Students With Disabilities | Imagine This!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Watch RTI webinar & download free infographic

Last week Imagine Learning sponsored a free webinar on implementing effective Response to Intervention frameworks. The webinar shared tips for using all three tiers of intervention to boost student progress. If you missed the webinar, you can watch the archived version to find out how three principals are making RTI work for their schools.

In conjunction with the webinar, Imagine Learning created an infographic—a visual guide to RTI success at each tier of intervention. We’re excited to share this infographic with you. To embed it on your own website, blog, or newsletter, simply copy and paste the code below. There are two versions of the graphic—one larger, one smaller. The smaller version functions best as a widget.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Teaching outside the box

While learning seems to come naturally to some students, others struggle and need a spark or a jump-start. To make sure all students are engaged in learning, many schools are now turning to unusual ways to reach their students and are experiencing some very positive results! Here are a few examples:

Service dogs

Service and facility dogs can provide valuable learning opportunities. Specially trained dogs can teach students how to overcome fears, learn patience and perseverance, and listen to and follow directions. Children with special needs especially benefit from working with service dogs when they brush the dog, take it for walks, and play fetch. These activities help develop gross motor skills and reduce stress. If a child finds social interaction to be a struggle, having a dog as a buddy can be very calming.

Having a classroom canine mascot can also spark students’ interest in math (measuring out dog food) and writing (using the dog as the subject of a paper).

Infants

A Canadian non-profit group has an interesting strategy to reduce bullying. How does it work?

Posted by Claire in Early Childhood Education, English Learners, Struggling Readers, Students with Disabilities | 3 Comments »

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

5 ways to beat standardized test stress—Tip #3: Turn tricky questions into no-brainers

Students often get tripped up on tough reading questions like literal and inferential comprehension questions. To turn tricky questions into no-brainers, address them ahead of time by explicitly teaching your students how to tackle specific kinds of comprehension questions.

Not sure where to start? Imagine Learning English has some great activities designed to help students master both literal and inferential comprehension questions. You’ll find them in Level 2 under Reading Fluency and Comprehension. Have students play the activities on their own, or use your interactive whiteboard to play the activities for the whole class.

Posted by Lauren in English Learners, Struggling Readers, Students with Disabilities | 1 Comment »

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

National Title I Conference: Day two

This week we will be bringing you daily updates from the National Title I Conference in Tampa, Florida. Here is the entry for day two, Tuesday, February 1. Read the recap of day one here.

I think it’s safe to say that most attendees are grateful to be at the conference today—especially those from Oklahoma, Missouri, and Illinois. The weather here in Tampa is gorgeous! While we conference attendees relax at the hotel pools and soak up the warm Florida sun after a full day of mingling, listening to instructional sessions, and interacting with exhibitors, our families and friends are telling us to bring home the warm weather. With certain states getting as much as 30 inches of blinding snow, it’s no wonder that schools across the country are closed today. During a short break, one principal from Oklahoma showed me a picture on his phone as proof of just how much snow is currently blocking his doorstep at home. So a big THANK YOU to the National Title I Association for holding the conference in Tampa this year—we will be forever grateful!

Marybeth Flachbary and Steve Underwood Presentation

Along with the great weather, we attendees have been privileged to hear outstanding presenters. Each session is built around one of three themes: instruction, leadership, and policy. Yesterday I enjoyed a policy session by Marybeth Flachbart, deputy superintendent (Idaho DOE) and Steve Underwood. Marybeth and Steve shared how Idaho developed and defined a research-based description of “new school” that was both supported by policy makers and enacted by LEAs. They defined “new school” as as a school in the process of restructuring and showing substantial improvement. They encouraged leaders to collect evidence of how restructuring results in improvement. My biggest takeaway was “intelligent accountability.” You determine your best practices and find the evidence that shows how your school is being transformed.

Posted by Carter in EdTech, ESL, Students with Disabilities | 2 Comments »

Monday, January 31, 2011

National Title I Conference: Day one

This week we will be bringing you daily updates from the National Title I Conference in Tampa, Florida. Here is the entry for day one, Monday, January 31.

Educational leaders from all across the county gathered in Tampa, Florida this morning for the start of the 2011 National Title I Conference, and I think the majority of attendees—including myself—are staying at the Embassy Suites downtown. The jam-packed workout room and long, staggering breakfast lines were evidence of just how many people are here for the conference. Waiting in a line for breakfast may be nothing new, but having to wait in line to use the treadmill at a hotel workout room was definitely a first for me!

But the lines didn’t end there. Attendees lined up at the Imagine Learning booth to play the interactive “Free the Aliens” game for a chance to win an iPod and the glory of being the highest scorer. It brought out the competitive side in all of us as we experienced just one of the engaging activities of Imagine Learning English. Herb Monroe, from Henrico County in Virginia, was just one of many attendees who competed for the top spot. After playing the game he said, “I’ve got to come back.” He was determined to give it another shot and get the highest score. He went on to say, “It’s fun and colorful. The kids would love this!”

Read the day two recap here.

- Emily Bybee is an area partnership manager for Imagine Learning