Deer Creek Special Services Scoop

It is essential to recognize and applaud the accomplishments of our Antler community, including students and staff across the district. This month, we would like to highlight and celebrate our DCHS Olympians who cheered their way to SILVER on February 15th! Way to go, DCHS Olympians, for displaying your exceptional cheerleading skills!

One Special Services Admin team initiative this school year is to develop a Deer Creek Special Services handbook to ensure consistency with our process and alignment with state and federal policy and procedures. This is an ongoing development with the hope of a draft document for review by May 2024.

During our recent Special Services meeting, we discussed an opportunity to work on process guidance for end-of-year transitions and ESY. If you are interested in assisting with developing one or both of these process guidance documents, please complete the following Google Form.

Special Services Committee Sign-up

At the next like team/group meeting we will discuss and prepare for our upcoming Extended School year. The proposed dates for ESY are:

June 11 - 13

June 18 - 20

June 25 - 27

July 09 - 11

July 16 -18

July 23 -25

Please remember the following as you determine who qualifies for ESY.

ESY services are considered in light of the following circumstances:

• Emerging skills - A skill that is in process of emerging, and the IEP team believes that with ESY services, the student would reasonably maintain the skill.
• Regression-Recoupment - The student will regress to such an extent, and the amount of time required to relearn a skill or behavior becomes so significant that the student will be unable to benefit from their special education.
• Self-Sufficiency - An interruption in services would threaten the acquisition of critical life skills that aid in the student's ability to function as independently as possible, thereby continuing the student's reliance on caretakers, including institutionalized care. Critical life skills are related to those skills that lead to independent functioning. Development of these skills can lead to reduced dependency on future caretakers and enhance the student's integration with individuals without disabilities. Skills may include toileting, feeding, mobility, communication, dressing, self-help, and social/emotional functioning.

ESY determination factors include:

• Degree of disability (i.e., mild, moderate, or severe)
• Degree of regression suffered (actual or predicted)
• Ability of parents to provide educational structure at home
• Student's rate of progress
• Student's behavioral problems
• Student's physical problems
• Availability of alternative resources
• Ability of the student to interact with children who are non-disabled
• Area(s) of the student's curriculum which need continuous attention from the IEP
• The student's vocational needs
• Other relevant factors, as determined by the IEP team

ESY services and amendment of the IEP, including goal development, should be completed by the send school site:

• The ESY Determination form must be completed when:
• The IEP team is unsure of whether or not a student needs ESY services
• The IEP team determines ESY services are needed.
• The ESY Determination form is located under the documents tab in EdPlan.
• EdPlan - ESY Determination form
• The ESY services must be clearly delineated in the IEP.

ESY services should be added in the following way to a student's IEP:

1. The services provided will address the dates of services during IEP.
2. Add an additional line to the services requiring ESY with the ESY box checked. The dates will be specific to the duration of ESY services.

It's important to remember that collecting data on an ongoing basis is necessary to justify the need for Extended School Year (ESY) services.

Each student's case manager should be prepared to provide the following information and resources before ESY services begin:

• Documentation of data supporting the need for ESY. This could be provided in the form of a spreadsheet or document.
• Resources to support the student with goals that will be addressed during ESY. This could include work packets, manipulatives, assistive technology, and logins and passwords for tech resources used throughout the school year that will support ESY goals.
• Completed student profile sheet for each student attending ESY (will be provided during the like team meeting scheduled for March 27, 2024 - see PD section).

If you are interested in teaching during ESY, please email Tracy Blankenship.

The PSG has requested a wishlist from each special education teacher in Deer Creek. The wishlists will be added to the PSG agendas so that parents have access to the information to provide support. If you haven't already, please complete the Classroom Wishlist Google Form.

Deer Creek Hosted Trainings

The link for Deer Creek Special Services led trainings can be found here. Location of the trainings will be updated as we get closer to the training date.

February 28th All Special Services meeting - Survey Discussion, Continuum of Placement 24-25 and beyond, EOY Transitions

March 27 - 7:30 - 8:30: Like Group (All)

• This month like group will focus on ESY. Instead of holding a M/M and S/P session, there will be one session for all.
• meet.google.com/ecz-dwes-yph

• This session will provide additional opportunities to discus the Like Group topic: ESY or discuss other topics or questions.

Coffee: Turning tired teachers into superheroes on a daily basis. -Heidi McDonald ...Be one of the first three people to email me this quote and receive a surprise. :-)

OSDE and Partner Provided Trainings

Autism Focused Intervention & Modules (AFRIM)

AFIRM modules are designed to help learners gain knowledge through a step-by-step process of planning for, using, and monitoring an Evidence Based Practice with learners who are diagnosed with autism from birth to age 22. This site offer supplemental materials and handouts available for download. These modules are FREE.

AFIRM also offers free simulated learning modules for paraprofessionals. These learning modules include brief overviews, video examples, and activity-based scenarios to learn foundational Evidence Based Practices

IRIS Center - FREE Online Professional Development

IRIS Modules are self-contained units that are perfect for personalized learning. IRIS modules are self-guided and self-paced and cover numerous relevant topics. Some of the topics covered include:

• Accommodations: Instructional and testing supports for students with disabilities
• Addressing disruptive and noncompliant behaviors
• Autism spectrum disorder
• Assistive technology
• Classroom behavior management
• Family engagement
• IEP development
• Related services

IRIS also provides professional development certificates for the IRIS STAR Legacy Modules.

Alternate Diploma Collaborative

OSDE, Office of Special Education Services holds a Secondary Transition/Alternate Diploma Collaborative meeting monthly. Zoom meetings are typically held on the 4th Thursday of each month at 3:00 p.m.

The schedule of monthly sessions and known topics are listed below:​

• March 28, 2024 @ 3:00 p.m.
  • Special Olympics Unified Sports – Meg Corn, Special Olympics Oklahoma & Mustang Public Schools
    

Join us via Zoom for all sessions scheduled.

Meeting ID: 160 702 2023

Passcode: 393839

FBA/BIP Training

According to the Oklahoma State Department of Education, Special Education Services (OSDE-SES) 2022 Policies and Procedures (P. 56): OSDE Guidance/Fact Sheet

“Due to the complex nature of variables associated with behavior assessments, individuals who conduct a Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA), or for those who conduct a Functional Analysis (FA) should have training on data collection and behavior assessment.”

The following professional development opportunity meets criteria as acceptable training to conduct and develop FBA/BIP.

• OSDE Connect: Everyday Behavior : Behavioral Principles in the School Setting (**note that you must select the 20 hr session to meet criteria) Send certificate of completion to Dr. Blankenship (tracyblankenship@dcsok.org) once course is completed.