Literacy apps for emergent readers.

Following on from my last post, i thought i would share some apps i have found to be successful in the classroom and across Sommerville Special School. I use the iPads as an independent activity as part of my writing rotation.
I have downloaded a whole bunch of other new apps which i will spend some time using in the classroom before sharing. Enjoy!

	Writing Wizard: - excellent tool for tracing letters and numbers
	Sight words by photo touch: - flashcards on screen that read out high frequency words which the student has to press - great for testing sight word knowledge
	ABC alphabet by photo touch: - same concept as the sight words app but upper case alphabet - video shown on previous post
	Special words: - teaching word concepts - starts with matching picture to picture, then picture to word etc - similar concept to the programme "my baby can read"
	Elmo loves ABC's: - All of my students enjoy exploring this app - great for teaching alphabet knowledge
	ABC Magic 1: - flashcards that word like a book. Students can flick through to explore letter sounds, letters and objects beginning with that letter

Testing non-verbal students

I have a range of students in my class and my biggest struggle is finding an appropriate and reliable method to test their skills. I have had an influx of new students in my class this term and whenever I get a new student my first question is, "how do I test what they already know?"

In the past I have success with one of my students using an alphabet programme I made on my smart board. However when i tried this method for my three new students I found it was not suitable. They starting popping all of the balloons not just the letter i was calling out. 

This week i have spent some time teaching my new students to "point to" or "give me" a flashcard. This isn't the most reliable method because when they make a choice out of 3 they may accidentally pick the correct card. With this method i will usually retest them multiple times to make sure my data is correct. However testing alphabet and sound knowledge can take a very long time. Most of my students are still learning to attend and sit for extended periods of time which means testing is done in short mini-sessions. 

When researching other appropriate methods i came across a blog that shared the exact sturggles that I have been having with my students. In this blog there were some excellent suggestions for testing phonological awareness. I have a number of students who can identify both upper case, lower case letters and letter sounds but i am unsure if they are able to link this sound awareness to a word.

With the remainder of the term i am going to try assessing their phonological awareness using the testing strategies outlined in the blog (linked above). I am hoping this will give me more insight into their reading skills. 

Teaching visuals for communication

One of my lovely colleagues has been making activity specific core language boards for reading for many years. When I first moved to Sommerville I saw how they could be used to support reading comprehension and I continued to add them to my reading packs.
I have used them to teach visuals to my students who are non-verbal. Once i have taught them what the symbols mean, i then use the board so that the student can answer questions about the book. For students who are unable to verbalise the words in the book, the board can be used to complete assessments so that you can test their understanding.
In this video one of my students is pointing to the object he can see in the book when asked, "what can you see?"

Please note: sound has been removed to protect the child's identity

Progress update - Term 2

Term 2 has been a successful one for my students, especially the ones i have outlined in my focus group. When reflecting on this term and what made it successful it has been a combination of building relationships, having high expectations, building predictable routines and implementing a sensory curriculum including opportunities for movement breaks.

Oliver: I have the behavior team on board to assist with his behavior in the classroom, mainly around compliance for non-prefurred tasks. With a behavior plan put in place, Oliver is now more settled. He can complete tasks in a familiar routine such as unpacking his bag and writing his name. He will now sit and attend to his individual reader for short periods of time. I have not been able to assess his alphabet knowledge as of yet however i am hoping that next term i will be able to test him.

Conner: Conner has made the most progress this term. He joins all class group activities and has gone up two reading levels! He is now reading at red level 3 with excellent comprehension. He understands that he needs to complete all work tasks before he is allowed to play and has stopped leaving the table in the middle of a work block.

Benjamin: We have seen a huge increase of functional language being used throughout the day. Benjamin is like a sponge and just soaks up any learning, even when it appears he is not attending to the lesson he is able to show us that he understands the task. Benjamin still continues to run multiple times in circle time but during work tasks he is on task for the duration of the lesson. This term i was able to identify how many high frequency words he can recognise, this is a big breakthrough!

Next term i am keeping my programme relativly similar with a focus on comprehension during reading tasks using visuals to aide understanding of the text.

Addressing sensory needs

My students need regular sensory input throughout the day in order to focus for extended periods of time. For some students this means implementing a "sensory diet".

