Blog - Brooks eAcademy

March 28, 2020April 30, 2020

School Reimagined

I love movies and television shows that depicts humans struggling through some type of catastrophe. A la The Walking Dead or 2012. I’ve had discussions with friends and family about what we would do if we faced those same scenarios. Could I outrun a hoard of zombies? Would I be able to get my family aboard a life saving boat? Or could I live alone for years trying to find a cure like Will Smith in one of my favorite movies, I Am Legend.

In my mind, I was totally prepared to handle any end of the world scenario or so I thought. On March 12, 2020, I was called out along with every other parent and teacher in America. Due to Covid-19 all schools were going to be shut down for at least 3 weeks. I was at work and all day there were rumors swirling that we were closing down. I didn’t believe it. Sometimes I can be a skeptic. When it was confirmed, it was difficult to wrap my head around it. School closed for 3 weeks?! And possibly longer?! Not only was I unsure how this would play out for my job as an Intervention Specialist Teacher but also as a parent.

My first born diva is a junior in college. Disappointed that she has to end her school year at home as an online student. My middle diva is a senior in high school, who is still awaiting the verdict about prom and graduation. Meanwhile my seventh grader is pleased as punch with everything and just misses hanging out with her friends.

Fast forward to the present, Friday, May 1, 2020. I’m still trying to find a balance between work and home like many people. Working from home makes it difficult to totally get away from work. I’m constantly thinking about things I need to complete. As an Intervention Specialist teacher who also has a resource classroom for Language Arts and Math, I’m definitely busy. The day goes by so quickly and most of the time I feel as though I’ve accomplished nothing during the day. No one was prepared for this.

I caution all parents and teachers to be kind to themselves. Don’t beat yourself up. Do the best you can. If your child is frustrated or upset with their schoolwork, let them have a break. We are all learning to live in this new world. It is scary and our young ones need love and support not more stress and anxiety. Remember, you are not alone!

I’d love to hear how all of you are doing during this time. Comment below and let me know. My sister is allowing parents to share their stories of sheltering at home over on her page. There have been some great experiences shared. Click here to read them on her Facebook page.

February 17, 2020February 17, 2020

Helping Your Child Deal With Grief

Happy February! The start of 2020 has been rough for me, in fact January was one of the worst months of my life. My mother suffered a mild stroke the week before the start of winter break. She was hospitalized but sadly passed away on January 2, 2020. I don’t know if there is a word in the English language that describes how I felt or how I still feel. There is an empty space in my heart that aches. My parents divorced when I was about 10 years old so my core family became my mom, my two older brothers and me. Both of my brothers passed away unexpectedly years ago, only 18 months apart. My mom helped me get through that. Now with her gone as well, I feel so lonely like I have no family, no history. All of that to say, these past weeks have been beyond difficult managing my grief and that of my three children. I lost my mom, but they also lost their grandma, someone they were very close to.

I realized that I needed to keep an eye on my daughters. Yes, they had experienced loss before through distance family members but this was the first very close death they’ve experienced. They were very young when their uncles passed away, so I knew this process was going to be different. And then Kobe Bryant, his daughter and 7 others lost their lives in a horrific helicopter accident. Grief become center stage around the world. I knew many of my students looked up to Kobe. In fact one of my students has his name. This just heightened my concern about not only my children but those in my care during the school day.

The initial response to grief is that we have to fix it or make it go away. But grief is not a problem to be fixed. It’s an experience that we go through. When dealing with children and grief, we need to help them process their grief and learn how to continue to live through it. Depending on how much the child identified with the person, this can be a daunting task. We have to take into account that the child must now learn to live without this person in their life. Even if it was through sports, entertainment or a close family connection it can be hard for a child to make sense of it all.

What to Do

It can be overwhelming to think about what to do, so I came up with some beginning steps that will be helpful when navigating the grief experience with a child:

Plain English Please!

Or whatever language is your primary language. Sometimes when we speak to children, we want to use what has been termed kidspeak. Our way of bringing things down to a child’s level. Feeling if we use words like death or dead, we are traumatizing the child. If we are making things up or giving a fluff version like, “Nana went to the big garden in the sky.” We leave room for confusion. A child could feel like Nana would rather go to a big garden than be here with me? Use clear language and explain words if needed.

Honesty is the Best Policy

This goes along with using clear language. While using clear language be as honest as possible. If the person was sick say that. If there was an accident, say there was an accident. They may not be ready to digest every single detail but communicate from a place of honesty. Kids know and understand more these days than we give them credit for.

