Calvin Young
Individualized Learning Plan
Student Background
Calvin is an 8 year old male in the 2nd grade with a diagnosis of Dyslexia. He has been retained one year. He appears bright and highly intelligent but is unable to read, write, or spell at the appropriate grade level. He gets confused by letters, numbers, words and sequences. Calvin's previous teachers thought that he was lazy because he would daydream often and start drawing rather than doing his school work. We now know that he did this because he would get confused by his work. Calvin shows much talent in art and story telling and he loves science fiction, especially Star Wars and Jurassic Park. He is a member of the chess club and the science club.
Ways for Building Teacher-Student Connections
- Engage in conversation- Ask him how his day is going and if he has any exciting plans coming up. Talk about games, sports, television shows or movies, and anything else he feels like discussing. "Are you excited for the new Star Wars movie?'
- Be available before and after school- Let him know my office hours include one hour prior to school and one hour after if he ever needs to come by the classroom and study or talk about anything that is going on in his life.
- Give assignments that allow Calvin to share his experiences or interests- This could include family history projects or science fiction projects for example.
- Attend extracurricular activities, such as chess tournaments and science club activities.
Ways for Building Student-Student Connections
- Have Calvin learn the names of at least ten other students in the class; follow up on him to make sure he is learning names.
- Assign a group project every two weeks with assigned partners, therefore each student is working with and getting to know someone new.
- Take one day out of every week to have a classroom ice breaker to help students get to know each other better. For the first week we will play "Never Have I Ever" followed by "Stranded on a Deserted Island" the next week and so on.
Teaching Methods Used Specifically for This Student
- Record directions, stories, and specific lessons on a tape recorder- Because Calvin has trouble reading, a tape recorder may help him overcome this problem. Also, have him try reading specific assignments and stories while listening to the words read aloud on tape.
- Allow quiet time for Calvin and myself to work on his reading aloud rather than having him read to the whole class. This will give me the chance to see how he is progressing and it will give him the chance to work on his reading.
- Permit the use of a computer for word processing. This will allow Calvin to physically see when he is making spelling mistakes and show him how to fix them. This will also help him keep his work organized.
Motivation Strategies for Learning and Promoting Positive Behavior
- If Calvin puts forth effort in his reading and writing studies, I will allow him to read from "Jurassic Park" once a week during our quiet reading time and during his free time if he wishes.
- Have Calvin make a list of his learning goals for this semester (at least 4 goals should be listed and they should be realistic). If he reaches at least 50 percent of his goals (minimum of 2 would have to be met), then he will earn a prize at the end of the semester. An extra prize will be awarded if he reaches all of his goals.
- Encourage self evaluation at the end of each assignment. Some example questions for Calvin to answer about his work include, "How do you think you did on this assignment" and "Are there any areas of this assignment where you could have used help?"
Assessment Techniques to Promote Academic Success for This Student
- Use a staff member for all of Calvin's assessments- Have the staff member (or myself) take Calvin into a separate room that way they can read the questions and answers (if applicable) to him if he has issues doing it himself. This method can be used for all subjects.
- Verbal assessments- For reading and writing, take Calvin aside and ask him questions relating to the assignments or have him read passages aloud to test for his understanding and accuracy.
- Provide extra time for testing when reading and writing is involved. This may be required for all subjects, especially for reading, writing and math.
Modifications to Meet Varying Needs of All Students
- I should engage all of my students in conversation at some point to learn more about them. Also, my availability before and after classes applies to all of my students and I will make sure they are all aware of the opportunity.
- It will be good for all of my students to learn the names of other students. For many students, I can task them with learning more than the 10 names that I tasked Calvin with.
- I can provide time for quiet time with all of my students during class to work on readings and any other subjects they may be struggling with. During free time I can call students over one by one.
- All students can make learning goals for themselves and be provided with prizes based on completion. This will be helpful in motivating all of them to strive for success in my classroom.
- Rather than having Calvin leave the classroom during tests, all students can remain together and we can go over the test orally together. I won't provide answers, but I can read questions aloud and rephrase questions or multiple choice answers if they are unclear.