Listen Now

Special education teachers know that managing a caseload is a lot more than just tracking dates. It includes writing and teaching goals. Then, don’t forget to collect data on those goals! Special education teachers need to progress monitor the goals weekly. They also need to report the results to school personnel and parents. Side note-graphs make it easier to report, but that is often an additional step to take.  There is so much to managing a caseload! Today, I’m going to share my complete guide to managing a caseload including progress monitoring. Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com  5 Steps to Getting Started with Progress Monitoring Caseload Manager in ExcelSpecial Education Mega Growing Bundle

They say that special education teachers are a “different breed” and maybe they are right, whoever “they” is. The fact is that special education teachers juggle so much every day…every hour in reality, that it is an absolute miracle that any of them make it through a week, let alone a school year. Between planning and teaching highly individualized lessons, preparing all of the materials, providing modifications or accommodations throughout the day, corresponding with other teachers, parents, specialists, and administrators, and planning for, scheduling, and writing IEPs….special education teachers are constantly buried under all the things they have to do…  Something has to give, something is going to get forgotten, unless they can get a little bit of help.  Today, let’s talk about how a caseload manager can make a huge difference in keeping special education teachers both sane and on top of all of their responsibilities. Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com  5 Steps to Getting Started with Progress MonitoringSet Up a Caseload Management System

So, you have MTSS in your school, and there are several students in your class who are struggling in reading, and they are receiving the interventions that they need to make progress. But you have noticed that several of your students are also struggling in math. Yes, you know that you should provide support in math, but the thought of progress monitoring math seems daunting….even though you are already doing this for several of your students in reading.  How do you get started with and easily maintain (or at least try to) progress monitoring math goals? That’s what we will talk about today!  Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com  5 Steps to Getting Started with Progress Monitoring

The last few weeks, we’ve been talking about phonological awareness, and how important it is to drill down to the most basic skill deficit to make real progress in reading for our struggling students.  Welcome to the Reaching Struggling Learners podcast. Today we are going to talk about how to incorporate phonics skills throughout the school day and how to improve your phonics small group time to be the best that it can be!  Phonics small group time tends to be either the best or worst part of many teachers day.  When small group time is run well, the transitions are seamless, and the students really get a lot of important intervention time. When it isn’t run well, the frustration is REAL. So, what can we do to make sure that phonics small group time is effective and doesn’t make us rip our hair out? Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com  5 Steps to Getting Started with Progress Monitoring

Last week we talked about the difference between phonological awareness and phonics.  This week, we are going to extend that conversation into talking about how to set up and manage phonological awareness small groups. You may be thinking that those skills are such baby skills, why would anyone dedicate an entire small group time to them? That’s a good question, which we definitely will talk about today! Phonological awareness skills are the foundation to reading skills. They lay the groundwork for phonics. So yes, phonological awareness is important to teach and for students to master.  But, dedicating an entire small group time block daily to it? That seems a little excessive doesn’t it? I will say, unless you are teaching really young students or students who are very far below grade level in reading, I don’t think that having a dedicated 30 minute daily phonological awareness small group just for phonological awareness is needed or necessary. Actually, if you are teaching really young students, I hope you aren’t having a dedicated 30 minute small group ever….I’d hate to try to keep really young kids attention for more than 15 minutes on anything academic….. Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com  5 Steps to Getting Started with Progress Monitoring

We all know that if we don't start the year with it, we aren't going to do it.  So this year, let's start with progress monitoring so that we can be confident in what we do all year long. Getting our progress monitoring under control early on is important, because we know that progress monitoring closes achievement gaps. Our students have a lot of gaps in their learning right now. Filling those gaps now makes life easier later.On this episode of the podcast, we will talk about some actionable steps you can take today to get yourself prepared to start your intervention groups and progress monitoring as soon as you're ready. Let's make this the smoothest year yet together! Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com  5 Steps to Getting Started with Progress Monitoring

Phonological awareness and phonics are two different things, but many teachers get confused between the 2. While the terms are not interchangeable, they do have some similarities. Today on the Reaching Struggling Learners podcast, we are going to talk about phonological awareness and phonics. Let’s clear up any confusion there may be, so that we can figure out the most basic skills our students need to learn to succeed.  Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com  5 Steps to Getting Started with Progress Monitoring

I don’t know about you, but every time I’ve sat in PD about SMART goals, they spend a lot of time talking about the making of goals and sharing the information afterward, but not so much about actually collecting that data….which is why we talked about that in episode 59 last week. Make sure you check out that episode, if you’ve haven’t already.  This week, let’s extend that discussion to talk about how we can track a caseload, or classroom’s worth of SMART goals…because let’s face it, teachers do not have enough time to do all the things on their plates, so we need to figure out ways to simplify and streamline what we are doing so that we can get back to teaching! Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

