SLN Foundations Participants Share!

Thanks to the newly created Special Learning Needs Foundations groups that met at Lincoln Land College and at the Pui Tak Center for your participation and insight into how to best meet the needs of our adult education students! 

Please post below your application exercise using one strategy for student-centered teaching. Please share how your students benefited from this activity. Please also share any suggestions you have for other teachers as they plan to incorporate your idea. Check back to read other participants experiences. 

Illinois Assistive Technology Program

The Illinois Assistive Technology Program (IATP) is the non-profit organization designated as the Statewide AT Program funded under the Assistive Technology Act of 1998, as amended. IATP’s lead agency is the Illinois Department of Human Services, Division of Rehabilitation Services.

IATP provides the following core programs:
Assistive Technology Demonstrations
Assistive Technology Device Loans
Assistaive Technology State Financing
Assistive Technology Reutilization

IATP also provides Information and Assistance, Training and Technical Assistance on a variety of AT topics, as well as, collaborates with state agencies and disability organizations statewide to improve and expand policies and practices to include greater access to and funding for AT.

For more information, visit their website at: https://www.iltech.org/

Special Learning Needs Training Opportunity - Please Share with Colleagues!

The newly created Foundations of Special Learning Needs focuses on informal assessments and instructional strategies to address special learning needs and effective instructional practices for all. It is a shortened training opportunity that can give basic knowledge of addressing special learning needs.

This hybrid training will meet once in-person for a half day and will contain two online training components with application exercises. Thanks to the two hosts for these sessions: Pui Tak and Lincoln Land. Participants can chose to attend at one location.

Dates:

Self-paced online – August 27, 2018 – October 12, 2018                                 

In-person Day: Friday, October 19, 2018 9:00am – 12:30pm  Pui Tak Center

Self-paced online – August 27, 2018 – October 5, 2018

In-person Day: Friday, October 12, 2018 9:00am – 12:30pm  Lincoln Land Community College 

The Foundations training, as well the Institute to Credential Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists, are part of the ICCB Instructional Staff Professional Pathways for Special Learning Needs. Successful completion of the Foundations training will provide credit towards completion of the Institute. Foundations training can also be completed as a stand-alone module.

Visit the PD Portal for applications and for more information: 

http://www.excellenceinadulted.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Application-18-SLN-Foundations-Pui-Tak-Center.pdf

http://www.excellenceinadulted.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Application-18-SLN-Foundations-Lincoln-Land.pdf

Questions should be addressed to Sarah Goldammer at sgoldam@siue.edu

Forum for Excellence

The 2018 Forum for Excellence is two weeks away.  You will not want to miss this conference.

The complete program and registration are available at https://icsps.illinoisstate.edu/pd/forum-for-excellence/




Attendees may want to check out Special Learning Needs focused sessions: 

Teaching Science to All While Meeting the Needs of Special Learners

Monica Waller, Lewis and Clark Community College

Do you struggle to meet all the learning needs of the students in your classroom? In this presentation, participants will be shown how to take proven effective lessons and modify them to engage all learners and meet special learning needs by involving multiple modalities. Contextualized work applications and Illinois ABE/ASE Standards will be infused giving the greatest possible return on lesson investment.

Exploring Resources for Students with Autism

Nikki Michalak, Illinois Center for Specilized Professional Support

Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) represent a consistently growing population; it is, therefore, important to understand their needs and how to support them in their postsecondary academic endeavors. There are no clear statistics on college enrollment of students with ASD, but it is estimated that they comprise 0.7% to 1.9% of the college population with an 80% incompletion rate. It is anticipated that these numbers will continue to increase and will make the need for understanding individuals with ASD even more imperative. The Autism Training and Technical Assistance project was created to develop resources and materials focused on the transition needs of individuals with ASD from high school into postsecondary education and workforce. In this presentation, you will learn what a student with ASD might need in a college classroom or college setting and explore strategies to help students be successful.