"A sensory diet is a carefully designed, personalized activity plan that provides the sensory input a person needs to stay focused  and organised throughout the day." (Patricia Wilbager, OT)

When i look across my group of students i can recognize that most of my class are sensory seeking;  weather it is rocking on their chairs, walking around the room before sitting down, jumping off the chairs, or seeking tactile stimulation. I have worked with students in the past who were tactile defensive (refusal to explore tactile surroundings) and the class OT (occupational therapist) implemented a Wilbarger brush programme as part of a sensory diet. I was amazed at the success of using a brush to stimulate the skin in order to increase active exploration.

My class programme caters to the sensory needs in my classroom with regular sensory breaks offered to my students in order to increase their focus during work tasks. I timetable a movement break every 30 minutes. The breaks vary from jumping on the trampoline, going for a run, sensory play, swing and a exercise circuit. Some of my students such as Benjamin need more breaks in order to remain on task in the classroom. I make sure he goes on the swing for 2 minutes before he is expected to sit.

I am currently trialing a few alternative seating alongside the OT that works in my classroom. If you have a student who struggles to focus you could try using a swiss ball to sit on, inflatable cushion, fake grass under their feet, weighted blankets for pressure or a fiddle toy to maintain focus.

Making reading accessible through AAC

As mentioned in previous posts, i now have 4 out of 7 students using AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication). I am working on implementing all devices into my class programme which is no easy feat considering one person needs to work individually with that child while using their device and i only have 3 staff members.

However creating opportunities for communication while it should come naturally i have found it is best to plan sessions where i will use each device. I am trying to get my students to carry their devices with them so that they can take ownership over their own communication as well.

Each week i make an activity specific language board to go with their communication device for a student to use while they are reading. This particular student was trialing a device that has sound output and recordable buttons. I used language from their weekly reader and recorded the symbols on the device. For the first time, this student was able to answer questions about the story, and  they were able to answer correctly! Because of the success we had during reading, this student is going to trial a similar device with more icons available. From 9 icons on a screen to 32!

Planning communication opportunities isn't always easy in the chaos of a busy classroom however making it part of your new "normal" makes it manageable; especially when you start to see success for that student.

Engaging students in reading

Since introducing personalised books into my class library i have seen an increase of independent reading by a student who otherwise would have refused to read.
By engaging her in books about topics that she is interested I have been able to assess her pre-reading skills. I know that she is able to hold the book correctly and turn the page. When looking at the book she can look at the pictures and words on the left and then on the right which shows me she knows the left to right direction that text is read.

I download most of my individualised books from a website called Taheel Reader (link is supplied). Taheel Reader is a fantastic resource where people make books and upload them online. They are switch adaptable if you have a student with limited mobility who uses switches and they can also be used on a touch screen. I download and print them out to put in my library however last year my students were able to access them on the computer during independent reading time. I usually always have books in my library printed that are based on my topic as well.

Ready to Learn

I currently have 7 students in my classroom, 6 out of the 7 students have an individualised reading programme using the reading packs i make up each week.
One of my students has taken much longer than the others to settle. Last term she got upset when asked to complete a request. Once upset she would cry for an extended period of time. My main goal for her last term was to follow the class routines rather than complete work. She was encouraged to sit while the other students were sitting during circle time and meal times. When the other students were moving around activities for writing and math's she was expected to stay at the table but was not expected to complete work. Along with the behavior therapist we decided to take away all the demands. This was a very hard decision for me as i want all of my students to have the most learning opportunities throughout the day. Not encouraging her to complete a work task went against everything i believe in however it allowed her the chance to observe what the other students were doing and learn the class routine.

This term she has come back to school and is now very settled and calm. Her family said she missed school over the holidays, often putting her bag on wanting to come to school. I have reflected on her progress recently and how far she has come. I think the reason she is more settled this term is because we let her to settle on her own time, giving her opportunities to join in but not forcing her to be ready before she was ready to learn. Learning readiness is something that we need to take on board as educators, especially when that student has additional needs. They need to have the foundation skills in order to be able to engage in a learning programme that is designed for them.
Last term gave me the chance to be able to reflect on my own practice
, i needed to change the way i approached a student in order to cater to their individual needs

