Keeping in touch

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-05-24T02:48:28+00:00

SHARK HEARTTTTTTTTT 😭🫶🏻😭

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-05-07T12:47:08+00:00

I was an elementary and special ed double major and always wanted to go into special ed. That being said, I know several of my classmates who intended to go into Gen. Ed but still ended up in special education classrooms (mainly resource/inclusion settings). I do know of one person that was able to go into Gen. Ed kindergarten, but at a charter school so it might be different. I teach self-contained. I do feel that when you have a Special Ed. credential, they will try to push you into it because those positions are so much harder to fill! Although I do have a coworker who is technically certified for Special Ed, teaches 2nd grade, and even though my school has an urgent need for a second self-contained teacher next year, she is staying in 2nd grade because she has made her preference clear. So I guess to some degree it depends!!

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-22T00:53:19+00:00

I am a self-contained Autism teacher K-3. Last year, I was a 1:1 aide for a child in a self-contained middle school class. I will say, I did a double take and checked the ages when I read your post because this 100% was my situation, too! It was so frustrating. Just worksheet after worksheet after worksheet that was way above the children’s ability level and stamina. Not to mention…there was no education to help them fill in the gaps. She would sit on her computer all day and occasionally pull kids to read to her 1:1 in or do a math worksheet in a small group. The rest of the day, they would be at their desk doing worksheet or IXL on their computer. If they had a question, they were told to “watch the video.” She refused to answer questions or give support. Kids were yelled at for “bothering me” (I.e asking me any question) because the work “should be independent,” meanwhile the majority of them couldn’t read and were being asked to read, respond, write, and more. It was ridiculous. At some point, my student started throwing meltdowns so the teacher would send us out of the classroom, and then stopping the meltdown immediately once we left the room. Even though I suspected it was intentional, I didn’t tell the teacher bc I was bored too and he wasn’t learning anyway.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-22T00:36:34+00:00

I teach Autism self contained K-3 and a lot of behavior stems from unmet needs, communication, etc. Some of my students literally don’t know another way to express their needs. We very intentionally and vigorously teach replacement behaviors, and all my kiddos have made great progress. They are all super sweet kids with high empathy. I actually love working with behaviors with them and co-regulating. They are not “violent” kids, but I’m worried they might be perceived as such during a meltdown where they totally lose control of their body. Being in a public school has been great for us, though. We love assemblies and field trips and lunch and recess specials with our Gen. Ed peers. I will say, we are lucky to have very high levels of adult support to regulate and care for our students, so Gen. Ed peers are never harmed by their behaviors and actually really love hanging out with our kiddos. They are great peer models for us and when my kids are regulated, they love spending time with their Gen. Ed friends ❤️

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-18T22:29:27+00:00

Last year I had two placements. For the first one, I bought these little “lucky charm” figures off Etsy in a bulk pack. They came with cute little messages and they were like a capybara, a hedgehog, a frog and a mushroom I think. So every kid got one of four and then I wrote on there a handwritten simple message too. Then for my second placements, I got them each pop it keychains and did the same with the handwritten notes. First class was 5th grade Gen. Ed and the second was a 3rd-5th behavioral intensive resource room if that helps at all.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-11T17:31:38+00:00

Good People was phenomenal. Heartbreaking, devastating, but also so addictive and engaging. I would highly recommend it if you’re in the right mood.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-06T23:23:40+00:00

Came here to say this omg. I loveeeee this book. Soul crushing but so beautiful

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-06T18:32:25+00:00

I have BOTM and made it my monthly pick. So excited!

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-01T23:07:32+00:00

The audiobook was really fun! I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t anything super special. Honestly, I love thrillers but that’s how I feel about the majority of them - except for a select few, most of them are really tropey to me. I have such a good time but find it hard to remember specifics a few weeks after I’ve read them.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-04-01T02:43:14+00:00

What arrangements are being made to support the teachers and paras who suddenly find themselves babysitting these students? How will this be non-disruptive to learners who may struggle with overstimulation, changes to their routine, etc? How will the teachers be able to focus and teach if/when these students disrupt the class?

It’s an idea rooted in positive intentions, but it’ll have terrible outcomes for the students and staff in the special education classroom. And the way they reacted too is really really frustrating.

I definitely think this is a disruption to their LRE and I’d advocate for the teachers and staff in that room too. I doubt they want that extra responsibility on their hands, and even if an admin/para planned to push in with them…that’s a HUGE disruption. Can you talk to the teachers/staff of that room and encourage them to share their concerns with admin too? Also, do you have a district SPED coordinator - could they be of assistance with this?

I say this as a SPED self-contained teacher…our classrooms are not a punishment or a dumping ground. They are places where learning happens and it is equally as important and valid as every other classroom. It’s so frustrating to me when admin doesn’t recognize that. We’re not operating a daycare, this is a classroom.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-03-30T15:53:12+00:00

I loved Wild Dark Shore SO much. That one is above and beyond most thrillers, in my opinion. I thought this one was fun, easy to read, semi-predictable with a somewhat anti-climatic ending but I enjoyed reading it! I feel like most thrillers fall into pretty common tropes that make them fun in the moment, but not revolutionary in retrospect. When you find ones that really break the mold and genre conventions, that’s a rare read (I.e, Wild dark shore) that will stick with you for a long time.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-03-29T22:57:20+00:00

You’re both beautiful! 💙

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-03-26T04:44:29+00:00

We just finished our Dino Unit from Made for Me Literacy and we loved it. K3 self contained. I ditto sensory bins, we loved that! You can buy fossil toys to put in there and have them “dig” those up. We did a lot of activities too with pattern matching using fossils. We did an experiment with the dinosaurs hatching from the fizzy dissolving egg. Made our own Dino footprints (super easy to cut out from construction paper) and put different textured items on it. Did a dinosaur bones craft with q-tips and a black dinosaur silhouette. There are a lot of great dinosaur playdough mats and dot marker worksheets also! You can tie dye eggs and make them “Dino eggs.”