The Psychology of Scarcity: Why Questionable Decisions May Make Perfect Sense

Sarah Goldammer, Southern Illinois Professional Development Center

Ever wonder whyindividuals we serve make decisions or choices that just don’t seem to make anysense? Hear about the latest research: Scarcity–The New Science of Having Less and How it Defines Our Lives.Learn what some of those common decisions or choices are, the economic and personal rationales that are often behind them, and how we can best support those we serve. Spend time considering alternate plans to best assist our students as they transition from the classroom to employment and self-sufficiency. Discussion will be facilitated and resources will be provided to assist all to reevaluate their adult education program structure in an effort to maximize opportunities for student success.

See you at the Forum!

National Disability Employment Awareness Month

In October, the nation celebrates National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). NDEAM celebrates the contributions of workers with disabilities and educates about the value of a workforce inclusive of their skills and talents.  This year’s theme is “America’s Workforce: Empowering All."

To help promote, the official  2018 NDEAM poster  is now  available  for downloading or to  order  in hard copy from the Office of Disability Employment Programs. 

Great Professional Development Event!

Professional Development Event

  

  

Neurodiversity in the Workplace: Transitioning Individuals with ASD to Postsecondary Education and Employment

  

August 29th from 10 AM to 3 PM Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Normal, IL. The Autism Training & Technical Assistance (ATTA) project at the Illinois Center for Specialized Professional Supportwill bring together a group of leading professionals with expertise in preparation and recruitment of individuals with autism for the workplace and their career and educational advancement. The day will also include a panel discussion from postsecondary education partners  to share their work specific to individuals with ASD in the college setting and its connection to employment. ATTA seeks to develop and present resources that assist individuals with ASD in their transition from secondary education to postsecondary education or employment. ATTA also seeks to provide training and support to important stakeholders as they work to provide an equitable experience for individuals with autism. The event will feature John Elder Robison. Our objectives are to: Build a community focused on issues related to the preparation and employment of individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Identify interventions to create an inclusive workplace. Develop next steps to advance evidence-based practices to equitably include individuals with autism in the workplace. The event will take place on August 29th from 10 AM to 3 PMat the Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Normal, IL. Additional event details and registration information can be accessed here.

Special Populations Academy

Check out the archived presentations from Illinois community colleges at the Special Populations Academy on May 23. Adult Education might find these presentations helpful. Make sure to work closely with your Disabilities Office if you are housed at a community college.

https://icsps.illinoisstate.edu/2018/02/special-populations-academy/

Disability Employment Initiative - Round V Workshop

These two one-day workshops will be held to share the strategies employed and lessons learned by pilots sites engaged in the Disability Employment Initiative – Round 5. Local Workforce Innovation Areas and their partners, including special education providers, DRS, secondary and postsecondary education entities are encouraged to attend. Specific topics that will be addressed include the formation and use of Integrated Resource Teams, the development of process maps that identify partner roles in providing services to clients, and the Individual Career Development Plan – a career plan that meets the legal requirements of an Individualized Education Program Transition Plan for individuals with disabilities. Speakers from DEI V pilot sites, as well as national experts, will share their experiences and recommendations to address the needs of individuals with disabilities in gaining employment.

To register https://secure.touchnet.com/C20868_ustores/web/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCTID=1487&SINGLESTORE=true

Incorporating hands-on learning and technology into the same lesson

Thanks to Monica Waller of Lewis and Clark Community College for sharing the following lesson idea!

Recently I allowed students to use their cell phones to research paper airplanes and research the physics behind airplanes. Students were asked to build three distinctly different paper airplanes. Many do not know how to build them. I allowed them to use their phones to find instructions on building them. Since I have rarely allowed cell phone usage, they loved this. We did a scientific method exercise asking which plane will go the farthest and recorded the data. Afterwards, we discussed all aspect of the experiment and reported our results. The students were asked how does the plane fly? They researched using their phones and we discussed. Cell phones seem to be a worthwhile tool to use in a smaller classroom and one where all students have access to a phone or computer. 

