Exceptional Student Services News |
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Upcoming Events and Announcements |
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UPCOMING EVENTS
9/3/21 Unique Learning System profile due
9/6/21 & 9/20/21 ESS Census Verifications due
9/23/21 Paraprofessional Medicaid Billing Training
10/1/21 Preschool TSG Check Point 1 is due
Preschool:
- New Curriculum has arrived and we will begin implementing the week of September 6th!
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For a full calendar of the ESS Year in Review, please click HERE
For the full early release PD calendar, please click HERE
Youth Mental Health First Aide PD Opportunity
Did you know that Dysart’s Mental Health Task Force formalized a plan last year to meet the requirements for the Suicide Prevention legislation SB 1468. The legislation went into effect at the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year and mandates that all school staff who interact with students in grades 6 through 12 must receive suicide prevention training at least once every three years. One of these programs that meets this requirement is the 8 hour course Youth Mental Health First Aide. If you are interested in attending this course there are various classes that are offered this school year in the district (10/29/21, 12/3/21, 2/4/22, 4/1/22, 5/26/22). Please sign up in iLearn if interested.
Council for Exceptional Children
Presented each year at the CEC Convention & Expo, the Yes I Can Awards are a powerful opportunity to recognize children and youth with exceptionalities for their outstanding determination, abilities, and accomplishments.
The Yes I Can Awards recognize 12 outstanding students with exceptionalities in six categories:
- Academics
- Arts
- School & Community Activities
- Self-Advocacy
- Technology
- Transition
HOUSEKEEPING
- Laptops (particularly newer models) - Make sure you are shutting them down and not leaving them on between uses; this allows for higher battery life and performance
- Have you updated your email signature to reflect your 21/22 assignment?
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Please continue to email positive results for COVID to the hrcovid@dysart.org email address as well as your site administrators, and if applicable, your department lead
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Evaluation, Instruction, and Strategy Resources |
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FROM ADE
September Math Office Hours
Please share the following message about upcoming math professional learning with general and special education teachers who teach mathematics.
September Math Office Hours
The ADE Math Team has scheduled office hours to allow educators to meet together to network, problem-solve, and develop solutions to allow all Arizona teachers and students to continue to feel supported and to be successful.
Grade-band meetings are provided for all math teachers, including special education teachers! These grade-band meetings will include opportunities for networking, problem solving, and sharing different implementation models. Office hours are one hour long with an additional 30 minutes at the end for a Q & A session. Participants can earn one hour of professional development credit for each session attended.
Elementary Math Office Hours (Grades K–5)
Monday, September 20, 2021 from 3:30–4:30 p.m. with Q & A from 4:30–5:00 p.m.
Middle School Math Office Hours (Grades 5–8)
Tuesday, September 21, 2021 from 3:30–4:30 p.m. with Q & A from 4:30–5:00 p.m.
High School Math Office Hours (Grades 8–12)
Wednesday, September 22, 2021 from 3:30–4:30 p.m. with Q & A from 4:30–5:00 p.m.
Note: accommodations must be requested at least one week in advance of each webinar.
Please email Jenifer Fernandez or Rob Hilliker at ADE with any questions.
HIGH SCHOOL TRANSITION
- On August 23rd DUSD high school teachers learned about the 3-step approach to postsecondary transition planning. The steps in the image (below), when completed with the student, will lead to a plan that will reasonably enable the student to meet their postsecondary goals. Highlights from the training include:
The DSCVR process for transition assessments
The sequence for creating measurable postsecondary goals: 1. Employment 2. Education/Training 3. Independent Living (if appropriate)
Activities can happen any time or anywhere
Special education and transition planning is a TEAM SPORT
The next district high school training is scheduled for September 27 at the Support Facility.The topic will be Transition Assessments.
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-The ADE/ESS Secondary Transition (ST) Team is launching a variety of webinar sessions for the upcoming 2021-22 fall semester.
