Where have we been? Where are we now? Where are we going? - PDF document

Where have we been? Where are we now? Where are we going? Revitalizing the Special Education Parent Advisory Committee ● Focus group with stakeholders who conceptualized the Social Emotional ● Learning Specialist position ● Professional Development for the entire staff Jessica Minahan , Charlie Appelstein, Andrew Chung ● Coordination of services ● Developing communication protocols and teaming ● Strategic plan for parent engagement ● Analyzing and educating all stakeholders in the district on roles, relationships and responsibilities of social emotional staff: social workers, SELLS New England School Development Council (aka) NESDEC report -off cycle ●

“All means all.” Experience, skilled and committed staff who believe behavior is a form of communication. PBIS and RTI PBIS-A positive behavior intervention and support system that focuses on a set of clear and consistent expectations for student behavior in various areas of the school. PBIS systems focus on the positive behaviors encouraged in each school, but many include age appropriate consequences to encourage students to make more positive choices. Consequences can include completion of reflection sheets, discussions, making amends, parental involvement and a loss of or amended privileges. RTI- Response To Intervention is a set of supports provided to students in order to assist with school success. RTI supports can be provided by the classroom teacher as well as additional school staff.

Sample PBIS Model and Positive Reinforcer Parker School: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aaP8yZhkaSK4WSv1kfgYV WuG8LJ-wF6peHwDJbzs8uU/edit?usp=sharing Parker Paws (Reinforcer): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1upbtobNXn5V5cYDj9rWZ AzeuGvIGfAzuNhyn5Wu239k/edit?usp=sharing Response To Intervention Parker School RTI Parent Brochure: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1akKZFxRfpY13vrudfyG4F7Jnhc 23SYnlfw94z_Yj-Q4/edit?usp=sharing Possible Interventions (district accommodations): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hFws6Vn1Rvg-TdmXoj-G5NMc Ak7HRkPSIMRKQsasWwQ/edit Character Education in Billerica: Explicit instruction focusing on acquisition of social emotional skills, utilizing the Second Step Program in 15 minute increments on a daily basis.

Sample Brain Break: Social Emotional Learning Team Meetings Background: With the introduction of MTSS including PBIS and RTI, Social Emotional Learning Teams were developed. The purpose of the meetings was to review academic, social/emotional, health, and behavior needs and trends within the building. Team members included the principal, school psychologist, nurse, and social workers.

Current Functioning of the SEL Team Meeting With the creation of the SELSS position, the opportunity to formalize and expand the work presented itself. Current Team Members and Meeting Focus SELSS ● Assistant Principal ● ● Social Workers ● School Psychologist ● BCBA District Social Worker ● Nurses ● The meetings now not only focus on academic, social/emotional, and behavioral trends but also includes attendance concerns, SEL and RTI referrals, office referral data, and discipline concerns. SEL Team Agenda

Analysis of the Social Emotional Team Meetings What’s Working Opportunities for Growth ● Weekly meetings with back up ● Use of a strength based tool time ● Scheduling of meetings SEL referral forms Student participation in the ● ● Collaborative process referral process ● ● Strength-based approach ● Refinement of tier 2 ● Utilizing an agenda interventions ● Staff representatives ● Expansion of restorative attending RTI and attendance practices meetings ● Office referral information to provide preventative supports BCBAs in Billerica Who We Are: ● Board Certified Behavior Analysts ● Licensed by Commonwealth of MA Board of Allied Mental Health ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) - Specialists in the science of changing ● socially-significant behaviors What We Do: ● In-district consultants ● A-grid service (or as needed through RtI referrals) ● Consultation includes: observation, data collection & analysis, modeling and monitoring of behavior plans, writing discrete trial programming, etc. Provide training & support to staff and parents ● Being a BCBA in Billerica ● Pros: Billerica has 4.6 BCBAs across 10 schools ○ Very supportive administration ○ ○ Able to provide Tier 3 supports; avoid some out-of-district placements as well as promoting LRE Provide effective training and support to staff and parents ○ Targeted treatment; avoid time-consuming trial & error ○ ● Challenges: ○ Relatively young science Conflation of ABA & Autism ○ Best practice vs. FAPE/LRE ○ ○ Doable vs. Effective

Julie Laub - BCBA What is behavior, anyway? “Behavior” has taken on a very negative connotation when it simply pertains to all the things a person does (good or bad). Your entire life consists of a long string of behaviors that have followed certain events and have resulted in other events. These events are the reasons you do or do not engage in certain behaviors. For many students, “behaviors” are their way of communicating; happiness, stress, sadness, frustration, excitement, agreement, disagreement, etc., may be displayed as crying, aggression, non-compliance, refusal, property destruction, or “stimming”. They may use unwanted behaviors to communicate because they do not have a better way (skill-set) of doing so. Part of our job as educators is to identify the deficits and teach them these skills. BCBA Tips for the Classroom ● The most important part of behavior is being able to describe it… definition, measurement, etc. ● Don’t be afraid of data! ● Data gives us information; information drives decisions. Even if you don’t know how to treat a behavior problem, you are able to collect ● data about it. Some easy tricks: motivaider, tally counters, rubber bands, bingo chips, etc. ● Data Collection for the Classroom PLACheck ● https://blog.difflearn.com/2016/08/25/measure-group-behavior-classroo m/ ● PLACheck Data Sheet https://achieve.lausd.net/cms/lib/CA01000043/Centricity/domain/361 /positive%20behavior/tier%20iii/t3%20resources/17%20%20PLACHE CK%20-%20Classroom%20and%20Outside%20the%20Classroom.pdf ● Checklists https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdhEbh6h1SI FAIR (Function/Accommodation/Interaction/Response) - Jessica ● Minahan Student-centered FBAs. Focus on setting events as opposed to faults. ● - O’Neill & Horner, et. al.

Data Collection Tips ● Use what you already have! (e.g., attendance, grades, ODRs, anecdotal notes) Sample data is ok! (e.g., “In the 3 recesses I observed…” ● Just understand that more data = more information ● ● MotivAider https://habitchange.com/ ● Tally Counter https://www.amazon.com/Counter-Mechanical-Clicker-Assorted-Stadium/d p/B06XPD1YK3 Prioritize Problems! ● “Rome wasn’t built in a day!” Start with the MOST intrusive problem behavior and then work your way ● through the rest ○ Example: Ramona’s behavior include: aggression, non-compliance, bolting, and work avoidance. However, finishing math worksheets isn’t ever going to happen if she can’t get through the front door of the school. If she makes it into the vestibule, take the win, and plan on how to move on to the next step. ● A lot of times, it’s about meeting the students where they are and then working up. Involving them in “setting the bar” also may go a long way in building meaningful, trusting relationships.

Conversations, Behavior Change and Natural Consequences In our work with children, the most important tool we possess in helping students to change, grow and develop into positive members of our school community as ourselves. Our ability to relate to the students we care for in an open, sensitive, consistent and caring way is the single most important contribution we can make. Our actions and reactions strongly shape and influence the subsequent behavior and growth of the students. This issue is the most pronounced in times of crisis and upset. We want students to learn constructive and adaptive ways to deal with frustration, failure, anger, rejection and hurt. What ties this all together? I Resources Intervention Central https://www.interventioncentral.org/behavioral-intervention-modification PBISApps https://www.pbisapps.org/Pages/Default.aspx CASEL https://casel.org/ Second Step https://www.secondstep.org/ FAIR Plan (Jessica Minahan) http://blogs.svvsd.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/1348/2016/04/The-FAIR-PLAN-Mini-FBA-BSP-chec klist1.docx