20 Ways to Support Students with Learning Differences This Year
‘Take the Time to Listen’
Below are 10 ways to help students in special education return to normal classroom instruction.
1. Be Patient
Many of us—students and teachers alike—have been through a lot these past few years. Be patient with students and yourself. We are all excited to get back to normal, but it may take time. But trust that it will come. Don’t rush it too quickly. Give yourself and others the time they need to adjust.
2. Make Time to Listen
A teacher cannot know what their students need if they don’t take the time to listen. Students’ communication skills and verbal-expression skills may be limited, and they may not be able to explain what is wrong. Remember to listen in all the different ways that students might be communicating with you. Listen to not just what they say but what they don’t say, what they do and don’t do, and pay attention to their body language.
3. Modify, Modify, Modify
Remember to make use of the modifications and accommodations available in a student’s IEP if they are struggling with an assignment, having a hard time focusing, challenged getting motivated, or any other issue. Reach out to special education staff for guidance. Try and then try again to find the right combinations of supports to help students adjust.
4. Rapport Is Key
Make creating rapport a key goal in the first few weeks back to normal classroom instruction. Take time to develop or reestablish rapport with ice breakers, games, and getting to know you activities. These activities are proactive ways to create bonds among students that can help if issues develop later in the year.
5. Support Students Dealing With Change
Some students, like those on the autism spectrum, might have issues adjusting to change. These might be changes to the schedule, to a new teacher, to a new classroom, to a new school, or to anything new. Social stories, chances for visits/tours ahead of time, and lots of school-home communication can help with the adjustment back to normal classroom instruction.
6. Review, Review, and Review Routines
Don’t expect students to remember established classroom routines. These past years had many distractions that might make it hard to remember common procedures. Routines might not come back quickly. Spend time reviewing routines and allow student input to tweak existing procedures.
7. Implement Strategies to Assist With Focusing
Some students, especially those with focusing issues like ADHD, may find it hard to stay still in a classroom. They may have become used to movement breaks and other outlets they had at home that helped them stay on task. It may be challenging for them to transition to staying focused in a classroom setting. Rewards and behavior contracts may help them adjust back to learning in a classroom.
8. Help Students Stay on Track
Some students may have become used to their parent’s immediate help at home, or others may not be used to problem-solving on their own. They may be more dependent on teacher direction. Don’t forget to be explicit and make liberal use of cues and prompts to help them stay on track.
9. Connect With Families
Establish parent-teacher communication early on with the parents of special-needs students. Last school year, our special education administration asked us to begin the year by calling our parents and having what they called a “Hopes and Dreams” conversation. We discussed what parents wanted for the year ahead and how their child was dealing with the pandemic. It turned out to be a helpful and proactive way to establish lines of communication and create a positive and supportive relationship.
10. Spend Time on Social-Skills Development
Many students are out of practice dealing with their peers. They may have forgotten how to use their words and take turns. They may be inpatient and can’t remember what it is like to share the teacher’s attention with a classroom full of other students. Teacher modeling and role-plays could be useful.
Together, these suggestions are proactive ways to make the return back to normal classroom instruction a smooth transition for your students with special needs.