Open Book Policy

Let the child know that anytime they want to talk you are available. If you as the adult need to talk about the person, do it! If you avoid saying the person’s name or talking about them at all it gives the child the impression that it is not acceptable to do so. Talking about my mom is so therapeutic for me and I’ve let my children know it’s ok to tell a story or say they miss her.

I’ve created an infographic that can also be helpful. Check out the website www.childrengrieve.org. They have a great section with “Dear Me” letters. Adults write letters to their younger selves as they are going through the grieving process. There are some powerful words written there.

**Tips to Help Children Deal with Grief**

Remember the grieving process is different for everyone. I’d love to hear how you have helped any children in your life with their grieving process. Comment below!

December 26, 2019January 2, 2020

ELA Lesson Plans for the First Week of School after Winter Break

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! That time when we are enjoying spending time with our families and friends. For some of us that can also translate to spending all day in our pajamas and binge watching TV shows on Netflix. Whatever you are doing, it is safe to say that you are not thinking about what you are planning to work on with your students when you return to school in the new year. We all have those coworkers who have already made their copies and have everything ready to go while others of us are sitting back like, I’ll deal with that on January 5^th. I must admit that I’m that coworker. My copies are ready to go and I have my plans all set. This is a great thing for you, because I’m here to share 5 days of my Language Arts plans for the week after winter break.

These lessons can be used one each day or depending on your kiddos, you could do two things on one day. If this is your first experience with my blog, I’m an Intervention Specialist Teacher (I’m important so I capitalize it) and I teach resource room Language Arts and Math. This year, I focus primarily on 6^th grade, but I feel that my lessons can work well as low as second grade, especially if you have some students who enjoy a challenge. These lessons can also be used as centers or morning bell work. Just figure out how it can work for you.

This bundle consists of two writing prompts, reading comprehension and some vocabulary work. For day one I have a winter break writing prompt because my students always want to share what they did over breaks so why not turn it into an assignment. Students can use the graphic organizer to gather their thoughts. It can be used to focus on one paragraph or make copies for student to compose a multi-paragraph piece. For the rest of day one or even on day two, students can take those thoughts and create their sloppy copy. From this sheet they can use whatever editing strategy you are using with your class. My kiddos are a little older so they are using a self-editing checklist. You could also do peer editing or have students work directly with you through writing conferences as I like to call them. Once their edits have been approved by you, they could move on and type a final copy in google docs and even present in front of the class. Excuse my crude “Sample” handwriting, lol! Still getting the hang of using a writing pad with the computer.

Day three brings in some reading comprehension. This is my own original story. Yes, I know that there are no Newbery Medals in my near future, but it gets the job done! Students will need crayons or colored pencils to complete this activity. I usually don’t allow markers on this because if you have a student that doesn’t have a steady hand, the paper can get a little messy. Some students will speed through this activity, so this would be a good day to complete any benchmarking tasks or fluency checks you need to do. You could also have students start on the next activity which is about finishing the story or save it for day four. Students have to use their imaginations to complete the story. You could also have them go through the editing process with this piece as well. Once the final copy is complete, again they could present to the class. Day five students are reviewing some new vocabulary words from the story. Yes, I threw in some words that students don’t see everyday. They have to find the definitions and use each word in a sentence. This can also be completed quickly by students but if people are also presenting stories and editing work, you will have a lot going on in your classroom!

I hope this has eased some of your anxiety so that you can get back to binge watching that show! I’m offering this bundle for sale on my website for only $5.00, but for my blog readers you can get it for 50% off (yup, only $2.50) using discount code WINBRK. The discount code is good until January 12, 2020.

November 25, 2019November 23, 2019

Emotional Safety is Key to Learning

Throughout my time working with students, I have read many studies about how to keep students engaged during lessons. What many fail to consider is how do we engage the child who is not quite ready to learn. Maybe this student didn’t get a good night of sleep or the student deals with feelings of self-doubt, especially when it comes to academics.

But what is emotional safety? The National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments defines emotional safety as “an experience in which one feels safe to express emotions, security and confidence to take risks and feel challenged and excited to try something new.” Our emotions have an impact on how we feel about ourselves, the way we communicate with others and how we learn, Let me reiterate that: Emotions have an impact on how we learn!! They help us to process information and aid with comprehension. It can also be termed as social and emotional learning.

