Exceptional Student Services News |
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Upcoming Events and Announcements |
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UPCOMING EVENTS
5/9/2022: End of the School Year PD
5/12/22: Window to begin progress reporting opens
5/16/22: Begin Teacher Check Out and Procedure
5/19/22: Progress Reports Due to Guardians/Families
- Compensation is $200 a day for teachers and behavior coaches, $250 for related service providers, and $25 an hour for classified (on days classified are included)
7/18-7/21: Summer Seminar @ Dysart High School
Summer Seminar - Log in to Schoology For Access to the Summer Seminar Catalog and Detailed Course Descriptions documents
Join a Course - Schoology Access Code: BHZF-6932-P62C3
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2022 Summer Seminar Information
- ESS Summer Seminar is open to all Certified ESS Staff in Dysart and ESS Preschool Facilitators
- Classified Staff are invited to attend NCI Training offered on Tuesday and Wednesday, July 19-20. NCI hours/compensation is in addition to Summer Seminar!
- Participants may choose to attend as many classes as they like for recertification hours
- Participants will be compensated for up to 20 hours during the week of July 18, 2022
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Please register in iLearn by clicking the Title of each class; Join the Schoology class for updates! BHZF-6932-P62C3
- Classes are taught by current Dysart Staff Members, Arizona Department of Education, National, and local presenters and Attorney’s
- ESS Welcome Table will be located in the Lobby of the Auditorium at Dysart High and will be staffed with ESS Specialists to help direct, answer questions, and collect time sheets
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Please contact Shara Rose or Valerie Byrd if you have any questions
ADE Summer PD
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Count Me In: Foundations for Fluency is a one-day professional learning opportunity that will focus on the key components of fluency. Participants will make connections across mathematics standards that specify fluency as the intended, end-of-year outcome in each grade level from K–6. Additionally, educators will explore instructional routines, strategies, and games that help all students develop the flexibility to solve contextual and mathematical problems involving whole numbers. We strongly encourage school teams of special education and general education teachers who teach mathematics in Kindergarten through Grade 6 to register.
- Tucson | June 24, 2022, from 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m.
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Register for Foundations for Fluency on June 24 in Tucson
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Count Me In: Hands on Algebra is a two-day professional learning opportunity that will focus on inclusive practices for teaching mathematics for middle and high school students with learning disabilities. Teachers will walk away with a conceptual understanding of the learning progressions within algebraic reasoning. Teachers will also experience collaboration strategies that will support all students in meeting the High School Algebra standards. We strongly encourage school teams of special education and general education teachers who teach mathematics in Grade 6 through High School Algebra to register. Participants will be required to attend both in-person training days.
- Tucson | June 22–23, 2022, from 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m.
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Register for Hands on Algebra on June 22–23 in Tucson
The cost is at your expense; each event is $25 (lunch is not provided). Parking at the University of Arizona campus costs $8 per day.
Please email Sherri Schwindt with any questions about registration. Please email Jenifer Fernandez or email Rob Hilliker with any questions about the training.
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Evaluation, Instruction, and Strategy Resources |
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Help students see growth in their learning!
Ask:
What did you learn today/this week/this year?
- What can you do now that you were not able to do last week/month/quarter/year?
- How can you show that you met this learning objective?
Structures That Support Reflection Another strategy we can embed into our lessons to support reflection is the use of specific structures that engage students in thinking about the learning that has occurred. For each structure chosen, we must be intentional in aligning the structure to the goal, and developmental needs of students and class. Through the skillful implementation of structures that support reflection, our students will develop speaking and listening skills, metacognition, and a deeper interaction with the content they learned.
Here are a few from a Nureva blog written by Tricia Whenham that you can try as we wrap up the school year:
1. Sketch reflections
2. Create reflection snowballs
3. Develop a professional (student) portfolio
4. Use dedicated reflection journals
5. Write exit slips
6. Take reflection breaks
7. Try reflecting out loud
8. Model your own reflection
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3 Lessons Learned
For Administrators, Evaluators and Case Managers regarding Special Education Meetings
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1.) Communicate.
One of the most proactive and important things we can do as educators is to communicate with our families and each other. If a parent or guardian reaches out to you, respond in a timely manner (typically 24 hours), even if only to let them know that you are getting the answer/looking into the concern. Then, be sure to follow up. Too many small things escalate into large ones due to lack of communication; this is something we can control.
2.) Be sure that there is a note taker.
Taking notes and effectively participating in the meeting if you are the facilitator is difficult. Assign someone else to notetake. Typically, the Administrator (Principal or Assistant Principal) should be the note taker. Notes are a great way to be able to go back at a later date and review what took place in the meeting. It can also help if there is an issue later. At minimum notes should include:
- Who was in attendance
- Purpose of the meeting
- Summary of anything determined (to include other options considered, why the were rejected)
- E.g.- Goals, accommodations, service minutes or location
- Any input from parent
- Anything that team does not agree with (when there is not unanimous agreement)
- Any follow up items (could be from the parking lot or the action plan)
3.) Create INDIVIDUALIZED Prior Written Notices from each meeting.
If a person were to read a PWN from a meeting you held, they should be able to understand the events of that specific meeting. It should include any determinations of services areas and goals, service minutes as well as LRE. They should understand what other options were considered, and why they were rejected. Additionally, one should not look at the PWNs you have written across the same student or other students on your caseload and find that they are nearly verbatim. As the PWN is one of the most heavily relied upon documents from the meeting, it is imperative that it accurately reflects action being taken (or not taken) as a result of the meeting.
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Congratulations to all the recipients of the Dysart Hero Award! We would like to recognize those who are part of the ESS Department who earned this prestigious award.
WE ARE SO LUCKY TO HAVE YOU ALL!
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Looking Through Another's Lens Recognition |
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Please remember to submit each of your recipients individually and not as a group. Please include both first and last name for the recipient. Thank you
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