Denise Williams 2009-10

A Teacher's Heart

2010-07-20T13:45:00.000-07:00

Open publication - Free publishing - More celebration

Middle of July??!!

2010-07-12T06:12:00.000-07:00

It's SOOOO hard to believe that we're in the middle of July already! I enjoyed a few days off with my family last week, visiting with my two sisters-in-law, as well as my sister, in Louisville, Kentucky and Alliance, Ohio. A few weekends ago, I enjoyed a family reunion on my father's side of the family in Springfield, Missouri. And, I was lucky enough to spend a weekend with my mother and my aunt, at my mother's new home in S. Carolina. I hope you have had a chance to relax some with your family, as well!

That brings me back to work! We are currently working on professional development ideas, looking at paraprofessional needs, creating lilac placement sheets, and generally 'sharpening our points.' Please let me know if there's anything you need at this time, getting ready for the school year to start!

"The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together. " ~Erma Bombeck

Looking Forward!

2010-06-14T09:25:00.000-07:00

I am working towards a Professional Learning Unit (PLU) through Birmingham City Schools. It's essentially an overview of the Curriculum Departments and the various wonderful programs and people that we have with a wealth of information to share.

I recently attended one of the sessions that addressed using data to teach. Although, intuitively, we all (should) know that data should be the guiding force to drive our instruction, most of us simply do not take the time to really disaggregate assessments. As a special educator, I loved the concept that we should determine ahead of time what we consider to be mastery for a student. We must individualize instruction to allow our students to reach mastery. A major point is that, as educators, we can’t just keep doing the same thing over and over again and expect different results (picture someone yelling louder in English to a person who only speaks French); in actuality, we MUST teach differently. The best quote? “Every child can learn – the question is, can you teach every child?”

Formative assessments are a key element to the instructional process, to engage students and provide feedback as they learn. Last week, at the administrative retreat, we ‘revisited’ the concept of Professional Learning Communities. A large part of the discussion centered on the idea that PLCs consist of “Educators committed to working collaboratively in ongoing processes of collective inquiry and action research to achieve better results for the students they serve. PLCs operate under the assumption that the key to improved learning for students is continuous, job-embedded learning for educators” (Dufour, Dufour, Esker & Many 2008).

The focus is to determine what OUTCOME we want to see for student achievement, and empowering each other to be risk takers in a supportive environment.

The primary questions, which also replicate much of what we learned in the PLU session, are:

1. What is it we want all our students to learn?
2. How will we know when each student has acquired the essential knowledge and skills?
3. What happens in our school when a student DOES NOT learn?
4. What happens in our school when a student DOES learn?

The PLC sees assessment as part of our normal routine as educators! I look forward to this coming school year where we begin working as a PLC to increase student learning!

ESY and Summer School Begin!

2010-06-03T07:16:00.000-07:00

We have hit the ground running! PD/Training for ESY and Summer School was this past Tuesday, and the children arrived on Wednesday! Summer School sites are at Huffman and Jackson-Olin High Schools, Green Acres, Huffman and Hudson Middle Schools, and Gate City, Lee, and Hudson Elementary Schools. ESY is being held at EPIC School.

From the Special Education Department, program specialists are out at the summer sites, as well as testing and meeting with MEDC teams, verifying IEPs and re-evaluations, and planning for and developing professional development for the next school year, among other things. We anticipate a very busy summer - remember that we are working long hours Monday-Thursday (7-5:30), and will not be working on Fridays.

Next week is the administrative retreat at Jackson-Olin High School, so most of us will be attending workshops there.

Please let me know how you are doing this summer, and don't hesitate to call or visit when you can.

Keeping Current

2010-05-14T07:28:00.001-07:00

I recently re-joined Phi Delta Kappa International after an absence of several years. For those of you who may not know, PDK is a professional association for educators. Copied from the website, http://www.pdkintl.org/:

"Phi Delta Kappa International is the premier professional association for educators. For more than 100 years, it has focused its work on the tenets of service, research, and leadership.

PDK is one of the largest education associations and has more than 35,000 members, including teachers, principals, superintendents, and higher education faculty and administrators. PDK publishes the highly-regarded Phi Delta Kappan, the No. 1 education policy magazine, and sponsors the annual PDK/Gallup Poll of the Public's Attitudes Toward the Public Schools.

PDK is the sole sponsor of the Future Educators Association® (FEA), the only national and international professional organization that provides students who are interested in education-related careers with activities and materials that allow them to explore the teaching profession in a variety of ways.

More than 250 local PDK chapters, most located on college campuses, give PDK members a unique opportunity to network with other like-minded educators.

PDK’s mission is to support education, particularly public education, as the cornerstone of democracy. Its vision is to be the experts in cultivating great educators for tomorrow while continuing to ensure high-quality education for today."

Now, obviously, I'm promoting PDK by including them in my blog. But even more importantly, I hope that I am promoting the idea that we, as educational professionals, should be participating in one or more organizations that celebrate, uphold, and encourage the teaching profession. Keeping up with latest research and the ideas of the pioneers in education allows us to self-examine our traits and styles to weed out less than the best practices.

