A Resource for New Teachers

Starting a new school year is scary enough for veteran educators, but it can be terrifying for new teachers. Julia G. Thompson’s book, The First Year Teacher’s Survival Guide, “gives new teachers a wide variety of tested strategies, activities, and tools for creating a positive and dynamic learning environment while meeting the challenges of each school day.” This book is currently getting rave reviews at Amazon.com and is full of useful strategies for everything from connecting with students to classroom management. Check it out today!

Autism and Empathy and Mirror Neurons

These articles aren’t new to publication, however, I believe they still are worth reading.

From: Mirror cells’ fading spark: empathy-related neurons may turn off in autism. by Bower, B.
Source: Science News, 12/10/2005.
Via: HighBeam™ Research
COPYRIGHT 2008 Science Service, Inc.

From: WE FEEL YOUR PAIN. . . . . . AND YOUR HAPPINESS, TOO THE HUMAN BRAIN’S SOURCE OF EMPATHY MAY ALSO PLAY A ROLE IN AUTISM by Carey Goldberg, Globe Staff
Source: The Boston Globe (Boston, MA), 12/12/2005.
Via: HighBeam™ Research
Copyright 2009 The Boston Globe

From: Is the future of autism research to be found in the mirror. by Kessler, Richard J.
Source: Pediatrics for Parents, 9/1/2008.
Via: HighBeam™ Research
COPYRIGHT 2008 Pediatrics for Parents, Inc.

Solutions: What’s a Paraprofessional to do?”

I just came across a well written blog article, Tasks for Paraprofessionals: Expectations for Instructional Aids in the Classroom .  The benefit to reading this article is that it helps sort out what paraprofessionals can do to support teachers and students in the classroom.

The ways a paraprofessional might assist in the classroom are as individual as the students they are responsible for, the classrooms paraprofessionals work in, and the grade level in which paraprofessionals teach. In my book, “Paraprofessionals And Teachers Working Together” are checklists filled with options for the general education teacher, the special education teacher, and the paraprofessional to consider when defining paraprofessional roles in the classroom. Use these checklists as a tool to negotiate the working relationship in the classroom before the paraprofessional starts “on the job”.

Also, you might be interested in my Audio Presentation, “Increasing the Effectiveness of Paraprofessionals and Classroom Teachers Working Together” available at www.ber.org.