 |
May 8, 2020
Issue 18, Volume 13
It's All About the Choices!
Greetings and Happy Friday
Please enjoy our weekly newsletter coming to you from quarantine! We have retooled it in order to provide all the home-based activities, and COVID-19 related information you need to stay on top of things in this strange time.
News Items:
- COVID-19: Report Offers 'Blueprint' for Reopening Schools and Beyond
- UN Calls For Better Protections For Those With Disabilities During Pandemic
- Things Look Different for SpEd Students While Remote Learning
- Private Schools for Disabled Students Are Closed Too. Some May Not Re-Open
- Q&A on COVID-19 and Down Syndrome
- Education Groups Crank Up Pressure on Congress With $250 Billion Request
- In Other Research News
PediaStaff News and Hot Jobs -- WE ARE HIRING NOW!
PediaStaff is interviewing now!. For 14 years, our trusted clients have looked to PediaStaff to help them serve special needs children. When schools, clinics and EI providers reopen, they will rely on us more than ever to get services kick-started.
With that in mind, please consider the following (anticipated) opening we are currently looking to fill with a quality therapist like you:
- Hot, New Job! Pediatric Outpatient - SLP - Palmer, AK
- Hot, New Job! 2020-2021 School OT - Shelton, WA
- Hot, New Jobs! Two Sign Language Interpreters - St. Charles, IL
Stay-at-Home Therapy Activities and Resources
- 50 Flower Crafts for Kids
- 5 Language Play Ideas to Try at Home
- Language, Sequencing and Vocabulary Work for 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'
- Easy at Home Mother's Day Craft
- Easy at Home Bird Finger Puppet Origami
- Recycled CD Ladybug Craft For Kids
- Ladybug Articulation L Sounds Freebie
- Issue 7: Share Therapy Activities and News with your Families!
Articles for School-Based/Pediatric Clinicians and Special Educators
- School Psych Corner: Schools Struggle to Meet Students' Mounting Mental-Health Needs
- Autism Corner: "Zoom Fatigue": A Taste of The Autistic Experience
- OT Corner: Teaching Letters in OT Telehealth - Free Slide Dec
- School Nurse Corner: Guidance for School Nurses to Safely Send and Receive Resources Between School and Home During COVID-19
- SpEd Corner: This Pandemic Is No Time to Backtrack on Special Education
Feel free to contact us with any questions about our openings or items in these pages. Have you discovered our RSS feed? Click on the orange button below to subscribe to all our openings and have them delivered to your Feed Reader! Don't have an RSS Feed Reader set up? Sign up at
Blogtrottr and have our blog posts delivered right to your email.
Have a great weekend and Take Care!
Heidi Kay and the PediaStaff Team
|
|
|
The Career Center
The links to the right are "live" and reflect the most recent SLP, OT, PT and related assistant jobs, and ALL our Bilingual and School Psychology Jobs.
To further narrow your search by state,
setting, bilingual, or term, use the
check boxes drop down menus.
If a particular search is returning
no hits it is possible that we do
not currently have new openings for
you with that selection criteria.
To see ALL our openings
click HERE and further narrow your search.
|
|
|
|
|
COVID-19: Report Offers 'Blueprint' for Reopening Schools and Beyond
|
[Source: Education Week]
As schools reopen in the fall, they should have clear procedures for closing again if the coronavirus re-emerges in their area, a new report says. And they should be prepared to cooperate with local health authorities to track factors like student absenteeism, fevers, and family health conditions to help trace the path of the pandemic and stop its spread.
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
|
UN Calls For Better Protections For Those With Disabilities During Pandemic
|
[Source: Disability Scoop]
Governments should consider several steps to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on people with disabilities, including removing individuals from institutions and granting testing priority, according to guidance from the United Nations.
In an 11-page
document issued this week, the U.N. Human Rights Office said that countries and other stakeholders ought to do more to address the needs of people with disabilities who are being inordinately affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
|
Things Look Different for SpEd Students While Remote Learning
|
[Source: The Austin Statesman]
Milla Phillips is learning her fifth grade lessons from her home playroom instead of her Forest Trail Elementary School classroom.
Using her school assigned iPad, she can complete lessons through Google Classroom. Using the web conferencing system Zoom, she is able to connect with her teacher, Jamie Berrios, and the rest of her classmates.
Phillips is one of more than 8,200 Eanes school district students learning from kitchen tables, bedrooms and living room couches after the district implemented a remote learning initiative last week.
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
|
Private Schools for Disabled Students Are Closed Too. Some May Not Re-Open
|
[Source: Daily Press]
Claire Anderson's parents worried that she didn't understand what the coronavirus is or why she couldn't go to school.
She is an 18-year-old student at the Peninsula School at The Faison Center in Newport News, a private day school for students with disabilities.
