Why SEL, Equity, and Anti-Racism Go Hand in Hand
Why do SEL, equity and anti-racism go hand in hand? Because they don’t work independently. If you want to prioritize, focus on, or embrace one – you need to dive all in. While I...
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Unpacking Executive Functioning Skills
Everyone talks about executive functioning skills, but they often seem elusive, really abstract, and like a catch-all term. So, what ARE they and how do we target them if they are areas of need for...
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10 Simple Ways to Support Students with Anxiety
Student anxiety is real! It’s a misconception that anxiety is an adult problem. It’s a human problem! Here are 10 simple ways teachers can support students experiencing anxiety in and out of school. 1.) Stay...
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How to Use Calm Books to Assist in De-Escalation
If you’re a regular around here, you know how much I love a good calm corner in a classroom. Having a designated safe space to sort out big emotions is so crucial in school! But...
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Using Real Photos to Teach Emotion Identification
Real photos matter – because they work. Real photos can be instrumental in teaching emotion identification. I love clip art, too! It’s easy to find pictures of children depicting a variety of behaviors and emotions,...
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5 Effective Ways to Teach Size of the Problem
Making mountains out of molehills can be some of our biggest battles as teachers in behavior focused special education settings. Situations as small as a student getting the wrong pencil can start an enormous battle...
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A Classroom Pet in Our Special Education Classroom
For 5 years of teaching, I had the joy of having a classroom pet. We had a rabbit in my classroom! Leonard the Rabbit joined the family for the soul purpose of being a classroom...
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3 Simple Ways to Build Self-Esteem in Struggling Students
In all of our special education classrooms we have some students that greatly struggle with exhibiting challenging behaviors. Over the years I realized that one of the symptoms, and sometimes even the cause of, challenging...
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So You Want to Start a Classroom Coffee Cart?
We LOVE our classroom coffee cart. This year, we started doing it on Fridays. As a classroom that follows CCSS and uses an adapted, but still gen-ed, curriculum, doing a coffee cart daily during the...
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