. All students are placed here in the beginning.

Tier II- Student that are identified and need an extra push with some accommodations.

Tier III- More intensive instruction. Some individual or small group sessions may be needed.

Journal 5- Functional Behavior Assessment

Functional Behavior Assessment Powerpoint

Link

Journal 3- Classrom Management

Topic 3
Classroom Management

The Basics
According to answers.com
Classroom management is the orchestration of the learning environment of a group of individuals within a classroom setting. A teacher's classroom-management system communicates information about the teacher's beliefs on content and the learning process. Everything a teacher does has implications for classroom management, including creating the setting, decorating the room, arranging the chairs, speaking to children and handling their responses, putting routines in place (and then executing, modifying, and reinstituting them), developing rules, and communicating those rules to the students.
www.answers.com/topic/classroom-management


Federal Policies and Legislation

IDEA requires teachers to implement universal design for learning (UDL) which helps teachers have more effective classroom management. Using UDL, helps reach more students needs and allows for modifications and accommodations for students who need the extra help.

Terms to Know

PBS-
Positive behavior support

Social Cue-
A cue given to students to assist them in identifying and internalizing appropriate social behavior.

Proximity-
A teacher’s physical movement throughout the classroom during instruction and independent practice. If the teacher is working with a small group, proximity is done through eye contact.

Signal-
1. Teacher signals – signals to students such as the teacher raising his/her hand when asking a questions so that students raise their hands to answer the question.
2. Student signals – a way for students to kinesthetically identify to their teacher that they are ready

Time Limit-
A time limit sets the limit to begin working. Time limits are most effective when combined with social cues. Time limits can also effectively be combined with signals.

Engagement-
Who is doing the work? 80% is the benchmark for engagement.
Direct Instruction: When teachers call on one student – only one student has to be engaged. How can all students think before 1 responds? (i.e. Whisper to your neighbor, raise a finger for each idea you have, write it in the air, note taking guide).

Expectations-
Do students know exactly what to do at any given time? Have expectations (procedures and student habits) been established, modeled and reinforced consistently through social cues, signals and reteaching with individual students?

Voice-
Teachers need to use a credible voice during instructions and expectations and an approachable voice during instruction. When students are working quietly, does the teacher take them off task by using a LOUD voice?

Resource: Ellen Williams/Annette Brinkman 2005

Websites to See
Behavioradvisor.com
http://www.pacificnet.net/~mandel/ClassroomManagement.html
pbis.org

Introduction to Emotional Behavior Disorders

According to the Individuals with Disabilities Act, Emotional Behavior Disorder is defined as problems such as behavior inappropriate to the circumstances or pervasive unhappy moods, that adversely affect a child's education performance and cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors


2 types of Behaviors
*Externalizing: more outright, noticeable
*Internalizing: shyness, depression, reserved


Some of the characteristics and behaviors seen in children who have emotional disturbances include:

• Hyperactivity (short attention span, impulsiveness);
• Aggression/self-injurious behavior (acting out, fighting);
• Withdrawal (failure to initiate interaction with others; retreat from exchanges of social interaction, excessive fear or anxiety);
• Immaturity (inappropriate crying, temper tantrums, poor coping skills); and
• Learning difficulties (academically performing below grade level).

Additional Information can be found at http://www.napcse.org

Emotional and Behavior Disorder Subcategories:
*Disruptive Behavior Disorders
*Disorders of Attention
*Pervasive Development Disorders
*Mood Disorders
*Anxiety Disorders
*Other Disorders


Causes of EBD

-Biology
-Home and Community
-School

Resource from: www.education.com

The Caring for Every Child's Mental Health communications campaign is a national public information and education campaign to:

• Increase public awareness about the importance of protecting and nurturing the mental health of young people.
• Foster recognition that many children have mental health problems that are real, painful, and sometimes severe.
• Encourage caregivers to seek early, appropriate treatment and services.

The campaign helps families, educators, health care providers, and young people recognize mental health problems and to seek or recommend appropriate services. It also strives to reduce the stigma associated with mental health problems.

The campaign is a technical assistance program for the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services Program for Children and Their Families. Its fundamental messages are:

• Every child's mental health is important.
• Many children have mental health problems.
• These problems are real, painful, and can be severe.
• Mental health problems can be recognized and successfully treated.
• By working together, caring families and communities can help.
• Information is available from SAMHSA's National Mental Health Information Center by calling 1-800-789-2647.

Since the campaign's inception in 1994, it has evolved into a full-scale social marketing effort. Highlights of campaign activities include:

• Communications Coalition: A Communications coalition of organizations throughout the country was created to increase awareness of the importance of child and adolescent mental health, improve the identification of young people with mental health needs, and increase the number of children and families who receive appropriate services. The coalition is comprised of representatives from a cross-section of organizations who use a variety of vehicles, including member distribution channels, to communicate with various audiences.
• Materials Development: Communications products from the Children's Campaign can be found in the NMHIC Store. This includes brochures, fact sheets, posters, and other materials. They are available in quantities to grantees and others who advocate for children's mental health at the local level. Spanish-language campaign products include a poster and brochure about children's mental health and a guide for families written in both Spanish and English. Also, visit SAMHSA's National Mental Health Information Center, which features many products on Children's Mental Health. The toll-free number is 1-800-789-2647.
• Communications Training: Customized communications training sessions are held for grantees to help them develop communications strategies tailored to their own communities. Sessions focus on areas such as audience research, spokesperson training, special events planning, materials and product development, and strategic communications planning. These training events give grantees an opportunity to share successes, problems, and creative solutions for communications efforts at the local level.
• On-site Media Support: Grantees receive assistance with planning local media events to promote awareness of children and their mental health needs. Help is provided with developing media kits, engaging local media, building rapport with reporters, staffing press rooms, shaping messages based on local data, developing talking points, preparing speakers, doing media follow-up, and leveraging local media activity to coincide with national activity.
• Media Outreach: On an ongoing basis, efforts are made to nurture relationships with news reporters who cover children's mental health issues. In addition, a weekly summary report of print media coverage related to children's mental health is prepared and distributed, via electronic mail, to inform professionals in the children's mental health field about breaking news.

