Using Literacy to Work Through Science Goals

With the end of year state tests quickly approaching, our mentor sessions have focused around the actual implementation of the tests as well as how we actually prepare students.  In each class I work with, there are at least 2 kids who are working on following single step directions, recognizing basic sight/functional words; as well as potty training and following instruction.

While I see the value in assessing students, I question whether the people developing these tests have actually every worked with students on this level.  But that is a topic for another day...

What we came up with were tasks that at least exposed the students to the topics.  We developed tasks for these students to work on during teacher time or independent time, if for nothing other than exposure.  Here is what we came up with dealing with animals (habitats and food chains) that also correspond to their IEPs.  Hopefully you can find something in this post to help you as well.

We began with Reading A-Z.com (yes, again) for text that supported the theme.  The book that was chosen was a multi-level book.

The wordless book was used to label the animals.  

The midlevel book was used to focus on goals on a few of the student's IEPs that focus on verbs.

The highest level book will be used either for a teacher-read text or for a student reading task.

This task used photographs to identify habitats.

This is a comprehension task based on the animals from the Readinga-z book.  (It will use Wiki-Sticks to "draw" a line to the photo that shows the answer.)

Using a book format, this task focuses on what each animal eats.

Based on the ReadingA-Z book, this task focuses on placing animals in the appropriate habitat.

This task asks the students to match the photograph to the outline of the animal.

Same task with the labels covered up

Sorting task for herbivores, carnivores or omnivores with labels

This is a reading comprehension task.  The animals in this task are from the ReadingA-Z book.

An AB Pattern task using pictures from Board Maker.



These activities were printed from the Reading A-Z website for some of the higher level students to use during 1:1 time.



I hope you have a lovely weekend!  -Kara

Literacy...

Last weeks mentor session with one group revolved around literacy. The teachers are using ULS, but are finding that it either isn't enough or it isn't a good fit for the kids this year. We discussed a variety of ways to include literacy in tasks. One of the teachers is a former upper elementary General Ed teacher. Once we began discussing how to integrate, her brain clicked and she came up with a ton of ways she could incorporate some Gen Ed literacy for her non verbal kiddos. We had lengthy discussions about how difficult it is to move a kid from an adapted curriculum to the Common Core and how those gaps can be filled.

For tasks this week, we used some of the books from www.readinga-z.com that aligned with the skills either in ULS or the science theme.  We then made a few activities that corresponded to both the books and IEP goals.  Now there are both teacher guided activities as well as activities to include in work baskets.

***************

These tasks were for work boxes, to accompany the book Animal Tongues.

The animals from the book were used to make a labeling task

These vocabulary words were used to create a tracing task for a work box

These vocabulary words were added to these shapes and used to create an animal from the book

The book was created for multiple uses.  If the teacher uses the red outlined words, the student will be identifying the animal. If the teacher uses the blue outlined words, the student will be identifying other vocabulary words.  The cards on the right were printed from the activities that accompanied the book from the website.

************

 These tasks were created to accompany the book Muscles.

This copy of the book was adapted as a comprehension task where
the final word of the sentence was filled in from a field of 2.

This book was adapted as a sentence construction task.

This task came from one of the activities on the
website for the book.  It is simply flap book with
the definition under each vocab word.

This is another task from the website
as a cloze sentence task.  We made
2 copies of this.  One as a writing task
and another as a fill in the blank for those
students who are unable to write.

************

 This book was created to address a speech goal for a student.  The student will identify the job, based on the description in the book.

**************

These tasks were based around the book Rocks.

This is just an identification task based on the science skills for the unit.

This task is from one of the activities
on the website.  The rocks are highlighted
to help with identifying the size.

This is another task from the website.  Again, this was created for a student who
is able to comprehend but does not have the ability to complete paper/pencil tasks.

I hope you find these helpful!

Kara

Adapted Books

Adapted Books are one of my favorite classroom resources.  I am a firm believer that students need to read, read, read.  Unfortunately, in some of the classes that I have observed in, books are rare; Kids read with the teacher sure, but reading for enjoyment is often nonexistent.  I always made a point to give my students free-reading time.  In 2 of the classes that I have been working with, there are no books for the kids to read independently.  That is going to change...

One of my favorite resources for creating adapted books is the website Readinga-z.com. The books are easy to print in a variety of sizes.  They are also super easy to modify for a wide range of kids.  I frequently adapt the same title for more than 1 reading level/skill level.

Here are a few of the books that I created this week.  Some are from Reading A-Z and others are books that I had in the charity box that my personal kids had outgrown.

Label pictures or simple comprehension

This book is for a student whose IEP goals are to unscramble sentences.  I made it somewhat of a self-correcting task in that the velcro pieces alternate on each page.  The hook strip is under the page on one side; The other side is loop.

 (I apologize for the following sideways photos, they keep turning themselves every time I upload them)

This was a book that I reprinted from my files on BoardmakerShare.  The cards are for 2 different skill levels, matching images or comprehension.

This book was one in my box of "I know I can do something with that later" stuff.  One of the kids in the level 2 class is able to read, but struggles with pincer grasp.  I taped a flap on each page to see if it would make it easier for her to turn the pages.

Matching photo to photo

I didn't create words, but it could also be set up for the kids to match word to word.