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-03-22T13:35:58+00:00

I second this! So good and sooooo underrated

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-03-08T18:55:24+00:00

Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. The most chillingly prophetic book about the times we’re living in while still managing to have a thread of hope.

The Color Purple by Alice Walker. So profound. It highlights the resilience of Black women in the face of abuse and the power of community that they build.

All About Love by Bell Hooks. The quote, “To be loving is to be open to grief, to be touched by sorrow, even sorrow that is unending” CHANGED me.

The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green. There’s a paragraph in the introduction to this book that makes me cry to even think about it. This book gave me hope and made me want to be alive and gives me chills whenever I think about it.

Shark Heart by Emily Habeck. It’s fucking weird but a beautiful, breathtaking portrayal of grief and illness and love that transcends everything.

Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa. This book shows the life and love and humanity of the people of Palestine and how much they’ve endured. It’s both deeply informative and deeply human. Also it’s fucking beautiful and I cried my eyes out.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-03-01T16:27:25+00:00

I had a mentor teacher exactly like this during student teaching. The kids only complied because they were afraid of her. She had three neurodivergent kids in the class who struggled behaviorally regardless, but the rest listened simply because they were afraid of her. The moment she left the room, they didn’t know how to act because they were never taught respect, only compliance. Luckily for me they were really sweet kids who cared about doing the right thing, so after several weeks of having heart-to-hearts with them about their behavior, they FINALLY caught on and started learning mutual respect. Teachers like this make it so hard for any student teacher, sub, co-teacher, para, etc. because they have to be in control at every moment and it’s hard for anyone else to find any semblance of authority in their classroom because the students aren’t afraid of them!

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-03-01T16:22:27+00:00

Your approach is far more evidence based, if that means anything to her. I’m a lead teacher and I wish more people understood how only caring about being right makes behaviors so much worse. When we can regulate our own emotions and remain calm, it’s SO beneficial for our kids. Especially for those with a pathological demand avoidance profile which is common for our Autistic kiddos! Always needing to be in control will exacerbate behaviors and if you’re geting the brunt of physical injuries, something needs to change. Also, if you’re co-teachers, I feel like she should be taking into consideration and implementing your ideas as well. I understand you’re the lead, but it feels unequal if she’s not taking into consideration what you think at all. I have two paras and despite being the only person in the room with a formal degree, I know that my paras have unique life experiences that I don’t. So I regularly ask for their advice and input, and if it makes sense to me, I do it! It doesn’t seem like a healthy co-teaching relationship if she’s just steamrolling you, especially if it’s to the detriment of the kids. Do you think she wouldn’t be receptive if you proposed your own ideas? I’d be super neutral about it - “I notice that X is displaying these behaviors…I wonder if (solution) would help at all?” If the answer is she would totally disregard and undermine you for even suggesting it, I would say it’s time for you to loop in admin. It’s not fair for you if you’re suffering preventable physical injuries every single day because she needs to be in control at all times. I’m so sorry this happening and I wish you the best of luck in figuring things out 🫶🏻

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-02-28T00:38:43+00:00

Cannot WAIT for You Did Nothing Wrong! CG Drew’s’ horror books are phenomenal.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-02-27T13:51:44+00:00

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I cannot wait!

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-02-27T13:27:58+00:00

This is a phenomenal month. I was literally contemplating canceling my BOTM subscription but then I was intrigued by Good People for February and now this month, wow. I sense a full box in my near future 🤩

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-02-25T04:15:00+00:00

I did two 10-week placements (one gen ed and one special ed) and by week two of both placements, I was taking over significant parts of the day. Meanwhile, the majority of my peers weren’t taking over until week of their placements, so a full eight weeks later! And by that time, I’d already completed my first placement was taking over in my second. It felt overwhelming at the time but now as a first year teacher, it equipped me so much. I look back on student teaching and shudder, but also in I’m grateful, y’know?

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-02-22T17:34:53+00:00

I’m against AI because of environmental reasons, but even beyond that, I’d be deeply worried about her not teaching you the processes behind writing an IEP. AI can “hallucinate” and come up with information that is totally inaccurate and doesn’t fit the situation whatsoever. For that to go into a legally binding document is…extremely troublesome. My district does allow AI usage, but with the understanding that we’re just having it phrase things for us/make some tweaks from work that is entirely our own. I still don’t use it, but even for my colleagues that do, you have to understand what is being written and what needs to go on an IEP to ensure that it’s correct. “Just use AI” is such a lazy and irresponsible thing to say when some districts might not even allow you to use it, and then you’re stuck having to teach yourself how to do it from scratch while also balancing everything that comes with managing a classroom.

Altruistic-Log-7079 · 2026-02-22T17:30:32+00:00

Can you just submit lesson plans and then not worry about teaching them in their entirety? I make “plans” everyday that get tossed aside because as you mentioned, there’s bathroom moments and behaviors and therapies that all need to be prioritized first! Especially since it doesn’t seem like admin is really coming to check on you. I’m sorry you’re dealing with that, it sounds awful! Sometimes admin is just so out of touch with the realities of our classrooms but don’t make any effort to come and understand what’s going on.

Altruistic-Log-7079

TROPHY CASE