Teacher+Resources

= __**Teacher Resources**__ = =__**For Supporting Students and Classroom Management**__ =

**__Articles__**

Bohanan, H., Fenning, P & Morrissey,K.L.(2010). Positive behavior support: Teaching and acknowledging expected behaviors in an urban high school. //Teaching Exceptional Children//, 42(5), 26-35 __Audience:__ Teachers, parents, administrators and community members. __Description:__ "This article describes Positive behavior Support and how it was successfully implemented in an Urban High School. Research indicates that traditional reactive approaches to discipline such as detention and suspension are failing. The article recommends a proactive approach in the least restrictive environment as mandated by IDEA. The article describes PBS as a three tiered model that targets examining behaviors at a school wide level followed by smaller groups at tier two and one. It involves the participation of staff members, parents, community members, students and administrators. The article provides a sample grid for school wide expectations. A core team collects data that is reviewed and implemented using role plays and video presentations. This model recommends staff and other members to be specific with verbal praise. For example, instead of saying “good job”, the staff member would say “thank you for waiting your turn to respond”. Students are provided with tickets that they can redeem for a prize. The pilot program was instituted during summer school with about hundred students. A lesson plan was written with specific expectations, location where the target behavior was to be identified and the activity and objective was stated. The pilot program met with tremendous success and the core team decided to use it again in the fall. The results showed significant improvements in student behavior and a decline in office discipline referrals. I had heard about Positive behavior Support but was not familiar with how it is carried out in a school setting. This article provided a good overview of how it was implemented. I was interested in this article because it provided a good description of the model and provided strategies to implement it successfully. I believe it involves a lot of dedication and collaboration on the part of those involved. I wonder if it is expensive to implement, and if not why many schools have not adopted this model. If our schools approach this model with zeal I think a lot of behavior problems can be alleviated and our students can benefit from quality instruction time."-Shyno Thomas

__My Review:__ I was interested most in this article because of its relevance to my situation. I teach at an struggling, "high-needs" urban high school, and the school's climate has been particularly troubled this year. I hope to find ways, such as those cited in the article, to help create a new climate and move my school toward a more productive learning community. I think the specific plans and idea provided in this article are what the school has been lacking in its approach Hopefully, a replication with only slight alterations would be necessary to implement effectively the PBS system.

**__Books__**



Rominger, L., Packard Laughrea, S. & Elkin, N. (2001). //Your first year as a high school teacher: Making the transition from total novice to successful professional.// New York, NY: Three Rivers Press.

__Audience:__ 1st year (early career) high school teachers particularly. __Description:__ Survive & Thrive in the Classroom From Day One! Teaching high school students is the toughest job you'll ever love. Of course, often it is an acquired love. You must learn to manage your students' education //and// play parent, counselor, police officer, and mentor. Wow! Now relax—it doesn't have to be overwhelming. With a little preparation you can ensure that you and your students get the most out of your time in the classroom and //enjoy// it! Full of real-world advice and answers for the complex issues facing today's high school teachers, this down-to-earth and witty book will teach you how to create an atmosphere of cooperation, learning, and respect within your classroom. Use this helpful guide as your personal mentor to achieve a successful and satisfying career as a high school teacher. Earn straight A's your first year by knowing how to: ·Create an attention-grabbing and interactive teaching environment ·Manage difficult students and unique teenage problems ·Communicate, educate, and have fun with your students ·Balance the demands of old-school administrators and pushy parents ·Fairly assess, grade, and evaluate students ·Develop effective and engrossing lesson plans "Straightforward, up-to-date, and engaging. I've seen a lot of resource books for new teachers, and this is the best of the bunch." Wendell Geis, continuing education administrator, University of California, Davis. __My Review:__ This book is the most comprehensive guide for first-year, high school teachers. I am certain it could aid anyone early in their high school teaching career and many of the strategies and techniques apply to any grade not just high school. The nice part is that it is written by experienced high school teachers and focuses on high school students, which seems to be less of a specific focus in Education literature. Chapters 4 (Classroom Management) and 5 (Communication and Contact) are particularly useful resources for supporting students and establishing a classroom focused on learning, not just socializing.