Navigating Learning Disabilities and the Cost for Treatment

Here is a link to a resource you may want to check out. It covers assistance for children with learning disabilities, but I decided to share. Lots of good stats you may want to use when educating those in your adult ed program. I also know you may have a child for whom you are advocating. Hope you find it useful. If you have a favorite informative site, please share so others can have access to it as well.

https://www.thesimpledollar.com/navigating-learning-disabilities-and-the-cost-for-treatment/

Happy Friday!

Become a Special Learning Needs Specialist

If you are an Illinois Adult Education instructor and have recently become a Standards Proficient instructor or are considering completing this training, please check out continuing on the professional pathways to become a Special Learning Needs Specialist. 

Listed below are listed the requirements for SLN Specialist. If you have already completed the Institute, you are very close to meeting all the SLN Specialist requirements! Feel free to contact Sarah Goldammer at sgoldam@siue.edu if you have questions or would like to talk through this process.

• Institute to Credential Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists
• Application of CCR Innovations with a Special Learning Needs emphasis in analyzing resources to maximize teaching materials and revising a resource and curriculum to meet learning needs of students (part of Institute)
• Technology Resources for Special Learning Needs in the Adult Education Classroom
• Testing Accommodations and the GED®
• Sign up for SLN Blog
• Presenting an Effective Training Presentation

I hope you will continue the training for SLN Specialist and serve your program and students in this capacity.

Developing Students' Metacognition in the Classroom

Thanks to Raylynn Stokes from South Suburban Community College for sharing the following:

To help my students develop their metacognitive skills, I give them an opportunity to practice recognizing what they don't understand to better comprehend their problems. Learning Journals of what they learned for the day, what was hard, and what was easiest for them is a great way to go back and review where they are having problems. I also try to make sure they show their thinking and their work on tests so they will really think and not guess. 

Check this out! Workforce GPS: Your Weekly Disability and Employment Updates

Check out what's been happening in Disability and Employment this week!

Title: Disability and Apprenticeship Apprenticeships are a great way for people with disabilities to gain entry into a number of well-paying occupations in the technology, manufacturing, construction, and health care industries. The technical assistance tools linked here range from WorkforceGPS resources, webinars, reports, and videos have been compiled to help you connect the pieces between the disability population and the expanding apprenticeship initiative. Title: New Release – County-level Disability Prevalence Reports Want to learn about disability prevalence in your local area? ETA is pleased to highlight the newly released State Reports for County-level Data, which provide statistics on the number of people with disabilities for over 3,000 counties in the United States. Each State report includes counts and percentages broken down by county in tables and maps. This builds off the 2017 Annual Disability Statistics Compendium.

Windmills Training: Navigating Education and the Workplace through Accessibility

You won’t want to miss this amazing FREE professional development opportunity taking place April 10th in Bloomington!

Windmills Training: Navigating Education and the Workplace through Accessibility

 

This training is based on the “Windmills” curriculum and is designed to be a high-impact attitudinal training program that integrates disability into the spectrum of diversity awareness.  Join ICSPS and SIPDC team members for an upbeat daylong workshop aimed at raising awareness of the limitations often imposed on people with disabilities due to a lack of knowledge or low expectations. Participants will leave with strategies for success in engaging employers and navigating the educational landscape and work place. The training focuses on attitudes and human factors, but it also concerns issues including legal requirements and accommodation.

 

Target Audience:

         Adult Education Providers

Career & Technical Administrators & Faculty

ICAPS Team Teachers

Early School Leaver Transitions Programs

 

When: April 10, 2018

Where: 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM (lunch will be provided)

Holiday Inn & Suites

3202 East Empire Street

Bloomington, IL 61704

 

There is no fee to attend but on-line registration is required.

