Sometimes, despite the most perfectly delivered writing lesson implemented with fidelity, students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) do not make the progress expected by teachers or themselves. In these instances, teachers may individualize and differentiate for students with EBD not making adequate progress by purposefully…

Students with and at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) struggle to acquire and develop writing skills. To support their students' unique needs, it is important for teachers to monitor student writing progress to make instructional decisions based on data. In this article we describe methods for progress monitoring focused on…

The purpose of this article is to describe procedures for a team approach to implementing a tangible symbol communication system (TSCS) to support communication skill development of young children with multiple/severe disabilities (MSD). The authors suggest that implementation of a TSCS is a process that includes (a) assessment of child…

This manuscript offers an approach to secure needed SBMHS for students with disabilities through unique applications within the IEP development process, informed by an analysis of recent case law. We will discuss six components of this approach. First, the need for SBMHS must be established through evaluation data. Data sources to confirm the need…

Students with disabilities may demonstrate high rates of off-task behavior, resulting in poor academic achievement. To decrease students' off-task behavior, teachers can identify student-guided supportive strategies to limit the amount of time they dedicate to behavior management. Moreover, when teachers use effective student-guided strategies…

Special educators serve a diverse population of students with unique strengths and needs, and adaptive interventions that account for individual differences before and during the intervention are an important tool to moving the field toward more individualized practices. The purpose of this article is to detail the conceptualization and…

The State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR) is an important tool for states to assess local education agency (LEA) implementation of IDEA. However, reviewing LEA performance on the SPP/APR indicators must not be the only tool. This Fast Five introduces five factors (plus one!) other than the SPP/APR indicators that states should…

Leading an individualized education program (IEP) meeting can be a daunting task for special education teachers, particularly if they want to make changes to the status quo when it comes to inclusive opportunities for students with higher support needs. This article explores how special educators can begin to advocate for that change within their…

Community-based instruction (CBI) is one type of community experience in which students with disabilities work toward instructional goals while engaged in activities occurring in a natural environment outside of a typical school setting (Hoover, 2016; Rowe et al., 2015). Educators who implement CBI capitalize on their students' time in the…

Progress monitoring is used to assess a student's performance during the early stages of literacy development. Computerized progress monitoring systems are capable of scoring some progress monitoring measures automatically. However, other measures, such as those involving writing or sign language, are typically scored manually, which is…

In the era of 21st century learning, many secondary students with learning disabilities continue to struggle with mathematics problem solving. Emerging evidence suggests self-regulated strategy development can be combined with existing evidence-based and promising practices during mathematics instruction. These practices include explicit…

Effective collaboration among team members is a fundamental responsibility for all Early Intervention (EI) professionals. EI can be described as a particular type of service and support for infants and toddlers with delays/disabilities under three and their families provided through Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.…

Phoneme discrimination is the ability to detect subtle similarities and differences between phonemes. Phoneme discrimination is a strong predictor of reading development and poor phoneme discrimination may predict reading disabilities (Lyytinen et al., 2004). The ability to discriminate phonemes may be an even more critical skill for Emergent…

Guided practice within explicit instruction has been shown to be an effective method for teaching academic and behavioral skills to students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). The support provided through guided practice allows students to acquire new skills confidently and successfully. This article provides practitioners of students…

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) experience some of the poorest outcomes of all students. They are also placed in alternative education (AE) settings more frequently than students in other disability categories. For some of these students, the ultimate goal is to return to the traditional school. A systematic, five-part…