|
    
ADAPTING CURRICULA FOR PRIMARY-AGE CHILDREN
I. Develop an Appropriate IEP
A. Curricula for students in regular education
are determined by the school district; for students receiving
special education services, curricula are determined by the
student: the IEP is the student's curriculum.
B. Based on the child's current skills,
functional and academic, and the skills he/she needs in order to be
successful in the environment, prioritize goals and
objectives.
C. Determine the school and community
environments in which each goal and objective will be a
priority.
II. Develop a Plan to Integrate the Student's Goals
and Objectives in the Regular Class Setting (Johnson City
School District, 1990, cited by Gallucci, 1990)
A. Develop daily/weekly schedule for the regular class.
B. Identify activities that will occur in each time block
and transition.
C. Match the student's objective s with each activity and
transition.
D. For each match, identify the level of adaptation needed:
l. Unadapted: same activity, same objective .
2. Regular-Adapted: same activity, different
objectives (student participates at a different level, and/or
with adaptations, as different response modes).
3. Regular-Embedded: same theme/concept,
different objectives (objective may not be to master subject
area and content, but rather to participate in group
instruction and develop social, motor and communication
goals).
4. Functional different activity, different
objectives (objectives are not drawn from the regular
curriculum, but have immediate use in the student's daily
experience).
E. Determine which times in the day have limited or
no match; plan for separate instruction.
F. Determine who will support and/or provide
instruction for
each match:
1. Regular education teacher
2. Peer support (peer tutoring, peer buddies,
cooperative learning groups)
3. Support staff (speech clinicians, therapists,
counselors)
4. Educational assistant
5. Classroom volunteer
III. Develop Adaptations
A. Determine how the existing skills of the
learner can be used in the adaptation (communication, reading,
writing, spelling, math, basic concepts).
B. Consider the learning style of the students
1. Some students with disabilities may learn
best with use visual stimuli
2. Some students with disabilities may have
difficulty with auditory memory and auditory processing
3. Some students with disabilities may have
fewer short- term memory channels
4. Some students with disabilities may learn
best by doing
C. Be sure that the material presented is
meaningful and useful for the child - motivation is very important
D. Use the principles of programming:
1. Move from the simple to the complex
a. match
b. select
c. name
2. Allow the child to succeed
3. Be sure criterion for performance is reached
at one level before moving to the next level
4. Provide feedback - and make it positive
E. Use special education techniques when needed:
1. Task analysis
2. Chaining
3. Stimulus supports/Fading
4. Prompting
5. Modeling
6. Physical assistance
F. Plan for the stages of learning:
l. Acquisition
2. Practice to proficiency (fluency)
3. Transfer and generalization
G. Plan for ways to give the child status with peers
- plan adaptations to put him/her in a leadership role when
possible (one teacher made her pupil with a disability the computer
expert: other pupils had to consult with him in order to learn
programs).
H. The adaptation should be planned to build the
learner's independence and competence.
IV. Implement Your Plan
A. Be sure that planned adaptations are in place and
that the support staff implementing the program understands how to
implement the program and use adaptations effectively.
B. Be sure that support staff responsible for each
program are scheduled when and were the adaptation is to take place.
V. Evaluate
A. Take data:
1. Determine the best way to measure pupil
progress toward each objective - teaching the student to keep
his/her own data, using charts, is an excellent adaptation
for the use of math and reading skills.
2. If the pupil reaches criteria for mastery
(80% and above for 2 or 3 days considered mastery), MOVE ON TO
THE NEXT STEP - DO NOT ALLOW THE STUDENT TO GET STUCK DOING THE
SAME THING DAY AFTER DAY - CHALLENGE HIM/HER
TO MOVE FORWARD AND MAKE PROGRESS.
3. If the pupil is not making progress (below 50% for 2 or 3
days), DO NOT ALLOW THE CHILD TO CONTINUE TO FAIL THE ADAPTATION
IS TO MAKE THE LEARNER SUCCESSFUL - IF SHE/HE IS NOT
SUCCEEDING, THEN THE ADAPTATION IS NOT DOING ITS JOB; IT IS
HANDICAPPING THE LEARNER. Consider these options:
a. Slice back
b. Break the task down into smaller steps
c. Change your feedback - it may not be
reinforcing to the pupil
d. Try new materials and novelty
e. Make new adaptations - perhaps the task
needs to be more functional and meaningful for the student
f. Put it aside for now - it is possible
that the student is unable to do the task - work at a level
at which the student can succeed -come back to this task
later, if this skill is a priority
Johnson City School District (1990). Curriculum
Integration process & Continuum of curricular approaches (Meyer R
Janney, 1989), reprinted in: Project MESH: Making Effective School
Happen for All Students (A Summary of Current Literature on
Effective School Integration), Compiled by Chrysan Gullacci, 1990.
|