These books were bound in a few different ways.  Since the teachers I have been working with have not used adapted books, I want them to try a variety of bindings.  That way they can determine their preference for how they want them bound or which works better for the kids.  On one of the books, I stapled the binding and then duck taped over the staples.  Others are board books that once I added the velcro, the pages were spaced making them open easier.  Other books are bound with 2 different spiral bindings.  

I hope you find these helpful, more adapted books to come soon.

Adaptive Books

I think that I have done all that I can do to prepare for this move until we get closer to the final countdown!  So, in the meantime, I am focusing on my class.

In packing up and reorganizing my classroom, I have been thinking a great deal about things that are critical to an Autistic classroom.  While there is a ton of information out in the world about structured teaching, schedule creation and behavior management, there is little in the way of how to incorporate non-verbal students into daily language instruction.  If you have worked with non-verbal students, you know that there is often more going on than ways to communicate.  There are hundreds of ways that we work around communication difficulties in special education and this is just one small, small way I begin incorporating those skills.

In honor of all of my non-verbal students, I am starting with adaptive books.

When I first heard the term "adapted book", I had no clue what the term referred to.  I was moving from a resource setting to an autistic classroom, so I thought I might ought to attended a training in structured teaching since it had been years since I had attended any TEACCH training.  There wasn't much that I didn't already know, but the phrase "adapted books" threw me for a loop.  It was on our agenda and it was supposed to be addressed after an afternoon break on the first day of a 3 day training.  The training went longer than scheduled and "adapted books" was pushed back to the 2nd day.  When I got home, I did an on-line search and found NOTHING, nada, zilch.  I went into that 2nd day still completely clueless.  Needless to say, we only touched on the topic briefly and the discussion was extremely one dimensional.  We talked about a single way to to adapt books.  Over the years, I have adapted books many ways, depending on who I was adapting for.  Here is what I have learned:

•            Copyrights are important!  That being said, you are allowed to copy books AS LONG AS YOU OWN THE ORIGINAL & KEEP THE ADAPTED BOOK ALONGSIDE THE ORIGINAL & you are adapting the book for instructional purposes.
• Keep an open mind about how to adapt 
• Check out The Dollar Store, yardsales, 2nd hand stores, library sales and even your classroom neighbor
• Boardbooks are just as adaptable as paperback and hardback books
• If you didn't save the file electronically, scan the pieces, because something will get eaten, lost, torn or bent until it is unusable
• Just because a book has a torn page or a broken spine, doesn't mean you can't adapt it
• Don't be afraid to pull a book apart
• Putting a book in the freezer for 15 minutes will loosen the glue on the spine and allow the pages to pull apart easier and without ripping
•  Decide WHY you are adapting the book
• Are you focusing on the ablity to turn the page?
• Are you focusing on each page on 1 specific aspect of the book?
• Are you focusing on retelling?
• Are you focusing on naming/identifying?
• Are you focusing on a curricular skill (counting, classifying)?
• Are you focusing on comprehension?

When I first started adapting books, I only focused on matching picture to picture.  Since that first day, I have progressed in why/how I adapt books.

Here is a book I made from a task I downloaded from BoardmakerShare.com (if you haven't checked it out, you should).  The student must complete the simple sentence to match the picture:
  


Here is a book I created to teach one of my students to learn how to turn a page.  It was a book I found in the recycle bin in a peer's classroom, because the binding was shot and had been taped too many times to count.  Once I laminated it, it didn't matter:

This was one of the first books I made.  It was the only type of book I learned to adapt from my class.  I purchased a few copies of this book from the Dollar Store and cut it up.  I originally purchased 2 copies, but since the pages were double sided, I was only able to cut out certain pictures.  I can't believe I didn't think about that before, but sometimes it takes a few trials to make something work.  My goal for this book was just to get one of my students to sit with a book.  I needed a board book, because I needed it to take a beating. Since it came from the Dollar Store, I wasn't too upset when he threw it against the wall or beat the desk with it.

Here is another book I downloaded from BoardmakerShare (you REALLY should check it out).  This one I used when I taught simple machines.  My students had to complete the sentence using the correct tool.  It was both a labeling (because of the picture clue) and comprehension task.

In this book, the author used the symbolate tool in Boardmaker to create this book.  There is nothing to match, but the words have corresponding pictures to them:

Another favorite site of mine is FileFolderHeaven.com They have a few free items, but their stuff is pretty cheap and it is perfect for what I need it to be:

This was an unexpected find when I went to TJMaxx last year.  It was in the clearance bin and I think it cost less than $1.00 and I didn't even have to do anything to it to work!  Score!

This is another download from BoardmakerShare.com.  It is the simplest comprehension task I could think of.  The student always has two words to choose from:

Another favorite of mine is Readinga-z.com.  Our school has a subscription for each teacher K-2 plus our AU classrooms.  We use them as take-home readers mostly, but I have adapted them.  This book has three options.  In the first book I made, I highlighted the word so that the student would know what to focus on (in addition to the huge picture!).  Once the child was focusing on the picture, I printed a 2nd copy without the word highlights and the child still had to match the picture.  Somewhere in the abyss is the 3rd copy.  I covered the picture and the student had to figure out which picture matched the word.  


     (The picture refuses to load.  I will try to do a follow-up later with these pictures)


I hope that someone finds this blog useful to helping them create adaptive books!  


Good Night All!