Professional Documents
Culture Documents
I recently found out that I would be gaining a new second grade boy
in our classroom in two weeks. I received his current IEP from his
previous school and am thoroughly reading it over. I learned that his
name is Bill and he has cerebral palsy. He is included in the general
education classroom as much as possible despite his other support
services with speech, OT & PT. I am feeling excited to meet Bill and
anxious to make sure I can meet his needs. Not knowing too much
about cerebral palsy, I have decided to search for more information
has help in which you can contact them via chat for more answers.
decided to contact his mother. His mother is amazing. She feels that Bill
can
do
anything
he
puts
his
mind
to.
She
has
given
me
some
helpful
pointers
such
as
seating
him
on
the
end
so
he
has
more
room
to
move
and that he has restricted use of his right hand. She said that he
struggles with writing and a paraprofessional helps him at that time. He
also uses an IPAD to assist with daily learning. Otherwise he likes to do
things himself or with little peer/adult help. She told me that he may
need assistance with some of the “little things” like turning pages in a
book or zipping and unzipping his backpack, otherwise he just wants to
be learning with his peers. He is very intelligent, but she is worried
about the other kids accepting him. I asked if it was okay with her to
teach his peers about cerebral palsy and how they can help Bill ahead of
time and she loved the idea. I felt relieved after talking to Mrs. Porter
Now that I had some basic knowledge of cerebral palsy and Bill’s
needs I was ready to meet with our IEP team. We knew it was
important to meet before his arrival and to revisit two weeks into his
We outlined Bill’s daily schedule and the times he will receive OT, PT,
and
Speech.
We
feel
that
it
is
important
for
his
speech
therapist
to
come
to
our
classroom
to
work
on
peer
interaction
as
well
as
allowing
him
to
pick a buddy to come along to speech occasionally. We also discussed
his paraprofessional support in the classroom and in specials classes.
We decided that his special education teacher will come to the
classroom to co-‐teach for Math because there are other students that
receive services and she can check-‐in with Bill. We are hoping to
include some of UDL framework while planning our lessons together.
To begin with, Bill will have a paraprofessional checking in with him
frequently to ensure he is comfortable and safe. He will need daily
support during writing and we are scheduling OT to visit our classroom
at this time. At the two-‐week review we will discuss our findings and
adjust his support time. We have also decided to implement some tools
to accommodate Bill’s success and to break down some of the barriers.
Bill will have an IPAD with apps to assist with learning and his daily
work. He will have the Co-‐Writer app to assist with writing and
Touch Learn app to practice math facts. There are over 40,000 apps
that promote fine motor skills and I will be looking into adding more to
his
IPAD
as
the
year
progresses.
Other
accommodations
we
feel
will
benefit
Bill
are:
a
pencil
grip
along
with
a
weighted
pencil,
a
grip-‐mat
so
things don’t fall off his desk, and a slanted writing board. Through
https://www.cerebralpalsyguide.com/treatment/assistive-‐devices/
cerebral palsy. Another important step was educating other staff and
students to ensure acceptance. We all decided to educate our teaching
team at our next staff meeting and asked that they inform students
about cerebral palsy. They needed to discuss Bill’s disability and the
importance of treating him respectfully. Our IEP team is looking to
provide Bill with the least restrictive environment for learning and to
ensure he is getting all needed support. We need to ensure he is
growing socially and academically to reach his personal best. Our
guidance counselor has offered to meet weekly with Bill during
“friendship groups.” We feel that this experience is also a learning
experience for all of us and we will need to communicate regularly and
Now that I have outlined Bill’s academic plan and daily schedule I
need to have a plan in place to ensure his peer acceptance. My next step
was
to
figure
out
how
to
prep
my
other
students
for
Bill’s
arrival.
I
openly
and
excitedly
informed
my
students
about
Bill’s
arrival.
I
promoted questions and asked them for input on how to welcome Bill
into our classroom family. Most second graders are still very accepting
and all wanted to be his buddy. I gave students roles to help Bill with
his backpack, turning pages, playing at recess, help at lunch, and
reminded them that he does like to do things himself so please ask him
before just doing things for him. I showed a couple of videos I found
online:
I wasn’t able to find exactly what I was looking for so I asked Bill’s mom if
she could send me a quick introduction video of Bill and she was happy to. I
asked her to have him tell us some interests and favorites. We also created a
quick introductory video for Bill. We introduced ourselves and told Bill one
so they can help support Bill and their child as well.
I felt like I had the peer relations and Bill’s daily activities planned
out to meet his needs in the least restrictive environment. I knew
tweaking would be needed, but was happy with the overall plan. My
next step was to find out if there are outside of school activities or clubs
that Bill could join. At our school we have a social group that meets
Mondays after school for a time period called “The Good News Club.” I
feel that Bill would benefit from this social group and I will mention it to
Mrs. Porter. Also, our community library has many programs Bill can
attend for free. There are scheduled after school activities as well as a
summer school reading program. Park and Rec has activities including
swimming lessons, crafts, and sports that he could participate in. Our
community has 4-‐H and boy scouts that would welcome Bill to join. I
would communicate with Bill’s mom and let her know about the many
opportunities that are available to Bill here in our community. As Bill
grows older, there are also future organizations Bill can join including
student council, FBLA, FFA, STARS, and more. I have also found a
https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/clts/waiver/transition/index.htm
This
site
includes
information
about
the
Aging
and
Disability
Resource
Bill’s mom. Other groups that may interest Bill may include the Special
division).
http://www.specialolympicswisconsin.org/sports-‐offered/become-‐an-‐
athlete/
Our county also has a “boys club” that he may be interested in:
http://www.co.columbia.wi.us/columbiacounty/Portals/7/Forms/Boys
Group.pdf
There are many groups out there that Bill can be a part of. I will pass
the information along to his mother. I know she believes in Bill and she
will support him by helping him join the groups he is interested in. I
know that since Bill has been living with cerebral palsy since birth his
Bill is coming for a meet and greet tomorrow and we are all excited to
celebrate his arrival. We feel that Bill is going to make an amazing
addition to our classroom family. I feel that because we have taken time
to
plan
and
collaborate
Bill’s
transition
will
be
a
positive
experience
to
our
school.
I
just
have
to
remind
myself
and
others
how
important
it
is
for Bill to do many things independently because I know all of us are
going to want to help him SO much. He can do it!