DeBruyn, R.L. & Larson, J.L. (2009). //You can handle them all: A discipline model for handling 124 student behaviors at school and at home.// Manhattan, KS: The Master Teacher. __Audience:__ Administrators, faculty, staff, and parents __Description:__ “Updated in 2009, the new Second Edition of //You Can Handle Them All// is a systematic, easy-to-use reference guide for educators to help them define and correct 124 student behaviors. Presented in outline form, it: · Identifies the primary cause of each behavior. · Tells how each behavior affects teachers, students, and the learning environment. · Offers up to 25 techniques for managing each student behavior. //You Can Handle Them All// (Second Edition) reveals the common mistakes teachers often make when trying to correct behaviors and cross references other related behaviors. A school should loan every teacher a copy of this book for his or her room.”

__My Review:__ With chapters about every behavior from “The Agitator” to “The Whiner” and even concerning “The Angel and “The Victim,” this book is a quick, easy-to-read, must-have reference for any teacher’s desk. However, it is also useful for anyone who works with children and needs a starting point to understand just what exactly does this student want or need at any given moment on n nearly any given situation. The Tao of Teaching __Audience: Description __ __:__ //"The Tao of Teaching// provides insight on becoming the best teacher you can be. The book is divided into 80 short chapters, with each chapter beginning with a piece of advice. In order to be great teachers, we need to find ourselves and be comfortable with ourselves. This book offers a sense of calmness and discusses ways to developing a "student centered" environment in which patience, honesty, and respect is demonstrated. I would recommend this book for new teachers. This is my first year of teaching and as I read this book, I began to think of myself as both a teacher and a person. As new teachers, we do the best we can and each year we grow to be more successful than the last. I know that sometimes I will do something and maybe I'll be too hard on myself and think I should have done it this way or that way, but we must remember that its all about learning from our mistakes and growing within ourselves." -Lauren McCoy

Tomlinson, C.A. (1999). //The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of All Learners.// Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Alexandria, VA.

__Audience:__ __Description:__ "This book can be used as a resource for teachers who work with students of diverse backgrounds, readiness and skill levels, and interests. The book describes and offers ideas for differentiated instruction. The 10 chapters focus on the following: (1) "What is a Differentiated Classroom?" (2) "Elements of Differentiation," (3) "Rethinking How We Do School--and for Whom," (4) "Learning Environments that Support Differentiated Instruction," (5) "Good Instruction as a Basis for Differentiated Teaching," (6) "Teachers at Work Building Differentiated Classrooms," (7)"Instructional Strategies that Support Differentiation," (8) "More Instructional Strategies to Support Differentiation," (9) "How Do Teachers Make it all Work?" and (10) "When Educational Leaders Seek Differentiated Classrooms." Three of the chapters describe actual lessons, units, and classrooms with differentiated instruction in action, examining elementary and secondary classrooms in nearly all subject areas to show how real teachers turn the challenge of differentiation into a reality. I thought this would be a great reference book. I haven't actually read the book, yet, but it has received many positive reviews."-

**__Websites__**

Wright, J. (2010). //Intervention Central: Your Source for RTI sources.// Retrieved from [|http://www.interventioncentral.org]

__Audience:__ Administrators and teachers __Description:__ Jim Wright’s website, Intervention Central, focuses on providing assistance in using and improving Response to Intervention (RTI) in schools. The site offers sections for buying RTI products and resources, free academic and behavioral resources are available for teachers, there is a place for teachers or administrators to seek out professional development trainings and workshops, Curriculum-Based Measurement online resources, and numerous downloadable PDFs manuals and other documents. The site seems to be constantly adding resources and other tools tat it also sorts by popularity and usefulness to expedite your search. As a newcomer at my school, I plan on sharing this information with my new administration to bring RTI and better, related professional development opportunities.

__My Review:__ This sight provides useful resources for beginners of RTI to helping experienced administrators further their knowledge and application as well as their staff's. I would recommend it as a place to consult for providing intervention before and during the CSAP process as well.



