West Creek Middle School Intervention Programs

1. West Creek Middle SchoolIntervention Programs Parent Information Meeting September 20, 2012

2. Interventions 100% Graduation“Our students will be responsible citizens able to make sound decisions in an every-changing world.”

3. Interventions Purpose of Interventions • ‘One size fits all’ curriculum does not work • Meet students where they are • Goal – Academic growth for every student

4. Interventions • The term “intervention” is used when teachers and other school personnel study and problem solve educational issues that place a student at risk for school failure. • Using a team approach that also involves parents, each school carefully considers the needs of students who are identified “at-risk” for learning, behavior, and health problems. • After careful consideration, strategies are put into place to work with the student an effectively address the issues at hand.

5. Intervention is a Process • By it’s nature, intervention is a process. • Plans are often revisited and modified. • A successful intervention plan is created and shaped over time. • Intervention plans are powerful tools to help the at-risk student and should not be seen as a waiting process or a “red tape” step for special education.

6. Interventions West Creek MiddleAcademic Interventions: • Education Initiatives • S-Team • 504 • Special Education • Support Services • Saturday School

7. Literacy Interventions • LANGUAGE ! • READ 180 • Reading Intervention Class • Teacher Tutoring

8. Math Interventions • Mod-Math • Math Intervention Class • After School Tutoring

9. After School Program The primary focus of this program is to address the needs of students experiencing difficulties in reading and in math; however, additional help exists from homework help to tutoring to enrichment.

10. Alternative School • Alternative school serves as a disciplinary school for students grades 6-12 who have been remanded from regular school and assigned through the School Advisory Disciplinary Hearing Authority. • Provides students remanded to alternative school with a chance to continue academic progress and to prepare to return and succeed in a regular school environment.

11. English Language Learner Program (ELL) • The English Language Learner program provides research based instruction in the areas of reading, writing, listening, and speaking to students in our district whose native language is one other than English. • Through this program students learn social and academic English so they can acquire the skills needed to be successful learners.

12. Language ! • LANGUAGE! Is an intensive mastery-based language arts intervention that targets the needs of non-readers by utilizing a sequential, cumulative, skill-based instructional format that addresses all learning styles. • LANGUAGE! Helps special education students who have significant deficits in decoding, fluency, and reading comprehension.

13. READ 180 • READ 180 is a research-based reading intervention program proven to help students make quantifiable gains in reading achievement. • READ 180 breaks the cycle of failure, accelerates learning, and allows students at-risk of not graduating to experience success.

14. Academic Coaches and Consulting TeachersSally Armstrong • These professionals provide support for teachers and the district in the form of professional development to improve instruction and curriculum alignment to assure viable and guaranteed curriculum for all students.

15. Homebound InstructionMary Davila, Student Services • Student Services provides Homebound instruction to students who have documented requests from a medical doctor or psychiatrist. • Homebound serves students with injuries, pregnancy, cancer, low immune system, anxiety disorder, mononucleosis, incarceration, and other medical conditions that would require a student to miss school for a period of 2 or more weeks. Homebound is a minimum of 3 hours per week with one on one classroom instruction.

16. Jump Start • A transition program, Jump Start, provides students with an opportunity to become familiar with the middle school environment. Some of the program activities include the first piece of building relationship through meeting the school administrators and some of their teachers. Students are provided the opportunity to go through the process of changing classes to develop an understanding of what those classes are about as well as learn how to open their lockers.

17. What is Required of Section 504?Eva Gibson, 504 Chairperson Section 504 requires the provision of appropriate educational services; services that are designed to meet the individual needs of qualified students to the same extent that the needs of students without a disability are met.  Essentially Section 504 was designed to "level the playing field," to ensure full participation by individuals with disabilities. 

18. What is Section 504?Eva Gibson, 504 Chairperson Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a civil rights law designed to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability in any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.  Section 504 guarantees certain rights to individuals with disabilities, including the right to full participation and access to a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) to all children regardless of the nature or severity of the disability. 

19. Who qualifies for Section 504Eva Gibson, 504 Chairperson To qualify under Section 504 a student must: • Be determined to have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities including learning and behavior. • Have a record of having such an impairment OR • Be regarded as having such impairment. (What does this mean?)

20. What does this mean?Eva Gibson, 504 Chairperson • A person is considered eligible if he/she: • Has a physical or mental impairment that does not substantially limit a major life activity but is treated by the LEA as having such a limitation (e.g. a student who has scarring, a student who walks with a limp); • Has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity only as a result of the attitudes of others towards such impairment; • Has no physical or mental impairment but is treated by the district as having such impairment (e.g. a student who test positive with the HIV virus but has no physical effects from it.

21. What is Support Team?Paige Corcoran, S-Team Chairperson • The purpose of the Support Team (S-Team) is: • To improve the delivery of instructional services within the general education setting to students experiencing difficulties of an academic, social or behavioral nature in school • To serve as a resource for teachers in the delivery of these services. • The Support Team is a regular education process to identify, plan and monitor alternative instruction strategies for students in need of assistance.

22. Who requests assistance from S-Team?Paige Corcoran, S-Team Chairperson Parents, teachers or other school personnel may all seek assistance from the S-Team. Any unresolved issue that impedes learning may merit a request to the S-Team, and this may come from a variety of sources. However, the decisions to apply the S-Team process is made by the team after careful consideration of the student’s needs.

23. Steps in the S-team PROCESS Paige Corcoran, S-Team Chairperson • Referral • Assessment and Collection/Evaluation of Data • Development of Intervention Plan • Implementation of Intervention Plan • Evaluation of Progress, Follow-Up and Support • Continuous Monitoring

24. What if the interventions are not successful? • In some cases, intervention is not successful. The data collected during the intervention process is very valuable and will help the Support Team determine if possible specialized instruction may be needed. • Students may be referred for further assessment and possible need for special education services.

25. What is Special Education? Donita Piper, School Psychologist • Special Education is instruction that is specially designed to meet the unique needs of children that result from having a disability so they may learn the information and skills that other children are learning. These services are provided by the public school system and are free of charge.

26. Who is eligible for Special Education? Certain children with disabilities are eligible for special education and related services. The federal law, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), specifies the different disability categories under which a child may be found eligible for special education and related services. According to IDEA, the disability must adversely affect the child’s educational performance (ages 3 through 22).

27. Disability Categories Autism Deaf-Blindness Deafness Developmental Delay Emotional Disturbance Functional Delay Hearing Impairment Intellectual Disability Multiple Disabilites Intellectually Gifted Orthopedic Impairment Other Health Impaired Specific Learning Disability Speech or Language Impaired Traumatic Brain Disorder Visual Impairment

28. Individual Education Program All students who receive special education services must be assessed and found eligible for services by an Individual Education Program (IEP) team which includes the parents. An IEP is required for all students who receive special education and related services.

29. Goals of Special Education What is the goal of Special Education? Special Education makes it possible for your child to achieve academic success in the least restrictive environment despite their disability. IDEA entitles all children with disabilities to a free appropriate education (FAPE).

30. Other Support Services • Fee waivers • School supply closet • Clothing closet • Free/reduced lunch • F.U.E.L. • Holiday Hope tree • Thanksgivingbasket giveaway • Centerstoneservices • MFLC services

31. Closing If you are in need of specific information…