 

REGISTER HERE: https://icsps.illinoisstate.edu/2018/02/windmills-training/

Fostering Metacognitive Skills and Critical Thinking in Your Classroom

Thanks to everyone who attended my session at COABE this year. Thanks to all who shared ideas for increasing critical thinking and metacognitive skills!

Let's keep thinking and sharing our ideas to help each other. Please post below to share ideas you have found work with your students. No idea is too basic. 

Thanks to Julie Frost, District 214, and recent graduate of the Institute to Credential Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists, for sharing her ideas:

Thinking aloud so they can hear my thought processes helps but usually I try to explain why we are doing what we are doing.  I sometimes pose it as a question to see what they can generate.  For example, I usually put a one page reading on one side of the paper and the comprehension exercises or questions on the backside.  I love to ask them why after they keep flipping the pages back and forth. They usually suggest that I'm trying to be eco-friendly.  I tell them that and I am exercising their minds because they have to remember the information long enough to turn the paper over and write it down.  I also thinks it helps to prevent overt copying and helps them to paraphrase.  In summer school, I usually post a recipe for making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches outside in the hallway.  I ask the high school students to run out, read it and then come back and write down what they can remember.  It is a race between groups.  Only one member of each group can leave at a time.  It is so much fun.  Then they have to make it according to the directions they wrote down.  Eating it is the prize.

Congratulations to the newest Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists

Very proud of the hard work and dedication this group showed in completing the training in the Institute to Credential Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists! So glad you are doing great work in Illinois!

Raylynn Stokes, South Suburban College, Joe Tully, Wilbur Wright College,
Meg Dawczak, Moraine Valley College, Yolanda Bennett, Moraine Valley College,
Kristy Durkin, College of DuPage, Julie Frost, Township High School District 214,
Rhonda Barbeau, Township High School District 211, Patrick Lohan, Moraine Valley College,
Marilyn Benjamin, Oakton Community College

Thanks to the Fabulous SLN Folks Who Shared Their Expertise

IACEA 2018 was dubbed the "greatest conference ever"! That's thanks in large part to some fabulous SLN folks sharing their knowledge and experience. 

Sally Guy and Rich Wince, Elgin Community College
CCR Standards, Special Learning Needs, Differentiation: How to Integrate

 Tara Schwab and Heather Martin, Waubonsee Community CollegeUsing Games to Differentiate, Motive, and Engage

Yolanda Bennett, Moraine Valley CollegeThe Extended Response

Patrick Lohan, Lauren Zajac, Meg Dawczak, Moraine Valley Community College
Building a Healthcare Continuum: Authentic Entries and Exits for All Learners

Mandy Dwyer, Joliet Junior College
Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers

Thanks to Nikki Michalak, Autism Consultant / Autism Training and Technical Assistance Project, Illinois Center for Specialized Professional Support, for presenting:
Supporting Students with ASD in the College Setting


Thanks, also, to Susan Cunningham, Rend Lake College, not pictured, for sharing Stand UP, Speak Up: Helping Students Advocate for Accommodations 

IACEA Sessions with Special Learning Needs Focus

IACEA 38th Annual State Conference - March 7 - 9, 2018

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work!

Wyndham Springfield City Centre, Springfield, Illinois

Effective Instruction Techniques for Students with Special Learning Needs
Wednesday, March 7, 9:00 – 10:15 am   Plaza 3                  Colleen Potter

CCR Standards, Special Learning Needs, Differentiation: How to Integrate
Wednesday, March 7, 10:30 – 11:45 am Plaza 3                  Richard Wince and Sally Guy

It’s Never Too Early: integrating Geometry into Beginning Math
Wednesday, March 7, 3:30 – 4:45 pm     Ambassador          Marilyn Uehle

Embracing the LEARNER in All of Us
Thursday, March 8, 9:00 - 10:15 am        Embassy        Stephanie Woodley and Jennifer Stringfellow