If you are interested in joining PDK, please let me know. I am serving the local chapter as Membership Chair this next year. I would be pleased to talk to you more about what being a member can mean.

In Like a Lion...

2010-04-29T13:27:00.000-07:00

And out like a Lamb!! What beautiful weather we are having after so many tornadoes and rainstorms...

Now it's crunch time...the IEP Timeline Calendar that Dr. Tucker put out in February has all of the most important upcoming dates. The first and maybe biggest hurdle is to get all of the re-evaluations that are due by 10/01/10 completed and turned in to the psychometrist or timeline compliance team. Re-evals were actually due earlier this week; if you have any outstanding, please let me know the status so that I can provide assistance if possible. I understand that it may seem like overkill to request them before the end of April, but the psychometrists and timeline team must have time to review the files and request additional information if needed PRIOR to your leaving your school for the summer.

Next on the list is to provide submissions for ESY services to Sharleen Williams. Those should be completed as you are meeting with parents for IEP development.

Also, the IEP verification forms are due by the middle of May. Remember that your principal needs to sign your form as his/her acknowledgement that your IEPs are actually completed. DO NOT wait til the last minute to write your IEPs and have meetings. For the most part, your IEPs should already be in draft form with your last few meetings to be held in the next two weeks. Please let me know if you'd like for me to review any of your IEPs or if you would like my participation in an IEP meeting.

Some basic reminders:

Don't write a paraprofessional is required unless you have me participate in the meeting.
Write all of your goals and benchmarks in MEASUREABLE terms.

Be SMART with your goals and benchmarks
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Relevant
TimeLimited
Well written goals will describe what the child will do, when and how he’ll do it, and what the time frame will be for achieving it.

GOALS need to have a Course of Study # attached to them; benchmarks should be steps that are needed to be taken to achieve the goal, and should NOT have a COS # attached.

This is an example of a properly worded benchmark:

"By the end of the second grading period, Junior will correctly answer at least 4 of 5 comprehension questions after he listens to the teacher read a story. "

In my next posting, I'll give some example statements of special education services and specially designed instruction.

Til then, hear these words by Fosdick, Harry Emerson: "The world is moving so fast these days that the man who says it can't be done is generally interrupted by someone doing it."

In Like a Lion...

2010-03-29T13:25:00.001-07:00

I can't believe March is almost over! I hope your spring break was restful and everything you wanted it to be. We have certainly had more than our fair share of snow and cold in the past month. It's wonderful to see the pear blossoms and azaleas start blooming. Of course, that also means allergy season...Take the time to smell the roses during the sneezes!

In terms of this past month's accomplishments, we can count:

AAA collected and sent to the ALSDE

Spring Grad exam complete

ARMT testing over, with SAT10 and ADAW almost done

Introdution of JBHM consulting firm to work with our high schools in collaboration of general and special educators in meeting the needs of all of our lower performing students

We have several upcoming events and important dates:

ALSDE on-site monitoring, April 5-8

Autism Chat April 15

SLI Chit-Chat April 21

IEP Verifications Completed

All re-evaluations for additional or no additional data turned into either the psychometry or timeline compliance offices

Last day for students May 27

In the meantime, please enjoy this picture of WATER FOUND ON MARS! No kidding, check it out! (And, have a safe April Fools' Day!)

February Reviews

2010-02-19T12:50:00.000-08:00

Time has flown once again! I have been able to have several team meetings in the past 2 weeks, but have several more to schedule. In the meantime, I want to outline a few important topics that we have (or will) discussed:

Re-evaluation due dates: Check each student's folder on SETSWeb for the due date if you are not sure. The date marked due by, is the date that everything should be COMPLETED. This means that all information required (including any new documentation or assessments) should be completed by that date. If you hold your first meeting on the due date, you will be past due already! We are all working towards 100% compliance!
If you call me to pick up a re-eval file, I will try to help you out by picking it up and bringing it to the correct person. However, if I can't get there within a day, then arrange to have it brought from your school.
For Indicator 13 (transition), all students in high school must have the entire form completed. Each question/area for marking is a separate area when the state department monitors us. The only exception is for overage middle school students who have a transition page; the entire page must be completed EXCEPT for the top box marked for high school only.
Progress reports should be up to date and printed out for the student's file.
Persons responsible for implementation of the IEP should be up to date with names/dates.
All academic goals should have the Course of Study Standard marked in the goal box.

These are some reminders, but there are remember that the State Department can and will monitor all aspects of SETSWeb prior to their arrival in Birmingham.

Teachers giving the AAA have assigned days/times next week to meet and review with their files. Remember, ALL STUDENT PORTFOLIOS must be totally complete and ready to mail by the date of collection, which is the week before Spring Break.

Another point of issue which has arisen again recently is that of suspension days. When a student with special needs is suspended, please get into the habit of providing work packets for them to do while they are home. This is especially important if the number of days is approaching or extending past 10 days, but should be followed with any suspension.

New news:

We are really excited that JBHM Education Group, LLC, will be consulting with us (www.jbhm-edgroup.com) in our high schools. They will be meeting with each school (Woodlawn's date is March 10) and help us with scheduling issues, collaboration with general ed, academics, etc. regarding our special needs students.

PLEASE call me if you have any questions, concerns, notes, ideas, family issues, etc.

Upcoming and Recent Professional Development

2010-01-08T09:48:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, everyone! We are all back into the thick of things very quickly, but I hope we have all been refreshed by our holidays.

Last week, Dr. Tucker and the special education staff met with contact teachers to talk about Indicator 11, which is timeline compliance. In partnership with that meeting, Dr. Tucker and Dr. Sher will be meeting with BBSST school leaders to discuss their part in ensuring that we are in compliance with all timelines when we are referring or re-evaluating students in special education. The forms will be posted on this blog as soon as they are available online.

Next Tuesday, January 12, special education teachers are encouraged to attend the professional development offered at Lane Center. The PD is about writing IEPs, especially regarding the types of services. It is very important that we move from generalized to more specific, prescriptive and descriptive IEPs that provide detail regarding the specialized instruction that is offered to each student. You can sign up for the PD on the STI-PD website. Let me know if you have any difficulties. Click HERE for the flyer.

I'll see you then!

The holidays are here!

2009-12-15T13:06:00.000-08:00

There is nothing like the winter holidays to bring to mind friends, family and fun. I picture remembrances from growing up in the Midwest - snowfalls, building snow forts, drinking hot cocoa after peeling off frozen stiff mittens, and sled riding down the state park hills or down my best friend's driveway!

Although the snow is not the same, the time together with friends and family IS! I wish for you all the happiness of the season. Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Other Great Blogs

2009-11-30T13:57:00.001-08:00

Blogging is not a new way of communicating, but it sure feels like one to me. There are many people out there who have blogged regularly for years. My favorite one that I read regularly is Frank Buck's blog. Frank is a (recently) retired educator who has written a book on Time Management and organization. His blog highlights some of his tried and true methodologies.

Check out Frank Buck's Blog here: http://frankbuck.blogspot.com/

A few of my friends have also started blogs. Check these out, as well:

http://birminghamgifted.blogspot.com/

http://nelvasworld.blogspot.com/

http://myhelp-boykin.blogspot.com/

http://fromthedeskofiehunter.blogspot.com/

http://patsblog2010.blogspot.com/

Each blog is uniquely personal and relates to that person's interests and focus.

Birmingham City Schools Board Policy Book

2009-11-23T12:21:00.000-08:00

I realized that this link might be helpful to staff. Just like we use the Mastering the Maze and the Alabama Code to answer our questions in special education, the policy book can be useful to answer questions regarding local policies.

Click here for the link to the Policy Handbook.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-19T11:41:00.000-08:00

It is so hard to believe that we are already to Thanksgiving break. I hope everyone has a very blessed Thanksgiving, and that you get to spend it with someone you love.

Did you know that US Presidents issue an annual Thanksgiving Proclamation declaring the 4th Thursday of November as Thanksgiving? While President George Washington was the first US President to issue a Thanksgiving Proclamation, not all following Presidents followed the custom. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be celebrated on the final Thursday of November. In 1939 President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared that Thanksgiving would be celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November and in 1941 the US Congress passed a law officially establishing the celebration of Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday in November.

Technology Focus: AUP

2009-11-10T08:47:00.000-08:00

What is an AUP? It stands for Acceptable Use Policy. There are several websites that have discussion forums on what an AUP should include, as well as sample AUPs posted. The issue has expanded exponentially over the past few years, as additional social networking and applications arise. Our students keep up with these (including texting, instant messaging, twittering, etc.) but adults often don't. In order to provide appropriate parameters of use within the public school setting, it is imperative that we understand how the applications are being used and how to limit abuses while protecting the advantages of acceptable use.

Check out this website for some sample policies and articles.

Open Your Parachute Professional Development

2009-11-04T09:11:00.000-08:00

Click below to hear a podcast regarding our recent professional development

Podcast

New News!

2009-11-03T14:03:00.000-08:00

I am currently working on the Birmingham City Schools Special Education webpage. The address is:

Special Education Department

Click on the link above, and you will be transported to the Special Education Department information page.

Let me know what you think should be included!

Welcome to the new school year!

2009-10-28T14:15:00.000-07:00

Welcome everyone!

I am currently working with the following schools: Robinson Elementary, S. Hampton Elementary, Avondale Elementary, Wilson Elementary, Green Acres Middle, D. Payne Middle, Putnam Middle, and Woodlawn High School. In addition, I work with the teachers of the Vision Impaired.

As a Program Specialist for Special Education, I visit schools to provide mentoring, professional development, and serve as a liaison between schools and parents, parents and administration, schools and administration, and teachers and schools. Every day is a new adventure!