[] __Audience:__ Administrators, teachers, community agencies, parents, and anyone involved with special education services __Description:__ "This is the Department of Justice’s official homepage regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act. This website is helpful to all teachers because it is updated frequently with information that serves as a reference for the laws and regulations set forth by the ADA law. There is an option to provide your email to the site and be provided with the most recent ADA information is available. This site is helpful to many people in the community, not just teachers. The site provides accessibility information to public places such as stadiums, medical facilities and even polling stations. As a special educator, it is crucial to be informed of all of the laws and regulations regarding the safety and education of our students. This website provides all of the information necessary to ensure we stay informed."- My review: As I am a particulary new to special education and equally interested in the area of special education law, this site was a quick new add to my favorites/bookmarks. I also liked the feature for email updates. The site helped clear so many questions I have had over the proper practices for writing and implementing an IEP as well as what and how services should be provided based on a student's disability. It is a must for teachers to consult but also especially SEL's and administrators. [|http://www.cec.sped.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home] __Audience: Description:__ "This is the official website for the Council of Exceptional Children (CEC). The CEC is a non profit organization based in VA that serves “all aspects of the education and development of students with disabilities and/or those who are gifted.” The CEC is geared towards teachers, parents, paraprofessionals, administrators and students. The website contains information that would benefit all groups listed above. The site provides information about professional development opportunities, various journal articles and publications on a variety of topics and information on new research findings, classroom practices that work, federal legislation, and policies. This site is especially advantageous for teachers because it provides sections on instructional strategies, a link to special education jobs, a few blogs run by teachers and a section titled support for teachers. In each section there are a bunch of articles providing tips on topics ranging form scaffolding to multiple intelligences. This website is an asset because there are so many articles provided that you are bound to find one that relates to what you are looking for. The site also provides a list of books which provide support to teachers within the special education community. The books deal with topics such as behavior disorders to ADHD."-

__My Review:__ Perhaps, I liked the site best for its aid in finding other sources particularly professional developments to have practical hands on experience and workshops that allow educators to connect and exhange stories and ideas to help support their students.



(2010). “Student Portfolios:” //TeacherVision, part of Family Education Network, Pearson Education, Inc.// Retrieved from [|http://www.teachervision.fen.com/assessment/teaching- methods/20153.html?detoured=1]

__Audience__: Teachers K-12

__Description:__ TeacherVision’s byline says: “lesson plans, printables, and more” and it certainly offers far more resources for teachers. A variety of categories are tabbed across the top of the page and allow you to search for resources by grade, subject, theme, printable, graphic organizers, classroom management, calendars, lit. guides, slide shows, and plenty of articles that provide in depth information on how to implement a variety of strategies, specifically in the area of classroom management with a focus on using lesson planning and even student assessment as a means to help manage the class. Under classroom management>assessments>portfolios is section concerning the use of student portfolios as a mean for assessment that I enjoy using as a writing teacher and am always looking for ways to improve. The site states: “Portfolios can be used as an authentic assessment tool in the classroom ...This collection of articles and resources will help your students build portfolios to demonstrate what they've learned so that you can monitor their progress with fewer tests.”

__My Review:__ I find the use of portfolios to directly relate to supporting students because student portfolios are the best way that I know to document student work, assess individual performances and growth while also differentiating instruction and allowing students to work at their pace and with their interests in mind. Portfolios allow for individual, pair or group work and for student-centered activities that engage the class to keep misbehaviors to a minimum. These articles generated many more ideas about how to use portfolios in a variety of ways and subjects and explained how portfolios can allow students of various levels to accomplish their academic goals and keep the classroom manageable.

(2010). “Behavior Management Resources:” //TeacherVision, part of Family Education Network, Pearson Education, Inc.// Retrieved from []

__Audience:__ Teachers K-12

__Description and my review:__ TeacherVision’s section on “Behavior Management Resources” seems to be a never-ending series of links that provides classroom teachers with resources for new teachers and from veterans and printables and articles. “From behavioral observation to conflict resolution, the printables and articles below will help you manage classroom discipline. Read veteran teacher's tips and advice on establishing rules and incorporating effective behavior techniques in your classroom. You'll find advice for handling disruptive behavior and environmental interventions for minimizing its effect on other students. Our forms and charts are excellent tools for documenting and tracking your students' behavior. They are particularly helpful references for parent-teacher conferences.” The articles for “Getting to Know Your Students,” “Personalizing the Secondary Classroom,” and “How to Manage Disruptive Behaviors in the Inclusive Classroom” are fantastic links packed with information. Unfortunately, many of the articles are limited to subscribers but school or a group of teachers can subscribe and share. There is a free 7-day trial, and the site is at least worth trying.