Database Change – OT & PT Consult

August 20th, 2015  

Due to popular demand, we have re-added fields to the special ed database to document OT and PT consult services.  In years past, these fields were located on the summary of services screen. They are now located on the IEP Info screen in the section that addresses Program Modifications/Accommodations. (See below)

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The OT/PT Consult fields are used to track students who do not require regular, direct services from the Occupational or Physical Therapist, but do need ongoing support from the therapist.  In most cases, OT or PT consult will mean that the therapist is observing the student and then working with another staff member (teacher, aide, etc.) to provide strategies or suggestions for staff who work directly with the student. The OT or PT will not be providing direct services to the student.  In many cases these will be students who previously had OT or PT services and no longer require direct services, but do need minimal ongoing support or monitoring from the OT or PT.  

If either of these boxes is checked on the IEP Info screen, the nature of the consult services must be described in the program mod/accoms boxes.  All of the consult checkboxes are currently blank.  Information from previous school years has not been carried over.  

These checkboxes will not print on any IEP paperwork.  The printed documentation for OT or PT consult will be in the program mods/accoms text fields. Because consultative services do not involve direct services to the student, this is a more appropriate place to document this need rather than on the summary of services screen.  

**Case managers—please do not check these boxes without first communicating with your school’s OT or PT.  The therapists must be involved in any decisions regarding consultative services. 

Sensory Boxes

April 4th, 2013  

In a November 2009 article in OT Practice magazine, the formation and use of Sensory Boxes was discussed. Sensory boxes are intended to allow students a variety of items for use with their prescribed sensory diet.  If you have any questions or would like to develop something like this for one of your students, contact your Occupational Therapist!

Here are some thoughts from the article.

1. Establish rules for the box – take care of the items, get permission from a staff member, return items before returning to class, etc.

2. Determine types of equipment for box dependent on student needs –

a. Weighted deep pressure / calming equipment such as weighted blanket, weighted animals, spandex hugs, large balls, music      makers.

b. Tactile equipment such as shaving cream, flarp, silly putty, sensory ball, rice and bean / cornmeal container, moon sand.

c. Oral – motor equipment such as hard candy, gum, licorice, pretzels, bubbles.

d. Scented equipment – choose scents that are not irritating to the    students who are using them or the others who will come into   contact with them.

How is this different than what you are already doing for students with sensory needs? It may not be. It may be simply putting an organizational structure to the activities and focusing on teaching the student to use the      objects needed at appropriate times.

Here is a website that provides additional information for you and your OT to discuss for your students.

http://kidcompanions.com/customize-your-childs-sensory-box-what-items-to-choose-and-why/#.UVoldKKyDgc

 

Amending an ESER to Add a Service

December 1st, 2012  

Amend ESER

**Sometimes this process is best captured as a three-year reevaluation.  If you have questions or concerns, contact your program coordinator.**

Do NOT amend the ESER to do the following:

  Change a student’s eligibility category – this requires a complete evaluation.

  Remove a related service – we do not reverse what has already been identified as a need.

  Remove an educational need or change a recommendation. The IEP is the fluid document that describes the student’s current level of functioning.

 

Seminar Review: Autism, Asperger’s, Sensory & ADHD

October 1st, 2012  

Autism, Asperger’s, Sensory, & ADHD
Presented by Gary M. Eisenberg, Ph.D.

Summit Professional Education hosted an Anchorage seminar at the Marriot Hotel featuring Gary M. Eisenberg, Ph.D., a practicing clinical psychologist who has worked directly with children and adolescents with developmental disorders for over 28 years.

Eisenberg reviewed many standard and long practiced interventions shown to be effective with the disorders covered in the seminar. Many of the strategies discussed are used regularly by professionals in our district i. e. ABA, Floortime, TEACCH, Relationship Development Intervention, and Social Skills Training, etc. These effective, researched- based approaches were related to the cerebral cortex as either top down (concept driven and learner directed-needs understanding) or bottom up (foundational skills that are stimulus-driven and therapist directed) behavior therapies. Some of the strategies for teachers with students who have autism/Asperger’s included:  more visual, less verbal; speak slowly in order to facilitate auditory processing; have consistent structure and expectations between home and school; embrace student’s fixations, but set limits; use video modeling; minimize transitions and maintain consistent daily routine; avoid surprises.

Dr. Eisenberg also offered suggestions for kids with attention deficit problems. Aside from the various diets, he suggested that music can and does have a profound calming effect. Another suggestion was for the teachers to “stagger” the tasks sequentially from “easy to hard and then easy.” Finally, he really emphasized the use of visuals for kids with ADHD. He also noted a couple interesting facts. If a kid has a learning disability, the probability of that kid having ADHD is 60%. Classroom tips include: using highlighters, having kids stand, rotate kids through stations every 15 minutes., increase natural and full spectrum lighting, and have them chew gum to increase blood circulation in the frontal lobe of the brain.

Our session was predominantly attended by SLPs and OT/PTs with only a handful of Psyches and SpEd teachers in the group. There were many stimulating questions and thoughtful comments made by attendees throughout the seminar and we all received a certificate upon completion along with an opportunity to purchase a copy of Eisenberg’s work, Recommendations for Treating, Teaching, and Parenting Behavior-Disordered Children. This seminar correlated many of the similarities in effective interventions that work across multiple disorders in a concise and direct way.

   —-Mitchell Pioch & Peter Gundunas, Skyview High School, May 2, 2012

 

May 2012 FAQs

May 1st, 2012  

Q: I want to make sure that I invite all the right district team members to my students’ IEPs. How can I be sure I haven’t missed anyone?
A: It can be difficult when the student has many providers. There are a couple of suggestions that we would like to share:

1. Always check the Summary of Services page and invite any service that is listed as direct service or consult. Whether consult or direct, related services providers are required at the meeting.

2. Double check the student’s schedule in PowerSchool—just in case (especially helpful for secondary). Making sure that the correct people are at the meeting is critical for making a full, legal team for the  benefit of a student. Because providers service several schools, always give as much notice as possible. Ideally, you will contact all providers immediately after scheduling with the parent 10 days prior,

 

Q: What do I need to do when the IEP team requests an assessment for an area outside of the three-year re-evaluation process? For instance, a parent requested an OT assessment (or other assessment) and the team agrees to conduct it. Once the assessment is completed, what do we need to do?
A: The first step is to understand that this situation requires a consent for evaluation. After the  completion of the assessment, you would hold a meeting where the assessor will review their report and the team will determine eligibility for the particular area/service or potentially continued eligibility for special education. You would then continue to an IEP meeting to amend the IEP with this new information in the PLAAFP, and determine if goals and objectives and/ or program modifications/ accommodations are required. Finish with a Prior Written Notice summarizing the actions to be implemented.