The PARALLEL

with much borrowed from Utah's Paraeducator's Consortium newsletter site

From Creature to Teacher to Reacher
- The Common Link between Uncommon Educators -

From Eric Chester’s presentation ‘Educating Generation Why.’

Creatures Can’t Find Time in Life & Teachers Want More Time in their Life... Reachers Put More Life in their Time

Creatures are Unaware of School Activities & Teachers are Aware of Activities... Reachers are involved in the School’s Activities

Creatures Encounter Problems Students & Teachers Solved Problems for Students... Reachers Teach Problem Solving Skills

Creatures Tell Students What to Do & Teachers Show Students How to Do It... Reachers Explain Why it Must be Done

Creatures Provide the Excuse & Teachers Provide the Destination... Reachers Provide the Transportation

Creatures Don’t Believe in Much & Teachers Believe in Themselves... Reachers Believe in Kids

Creatures Exert Power Over Kids & Teachers Achieve Power With Kids... Reachers Reveal Power Inside of Kids

Creatures Ignore the Rules & Teachers Enforce the Rules... Reachers Promote Values

Creatures Generally Dislike Kids & Teachers Really Like Kids... Reachers Truly Love Kids, All Kids

Creatures Try to Destroy Kid’s Heroes & Teachers Try to Be the Kid’s Hero... but Reaches Try to Make the Kid a Hero

Creatures Feel Cheated by the System & Teachers Feel the System is Adequate... while Reachers Feel Fortunate to be Shaping America’s Future!

Keys to being an Exemplary Paraeducator

Rhea Heaps and ChicKay Cole

• INITIATIVE - learn what you responsibilities are and then be an active team player.
• PROFESSIONALISM - present yourself as a positive role model.
• ADAPTABILITY - change can be a challenge; be teachable.
• COLLABORATION - when we work together our skills are sharpened as we learn from each other.
• COMMUNICATION - we must make sure that those we are talking to understand what we are saying as well as we do.
• INTEGRITY - respect the dignity, privacy and individuality of all students, parents and staff members.
• POSITIVE ATTITUDE - without this key the other keys are ineffective; positive thinking is the key to success.

What Parents Need........and What Works!

Helen Post
Executive Director, Utah Parent Center

• are looking for answers
• have many needs
• may be experiencing a number of conflicting feelings: love, anger, anxiety, grief, guilt, fear
• often feel isolated, as if they were the only family having difficulties
• are often receiving ill-timed or poor advice from a multitude of people
• are probably not aware of programs and services that are available to them
• may need to realize the scope and limitations of their responsibility and learn to take care of themselves as well as their child
• want to talk
• need someone to just listen.

• INFORMATION! INFORMATION! INFORMATION! Be a ‘connector’ - help parents find information, resources, services and programs.
• connect parents with other parents - help them find successful mentors
• ask parents what they need and what they want
• help parents learn about their child’s abilities and needs - knowledge is important!
• parents want to be equal partners - they want to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. They must sense a feeling of mutual respect (no guilt, no blame, build trust) in the decision-making process.
• accept the knowledge that parents have about their child and remember that parents see their child as a whole person
• be open to differences. Fathers and mothers, all family structures, different cultures, values and needs, should all be included. Be non-judgmental
• Don’t feel threatened by knowledgeable, assertive parents
• Be an active collaborator who will assist with communication between and among all service providers for the child and family.

5 S’s for Successful Classroom Inclusion of Students with Severe Disabilities

Mary Clark & Ginny Eggen, Park City School District

• Know your student's needs and hobbies, what they like and the family situation
• Be familiar with the IEP goals
• Find out what the student's preferred learning style is
• Know what accommodations (wheelchair, vision, hearing) the student needs

• Be familiar with the curriculum the student is following
• Observe the teacher’s teaching style (lectures, packets, individual reading)
• Know the teacher’s plan for large projects that involve your students
• Find out how the IEP goals can be worked on teaching the subject matter

• The instructional team selects what to hold the student responsible for
• As a paraeducator, know (and then select) what is appropriate for the student

• Think simple- but be creative
• Incorporate different learning styles- but only if they help the student use lots of repetition!