According to the National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments by focusing on children’s social and emotional learning, we are working to create children that are skilled in five critical areas:

They are self-aware. They are able to recognize their emotions, describe their interests and values, and accurately assess their strengths. They have a well-grounded sense of self-confidence and hope for the future.
They are able to regulate their emotions. They are able to manage stress, control impulses, and persevere in overcoming obstacles. They can set and monitor progress toward the achievement of personal and academic goals and express their emotions appropriately in a wide range of situations.
They are socially aware. They are able to take the perspective of and empathize with others and recognize and appreciate individual and group similarities and differences. They are able to seek out and appropriately use family, school, and community resources.
They have good relationship skills. They can establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships based on cooperation. They resist inappropriate social pressure; constructively prevent, manage, and resolve interpersonal conflict; and seek and provide help when needed.
They demonstrate responsible decision-making at school, at home, and in the community. In making decisions, they consider ethical standards, safety concerns, appropriate social norms, respect for others, and the likely consequences of various courses of action. They apply these decision-making skills in academic and social situations and are motivated to contribute to the well-being of their schools and communities.

Not too long ago, I write a post about creating a trauma sensitive classroom. Those steps can also help foster an environment that encourage social and emotional learning. This year the school where I work has incorporated a social emotional curriculum into our school day. We are using the Caring School Communities curriculum and it has been very successful thus far. Do you use any social emotional learning during your school day? If so, what do you do? Comment and let me know!

November 20, 2019November 19, 2019

Brooks eAcademy Bookshelf – Genesis Begins Again

*This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may get a commission at no cost to you. Please see the disclaimer for more information.

Imagine feeling like no one could possibly love you because of the way you look. Constantly blaming yourself for all the problems that your family has encountered, hoping and wishing for things to change. Then you keep a list of reason why people shouldn’t like you and it is almost at 100. That is the current life of Genesis Anderson. A middle school student who feels she doesn’t belong anywhere.

To make matters worse, her father has messed up again and her family is out on the streets, again. Dad promises that things will be better and they seem to be for the time being. Genesis knows all too well what can happen when she lets her guard down. She becomes the source of ridicule. It always happens. Her grandmother dislikes her because Genesis can’t pass the paper bag test. Her classmates usually shy away when they find out the truth about her family.

Genesis becomes fixated on making things better by trying to change her appearance. But her choice of how to do so could do real harm to her health and her relationships with others. Alicia D. Williams does a great job of making readers feel Genesis’s plan and cheer her on to the road to recovery and acceptance. This book is perfect for students ages 9-13.

August 5, 2019August 4, 2019

Is it August already?!!!

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I feel like I literally went to sleep on the night of June 5th (my last official day of school) and I woke up and it’s August. How was your summer?

I had a productive summer working with students in support of reading, writing and math IEP goals. I also read 8 books, some professional development books and some to include in my classroom. I started the hashtag on my Instagram page. Check out #1bookperwork2019. I plan to keep it going for the rest of the year. I also plan to review some of the titles in upcoming blog posts. Be on the lookout! Speaking of reading, my current book choice is Brene’ Brown’s Dare to Lead. This is my first Brene’ Brown book and it’s great so far. Comment and let me know if you have read any of her books.

If you are like me, you are slowly pulling yourself back into the real world – meaning back into classroom mode. Fortunately for us, Teachers Pay Teachers is having a back to school sale on August 6th and 7th. Get 25% off of creative and engaging teaching resources created by your fellow teachers. Just use code BTS19 at checkout. Visit my TpT store to get 25% off of my teaching resources. Get one of my most popular resources, The History of Black Wall Street on sale as well!

Also for more of my teaching resources head over to the printables page and use the same code (BTS19) for 25% off of all of my printable resources. The code is valid from August 5th until August 17th. If you are already back at work, I wish you an awesome year with awesome students and co-workers. You got this!

June 24, 2019June 23, 2019

Paraprofessionals – The Backbone of the Classroom

I could just as easily call this post my ode to the paraprofessional. When I made the decision to seriously pursue a career in education, I had no idea where to start. I knew that I had to go back to school in order to get my teaching license, but beyond that I had no clue what I was getting into. My first thoughts were to get a position at a school so that I could get some first hand knowledge of what goes on in a school. To be honest, I wanted to know what teaching was really like. I got hired as a substitute teacher and I loved it. Never mind that time a student cut his hair with scissors (LOL!) I knew that I wanted to be a teacher. After one year of subbing, I was hired as what was referred to then as a teacher’s aide. I had no idea what that meant! I just knew I had a full time position in education with medical benefits. I wasn’t the teacher so it shouldn’t be that difficult, right?!

What is a paraprofessional?
Paraprofessionals generally assist teachers in the classroom, supervise students inside and outside of the classroom, provide administrative support in the classroom.