Claire has autism, is classified as nonverbal and has severe anxiety. When Gov. Ralph Northam closed schools on March 13, he also closed private schools, leaving thousands
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
|
Q&A on COVID-19 and Down Syndrome
|
The unprecedented spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is presenting the
world with a unique challenge. In our case, the pandemic calls for a united response to
better understand its impact on the Down syndrome community.
Information in this Question and Answer (Q&A) document can be used to help you
support your loved one with Down syndrome. It is our hope that this information will help
us get through this health challenge. We encourage you to share the information in this
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
|
Ed Groups Crank Up Pressure on Congress With $250 Billion Request
|
[Source: Education Week]
Dozens of groups sent a new request to Congress Tuesday,
calling for at least $250 billion in new federal aid for K-12 schools and higher education, as part of a broader push to shore up state and local government funding.
The request for schools also says congressional relief should focus on students from low-income households and special education, as well as efforts to help students connect to the internet. And the groups say it should support key programs under laws like the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Every Student Succeeds Act
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
|
In Other Research News
|
[Source: Education Week]
Editor's Note: Due to our current focus on Home Education/Therapy and COVID-19, please enjoy this summary page with links to other interesting research that we wanted to share!
Read These Articles Through Links our Blog |
|
|
Privately owned pediatric therapy clinic is a growing practice in Fairbanks, AK and seeks a pediatric speech-language pathologist to join her team!
* This outstanding practice values each individual therapist for his/her unique set of attributes and skills as a therapist and as a person.
* Staff is passionate about learning and benefit from extensive and on-going continuing education, which is instrumental in the development of a best practice.
* They use a play-based, sensory-motor philosophy to help children meet developmental milestones and maximize their potential in life skills.
Learn About / Apply for This Job on our Blog |
|
|
|
PediaStaff has a need for a full-time Occupational Therapist in the Shelton area for the 2020-2021 school year, and we are ready to start interviewing now! Opportunities are available to work with children from age 3 to 21 at 3-4 school sites. Caseload would be around 50. New graduate OT candidates can be considered if they have strong school fieldwork experience.
Learn About / Apply for This Job on our Blog |
|
Hot, New Jobs! Two Sign Language Interpreters - St. Charles, IL
|
We are in search of two Educational Sign Language Interpreters. Are you an Educational Sign Language Interpreter looking to work full time in a great school district this SY 2020-21? Apply now if you are an Educational Sign Language Interpreter!
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
|
50 Flower Crafts for Kids
|
[Source: Growing a Jeweled Rose]
Spring is finally here, and with that we have flowers on our mind. We can't wait to plant and craft this Spring! Are you excited, too? Here are 50 fun and creative flower crafts to help get you started this Spring.
Learn More About this Activity Through a Link on our Blog |
|
5 Language Play Ideas to Try at Home
|
[Source; Toddler Approved as Seen on Hands on As We Grow]
Literacy activities doesn't have to mean worksheets. Language development through play is one of the best ways to young toddlers and preschoolers to learn literacy ideas.
Kristina is sharing some language play ideas with us today. Five language play ideas actually. She's one of the moms behind the amazing blog, Toddler Approved. Kristina is the mom to a preschooler and a baby.
Learn More About this Activity Through a Link on our Blog |
|
Language, Sequencing and Vocabulary Work for 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'
|
by: Cindy Presley CCC-SLP and Kristina Young, CF-SLP
We wanted to share with you a great sequencing activity for little ones. If you go
here you can download pictures that go along with Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar (there are also some other neat activities on this website as well).
These make for a fun sequencing activity! Read through the story with your student and then have them glue the pictures in order as they re-tell you the story, and if they more visuals to help them remember just look through the book again. This helps to build language skills, and this book provides so many topics to explore.
Learn More About this Activity Through a Link on our Blog |
|
Easy at Home Mother's Day Craft
|
[Source: No Time for Flash Cards]
This easy Mother's Day craft doesn't have to be only for moms. It can be for dads, postal workers, healthcare workers, your neighbor, or friend. I wanted to share something that was simple enough for anyone to make but easy enough to send in the mail too! Special days like birthdays and Mother's Day can be tough for a lot of people, and being
Learn More About this Activity Through a Link on our Blog |
|
Easy at Home Bird Finger Puppet Origami
|
[Source: Red Ted Art]
You know we adore easy Paper Crafts for kids, right? Well, we have a super duper special and EASY Bird Finger Puppet Origami project for you. These are so easy, and so fun to turn into doodle birds, that you will wonder **where** they have been all your life! So fun.