• give the student opportunities to "show off" and share new information
• Don't forget to give lots of praise for appropriate behavior and achievement

Tactile Activities to Improve Fine Motor Skills

Ginny Wimmer
From the workshop ‘Fun Ideas for Occupational Therapy Services’

GLOB
In a medium sized bowl combine:
1 cup Elmer glue
1 cup warm water
few drops of food color
In a small bowl dissolve:
2 tsp borax in 1 cup of warm water
Add borax solution to glue mixture and knead until smooth.
This is a fun mixture to just play with or hide objects in for children to find. At Hallowe’en I like to make a "ghostly goo" (it has no food coloring in it) and hide plastic spiders, skeletons and rubber eyes, etc. The kids love it!

FINGER PAINT with:
a. pudding
b. sand / sand in finger paint
c. shaving cream
d. cornmeal
e. corn syrup (add drops of food color)
f. scented finger paint
Don’t be afraid to let your child get dirty - they wash up well!

OOBLICK
In a large covered bin, add small amounts of warm water to a box of cornstarch. Using your hands, mix cornstarch and water until it becomes liquid like, but still thick enough to scoop up to form a ‘snowball’ (see what happens when you stop forming the ball and let it sit in your hand). Hide small toys in Ooblick and have the child dig for them using their hands. Make icicles by coating entire hand with Ooblick then holding hands up with fingers pointing down, letting the mixture run off.
This is a great activity for hand strengthening, as it’s a dense texture and takes some muscles to mix. Don’t worry if it gets on the floor or clothing, as it cleans easily when dry - just vacuum.

Communication in the Preschool

Tara Metzger and Dinah Hughes, Granite School District

1. Mirroring. Imagine that you’re a mirror. Imitate whatever you see the child do or say, such as clapping, patting the table, pushing a toy car. Also repeat or mirror sounds, words or signs the child uses. Always let the child lead. Mirror only what the child does first.
Graphic for this: mother holding baby. Baby says "Baba", mother says "Baba" back to baby.

2. Parallel Talk. Describe the child’s activities much like a sports announcer would. Describe what the child is doing. Also describe what you thnk the child sees, hears or feels. Use simple, short phrases that the child can understand.

3. Self Talk. Describe what you’re doing, thinking or feeling. Use words that are appropriate to the child’s level of interest and understanding. Self-talk gives the child new information about the surroundings. It also gives examples of how to talk about the surroundings.

4. Reflecting. Repeat what the child has said, using correct pronunciation and grammar. Repeat the words clearly so that the child hears the correct pronunciation and knows that you have understood at least part of the message. Give the child a good, clear model of how the words should sound without calling attention to the errors. Don’t say, No don’t say ‘buhi,’ say ‘bunny’ Instead say, Yes, there’s the bunny.

5. Expansion. Repeat the child’s message in a more mature or complex form. Add one word, several words, or an entire phrase to the child’s sentence, depending on the child’s communication ability. Your reply is slightly more elaborate than the child’s initial comment. In many cases, you also give more information.

6. Turn-taking. This is a way to establish a "conversation" pattern that includes listening and paying attention as well as responding. Your goal is to keep the game going. After your turn, pause and give the child a chance to respond. Be sure to give the child enough time; some children may take several seconds to respond.

7. Creating opportunities. Create a situation that requires the child to communicate. Set up an activity that is possible only if the child uses communication skills. By creating the chance for the child to use new skills to get what he or she wants, you are teaching the importance of newly acquired words or gestures

Copyright ©1992 by Communication Skill Builders, a division of The Psychological Corporation.

ADHD

Jan Pace
Paraeducator, Davis School District

• being easily distracted
• having a hard time taking turns, playing/working quietly
• difficulty following instructions
• blurting out in class or during a conversation
• talking too much
• being forgetful and/or losing things
• poor social relations

• self-discipline - frequent discussion of rules and expectations is very important
• school success - monitor assignments, teach keyboarding, teach good study habits.
• getting organized - teach them to use a student planner
• communication - talk about feelings, check that they understand directions, be positive.

When To Praise: A Lesson Taught by Tara and Anthony

Bob Morgan
Associate Professor, Utah State University

Jessica Martinez, the paraeducator assigned to work with Tara on her writing, resisted responding to the blood-curdling noise. The special education teacher had suggested that Jessica try a particular procedure: when Tara becomes a terror, praise the other students around her who are working, but say nothing to Tara. When Tara goes back to work, praise her.