Resources:

Academic Instruction for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Journal article by Joseph H. Wehby, Kathleen L. Lane, Katherine B. Falk; Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, Vol. 11, 2003

School-Based Prevention and Intervention Programs for Children with Emotional Disturbance
Authors: Reddy, Laura

Pervasive Development Disorders

DSM IV Definitions:
Diagnostic Criteria for Autistic Disorder

A. A total of six (or more) items from (1), (2), and (3), with at least two from (1), and one each from (2) and (3)

(1) qualitative impairment in social interaction, as manifested by at least two of the following:

(a) marked impairment in the use of multiple nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body postures, and gestures to regulate social interaction
(b) failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level
(c) a lack of spontaneous seeking to share enjoyment, interests, or achievements with other people (e.g., by a lack of showing, bringing, or pointing out objects of interest)
(d) lack of social or emotional reciprocity

(2) qualitative impairments in communication as manifested by at least one of the following:

(a) delay in, or total lack of, the development of spoken language (not accompanied by an attempt to compensate through alternative modes of communication such as gesture or mime)
(b) in individuals with adequate speech, marked impairment in the ability to initiate or sustain a conversation with others
(c) stereotyped and repetitive use of language or idiosyncratic language
(d) lack of varied, spontaneous make-believe play or social imitative play appropriate to developmental level

(3) restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests and activities, as manifested by at least two of the following:

(a) encompassing preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest that is abnormal either in intensity or focus
(b) apparently inflexible adherence to specific, nonfunctional routines or rituals
(c) stereotyped and repetitive motor mannerisms (e.g., hand or finger flapping or twisting, or complex whole-body movements)
(d) persistent preoccupation with parts of objects

B. Delays or abnormal functioning in at least one of the following areas, with onset prior to age 3 years: (1) social interaction, (2) language as used in social communication, or (3) symbolic or imaginative play

C. The disturbance is not better accounted for by Rhett's Disorder or Childhood Disintegrative Disorder.

Autism Organizations

www.autismspeaks.org

autism society

National Autism Association

Treatment for Autism

IN my experience......there is no real treatment for autism. There are some intensive therapy programs and some research-based methods that can help control autism.


Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)

Pivotal Response Therapy (PRT)

Verbal Therapy

Floortime

Relationship Development Intervention (RDI)

Training and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped
Children (TEACCH)

Social Communication/ Emotional Regulation/ Transactional Support (SCERTS)

Treatment for Associated, Biological & Medical Conditions Associated with Autism

Symptoms that are related to Autism

Social Symptoms

-lack of interaction
-lack of eye contact
-resisting attention from others
-slow to interpret emotions
-can not express their emotions

Communication Difficulties

-may be mute all their lives
-use sign language or visual icons to communicate
-inability to understand meanings of communication (body language, tone, etc.)


Repetitive Behaviors

-Repetitive physical motions (hand flapping, walk on toes, arm movements)
-Consistency in routines
-OCD tendencies


Physical and Medical Issues that may Accompany Autism
-Seizures
-Pica (eating of inedible items)
-Genetic disorders
-Gastrointestinal disorders
-sleep dysfunction
-sensory integration dysfunction

Tips for Teachers

Here are a few things to consider if you have a student in your classroom with Autism.....there will be many more tips to come!!!

1. Autistic kids often have trouble with generalization, which can affect the way they learn skills. When teaching a child to look both ways before crossing a street, it may be necessary to show them in several locations. If not, they may think they need to look only when crossing at that particular spot.
2. This lack of generalization can apply to objects as well. For example, Hilde de Clereq from Belgium had a case of a boy who could use the toilet at home but wouldn't use toilets elsewhere. Eventually it was realized that the toilet at home had a black seat and the boy couldn't connect the concept of "toilet" to ones that had white seats. They were able to teach him to generalize by putting black tape on the seat at school then removing pieces of the tape over time. Eventually, he was able to generalize "toilet" to include white seats as well.
3. Autistic children may fixate on something they enjoy, such as trains. Incorporating this fixation into their lessons by including stories of trains, math problems involving trains, and so on gives motivation to learn.
4. It is common for an autistic kid to have trouble connecting two events even if they are very close together. For example, if teaching reading with flash cards, use cards with both the written word and the picture of the object on the same side of the card. If they are on different sides, the child may not understand that they represent the same idea.
5. If the child has auditory sensitivity, a class bell, PA system, or even the teacher's voice could seem like someone is blasting an air horn. In a classroom, muffling the bell or PA system while still leaving them audible may help the student to stay focused. The teacher might need to speak more softly, especially when addressing the student directly.
6. Determine which learning style best suits the child with autism, and emphasize that method of learning and communication. Taking the example of the child who is ignoring the lecture, if he were a visual learner you might show him his seat or a picture of a chair to help him understand it is time to sit down. If he were a kinesthetic learner, you might lead him over to his seat with light pressure on his shoulders.

Resources:

Autismspeaks.org