What's New in the World of Special Education?

Recovery Services

Due to the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our students with disabilities, the Minnesota legislature enacted a new state law for Special Education Recovery Services and Support. Per MN Session Laws 2021, Chapter 13, Article 5, Section 1, school districts and charter schools must do the following:

• By December 1st, 2021, parents of students with a disability (including those enrolled in nonpublic or homeschool) must be invited to an IEP meeting.
• The IEP team must determine if, due to disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the student demonstrated any of the following:
  • Lack of progress towards meeting IEP goals
  • Lack of progress in the general curriculum
  • Loss of learning or skills
• If the team determines progress/skills were lost due to the pandemic, then they must determine whether additional special education services or supports are needed to recover what was lost.
• Any needed recovery services must be documented in the student's IEP and a PWN.

The team at SCRED has developed a collection of useful tools and guidance for teams to use in making determinations around the need for recovery services. This information can be found on the Case Manager Resources website.

Before any decisions regarding what types of recovery services will be offered and when, where, how, and by whom those services will be offered, student needs must be identified. During the first couple of months of the school year, IEP/IFSP teams will be reviewing student data, making sure to get input from general education teachers and related service providers. As needs emerge, building teams will be identifying themes and working with their building administrator and special services supervisor (SSS) to decide what recovery services may be needed and when, how, and by whom those services will best be delivered (i.e., before school, after school, ESY, WIN time, etc.). This will allow districts to begin determining what resources need to be allocated to special education recovery services and equipping IEP teams with options for parents to consider. Please note, while a district may determine a general structure in which to provide recovery services, it may not limit individualized determinations that may be appropriate and necessary based on a student's unique needs.

After this plan for recovery services is developed, case managers will begin reaching out to invite parents to a meeting. Not all students will require a meeting to discuss recovery services, but a determination nonetheless will be made and documented. If recovery services are warranted, the team will work to determine the timing and delivery method most appropriate for the student, such as the time of day, day of the week, or time of year, and the availability of other services accessible to the student to address learning loss. Parents will be provided with prior written notice and recovery services will be documented in the student's IEP.

In summary, this new requirement is a heavy lift for our special educators and poses additional challenges within an already stressed system. We also know the intent behind this legislation was good as some of our students with disabilities were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting disruptions to their services. We hope our guidance, tools, and ongoing support structures will help our teams navigate these new, unchartered waters and result in meaningful recovery services for our students with disabilities.

Accessibility and Assistive Technology for Halloween

This month’s Spotlight on AT continues to try and break down instructional barriers for students and teachers and looks at accessibility and assistive technology for Halloween.

The arrival of cooler temperatures, the leaves changing color, and pumpkin spice lattes tend to get many of us thinking about Halloween. Whether it be costume parties, or trick-or-treating; accessibility for students with disabilities can bring some challenges. But no FEAR! Here are some ideas.

Safety First: A safe Halloween is a happy one, so take precautions when planning your child's accessible costume.

• Wearing costumes that are bright and reflective;
• Making sure that costumes aren't long enough to get stuck in the chair's wheels;
• Avoiding masks that block eyesight, or limit breathing;
• Using non-toxic makeup to prevent allergic reactions.

• Make sure the route includes sidewalks with curb cuts, homes without stairs and the route is not overly long if a child has limits with walking stamina.
• If your child has limited verbal abilities, consider making a sign that says Trick or Treat or use a single message voice output Alternative/Augmentative Communication device and have another same-gender child use their voice to record the message "Trick or Treat!"
• If your child has special dietary needs, consider providing neighbors with treats that comply with his/her special nutritional needs.
• Malls often have retailers that provide trick-or-treat options that are easily accessed.
• A pandemic born option is the Trunk or Treat - A bunch of parents or organization members band together (typically in a parking lot), deck out the trunks of their cars with Halloween decorations, and let their kids meander from car to car collecting treats.

According to Autism Speaks; Here's what you can do to make Halloween sights and sounds less challenging for your child:

• Remind your child that the decorations and sounds are just pretend. They're not real. They're just a silly way for people to celebrate Halloween.
• Be aware of things like moving decorations, fog machines, and flashing lights. These may make your child uncomfortable or lead to unsafe or impulsive behaviors.
• Take a sensory toy, headphones, or earplugs with you when you go somewhere that may have loud noises and sounds.
• Trick or Treat while it is still light out if darkness is too scary for your child. You can also allow your child to carry a flashlight.
• If decorations, places, and sounds make it hard for your child to enjoy Halloween activities, limit them or skip them and find sensory-friendly activities instead.

• Explain what happens during trick-or-treating so your child knows what to expect. Describe who they'll see and what they'll do and say. You can use Halloween social stories to help explain. Here are five social stories available through the Florida Autism Center.
• If your child is nonverbal or cannot say "trick or treat," you can print this sign from Autism Speaks to take with them. Please note: Disclosing for a child is an important decision. If a child is able to be a part of making the decision, then that is also an opportunity to teach a child basic self-advocacy skills in self-disclosure.

Today's corporate America has jumped on the broom and many retailers offer complete lines of adapted Halloween costumes.

Target and Disney are two of the corporations that offer accessible costumes that provide children with disabilities great costume options. For children with sensory issues, costumes are made with softer materials. Some costumes have adapted masks that provide less face covering to allow for medical breathing equipment use. The adaptive costumes provide easy dressing with a back opening. Some offer flaps at the front for tube feeding access. Many come in longer options and have wide-leg options to cover braces and adaptive footwear. Some are shorter options to keep material from being tripped on or stuck in wheelchair wheels. The costumes are still colorful and come in favorite kid characters.

Here are a few of the options:

Have a Spooktacular Accessible Halloween!

Meet Your SCRED Assistive Technology Committee:
We are committed to helping you consider appropriate assistive technology for your students. If you want to problem-solve ideas or need AT resources, reach out to a member of the AT Committee:

• Connie Sim: Low Incidence Services Coordinator - csim@scred.k12.mn.us
• Jennifer Lake: Secondary Literacy Services Coordinator - jlake@scred.k12.mn.us
• Robert Benner: Early Childhood Services Coordinator - rbenner@scred.k12.mn.us
• Angela Christenson: Social Behavior Services Coordinator - achristenson@scred.k12.mn.us
• Sheila Chinn: Occupational Therapist - smchinn@scred.k12.mn.us
• Jessica Szymanski: Teacher of the Blind and Visually Impaired - jszymanski@scred.k12.mn.us
• Adrianne Blazevic: Special Services Supervisor (Rush City & Pine City Schools) - ablazevic@scred.k12.mn.us

AT Networking Nights

Register on the SCRED Website for our Assistive Technology Networking Nights in the School Year Course Catalog!  A great opportunity to research and examine potential AT supports and prepare accessible materials for your students. This is a virtual asynchronous professional learning opportunity being offered again this year. There will be no synchronous meeting. The Google Classroom link will be emailed to participants the morning of the session dates. You will have approximately one month to complete the activities you choose. A maximum of 4 hours will be compensated for each session. 

Session dates are February 2, 2022 and April 7, 2022. Space is limited, so register soon! Link to SCRED Professional Learning Catalog.