ASD and Building Routines

The importance for building predictable routines for children with Autism is paramount for learning however it is important to ensure that the child doesn't become too obsessed with routines. I often hear of families having to drive the same route each day to ensure that the child with Autism doesn't get upset, or wearing the same clothes and eating the same food.
I believe that providing a structured learning environment helps the child to focus on what they are meant to be doing and to block out overstimulating environments. Routines also help to build expectations and  ease anxiety for children who cannot decode what is happening in their environment.
Now that my students are familiar with our class routine i am starting to make small changes to make our routine slightly different. This way they learn how to cope with change in a safe environment because life isn't always going to be predictable. I do this by taking a trip to the swings after morning tea instead of reading our big book, or timetabling a surprise on their individual timetables so they cannot anticipate what is going to happen.

If you have a student who cannot cope with transitioning between tasks then start by
- building a predictable routine (use a visual timetable to help)
- once they are familiar; start making small changes to their day
- adding "surprise" on their timetable

https://www.autismspectrum.org.au/content/establishing-routines

Managing self - Key Competencies

As my inquiry is related to increasing my students managing self skills i wanted to look more closely at the Key Competencies to see where they fit, i will readdress this later in the year to see where they have progressed using the Key Competency pathway. By linking my inquiry to the Key Competencies it has enabled me to identify my next steps and track my students progress throughout my inquiry.

https://nz-curriculum.wikispaces.com/2+Approaches

Oliver : He struggles to follow instructions when it is a non-preferred activity. This becomes challenging when it is time for work as he will show signs of refusal (lying on the floor or throwing his work), it has been difficult to see where his current reading skills. His behavior is a barrier to his learning, with the help of first / then visual supports we have seen his behavior decrease. 
Current Skills: KCI 4 / Manage my behavior : Attend to adult led activities with support
Next Steps : KCI 5 / Manage my behavior : Show awareness that actions have consequences

Conner : He has anxiety about joining in with unfamiliar groups, he will now join in group activities with out class but when we join with other classes he walks off and observes from a distance. Occasionally he refuses to come back to the classroom when we are outdoors but generally he listens well. 
Current Skills: KCI 5 / Take Risks : Use acquired skills in a familiar group
Next Steps : KCI 6 / Take Risks : Use acquired skills with an unfamiliar person

Benjamin : He needs to be familiar with a routine in order to remain on task and do what is expected of him. if the routine/environment is unfamiliar then he will walk away, run to a different activity or cry.  
Current Skills: KCI 4 / Persevere : Participate in a familiar activity that has been set for me with support
Next Steps : KCI 5 / Persevere : Anticipate and follow the next step in my learning programme that has been set for me

Focus Group 2018

I currently have 8 students in my classroom, all with varied skills and strengths. When choosing the students in my focus group I wanted to choose students that were showing signs of being ready to read (can sit for a short period of time, attend for the length of a story) but needed strategies to be put in place to be able to progress further.

Here is a brief outline of the students i have chosen in my focus group. 

I am currently completing assessments to have baseline data, i am in the process of finding the most suitable assessments to suit my students needs as well as how to assess them (I often need to get creative to assess my students).

Oliver : Age 5 yr, 1 mth, speaks and understands both English and Chinese, speaks using 1-3 keywords, very social and interactive but reliant on adult support as he likes 1:1 attention, has difficulty with compliance with non-preferred activities, good receptive language skills and understanding, minimal alphabet recognition, weak fine motor skills due to low muscle tone

Conner : Age 5 yr, 4 mth, excellent communication skills both verbal and receptive, he is very social and can initiate a conversation with others, he has difficulty joining group activities however this is improving, he can struggle at times to attend to a task when he wants to do something else,  he can recognise all upper and lower case letters and most letter sounds and he has instant recognition of many high frequency words

Benjamin : Age 5 yr, 3 mth, has some words but not using them yet appropriately to request items or comment. He has difficulty following instructions, sitting for extended periods of time and completely non-preferred activities. I am still in the process of working out what letters he can recognise. He doesn't show an interest in books and is unable to sit for extended periods of time. 

I have already started implementing strategies for all the students in my class - mainly around independence and managing themselves day to day in the classroom (unpacking their bag, sitting for increasing periods of time, using the first - then visual sequence, following routines). I am looking forward to working on specific strategies for each student and their learning needs. 

Watch this space!

