Mills Elementary offers monthly meetings for the Parents of Different Learners group. This month the meeting is focused on strategies for improving executive functioning. Please consider attending!
February 28, 2013
Upcoming Meeting for Executive Functioning
Hello Parents,
Mills Elementary offers monthly meetings for the Parents of Different Learners group. This month the meeting is focused on strategies for improving executive functioning. Please consider attending!
Mills Elementary offers monthly meetings for the Parents of Different Learners group. This month the meeting is focused on strategies for improving executive functioning. Please consider attending!
February 6, 2013
Shoe Tying Visuals
I've been working with the 5th grade students to develop their shoe tying skills. Many students wear shoes with velcro straps, which works fine in elementary school. Unfortunately, as kids grow out of child sizes and into adult sizes it can be much more difficult to find shoes with velcro fasteners. We tried two different methods - the traditional method and the double loop method (what we call rabbit ears). So far, the double loop method has proven to be easier for the students.
I'm going to post visuals here that I adapted from the website Ian's Shoelace Site.
Feel free to use these at home to provide frequent practice opportunities at home. As you can imagine, we have limited time to spend on this at school so the more often they practice at home the more proficient they will become.
Traditional Method (click here to download)
I'm going to post visuals here that I adapted from the website Ian's Shoelace Site.
Feel free to use these at home to provide frequent practice opportunities at home. As you can imagine, we have limited time to spend on this at school so the more often they practice at home the more proficient they will become.
Rabbit Ears method (click here to download)
February 4, 2013
SCORES Summer Camp Resources
Parents,
I just wanted to share the 2013 Summer Camp Resource provided by the AISD SCORES department. Click here to view.
I just wanted to share the 2013 Summer Camp Resource provided by the AISD SCORES department. Click here to view.
February 2, 2013
Emotions Cue Card
I just wanted to share the new emotions cue card that we are using in SCORES. I'll admit that I have a pet peeve about many commercially produced emotions posters - the expressions tend to be so exaggerated that they really don't help us teach our children to recognize the nonverbal signals that indicate emotions in everyday life. Recently, I put together a new cue card that I think is a little more realistic. Feel free to print and use this at home if you wish. Click here to download.
Social Thinking Group Updates
We've had a great time over the past month in all of the Social Thinking groups. Here are some highlights of our learning activities.
Kinder only group: We've worked on a combination of activities focusing on language development (correct prepositional use, pronouns, descriptive words and sequencing). We've also worked on identifying expected behaviors for indoor play and outdoor play. We've practiced playing free center activities, playing on the playground, and how to play tag in a group.
Kinder/1st grade group: We've spent a lot of time on play skills including indoor and outdoor play. We've identified expected and unexpected behavior for both and spent time practicing how to play in ways that create good thoughts and feelings in others in both free play settings as well as cooperative learning groups.
2nd grade group: We've begun to delve into the Superflex curriculum. We have learned how to defeat Rockbrain, Blurting Bob, and Braineater. We've studied in-the-brain distractors (such as recurrent thoughts, worries, or preferred topics) and out-of-the-brain distractors. We've practiced finding strategies that will help us get our brain back in the group.
5th grade: We started off the semester designing Vision Boards. We first brainstormed all the parts of a balanced life (social relationships, education, health, leisure, work/school, goals) and created boards with picture representations of our goals in each of these areas. These vision boards help us relate our social thinking skills to personal goals for each student. We've also focused on in-the-brain and out-of-the-brain distractors and strategies to help refocus attention. We have spent time revisiting the nonverbal cues that show others that we are listening and paying attention in class. A very important connection that we have been discussing is deciding what thought we want to create in others and remembering to show our listening through non-verbal behaviors even if we can listen without those non-verbals. For example, some students argue that they don't need to turn their eyes or shoulders toward the teacher to listen in class. We acknowledge that many students on the Autism spectrum can listen and learn without turning toward the teacher, but turning your eyes and shoulders toward the teacher and raising your hand to ask/answer questions tells the teacher that you are listening and creates positive thoughts and feelings in teachers.
Kinder only group: We've worked on a combination of activities focusing on language development (correct prepositional use, pronouns, descriptive words and sequencing). We've also worked on identifying expected behaviors for indoor play and outdoor play. We've practiced playing free center activities, playing on the playground, and how to play tag in a group.
Kinder/1st grade group: We've spent a lot of time on play skills including indoor and outdoor play. We've identified expected and unexpected behavior for both and spent time practicing how to play in ways that create good thoughts and feelings in others in both free play settings as well as cooperative learning groups.
2nd grade group: We've begun to delve into the Superflex curriculum. We have learned how to defeat Rockbrain, Blurting Bob, and Braineater. We've studied in-the-brain distractors (such as recurrent thoughts, worries, or preferred topics) and out-of-the-brain distractors. We've practiced finding strategies that will help us get our brain back in the group.
5th grade: We started off the semester designing Vision Boards. We first brainstormed all the parts of a balanced life (social relationships, education, health, leisure, work/school, goals) and created boards with picture representations of our goals in each of these areas. These vision boards help us relate our social thinking skills to personal goals for each student. We've also focused on in-the-brain and out-of-the-brain distractors and strategies to help refocus attention. We have spent time revisiting the nonverbal cues that show others that we are listening and paying attention in class. A very important connection that we have been discussing is deciding what thought we want to create in others and remembering to show our listening through non-verbal behaviors even if we can listen without those non-verbals. For example, some students argue that they don't need to turn their eyes or shoulders toward the teacher to listen in class. We acknowledge that many students on the Autism spectrum can listen and learn without turning toward the teacher, but turning your eyes and shoulders toward the teacher and raising your hand to ask/answer questions tells the teacher that you are listening and creates positive thoughts and feelings in teachers.
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