Why is it that we all tend to grab on to negative things that are said to us or negative things that we say to ourselves? It’s hard to understand why negative seems to dominate the positive unless specific action takes place. So frustrating! Perhaps this is why motivational speakers are in such high demand! If it was easy and natural, we would do it all the time ourselves! Right? […]
Read more
19
Jan
2021
A Medley of Reinforcers You Won’t Want to Miss!
Don’t you just love when someone gives you a whole slew of ideas that are so fun and practical that you can’t decide which one to try first? I thought it was time to combine some of my favorite reinforcers/visual reminders and share them with you all at once! This is just for you! Take a look! For those of you who are my faithful longtime followers, this is just […]
Read more
10
Jan
2021
The Best Little DATA TRACKER You’ll Ever Find!
No matter what changes in the world of special education, there is one thing that never changes….keeping track of data!!! UGH! It’s such a chore and not fun, so can you imagine that I’ve discovered something that can make it fun? I must send a shout out to Holly Foltz, one of our teachers who works with our students on the autism spectrum! I stopped by her school to talk […]
Read more
07
Dec
2020
The Best Strategy to Teach A Multi-Step Task!
Independence is one of the top goals we have for our students with special needs. How do you do that when sometimes the task has several steps? You need to build confidence one step at a time. Here’s the way I can relate to this concept. I’m OK with technology, but I’m not a tech wiz. I learn what I need, but I don’t spend hours playing around with technology […]
Read moreI LOVE children’s books! So much so that I took a course on children’s literature AFTER college! Who does that? I love great content, clever twists, beautiful illustrations and the way good books can inspire and influence children! Speaking of wonderful children’s books, I’ve got a treat for you today. Check out this wonderful author and one of her most recent books! Take a look! Please stay safe. You take […]
Read moreIf you have ever tried to teach idioms to students on the autism spectrum by teaching them the definition for what the idiom means, then you know it often fails. Students need not only explicit instruction when learning something difficult, they also need the opportunity to practice the new skill in context so it makes sense. Just like we don’t just teach reading by only teaching students to decode words, […]
Read more
08
Nov
2020
The Girl Who Thinks in Pictures: Temple Grandin!
If you don’t already know that major companies like Microsoft are actively looking for college graduates on the autism spectrum, you should do a bit of research to see for yourself! Why? Because they are looking for bright people who think outside the box. People who see things from a different perspective. It’s been a long time in coming, but our students/children with ASD continue to have more examples of […]
Read moreDuring the Orton-Gillingham training that I attended during the summer of 2019, I was introduced to some resources that I could tap into to help students learn grammar. One Fellow-In-Training, an educator working on the last requirements for becoming an official Fellow in the OG approach to reading, joined our cohort for a couple of days. She drew a simple T chart on the board and said, this is the […]
Read more
07
Sep
2020
What to Do About Face Shields!
For the first time in my life, I’m wearing a face shield! Not all the time, of course, but there are times when I really have no choice. I do adult professional development as part of my job, so I need to be able to have people understand what I’m saying. I am also aware that a face shield alone does not adequately protect you from COVID-19. A face shield, […]
Read more