Anyone who is or has been a paraprofessional before knows how difficult the job can be. Whether you are assigned to work one on one with one student, working in a general education classroom or assisting in a resource classroom, the responsibilities of a paraprofessional can be demanding. This is not to deter anyone looking to for a position as a para. It is definitely a very fulfilling position. Having a well trained and capable para by your side in the classroom can be the saving grace for a teacher. They can be the extra set of eyes and ears for the teacher. Sometimes able to stop issues between students getting out of hand before the teacher is even aware of it.

Paraprofessionals are helpful in the classroom

So what does a paraprofessional do exactly?

Support students in the classroom: A para may work with one or more students depending on the needs. This may entail providing accommodations like scribing for a student or making sure students have all their materials for class.
Support students outside of the classroom: A para may accompany students to their special area classes like physical education, music, art, etc. Depending on the level of need, they may also go on field trips as well to monitor behavior.
Collect data: Para may need to monitor student behavior using a checklist or spreadsheet of some kind that needs to be reported back to an intervention specialist or teacher.
Classroom administrative tasks: You may be called upon to make copies or correct student work.
Assist students with class work: A para may work with small groups or even one student to assist them with class assignments. I’m always reminding people that this means reminding the students of strategies that they can use and not just giving the answers.

Paraprofessionals support students inside and outside the classroom

What are some qualities that are important in a paraprofessional?

Patience: You are dealing with children, some that are dealing with their own struggles which extra care and attention.
Ability to multi-task
Basic reading and math skills
Empathy
Kindness
Understanding
Assertiveness

Bottom line, paraprofessionals are the backbone of the classroom no matter the setting. It is important that students see the teacher treat the paraprofessional with respect. In my classroom, I always refer to any paraprofessional as teacher. My students know that they should give the same level respect that they give to me to the paraprofessionals in the room. If you get the opportunity to work with a paraprofessional, please embrace it! It can change your teaching and add to the feeling of community in your classroom.

I would love to hear your experiences, drop a comment below!

April 29, 2019April 28, 2019

4 Ways to Get Students to Use Their Testing Accommodations

As a special educator this is my favorite time of the year! Hopefully the image above has given you a hint to my sarcasm. I strongly despise this time of year. Don’t get me wrong, I think it is important to be aware of what our students know and what they need to work on. But subjecting them to a test that we know and sadly many of the students already know they won’t do well on is just cruel and unusual punishment.

Fortunately students on IEPs and 504 plans receive accommodations for testing. Recently my sister, who runs an art education program, Palette of Expressions, in California and I recorded a video on Facebook Live. We talked about IEPs, 504s and state testing. You can watch that video here.

For those wondering, an IEP is an Individual Education Program. It contains goals for a child that has qualified for special education services. 504 plans were born of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which called for anyone with a disability not be denied or excluded from any benefits of a program receiving Federal funds.

Students who have IEPs or 504 plans can have testing accommodations that can include extended time (up to a whole school day), small group testing, one on one testing, frequent breaks and a reader for directions and questions to list a few. Having these accommodations in place is helpful to a student and puts them in a position to be successful while testing. Many students thrive with these in place but there are some students who don’t take advantage of them. I have seen students finish a state test in 20 minutes that they have 105 minutes to complete without their accommodations. I’m always telling my students to use their accommodations, but it is easier said than done.

Here are four ways to get your students to use their testing accommodations:

Educate them about the test: Many times students are told you have to do well or ……(fill in your response; most of the time it is something like you won’t move on to the next grade. Unfortunately, information like that can have the opposite effect. Students can develop an attitude of well, I’m just going to fail so forget it and not try at all. Make sure they understand what the test is about and why they are taking it (although some teachers don’t understand why, but that’s a post for another day!
Encourage them: Let them know that they can do it. Encourage them to do their best. I give my students notes with my Bitmoji on it as a source of encourage. They have messages like “I believe in you” and “Do your best!”
Model the accommodations: We can tell students things all the time. It can go in one ear and out the other. Or they act like they understand but they really don’t and they are afraid to say anything. Show students what each of their accommodations look like. They need to see what you do to use extended time.
Acknowledge their accomplishments: When I have a student who shows that they have taken their time on a test, I recognize that. Let them know that you notice and you are proud of them for trying. Celebrate with a fun day, maybe a movie or play some games.

If you are still testing, I wish you and your students the best!

April 7, 2019April 7, 2019

Brooks eAcademy Bookshelf – Dragons in a Bag

*This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may get a commission at no cost to you. Please see the disclaimer for more information.

