This is a crazy and unprecedented time we are living in right now. If you are a special education teacher, you have probably been feeling nervous, sad, and confused about how to best support our self-contained students during this pandemic. No matter what we do, we cannot replace the 1:1 or small group teaching we usually provide our students in self-contained classrooms. In my opinion, we cannot EXPECT parents to do things at home. They are just taking things one day at a time. Special education teachers must first think about how we can SUPPORT our parents at home. I give some ideas on how to do that, plus some digital learning tools if appropriate for the individual student.
Ask Parents what they NEED from you
Instead of debating what we can provide students at home, ask the caregivers themselves! I created a simple Google Form as a survey for my parents. You could also call them and ask, “what resources can I give you?” They may need help setting up an at-home visual schedule. They may want some resources for at-home learning. They may want to talk to you. Sending parents materials they don’t understand or know their student cannot do is NOT THE ANSWER.
Hold a Zoom Video Meeting
Set a day and time to hold a video meeting with your class. This is a great way to see each other. Your students will be able to hear your voice, as well. My Zoom meeting took just under 20 minutes. I said “hello” to each student who participated. Next, I read a short picture book. The parents could sit with their students as I read the book. To quickly create a free Zoom account, click here.
Free Raz-Plus Trial Subscription
Learning A-Z is offering a free 90-day trial subscription for teachers. What I like about Raz-Plus is that you can assign books to your students based on their reading level, and you can also assign books your students might enjoy listening to. Raz-Plus has an option to listen to stories rather than read them. If you think your student can listen to a story, this might be a good option. Another great thing about Raz-Plus is you can leave your students an audio voice message! Click here to access the free trial subscription.
BOOM Learning {Digital Task Cards}
BOOM Cards are the closest thing, in my opinion, to replicating discreet trial learning in a digital format. Teachers create an account and assign individual students a Boom “deck.” There are many Boom decks out there, including many free ones. Click here to try a free Boom deck that helps the student work on shape matching and identification. Boom decks can be used on any electronic device such as an iPad or kindle. They can also be accessed through a web browser on the computer.
Web Video Resources
Our self-contained students LOVE watching videos, especially if they contain music. Parents might not know your students’ favorite songs to sing or videos to watch. Let them know this information. It may help to turn it on when the child is having a hard time at home. For example, I have one student that loves a specific “Bear Hunt” video. Make sure parents know these things. Here is a list of some fun video-based websites parents can use at home for free.
- BrainPop Jr. and BrainPop (free right now)
- Go Noodle
- Super Simple Songs
- Mo Willems “Lunch Doodles”
- PBS Kids
- IXL (Learning Website)