Jun 11 2024

Least Restrictive Environments Promote Success

Least Restructive Learning Environments Promote Success

One of the hardest pieces of an IEP to understand is the LRE or Least Restrictive Environment. It is a fundamental principle in special education. The LRE emphasizes the importance of placing students with disabilities in educational settings that allow for the maximum possible interaction with their non-disabled peers while meeting their unique needs. The primary goal is to provide an inclusive and supportive environment that fosters academic and social development while meeting a child’s individual needs. [Read more…]

Alison Whiteley

Alison Whiteley has been a special education teacher for over 15 years, spending most of her time working with elementary students and families. After graduating from the University of Colorado with a Bachelor of Arts in Special Education and Psychology, she continued her education with a Masters in Reading from Walden University. In addition, she has achieved endorsements supporting Early Childhood Special Education and Diverse Learners which she uses to help identify needs across all learners.

Ms. Whiteley is trained in Wilson Reading System and Yoshimoto Orton-Gillingham. She believes all students can learn to read and be successful. She has served as a Special Education Coach and Mentor to fellow specialists and teachers, facilitated the creation of her elementary school’s Response to Intervention/Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (RTI/MTSS) process and helped parents through the Special Education process as IEP Coach for parents. In 2013 she completed the National Boards of Professional Teaching in Exceptional Needs with recertification in 2022. Her areas of expertise involve working with students with learning disabilities, supporting stakeholders moving through the special education process, and helping parents and teachers understand what they can do to support struggling learners in the public school settings.

She is a founding member of the Colorado Reading League and a member of the International Dyslexia Association in Colorado. Alison has two greyhounds and two nephews who keep her busy outside of school. She is the CEO of Toad-ally Exceptional Learners at http://www.toad-allyexceptionallearners.com. Alison is a valuable source of information to support teachers and parents, although she is not a lawyer and does not give legal advice. Her services support families through the IEP process and how they can be an equal member of the team through positive interactions. She focuses on collaboration and using tools to take IEPs to the new level of helping students achieve.

www.GenParenting.com

Apr 09 2024

How Teachers Support Students’ Unique Learning Talents

I work primarily with kindergarten through 2^nd grade students. Each student I work with has unique talents, skills, and needs to remediate or nurture. When working with over 20 students in a classroom, I must focus on creating curriculum for the greater good of the student population based on the grade-level common core standards mandated by California. Then I must adapt my curriculum to meet the needs of highly challenged students as well as gifted and talented students. When working with second grade students after the COVID school shutdowns, a few students are still emerging at the first-grade level in their reading and math skills while others are performing at the 4 through 5^th grade levels. [Read more…]

Mary Ann Burke, Digital Education Expert

Mary Ann Burke, Ed.D., Digital Education Expert, is a substitute distance learning teacher for Oak Grove School District in San Jose, California and the author of STUDENT-ENGAGED ASSESSMENT: Strategies to Empower All Learners (Rowman & Littlefield: 2020). Dr. Burke creates digital language arts and substitute teaching K – 12 activities for teachers and parents. She is the Cofounder of the Genparenting.com blog. Burke is the former Director II of Categorical & Special Projects for the Santa Clara County Office of Education that supports 31 school districts serving 272,321 students in Santa Clara County. She is also a previous Director – State & Federal Compliance for Oakland Unified School District, the former Director – Grantwriter for the Compton Unified School District, and was the initial VISTA Director for the Community Partnership Coalition in southern California. Much of her work focuses on creating innovative digital trainings and partnership programs for teachers and families to support students’ learning. These programs were featured as a best practice at a National Title I Conference, California’s Title I Conferences, AERA Conferences, an ASCD Conference, the NASSP Conference, and statewide educator conferences.

Mar 26 2024

What is Response to Intervention Education?

If you look inside any general education classroom, chances are good that you’d see different students struggling for different reasons. It can be hard for a teacher to tell right away which students are struggling or why. Simply put, Response to Intervention (RTI) is a framework for implementing proactive data-driven decision-making. It provides teachers with better, more timely information about students to improve student learning and performance. [Read more…]

Alison Whiteley

www.GenParenting.com

Feb 27 2024

Grandparenting an Athelete

Grandparenting an Athlete

It has been an exciting school year. The younger granddaughters are learning gymnastics as they advance in their ballet classes and performances. Our middle school grandson has completed a full season of cross country. Our passionate middle school granddaughter juggles a full schedule of select soccer and volleyball. And our older grandchild loves to sail and snow ski. Our greatest challenge is to be fully present for each grandchild as we watch them compete and follow their passions. Each has their individualized preferences for how we are present for their various activities. All request various levels of encouragement. Some love us to cheer loudly while others want us to observe quietly. The older grandkids accommodate our support while the younger grandkids want our full-time participation at all events. Thankfully, we are the grandparents. Our only job is to support each grandchild with their preferred level of support and drive them to an event when requested. [Read more…]

Mary Ann Burke, Digital Education Expert

Oct 24 2023

Advocating for Your Child’s Special Education Needs

Being a parent of a special needs child is not easy. Working with a new team each year is hard. It’s hard even when the only thing that changes is your general education teacher.

As a special education teacher, parents, you play a critical role part in your child’s education. Advocating is empowering and HARD. By actively participating in your child’s education and collaborating with educators and professionals, you can ensure that your child receives the support and resources they require to thrive. In this blog post, I will share 8 valuable insights and practical tips to help you become a strong advocate for your child and their needs. [Read more…]

Alison Whiteley