A new fantasy fiction book, click here to purchase

In February I signed up for the Just Like Me Box. Each month members are sent multicultural books geared towards the age group of your choosing. I chose ages 9-12 since I work with fifth and sixth graders. As I am always on the lookout for new books to share with my students, I was very excited to receive my first package. When I opened the box to see that one of the books was a fantasy fiction books and included dragons no less, I couldn’t wait to start reading.

Immediately I was drawn in by the title of the book, Dragons in a Bag. I needed to know who has dragons and why are they in a bag?! The author, Zetta Elliott does an excellent job creating suspense in the first page of the book. The main character Jaxon is a smart young man who knows that all is not well with his mother. He can tell by the way she is acting and the fact that she is taking him to a place that he has never been. Things have been hard for Jaxon and his mother since his father passed away. Now his mother that he affectionately calls Mama is now dropping him off at someone named Ma’s house.

Jaxon also known as Jax, is suspicious of Ma right away. So many thoughts are swirling through his head. He has never heard of or seen this person before. Their first meeting does not go ideally. Ma seems to be rude and abrupt. Jax can’t believe that he has to spend any time with this lady. He also wonders how does Mama even know someone like Ma. Then there is the matter of the strange package sitting on Ma’s kitchen counter. If Jax didn’t know any better, he would swear the package was moving!

Elliot continues to unravel a story that draws readers in until the very last word. Not only does she write a story about the exciting world of magic, she also tells an important tale of family love and loyalty. Jax learns that sometimes secrets hurt more than they help and that we must forgive others if we want to be able to move on. Did I also mention that this book is the first in a series? The next book, The Dragon Thief, comes out in October 2019! And you definitely have to read it because Dragons in a Bag ends with a huge cliff hanger. I’ll be chomping at the bit until October!

Do yourself a favor and order your copy of this book right away!

March 13, 2019March 13, 2019

3 Steps to Make Your Classroom Trauma Sensitive

Over the last month, I’ve talked excessively about consequences. First I explored whether or not consequences even work (you can read that post by clicking here). Let’s just say there was no clear answer, but I did find a few school districts that offer alternatives to consequences such as teaching kids yoga. I then explored whether or not teachers were being sensitive enough to the needs of their students (you can read that post by clicking here). This meant looking at the relationships that we are forming with students and keeping that front and center if the need should arise for a consequence.

It is an ultimate irony that at the time when the human is most vulnerable to the effects of trauma-during infancy and childhood-adults generally presume the most resilience.

Perry, Pollard, Blakley, Baker & Vigilante, 1995

As adults we have the tendency to put our own childhood experiences onto our students. For example, we’ll say things like, “when I was young, I always did my homework.” We cannot look at our students through our own life lens. Things are so different than even ten years ago. Some children deal with issues that many adults have never encountered. For those children it is important that they are educated in environments that can cater to their needs. In order to be the educator these students need, we need to ensure that our classrooms are trauma sensitive. In the book, Fostering Resilient Learners by Kristin Souers with Pete Hall, the authors give a road map to creating a classroom environment where all students can learn.

How can we do this? By following these three steps:

Identify our own triggers: As a special educator, I’m always watching to learn the triggers of my students. For those not in the education field, triggers are the things that make you upset or frustrated. It could be loud noises, when people ignore you or people who talk too loud. Triggers are things that we want to avoid. If that is not possible, we want to learn ways to deal with our triggers. Take for instance, a trigger for you is a student talking out during instruction. Instead of yelling at the student to shut up or get out, you can come up with a talk out protocol; steps you can use to address a student who is talking and not engaged in the lesson.
Take your student’s background into account: Souers talks about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in the book. ACEs can include but is not limited to substance abuse in the home, divorce, mental illness and death of a loved one. Souer goes on to point towards research that has shown that ACEs have a negative effect on a student’s academic progress. Trauma is toxic to the brain, so the larger the number of ACEs the more difficulty a student will have. If we have knowledge of a student’s background, we can be proactive in helping them navigate those situations and create an environment in which they can learn.
Stay true to your mission: If you are in the teaching industry or even thinking of entering teaching, I’m sure your mission statement says something like I want to help kids learn, blah, blah, blah… News flash: Teaching is difficult! Many teachers leave within their first five years of teaching. Having a mission that you revisit throughout the school year is important. It can help to remind you why you chose to “help kids” when you have a student who seems determined to not succeed. Souer calls it putting on your cement shoes, keeping yourself grounded in your why.

Of course there are many other things you can do to create a trauma sensitive classroom, but these three things will get you started. If you haven’t already, click the link above or the title here to order, Fostering Resilient Learners. You will not be disappointed! Souer also provides a link to resources that will be helpful in creating a trauma sensitive classroom.