I am excited to introduce this week’s guest blogger, Marisa from Sparkles and Sped to explain how she prepared for an extended absence that she did not expect to take.
We all hope that we will never have to be out of the classroom for an extended amount of time, but if the past two years have taught us anything, it’s that we need to be prepared.
Four days before the start of the 2021-2022 school year, I was in a severe car accident that kept me from the classroom for two months. While I knew my team could handle it, I thought a lot about preparing my classroom better for my extended absence.
In addition to being prepared in the classroom, are you prepared in your personal life? Do you have the right coverage through your school district or private insurance? I never thought anything like this would happen to me, and our school district’s short-term disability was expensive, so I never opted in to receive it, which meant 27 school days without pay, and all 10 of my sick days for the year gone.
Since returning to school, I have created my go-binder, which is a classroom manual, so if anyone has to step in, in my place, they have all the information ready to go. I will say, creating this binder may seem like just another thing on your very, very never-ending to-do list as a teacher, but I am so glad I made it a priority. Doing this helped me evaluate areas of weaknesses in my systems and routines.
I focused on five key areas; Student information, Class Schedule, Instruction, Systems and Routines, and Support.
Where do you keep all of your student information? Compiling a comprehensive list of their needs, strengths, safety and behavioral information can be helpful for when you need it. You never know when someone will need to take over and make educational decisions for your classroom.
Does your staff have access to your students’ IEPS? Where? Hard Copy? Digitally? I have found that paper copies help make it easier to find for staff that may not be as technology savvy. Make sure you have a designated area where all these documents can be found.
Do General Education and special teachers have access to students’ IEPS? Where are your IEP at a glance? Consider how you will support your general education teachers as well. I know we can not prepare for every extended absence, but if you have this information readily available, it’s easy to pass along!
Do students have medical needs? Is all staff trained and aware of these needs? If you have students that require special medical attention, talk to your school nurse or other supporting staff on who will train and support these students while you are gone. Consider making a cheat sheet on who needs what health and safety protocols.
Do any students have BIPs? Is all staff trained and aware of these needs? Similarly, make sure to reach out to your behavior specialist or psychologist to support students with behavior plans during your extended absence.
We all typically have some type of master schedule with shorthand for us to memorize. You may need to create a more elaborate and detailed schedule when you take an extended absence.
Do you have a whole class schedule? Do students have individual schedules? How do students access their schedules? If you use a whole class schedule, assign a student or staff member to change it daily for you. If you use individual schedules, make sure all staff know how to change the velcro schedules or where to get copies of paper schedules.
The adults in your room are the most important people when you are gone. Consider giving them a extra detailed outline of your day to show the things you do that they may not even think of. Also make sure, do support staff have a schedule? How can they jump in and support while you’re on your extended absence?
Another point to consider, is to make sure that your staff are still getting breaks and lunches. I know with a staff member (you) out of the classroom, it can be tough. Maybe you can compromise and tell staff to eat in the room with the students or find pockets of time when students are working independently and can get a break.
What will instruction look like in your classroom? Whole group? Small group? Independent work? A mixture of both? You need to consider all areas of your day and what is easiest for the staff supporting your room. If small groups and centers will be too complicated, move towards a whole group model. If independent work helps staff take more breaks and lunches, move towards that model.
Let’s consider the students as well. Do you have special tasks in place during times of instruction? Continue to keep all routines for your instruction time as similar as possible. You want the classroom to continue to run as if you were there. What still needs to be taught to students to be able to work in a whole group or small group successfully or to work independently? You have to consider all areas of your instruction to further support your students.
What systems do you have in place? If you need help figuring those out, start with arrival and go through your day. Think about all the systems or procedures your kids may use. Are these written down anywhere? Does the staff know them? Make sure to leave detailed information regarding how things should be run. This will help the transition of your extended absence run more smoothly.
Behavior systems: Are you using a token economy system? What are acceptable rewards for each child? Do you have other behavior systems? Make sure all behavior plans are readily available and understood by all staff. If you need reinforcers available, make sure staff know where to find them.
Data collection: For IEP goals, I suggest making a data binder with copies of all data reports so that IEP goal data can continue to be collected. If materials are needed, consider making an IEP goal bin. Click the link to read more about how to create those!
Substitutes, do you have a substitute you know and trust? Who knows your students? What do your Instructional assistants need to be successful without you there? What does the admin need from you to support your team at school during your absence? Related services, who will they communicate with during your absence?
While I hope you never experience an emergency absence, I hope this list helps you prepare for the worst. Most importantly, you need to remind yourself that the classroom will continue to run without you. As much as you would want to be there, your students will be safe and okay without you.
What are you looking for?
COPYRIGHT © 2024 Full SPED Ahead
