Special Education Educator Blog Support

As a second year special educator it is so helpful to get tips from those who have been through it before. Going into my first IEP meeting I felt prepared and ready to go after working with colleagues but also reading blogs on what to expect and tips on how to stay organized and prepared. I am not only a middle school resource teacher but I also co-teach inside general education ELA classes.

Nicole's Learning Lab

A great source of information about co-teaching comes from the blog, Nicole's Learning Lab. This blog is created by a fellow special educator working in grades K-6. Her favorite model of teaching has been co-teaching thus far and has been able to provide valuable information on the co-teaching model. Throughout the blog she provides resources for not only special education teachers but also general education teachers. Nicole's Learning Lab provides resources through Teachers Pay Teachers, and support through a Facebook group dedicated to co-teaching. The ease of use throughout the website also makes it a great source when looking for information quickly.

I found the post titled, "5 Tips for Co-Teaching Success" very helpful. While it is a list of 5 tips it is not just a bulleted format. It is a quick read and easy to skim with quick blurbs about the previous section written on graphics to summarize what has been said. The tips are helpful for anyone beginning to work a co-taught model with a new colleague. These are not educational in nature per se, the tips are geared more towards relationship building with your colleague.

Mrs. D's Corner

Mrs. D's Corner was started by Stephanie D. She is an elementary special education teacher who has been in her position for 9+ years. Her blog "provides tips, tricks, and hacks" (D, Stephanie) while also reminding us that as educators we need to take care of ourselves. Stephanie prides herself on being able to provide engaging materials to use in your classroom. An article I found very interesting on her blog is titled, "Going Digital in a Special Needs Classroom." The first thing you notice is that Stephanie gives you a read time on her blog, this post says it should take about 6 minutes to read. This is such a helpful tool! When you know you do not have a lot of time and want to find information quickly this is something you want to take notice of. This post was written in November of 2020 as schools had already begun with their virtual models. Stephanie begins with reasons why you should go virtual (other than having to because of Covid) and then goes on to give information about what is needed to make this transition, any device that can access the internet. Although it seems simple enough for those educators out there that have not grown up with technology the ease and simplicity of what Stephanie describes can certainly help. There is a great Q&A section right on the blog post along with a video to show you how to set up your device and connect it to Google. I think the best part of the post is that at the end Stephanie provides digital resources for any educator to implement in their class.

Breezy Special Ed

Breezy Special Ed is a blog created by fellow special educator, Brie. She is currently a stay at home mom that creates amazing resources for special educators but previously was a high school life skills teacher. The blog provides resources for life skills, ELA, math, vocational skills, and work tasks. Brie understands the need for resources that are already created for educators that just do not have the time to create their own. One blog post titled, "Tips for Parent Communication for Distance Learning and Beyond" is so helpful to have for not only distance learning but any form of learning that will happen in the future. This school year the need for parent communication was more important than ever when trying to help students through distance learning. The post is actually guest written by Heather from the blog, "Full SPED Ahead." Heather is a middle school educator. Heather provides 6 quick tips on how to communicate with parents and provides resources to coincide with these tips. One tip provided is websites that can be used to stay in contact with parents and a contact log for those that do not have logs provided through their district. My district currently uses an online IEP system that has a parent contact log but for those that are not provided this resource by their district what Heather provides is a great way to keep communication logs.

Blogs provide so many resources for teachers. As a second year special education teacher I know there have been several times I have needed advice or tips/tricks to getting the paperwork done. Each of these three blogs provides me with information that I will use in the future. My role as the SPED teacher is not only case management but also providing reading interventions for students with Reading goals in their IEPs. Because of this the structure of my room is set according to Wilson Reading System and unfortunately there is no room for blogs in my current classroom environment with students. But I will continue to use blogs as an educator.

Works Cited

Chavanne, Nicole. “5 Tips for Co-Teaching Success.” Learning Lab, Blogger, 20 June 2018, nicoleslearninglab.blogspot.com/2016/05/5-tips-for-co-teaching-success.html.

D, Stephanie. “Going Digital in a Special Needs Classroom.” Mrs. D's Corner, WordPress, 24 Nov. 2020, www.mrsdscorner.com/going-digital-in-a-special-needs-classroom/.

FullSPEDAhead. “Tips for Parent Communication for Distance Learning and Beyond.” Breezy Special Ed, Blogger, 22 Sept. 2020, www.breezyspecialed.com/2020/09/tips-for-parent-communication-for.html.