Learn More About this Activity Through a Link on our Blog |
|
Recycled CD Ladybug Craft For Kids
|
[Source: I Heart Arts N Crafts]
Today I'm teaming up with some very talented ladies for our first craft challenge of the year. This month's craft challenge was to create an insect from recycled materials. And because I never throw away anything, I happened to have some old scratched DVD's in my craft room just waiting to be used for the perfect craft. We decided to use our DVD's to make these handprint ladybugs that make the perfect Spring craft for kids!
Learn More About this Activity Through a Link on our Blog |
|
Ladybug Articulation L Sounds Freebie
|
[Source: SLP Tree via Teachers Pay Teachers]
This cute articulation craft/activity is a fun way to practice initial and final /l/. There are 10 initial targets and 10 final targets with three different color options: color images in black spots, color images in white spots, and black & white images in white spots.
Learn More About this Activity Through a Link on our Blog |
|
Share with the Families of Your Kiddos -- Issue 7!
|
Each week, PediaStaff sends out a separate e-letter that you can forward/share with the parents and guardians of your students and clients. Here is the blog post that you can share of this week's featured pins. Your families can subscribe so that the publication arrives as an email on Thursdays, just as yours does. We hope this is a helpful resource for you!
See Our Blog Post for Issue 7 HERE |
|
|
|
School Psych Corner:
Schools Struggle to Meet Students' Mounting Mental-Health Needs
|
[Source: Education Week]
"We're screwed." That's what principal Kristina MacBury is hearing over and over again from her students at Sarah Pyle Academy.
Sarah Pyle is a dropout-recovery program in Wilmington, Del., and its students, ages 16 to 21, face a lot of hardships in the best of times: They may be the primary breadwinners in their families. Some have kids of their own; others are taking care of sick parents. Many are homeless.
|
Autism Corner: "Zoom Fatigue": A Taste of The Autistic Experience
|
[Source: Thinking Person's Guide to Autism]
Like many folks, I had not heard of Zoom before the pandemic. My friends in IT tell me they were using it for work meetings before much of the United States went into self-quarantine, shelter in place, lockdown, or whatever you want to call the "social distancing" we were urged to observe to help slow the spread of the virus.
One bonus for me of the way things have shifted during the pandemic is that I've been able to join small groups of people from whom I'm genuinely geographically isolated. For the holy season, I celebrated in community with a Lodge in Sacramento. My friend, Smash Ford, invited me to attend a meeting of the Non-Binary Union of Los Angeles (
NBULA), where I had a wonderful time.
|
OT Corner: Teaching Letters in OT Telehealth - Free Slide Deck
|
[Source: OT Toolbox]
Teaching letters in distance learning? Working on handwriting in OT teletherapy? Well, one thing is for certain. Our recent virtual therapy slide deck to teach strait line letters was a popular one! That's why I wanted to not only continue with that letter formation slide deck series (coming soon!) but I wanted to get this newest slide deck out to teach letters in occupational therapy telehealth. So often, school-based OTs have handwriting goals to address. However,
|
School Nurse Corner: Guidance for School Nurses to Safely Send and Receive Resources Between School and Home During COVID-19
|
[Source: NASN]
Note: This document is NOT a substitute for nursing judgment and does not dictate an exclusive course of action. State and district laws and policies should be followed. This guidance is based on current research available at the time of publication: 3/31/2020
School nurses are essential healthcare providers
in the community working on the frontlines of the COVID19 pandemic in schools.
|
SpEd Corner: This Pandemic Is No Time to Backtrack on Special Ed
|
[Source: Education Week]
By Matthew L. Blomstedt
America's public school system is arguably one of our nation's greatest democratic achievements. The pandemic has only reinforced the importance of schools as the collective centers where we attend to students' academic, physical, emotional, and social needs, including for students with disabilities.
With most school buildings across the country closed, the challenges we currently face should not undermine what we've accomplished over the last 60 years to protect students with disabilities. Instead, we must take a collaborative approach to the challenges laid bare. To do so, students, parents, teachers, and school officials must align ourselves together so that we can provide the necessary services and support to students with disabilities in the uncertain weeks and months ahead.
|
| Did You Get This From a Friend? Sign Up For Your Copy of This Newsletter! |
Would you like pediatric and school-based therapy tips, resources, articles, and news delivered to your computer once a week? Sign up here for our newsletter!
Sign up HERE
|
Quick Links to PediaStaff
|
|
|
| If you would like to opt out of receiving this newsletter, there is a link located in the footer below. However, please note that once you've opted out, we will be unable to send you any future correspondence via newsletter. |
Please Note: The views and advice expressed in articles, videos and other pieces published in this newsletter are not necessarily the views and advice of PediaStaff or its employees but rather that of the author. PediaStaff is not endorsing or implying agreement with the views or advice contained therein, rather presenting them for the independent analysis and information of its readers.
|
|
|
