In gen Ed, it's important to post the schedule and expectations. There is a lot of research out there supporting it. In special Ed, it's also important but can look very different. It is essential that students know what their day looks like and what is expected of them.
I am working with students who don't do well with change, they need to know what's coming and what I will be expecting them to do. If I change the schedule or it wasn't clear, it can be very bad for some of my friends; when it's bad for them it's bad for everyone.
For new special educators (like myself) this can result in some trial and error. I started the year with two schedules. One for my 3rd-4th graders and one for my 5th grader.
I now have 6 schedules for 8 students and another schedule for my aids that is subject to change at any time based on student needs and the day.
I have moved from having my schedules posted on my white board to having individual schedules on students desks. The schedules are on a Velcro strip and students need to physically move the pieces as they complete their tasks. The pieces have board maker pictures and simple labels. We will start using them on Monday.
Hopefully this method works well for my students. Between my aids and myself, we've spent atleast to 10 hours printing, cutting, laminating, Velco-ing and setting up to use these new schedules. Classroom set up is never easy and it takes a long time. This year it has been nonstop. We keep changing things as student needs change.
Next, I need to create break cards :D
Maybe we will have it all figured out by Christmas break.
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