Primarily Au-Some

from disability to possibity

The Sped-sentials

I love to fill my classroom with things that make my job easier, or make me happy. My Class was a smorgasbord of wonderful things. Now that I am in administration, my office is no different. I adore all things colorful and things that make me smile. I've had several new teachers ask me what I think are the essentials for any new special education teachers starting out. So, I decided to make a list ... Read More about The Sped-sentials

iPad Apps For Students with Special Needs

If you're like me, you love the iPad. It is a great tool to help our students learn, it's also very engaging for them. There are SO MANY apps out there, where do you start? I created a downloadable guide you can use as a starting list. The apps listed in there include apps for communication, social skills, autism, math, reading, and special needs. Its jam packed with over 100 apps! Yes, you ... Read More about iPad Apps For Students with Special Needs

Tips to Land an Interview & Get That JOB!

Need a new job, or just starting out as a new teacher and trying to land an interview? Trying to land a  job, whether the first time, or third time, is HARD. I’ve been holding interviews and helping to hire for special education teacher positions for more than four years now. In the end, I have the final say in who we hire, so I’ve seen a lot of ways people have easily secured jobs, ... Read More about Tips to Land an Interview & Get That JOB!

Career Planning & Portfolios for Students with Disabilities

I don’t know about your state, but in Ohio we have had several mandates come down from the Ohio Department of Education. One of the mandates that came down late last year was that ALL students are supposed to complete career exploration in every grade. All students are supposed to be career ready by the time they finish high school. This was a big challenge for us. How do you get ... Read More about Career Planning & Portfolios for Students with Disabilities

Vocabulary Instruction for Students with Disabilites

Are you tired of messing around with traditional vocabulary instruction? Vocabulary is such a hard skill to teach our students with disabilities. Typically the tradition routes don't work. Over the years I've had several kiddos who can read any word you put in front of them. One of my 3rd graders was able to decode all of the words in the Brigance Assessment all the way to 10th ... Read More about Vocabulary Instruction for Students with Disabilites