Learning Intentions for Shared Reading

Having a clear learning intention prior to every lesson is important for students of any level. Visuals are a great way of sharing what it is you are wanting them to learn. 

We are fortunate to have received training at Sommerville from Sally Clendon. She teaches that having specific learning targets shared prior to a lesson means that your students only have to focus on one aspect of the lesson rather than trying to retain information about everything you are reading. 

I had great success in my last classroom by writing down on the whiteboard what they were learning that particular day. In my new classroom I have had to adapt the way I teach and deliver content. I made these learning intention boards which i have printed and laminated to use during shared reading. For some books i will make specific learning intentions to go with that story, Eg: we are learning to find out what happened to the mouse.

For each book i make a activity core board which has language from the story in visual form so that my non verbal students can answer questions about the story. 

Here are some examples: 

Elkonin Boxes

Two of my students currently struggle with decoding words during writing and sounding out words during reading. I saw Anita (http://sfsanitaunka.blogspot.co.nz/) use Elkonin boxes with a group of ESOL students in her classroom. I have yet to visit her in action but i couldn't wait to implement them as part of my reading programme.
After a bit of research online i found a strategy that i thought would be beneficial for James in particular as he has recently moved up to yellow. James is frequently appealing for help as he is overwhelmed with the amount of words in his current books (he was stuck on Magenta for many years).
If he is stuck on a word he uses a red dot to put in each Elkonin box as he sounds out the word slowly. Next he is given some cut up letters and has to put them in the boxes to spell the word out. Already i can see James gaining confidence in his reading again as he is reading with more flow.

Article i used as a guide : http://www.readingrockets.org/content/pdfs/Phonics-Sound-Elkonin-Boxes.pdf

Examples of Visible Learning

Last term i blogged about the importance of visible learning in special education .(http://ssslaurencol.blogspot.co.nz/2017/09/visible-learning-in-special-education.html)
I thought i would share the different ways in which i make the learning visible in my classroom across different activities. My colleague, Donna also blogged about learning intentions recently and shared some wonderful examples of how other teachers at Sommerville Special School are making learning explicit for their students. The link to her blog is below.
http://sssdonnaryan.blogspot.co.nz/2017/10/what-am-i-learning.html

1. Individualised work

2. Morning circle on the smartboard using visuals to convey meaning

3. Sharing Reading (using a colourful semantic colour prompt)

4. Reading log which goes home to parents to share their individual goals for reading

5. Learning boards (shared on a previous post http://ssslaurencol.blogspot.co.nz/2017/07/student-self-assessment.html)

6. Individual daily target (token economy)

How often should we be reading in our classrooms?

How often should we be reading in our classrooms?

In many special education classrooms it can be challenging to have the same demands as a mainstream classroom would. My students need regular movement breaks which takes time away from the classroom. My students cannot cope with a typical classroom timetable however i try to implement as many literacy opportunities as i can. It has taken 2 years to be able to put this many demands on our timetable and as you can see our day is split into "mini-lessons" to weave literacy throughout the day. Other classrooms at Sommerville have fewer reading opportunities because the needs in their classroom are much higher or they have different reading goals related to concepts about print.
I have included a timetable of all reading based activities (not including other curriculum areas) as one of the many questions i have been asked is how often i read with my students. Below is a brief explanation about what each activities looks like in my classroom.

Time	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
8.30 – 9.15 9.30 9.45 – 9.55 9.55 – 10.30	Morning work box Morning Message Word wall games	Morning work box Morning Message Word wall games	Morning work box Morning Message	Morning work box Morning Message Word wall games Individual literacy skills	Morning work box Morning Message Word wall games Library
MORNING TEA AND PLAYGROUND
11.20 – 11.35	Shared reading	Shared reading	Shared reading		Shared reading
LUNCH AND PLAYGROUND
1.40 – 1.50 1.50 – 2.10	Self-Selected Reading 1:1 reading	Self-Selected Reading 1:1 reading	Self-Selected Reading 1:1 reading	Self-Selected Reading 1:1 reading

- Morning work box: a TEACCH inspired workstation where children work completely independent with activities they have learnt to master
- Morning message: Each morning i write a message to my students including words from the word wall
- Word Wall games: different whole class games, each student works on different skills
- Individual Literacy skills: a block focusing on making words, grammer etc
- Library : reading to and with the students with books they engage in
- Shared reading: one book a week with a different focus/activity each day eg, "read the book to find the main characters in the story"
- Self-selected reading : completely independent reading, they choose books from the computer, library or i-pad
- 1:1 reading: students read 1x book a week with a different activity/focus each day. I make up reading packs for each student (see previous post)

I try to make sure that students get the opportunity to...
Be read to - morning message, shared reading, library
Read with - 1:1 reading, individual literacy skills
Read independently - SSR, morning work box, library

Where are my students at?