Stand UP, Speak Up: Helping Students Advocate for Accommodations
Thursday, March 8, 9:00 - 10:15 am         Plaza 3          Susan Cunningham

The Extended Response
Thursday, March 8, 2:15 - 3:30 pm            Plaza 3             Yolanda Bennett

Using Games to Differentiate, Motive, and Engage
Thursday, March 8, 3:45 - 5:00 pm            Embassy              Heather Martin and Tara 

Schwab

Supporting Students with ASD in the College Setting
Thursday, March 8, 3:45 - 5:00 pm            Plaza 3                  Nikki Michalak

Classifying + Understanding + Communication = Graphic Organizers
Thursday, March 8, 3:45 - 5:00 pm            Rendezvous       Sarah Goldammer

Learning Strategies

Thanks to Julie Frost, ESL Coordinator for District 211 and current participant in the Institute to Credential Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists, for her insights!

In foreign language we used this strategy a lot and I use it in ESL too. Text to self; text to text; text to world. These sentence starters were given to me.

Text-to-self:

What does this remind me of in my life?
What is this similar to in my life?
How is this different from my life?
Has something like this ever happened to me?
How does this relate to my life?
What were my feelings when I read this?

Text-to-text:
What does this remind me of in another book I’ve read?
How is this text similar to other things I’ve read?
How is this different from other books I’ve read?
Have I read about something like this before?

Text-to-world:
What does this remind me of in the real world?
How is this text similar to things that happen in the real world?
How is this different from things that happen in the real world?
How did that part relate to the world around me?

I found this cartoon which I thought was cute!

Something to Make You Smile and Celebrate!

The 2018 Gerber baby was just named, and he is Lucas Warren, the first child with Down syndrome to receive the honor.

The 18-month-old from Dalton, Ga., was selected as “2018 Gerber Spokesbaby” from more than 140,000 photos submitted by parents.

Let's celebrate the widening of America's perspective!

More Great Classroom Advice for Special Learning Needs Students and for ALL Students

Rhonda Barbeau from Township High School District #211 and a current participant in the Institute to Credential Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists shares the following effective classroom strategies:

1. Make sure students understand the directions. Whether it is visually, auditory or however they learn.

2. Show the students what the end project will look like.

3. Show the students on a graph, or checklist, or whatever works, that they are making progress. If a student has stalled at a certain point, it is a flag to me there is confusion and I need to help them out.

4. Every step can be broken down. Even if you think you cannot break down a step anymore, take time to think about it and find a way to break it down even more.

5. Patience, and encouragement every step of the way.

6. Flexibility, flexibility, flexibility! The best-laid plans don't always work. Then drop back 20 and punt. (Sarah's favorite - always good advice - especially good for Super Bowl weekend!)

Thanks Rhonda!

Great Classroom Advice for Special Learning Needs Students and for ALL Students

Marilyn Benjamin from Oakton Community College and a current participant in the Institute to Credential Special Learning Needs Resource Specialists shares the following effective classroom strategies:

• Begin with discussion of the goals and objectives for each lesson
• Use problem-based learning providing a bigger picture unit/lesson question and have students discuss in groups possible solutions or answers
• Offer lesson materials in a variety of learning preferences and include technology
• Do something fun and challenging related to the lesson (games from the Internet , Jeopardy, Family Feud or solve riddles)
• Give formal and non-formal assessments allowing re-teaching of material when necessary
• Use small group work for socialization (needed for work and life skills) and reflection of assigned academic work
• Break skills into smaller steps student(s) can master
• Use mnemonic measures or other retention aids 

 Thanks, Marilyn, for all you to foster student success at Oakton!

Nominate an Outstanding Learner, Teacher, Administrator or Support Staff

So many worthy folks out there! Please nominate someone special today! Go to http://www.iacea.net/ to nominate an outstanding teacher, administrator, learner, or support staff.