What was the function of Tara’s tantrum? To know for sure, we would need to perform a functional assessment. However, it would appear that the behavior’s function was not to get a game or a toy; not to avoid or escape the writing task, because Tara was an excellent writer; it was not to produce sensory feedback (although perhaps she enjoyed the noise!). Tara’s behavior functioned to get attention from Jessica. It did not matter that the behavior was socially unacceptable - it worked, so she used it! So when Jessica decided to praise the other students who were working, Tara could only get Jessica’s attention by getting back to work.

The next day, Jessica was confident. And sure enough, Tara worked quietly on her writing assignment. The Daily Tantrum was old news.

But wait. Today, Anthony struggled. He was writing new words, and even with Jessica’s assistance, was mired in frustration. His written work was going South as his discontent raced North. Soon, Anthony had his head buried in his hands and had started to cry. But today, Jessica knew what to do. She praised nearby students who were working, but did not mention Anthony’s name. He continued to cry. Jessica praised the other students again. More crying from Anthony. One more round. At this point, Anthony angrily grabbed his writing sheet, ripped it from the pad and screamed, "I’m not doing this no more!" Jessica was stunned.

Why does praise sometimes energize kids but fall flat at other times? Is it unreliable? Should we avoid using it because of such different reactions? What was different in these situations? Both students were second graders working on writing tasks and functioning at about the same level. Why such different reactions?

The answer relates to the "functions," or purposes, of behavior. We all engage in certain behaviors for a reason: we go to work to get a paycheck and improve our career; we meet with friends because they listen, or laugh with us; we avoid certain people because they’re loud, critical, or self-absorbed. Educators who want to change a behavior need to identify its function and find a procedure that matches it.

Most student behavior serves one or more of four functions:

1. It allows students to get attention from adults or peers, such as social praise.
2. It allows students to get activities or tangible things, such as games or toys.
3. It allows students to avoid or escape unpleasant people, places, or tasks.
4. It allows students to get sensory feedback, like listening to music, dancing, rocking, etc.

What was the function of Anthony’s behavior? He was not interested in Jessica’s attention, so the "praise around" did not work. Anthony wanted to escape a high-demand task: he threw a tantrum to escape the task. So when Jessica praised students who were working, it had no effect on Anthony, except perhaps to increase his frustration.

In dealing with Anthony, what should Jessica do differently? She may have several options, and the one selected depends on the classroom teacher. But, first, she could encourage Anthony to raise his hand and ask for a short break. Most students know they cannot escape a task indefinitely, but they might try again after a short break. Second, she could have Anthony write the easier words and raise his hand for her assistance with the more difficult words. Third, she could play a game of "hard -easy" in which Anthony writes a hard word in order to receive a easy one. Essentially, Anthony would alternate between easy and hard tasks. Sound familiar? Don’t we do much the same things?

These examples illustrate how procedures must match the functions of behavior. Praise is not an effective consequence if the student is not interested in receiving it. What works for one student does not necessarily work for another. However, this is no indictment of praise. We should not avoid using it, but we should understand when it is best used and with whom. The same procedure may yield different results until we focus on the behavior’s function.

Many people have recognized the importance of examining functions of behavior in educational situations. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) now requires that, for some students, functional assessment and behavioral intervention plans be implemented. This federal legislation underscores the importance of examining the function of behavior and using the procedures that best match it. For Jessica and other paraeducators, it is a lesson that can be put to good use many times in the classroom.

Kids say the darndest things!

A new teacher was trying to apply what she’d learned in her psychology course to her
grade school teaching. Wanting to teach the students that each one of them was valued, she started the class by saying "Everyone who thinks they’re stupid, stand up."
Nothing happened, but then one of the boys stood up.
"Do you think you’re stupid?" asked the teacher.
"No ma’am," replied the boy, "but I hate to see you standing there all by yourself."

At Sunday School they were teaching the children how God created everything, including human beings. One of the younger children seemed especially intent on the story of how Eve was created from one of Adam’s ribs.
Later in the week, his mother found him lying down on the floor as though he were ill, and asked, "What’s the matter? Don’t you feel well?"
"I have a pain in my side," he replied. "I think I’m going to have a wife!"