- Transition Tuesdays
- Transition 101 Series
- Getting Centered on Out-of-the-Box Thinking: Person-Centered Planning for Transition-Aged Students
Please view the attached marketing flyers that provide detailed information about each webinar series. Registration will be required for all events, and the registration links are available for all sessions on both the corresponding marketing flyers and the ADE Secondary Transition webpage. If requesting accommodations, please register no later than 3 business days before the scheduled webinar.
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Location, Duration, and Frequency of Specially Designed Instruction
The Arizona Department of Education has updated their “Guide Steps”, which outline the major components required to meet a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) for students with a disability. The Guide Steps address all the items Dysart (or any Public Education Agency) must meet in order to be in compliance with IDEA, State Statute, and State Administrative Code.
The following is an excerpt from the Guide Steps regarding Specially Designed Instruction with regard to location, frequency and duration:
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300.320(a)(7)
The location, frequency, and duration of each special education service, related service…...is included.
Location of services generally refers to the type of environment that is the appropriate place for provision of the service. The location should not be a specific room (e.g., Mrs. Smith’s class) but should reflect the type of location (special education classroom, general math class).
Frequency generally refers to how often a child will receive a service (such as the number of times per day or per week).
Duration generally refers to how long each session will last (such as the number of minutes).
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Generally, a student who requires DAILY services should receive those services 5 days a week; we DO see students on Mondays if the student requires it. For a student who requires daily services, IEP teams can and should consider if the services on Monday are shorter (at the same ratio that the academic day is shorter) due to Professional Development early release.
Documentation of Services
It is required to document the special education services provided to each student. Each service provider (special education teacher or related service provider) must have a service log for each of their students. For related services providers who do Medicaid billing, those logs and notes can suffice. Remember, at any given time a parent, administrator, or specialist may require that you provide documentation of these services for an individual or group of individuals. Let’s make sure we give ourselves credit for the services and work we are doing! Samples of logs can be found on the ESS Website.
New Office of Civil Rights Finding
In a case named, Gwinnett County (GA) Pub. Schs. 78 IDELR 293 (OCRIV, Atlanta (GA) 2020), the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) found that the parents had insufficient evidence that a violation of ADA Title II or Section 504 had occurred, The allegation was that the the district failed to implement the accommodations in the IEP, but was unsubstantiated because the teacher was able to show that he regularly provided the accommodations listed in the student’s IEP through documentation and services logs, Read more in detail here.
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Assistive Technology Team |
This month, I would like to highlight a resource that we are fortunate to have here in Dysart!
The Assistive Technology (AT) Team consists of 4 amazing ladies -
They can also be reached via their office phone extension x3659 at Freedom Traditional Academy, Room 249
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The AT Department can help you in many different ways, including:
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AT Referrals - This form if for when you know you need help or are looking for something to trial with your student(s), but are unsure of your options or what would be the best starting point. Assistive Technology Referral Form
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For the AT Referral Process, we utilize the SETT {Student, Environment, Task, and then Tools} process to help guide teams through the selection of what tools are best for your student and classroom.
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Documenting AT in the IEP - we can help you with how to accurately and appropriately document your students AT into their IEP. Document AT in the IEP
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AT loan library - we are currently working on building up the AT loan library to be set up so you can come to the AT office at Freedom Traditional (room 249) and peruse the shelves, ask questions, and check out equipment to try or use with your students. (This is still under construction, so please contact Kathi Richman katherine.richman@dysart.org at ESS for your teacher iPads and contact the AT department for help with apps).
The AT Team has shared that they look forward to chatting with you and helping you to meet all your student and classroom Assistive Technology needs!
Dysart Preschool classroom chosen for ADE partnership
Dysart was awarded the PELE Project! This is an exciting training opportunity to learn more about the inclusive preschool project through a partnership with ADE and the University of Denver. Dysart and Mesa Unified were selected by ADE to receive a grant for full training. Surprise Elementary will be the first class to go through this training and we begin in late September.
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Looking Through Another's Lens Recognition |
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