The Scoop
Special Services Update - November 14, 2022
Communication, The Scoop & You!
Let's finish the week before break strong! In this month of Thanksgiving, I am thankful for a team of dedicated hard workers that are in this profession for the students and to be a #TISDGameChanger!
There may be a lot of information in the SCOOP that you are responsible for knowing. We want to limit all the separate group emails, so we condense most of our communication into this newletter for you and for easy reference to go back and find. Please be sure and read each edition of the Scoop carefully and let us know if you have any questions.
Have a great week!
~Keri
Recap of Last Issue:
Be sure and look back if needed for any information on:
- Click here to get your own copy of a Student Support HUB that you can make your own! Thank you for the idea, Melissa!
- Thank you to so many for celebrating our LSSPs last week! They are amazing and we are so grateful for them!
- The behavior dashboard is updated weekly. Dashboard, Video Tutorial
- STAAR ALT2 should be for very few (1% or less) of our students. Here are some points we need to make sure to consider:
- TEKS Curriculum Frameworks (updated 03/09/21)
RLA Curriculum Framework updated on 6/20/22
Essence Statements - Critical to align our instruction to teach these skills.
Instructional Terms Lists -- Make sure we are using these terms with students.
Blueprints (PDF updated 8/22/22)
Another great resource is the STAAR ALT 2 educators' guide.
There is also a parent video STAAR ALT 2 Parent Video
Bowling Challenge Days were a Success!
Thank you to Nancy Newtong and ALL who helped!
What a great day!
School Psychology Awareness Week was LAST WEEK - But let's celebrate them a little longer... They are amazing!!!
This week you can earn 2 points for:
1) Tweet that celebrates one or more of our TISD LSSPs in action, report writing or in a classroom or training (picture, team name and #TISDGameChangers required)
2) Shout out (emailed to me with subject line SCOOP) or tweet that highlight the work that LSSPs do everyday (behavior support, SEL, evaluation, counseling, collaboration/consultation, etc.)
Changes/Updates for LIP TIA
GameChanger Challenges for the Week
Challenges/opportunities for points for this week:
Tweets with the #TisdGameChangers and your team name listed that are for:
- The topics listed in the Celebrate our LSSPs section above (2 points each, 4 max per team)
- Letting others know something you are Thankful for with pics (1 point each, 4 max per team)
- Emails to me with the subject line SCOOP with a shout out or something you are Thankful for at work. (team name must be included in email) (1 point each, 4 max per team)
We are #TISDGameChangers ....
Supporting Behavior and Inclusion in General Education Classrooms - Tips from Colleagues
Beth from Team Infinity - The most successful inclusion opportunities I see for students are those where the in class support paraprofessional is very skilled at balancing behavioral expectations with workload accommodations. I often wonder how they develop this talent? Is it the training they receive from the special education teacher? Is it their years of experience? Is it just their innate ability and relationship with the student? I imagine all are important. It might be interesting to hear from them what makes them successful?
Diana from Team Social- At NIS, the PASS teachers are very active in the general education classrooms. They support the behavioral students by always being present and reminding the students of their strategies and praising them as well. I work with students a lot with push in therapy this year and I have noticed this working really well. As opposed to gen ed teachers trying to manage it themselves and then having to call the PASS teachers to come get the student if an incident occurs. Its a very proactive approach and it works well.
YOU BE THE JUDGE: Did Georgia district unlawfully amend grade schooler's IEP?
A Georgia district convened a team meeting to update an elementary school student's IEP. The student's parents actively participated in the meeting. Sometime later, the parents reviewed the IEP in the district's online portal. They noticed that the progress-monitoring data in the online IEP did not match the information in the IEP they received after the team meeting.
Based on the changes in progress monitoring data, the parents alleged that the district amended the student's IEP without their knowledge or input. However, the district claimed its IEP software auto-populated the student's IEP after her teachers entered progress monitoring data in another program. The district noted that it worked with the third-party software vendor to fix the error, and that the change had no impact on the substance of the student's IEP.
A district must ensure that a student's parents have an opportunity to participate in IEP team meetings. 34 CFR 300.322 (a).
Did the district exclude the student's parents from the IEP process?
Click HERE to find out.
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SPECIAL SERVICES SHOUT OUTS!
LSSPs - THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO!!!! You always find a way, even when short staffed... we appreciate how you all work together and support each other, students and staff!
Ann, Michelle, and Jenn D - Thank you for helping a colleague with transportation last week so she could support the district, get home, and get to her kids. A true show of #Ubuntu
Audra is such an amazing mentor and help when it comes to the million questions I have as a new diag! So thankful for her willingness to support in so many ways!
Jessica Oakes has been amazing to volunteer to mentor me and I am so thankful! She has a wealth of knowledge she shares with grace!
Jacy Warren has done a great job with difficult situations and is a team player for making sure we are all on the same page and doing what is best for our students!
Kim Castillo also has done a great job in keeping the conversation of being student centered!
Pooja Kelm, LLSP at WCES for the way she organized and facilitated a staffing for one of our students today! Pooja created and shared a document to address all the parent concerns of this student. She did a great job summarizing each concern and helping the team come up with an action plan for each concern!
Pooja's calm and thoughtful demeanor is always so reassuring! She handles everything with such poise and grace! She is great at her job and I just LOVE working with her!
Pooja is the best! She truly cares about doing what's right for kids. Pooja is a great team player and I'm very glad to be part of the same team.
Pooja Kelm is an amazing LSSP, she listens and is willing to help when there are difficult situations at WCES. Thankful for her guidance and expertise!
Jessica Mueller for LSSP week. She is an amazing LSSP and has done so much to help me this year already. I really appreciate her!!
Jessica Mueller!!
She is amazing at her job. She is ALWAYS prepared for our school needs-whether it is talking to a parent, a teacher, staff or a student. She exudes confidence and we are lucky to have her on our team (CES and Goal Diggers), as well as with TISD Special Services!
Thank you for ALL that you do Jessica!
Olga Champagne - She is such a collaborative partner in support of every student. Her intentional actions to collaborate say everything (scheduling the full team, inviting discussion, openly communicating with all). She's a rock star.
Check out Twitter for many more LSSP shout outs from last week!
More Information
Be sure and check out and read the other Smore Newsletters being produced by Student Support Staff: