Peer Assisted Learning Strategies
Often times children with Autism struggle a lot with socializing along with academics. This website has a lot of great ideas for special needs children but this article in particular is great for students with autism. This program is called PALS it is a peer reading group program that pairs up low achieving students with higher achieving students. For each grade level the program provides different things that they would work on.
Audio Books- In the classroom and at home
This website can be used in your child’s classroom or at home with your help. This is a website that links you to thousands of audio books and podcasts. This can even be something that you use for your own personal life. It is very easy to search and find items that would be interesting to you and your child. It is a great way to incorporate literacy and reading practice for students who are struggling or who struggle with visually focusing for whatever reason.
Basic Skills
Basic skills are often learned in the early grades and include skills such as:
-letter names and sounds
-decoding words
-word recognition
-sight vocabulary
-numeral or coin recognition
-basic math facts
-frequently used spelling words
-letter formation (handwriting)
Many students with disabilities:
-take longer to learn basic skills
-need more time and practice to learn them
-need explicit instruction to learn effectively
-need more frequent review to maintain skills in long-term memory
-need to develop basic skills to an automatic level
Skill mastery requires more than being accurate or correct
-automaticity is more than accuracy-it entails both accuracy and speed
-sometimes called fluency= a student can do the task accurately, rapidly, and without much conscious effort
Effective basic skills instruction also involves the following elements:
-new information is built upon the foundation of existing knowledge
-focus on a small set of information at a time
-learning involves spaced practice (that is, practice space over a period of time)
-review is important for skill maintenance
How does technology help students learn basic skills?
-well-designed technology-based programs can teach basic skills efficiently and effectively
-many of these programs are fun and rewarding for students-motivating them to invest the extra time it takes to master skills and develop automaticity
-technology makes it possible to more effectively diagnose the skills students need to practice and to focus on a small-set of information at a time
-technology makes it more feasible to deliver frequent and appropriately-spaced review opportunities
-technology-based programs can measure the speed of students' responses to questions, providing practice that encourages automaticity
Principles of Basic Skills Instruction with Technology
-time spent practicing
-multimedia graphics support skills not distract
-positive reinforcement
-explicit feedback
-practice on small sequenced set of items
-variety of different contexts/activities
-review of previously mastered skills
-keep records of students performance
-provide alternatives-making program accessible to all
Some caveats about basic skills instruction
-avoid speed drills unless practice skills is mastered with accuracy
-technology-based applications that follow sound pedagogical principles have the best chance of making a difference
-basic skill programs and instruction should never be used as prerequisites for engagement in more complex and meaningful activities
Study Skills and Students with Disabilities
-students with disabilities are expected to master the same academic skills as their peers without disabilities
-study skills= taking notes, reading textbooks, and passing tests
-skills for acquiring, recording, organizing, synthesizing, remember, and using information
-help students understand and make use of information
-3 categories= 1. rehearsal or repetition-based study skills 2. procedural or organization-based study skills 3. cognitive-based study skills
Rehearsal or Repetition-Based Study Skills
-most basic
= types of behaviors that involve rehearsing or repeating information in some way that facilitates memory and retrieval
-lectures, textbooks, and tests are still the most common methods of instruction in K-12 education
-students with disabilities often have more memory difficulties than their peers
-this method helps those with a disability to memorize information effectively
-How can technology help?
-flashcard and self-quizzing programs
-technology tools that help students to study and memorize information often allow users to make their own study materials, to access study materials created by others, and to connect with others in study activities
Procedural or Organized-Based Study Skills
=tactics and strategies that students can undertake to compete a task, particularly when it has multiple steps
-include organizing, scheduling, and prioritizing tasks as well as staying on task, avoiding distractions, and managing time
-students with disabilities tend to be less organized, may need help breaking a task into smaller steps, and may feel overwhelmed or uncertain on how to get started
-How can technology help?
-calendars, assignment planners, to do lists
Cognitive-Based Study Skills
=focuses on engaging in appropriate thinking about information to be learned
-content or substance of what is to be learned
-Examples:
-connecting what one is learning to background knowledge
-connecting ideas to one another
-developing a network of information
-selecting, monitoring, and using specific tactics and strategies to improve learning
-How can technology help?
-cognitive-based study skills require sophisticated understandings of one's self as a learner and of the process of learning
-teacher-directed instruction
ex. note-taking
http://jabba.edb.utexas.edu/depts/se/projects/mainstep/ms/ai2-introduction-automaticity-example.htm
www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqVjruCt6yg&feature=player_embedded
http://quizlet.com/demo-video.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAfzcYWh5Gg
http://loganrockmore.com/assignmentplanner/
http://www.freeverse.com/mac/product/?id=7013
http://www.hogbaysoftware.com/products/writeroom
http://www.ommwriter.com/
http://eduapps.org/?page_id=7#What+is+MyStudyBar%3F
www.inspiration.com
Bubbl.us: https://bubbl.us/
Mindomo: http://www.mindomo.com/
Popplet: http://popplet.com/
Freemind: http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
http://www.dipity.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2q8_fR0lTI
-letter names and sounds
-decoding words
-word recognition
-sight vocabulary
-numeral or coin recognition
-basic math facts
-frequently used spelling words
-letter formation (handwriting)
Many students with disabilities:
-take longer to learn basic skills
-need more time and practice to learn them
-need explicit instruction to learn effectively
-need more frequent review to maintain skills in long-term memory
-need to develop basic skills to an automatic level
Skill mastery requires more than being accurate or correct
-automaticity is more than accuracy-it entails both accuracy and speed
-sometimes called fluency= a student can do the task accurately, rapidly, and without much conscious effort
Effective basic skills instruction also involves the following elements:
-new information is built upon the foundation of existing knowledge
-focus on a small set of information at a time
-learning involves spaced practice (that is, practice space over a period of time)
-review is important for skill maintenance
How does technology help students learn basic skills?
-well-designed technology-based programs can teach basic skills efficiently and effectively
-many of these programs are fun and rewarding for students-motivating them to invest the extra time it takes to master skills and develop automaticity
-technology makes it possible to more effectively diagnose the skills students need to practice and to focus on a small-set of information at a time
-technology makes it more feasible to deliver frequent and appropriately-spaced review opportunities
-technology-based programs can measure the speed of students' responses to questions, providing practice that encourages automaticity
Principles of Basic Skills Instruction with Technology
-time spent practicing
-multimedia graphics support skills not distract
-positive reinforcement
-explicit feedback
-practice on small sequenced set of items
-variety of different contexts/activities
-review of previously mastered skills
-keep records of students performance
-provide alternatives-making program accessible to all
Some caveats about basic skills instruction
-avoid speed drills unless practice skills is mastered with accuracy
-technology-based applications that follow sound pedagogical principles have the best chance of making a difference
-basic skill programs and instruction should never be used as prerequisites for engagement in more complex and meaningful activities
Study Skills and Students with Disabilities
-students with disabilities are expected to master the same academic skills as their peers without disabilities
-study skills= taking notes, reading textbooks, and passing tests
-skills for acquiring, recording, organizing, synthesizing, remember, and using information
-help students understand and make use of information
-3 categories= 1. rehearsal or repetition-based study skills 2. procedural or organization-based study skills 3. cognitive-based study skills
Rehearsal or Repetition-Based Study Skills
-most basic
= types of behaviors that involve rehearsing or repeating information in some way that facilitates memory and retrieval
-lectures, textbooks, and tests are still the most common methods of instruction in K-12 education
-students with disabilities often have more memory difficulties than their peers
-this method helps those with a disability to memorize information effectively
-How can technology help?
-flashcard and self-quizzing programs
-technology tools that help students to study and memorize information often allow users to make their own study materials, to access study materials created by others, and to connect with others in study activities
Procedural or Organized-Based Study Skills
=tactics and strategies that students can undertake to compete a task, particularly when it has multiple steps
-include organizing, scheduling, and prioritizing tasks as well as staying on task, avoiding distractions, and managing time
-students with disabilities tend to be less organized, may need help breaking a task into smaller steps, and may feel overwhelmed or uncertain on how to get started
-How can technology help?
-calendars, assignment planners, to do lists
Cognitive-Based Study Skills
=focuses on engaging in appropriate thinking about information to be learned
-content or substance of what is to be learned
-Examples:
-connecting what one is learning to background knowledge
-connecting ideas to one another
-developing a network of information
-selecting, monitoring, and using specific tactics and strategies to improve learning
-How can technology help?
-cognitive-based study skills require sophisticated understandings of one's self as a learner and of the process of learning
-teacher-directed instruction
ex. note-taking
http://jabba.edb.utexas.edu/depts/se/projects/mainstep/ms/ai2-introduction-automaticity-example.htm
www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqVjruCt6yg&feature=player_embedded
http://quizlet.com/demo-video.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAfzcYWh5Gg
http://loganrockmore.com/assignmentplanner/
http://www.freeverse.com/mac/product/?id=7013
http://www.hogbaysoftware.com/products/writeroom
http://www.ommwriter.com/
http://eduapps.org/?page_id=7#What+is+MyStudyBar%3F
www.inspiration.com
Bubbl.us: https://bubbl.us/
Mindomo: http://www.mindomo.com/
Popplet: http://popplet.com/
Freemind: http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
http://www.dipity.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2q8_fR0lTI