The last few episodes, we’ve been talking SMART goals….but not like what we hear in our professional development sessions.  In pd, we hear all about how SMART goals are the key to school improvement. Administrators and gurus focus on how this tool can be used to raise school grades, standardized test scores, and eventually improve student learning.  While all that sounds great, I respectfully disagree. SMART goals are most effective when we focus on the individual skill deficits that our students have, and filling in those gaps to make big gains. Figuring out how to actually make those gains is what we are going to talk about this week! Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

There has been a lot of hype over the last several years, especially before Covid, about SMART goals.  I’ve sat in hours of professional development about how to create SMART goals for myself and my students. All the gurus have been pushing these things for years, but are they worth the effort? Are SMART goals worth all the hype?  Let’s talk about whether putting effort into creating SMART goals is really worth it for us and our students.  Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/ Goal Freebie

It is almost 2022, and I really cannot believe it.  In full transparency, I have been SUPER MIA from the podcast and blog recently because, well…. As some of you know, my husband is in the military and in true military fashion, we got moved at THE most inconvenient time….aka the week before Christmas.  We found out a few months before, but all of that completely through me for a loop. Between moving, doing the full time job thing, and covering for a coworker who has been on sick leave since last October, I won’t say I was drowning, I already drowned.  But now, my family has moved, my kids are getting settled, and I’m excited to say that I will be allowed to work remotely for the next 6 months sooooo no more 45 minute commute in each direction means more time to devote to serving you and the students you worry most about.  All that to say….I’m back baby! And this year is going to be better than ever! Welcome to Reaching Struggling Learners Season 3, Episode 57. Today, we are going to start the year off right by getting the kids on our side.  Do you ever feel like you’re working against the grain when working with your struggling students? Do your students push back on the activities and goals you set for them? Let’s talk about how to solve that problem so that teacher AND student are on the same page and moving in the same direction! Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/ Goal Freebie

Last week we talked about how we can use universal screeners to do more than stress ourselves out on how much work we need to do to get our students where they need to be. We talked about how that information can actually be used to help our students make real progress toward being on grade level. This week, let’s talk about how we can set goals based on that data and get a move on meeting those goals this year!Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

The first few weeks of school are a wonderful, stressful time of the year. We get to know our new students, we get procedures and things all set up. Also, we test the students a whole lot. Wait...what? Yup, we know it’s coming...the first set of assessments for the school year. Those tests are used in our evaluations, and also help us figure out how to group our students and make plans for the year. But they can also be used to help us make big improvements for our students...even getting students on grade level who are well below at the beginning of the year…..let’s talk about how!Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

Standardized assessments are practically curse words in the teacher community, and for good reason. They are truly the bane of so many teachers' existences, but as much as I hate to admit it, I don’t think they are going away anytime soon. So, how about we make a little bit more sense out of the chaos and find some ways to use these tests to our students’ advantage!Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

In education we talk a lot about achievement or learning gaps, but what is this really? And is it really that important for teachers to understand? Today we are going to talk about achievement gaps, and how we get information about them. Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

Hi! Welcome back! I’ve taken a few weeks off to just get caught up on things and try to enjoy a bit of summer before I jump back into helping my friends set up classrooms and behavior management systems and oh gosh all the laminating! So, for this first episode back, I wanted to talk about achievement gaps and how progress monitoring helps students. I have been very passionate about this topic for a while now, but today I want to give you a more personal view as to why I am SO passionate about this topic. Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

Welcome to our final episode in our phonological awareness series….Onset-Rime! We have been talking about phonological awareness and phonemic awareness for a while now, and I hope that you’ve gained some insight into how important these skill sets are. This final installment will bring a little closure to the series, but also, I hope encourage you to really jump on the phonological awareness train for your students! Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

Teaching students to identify rhyming words is a piece of what goes on in lower elementary grades, but do any of us really know why that is an important skill to learn? Today, let’s talk about that, as well as why we bother teaching alliteration….both are skills I questioned teaching myself as a teacher...but I am glad that I did!  Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

This year has been harsh...and I need a break. If you need a break, take a listen while I tell a story about my favorite restaurant and an unfortunate Publix trip....Warning...this episode includes discussion of food poisoning and I didn't figure out how to bleep out the one curse word....  But, I hope you listen and take a break from the weight of this year for a while! Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/

When students read in class, do they struggle with pronouncing words correctly? I don’t mean articulation errors….as in the students have a really hard time saying s specific sound….I mean when they read words, do you know what word they mean, but they are putting too much or too little emphasis on certain pieces of the words? This can really mess with the fluidity of reading, and make a good story or piece of text terrible to listen to.  The first few months of hearing my older son read were such a mixture of pride and wanting to stick earplugs in while he read….seriously….there is a fluidity with the way that we pronounce words and sentences….without the fluidity, listening to someone reading is so ugh!  But, there is a way to help solve this problem...which enhances the listening experience for everyone….including the person reading...which directly impacts their comprehension...We will talk about this today! Subscribe & Review in iTunes Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here for iTunes.  Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Click here to leave a review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you! Links Mentioned in the Show: https://teachingstrugglinglearners.com/ 5 Steps to Progress Monitoring Guide FCCR Website