At the beginning of the term i outlined a list of mini-goals that i wanted to focus on for each individual in my inquiry (listed below from a previous blog post). 

• James : attempt to sound out a word he doesn't know. I am going to try Elkonin boxes with him as seen on another colleagues blog. 
• Evan : Attend 2x mainstream classes a week for reading. 
• Toby : implement a programme suggested by my schools SLT to teach Toby comprehension. 

Here is how i have progressed with my inquiry. My students did not have "managing self" goals this term as their behavior in the class has stabilized and they are settled. 

James: I have not yet implemented Elkonin boxes as we focused on inflectional endings instead. Initially James was only reading the root word,  he can now read words with different endings.

Evan: Unfortunately the mainstream teacher left the school and Evan was unable to attend many sessions. I am approaching multiple teachers in the junior syndicate and we will work on integrating him to another classroom. Evan also started on a "making words" programme to assist with his spelling

Toby: Toby completes a reading comprehension programme daily after reading his book. He can now respond to familiar questions by pointing out objects from the book in response to "find one that looks like this". Previously he would repeat your question back rather than responding appropriately by following instructions.

Here are the reading level results from Term 3, i look forward to the final results at the end of the year. I will share my goals for next term in another blog post.  

Student	Reading Level T2	Reading Level T 3
Toby	2 Magenta	Emergent red 2/3
Evan	17 Turquoise	18 Turquoise
James	4 red	5 red

Blanks Level of Questioning

Toby is currently reading at Magenta (2) however he has the sight word knowledge to be able to read at a much higher level but he does not yet have the skills to be able to answer questions related to the story. Comprehension for children with disabilities can be very challenging as many of the questions can be abstract.
My students SLT (speech language therapist) suggested that we start getting Toby to respond to simple instructions through varying levels of questioning. She gave me some resources to use in class based on "Marion Blanks Level of Questioning". As i became familiar with her activities that she made i started to make my own that linked with his weekly reader. Below is a video of Toby using the resources i have made. He completes these activities 4x a week and also takes them home. I have written instructions so everyone involved knows how to use them.

For more information see the website below:
http://askaspeechie.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Blank-handout.pdf

Inflectional Endings..

James is currently reading at level 5. Now that the books are becoming more challenging he is noticing the difference in word endings. Sometimes he will read the base word only and skip the ending. I have started to add some inflectional ending activities to teach him the different variations in a word. This was the first session i did with him and i haven't yet touched on past or present tense.

First i pointed out words in his reader and asked him to repeat them, then i asked him to say the sound at the end of the word. We started with the word "looks" which he read correctly after being prompted to pronounce the sound at the end. I asked him to find a word that looks the same on our word wall, he found the word "look". 

Some of the words in his activity are in his reader and some are additional words added to the activity. I was so impressed at how fast he picked it up. 

Reading Success!

Reading has always been a huge challenge for James who remained on level 1/2 for 4 years.
 He struggled to retain sight words he learnt and also struggled with comprehension.
Through repetitive word wall activities, visual based reading activities and behavior strategies in place, James has moved up 3 reading levels which is such a huge achievement.
When my students achieve a milestone i send home a milestone card and I display my students success in the foyer in our classroom.

Reading Packs

Unlike mainstream classrooms where they read a different book every day, in my class they have 1x book for the week however they have a different focus each day that they read. They also take their reading books home as well as the activities. I make up a 'reading pack' with activities that vary depending on the book and level. Another teacher at my school, Lidia, structures her reading programme similarly so we swap our reading packs to share activities and ideas. It is a great way to share the work load and to get ideas. I love having another teacher to bounce ideas off.

Here are some examples of the activities i have made for a Magenta 1/2 book and a Red 3 book.