More Information about this program:

Our Staff:

Mrs. Campbell has a  Teaching Certificate and Special Education Endorsement for grades K-12 and  Master's in Special Education- Cognitive Impairment. She has over 20 years experience working in the Brighton school system with children with various special needs. This is her 15th year as a Brighton teacher and her 11th and final year at Scranton Middle School.

We will have 2 full time paraprofessionals in the room as well as gen ed peers to support student learning.

We work closely with the  social worker, speech and language therapist, occupational therapist, and physical therapist to provide an individualized program for each child.

Our Curriculum:

Academics:

We align our curriculum as closely as possible to the Michigan Grade Level Expectations and MI-Access goals, while focusing on basic academic skills, functional skills, communication, relationship/social skills, and behavior as well.  We use direct instruction strategies, in which each task is broken down into manageable segments and each segment is mastered before moving on to the next.  Direct instruction emphases pre-skill preparation, a slower instructional pace, and numerous opportunities for practice and application of the new skill.  Lessons/assessments are multi-sensory including auditory, visual, and tactile approaches and individualized to match student strengths.  Regular data collection is used to analyze errors and drive instruction.  When included in the general education class, curriculum is appropriately modified to reflect student development.  Content units are developed that mirror the gen ed expectations with specific and appropriate objectives/assessments.  Our students participate in standardized testing through MI-Access exams and Power Reading (decoding and comprehension) testing if appropriate. Our Design Learning activities place special emphasis on the 4C skills that students will need as adults- communication, critical thinking skills, collaboration and creativity as much as possible. Grades are based on class participation, written classwork and homework, as well as a variety of assessments. In my classes, the students are allowed 10 minutes of free time at the end of the period for breaks and social interactions IF their work is completed.  Incomplete work will be reflected in grades but can be finished before, during, or after school. Late work is accepted unti the end of the quarter when grades are posted. Parents will be notified if this is a problem.  80% of the grade comes from assessments and 20% from assignments in every class.  Grades are posted regularly online and can be accessed through Parent and Student Connect.

Communication:

We work closely with the speech and language pathologist to incorporate communication skills into our daily lessons.  Articulation training is often embedded in phonics training with practice built into lessons throughout the day. We employ assistive technology as required to meet individual needs.  A Conversation Circle will begin each day. We will r eview Theory of Mind strategies that help students understand non-verbal communication with others.  We will begin Q-1 learning strategies to ask and answer questions for better understanding of the content material.

Relationship/Social Skills:

Our curriculum addresses two types of interpersonal skills.  'Social' skills such as classroom rules and lunchroom routines are taught through scripts, and practiced with gen ed peers.  'Relationship' skills are those which lead to successful friendships and require an 'invitational' model.  We strive to create an emotional connection with each student that leads to social referencing, reciprocity, and an understanding of multiple perspectives.   PeResource room for most of the day.

Behavior Management:

We teach our children to follow the school rules: "Be Respectful, Be Responsible and Be Safe." Our curriculum is geared toward prevention of inappropriate behavior through the use of positive behavioral supports including many visuals and a highly structured daily/weekly schedule. We encourage children to ask for breaks, and incorporate movement, music, and other sensory/relaxation strategies throughout the day.  Our goal is to provide whatever support is necessary to allow the students to learn in the least restrictive environment.

Token System: Students begin each week with 3 tokens.  If they have at east 1 token left on Friday they may participate in Funday Friday: 10-15 min of social  time where personal technology is permitted. Students will be responsible for keeping track of their own devises.

Parent/Teacher Communication:

Please send me your e-mail so that we can keep in touch. I will send home a daily e-mail explaining events of each day.  I will be using Class News to provide you further information on academic lessons including activities to involve your entire family in your child's learning. Most weeks, I send home an e-mail over the weekend to update parents on their child's progress weekly.  A syllabus for each class is posted on my website. Feel free to contact me with questions or concerns through e-mail ( campbed@brightonk12.com,)  or by voicemail at Scranton 810 299-3700.

I will be offering brief parent/teacher conferences near the end of September to let you know how the year is going.  The regular Parent/Teacher conferences will be held in November. Transition Plans will begin in 7th grade and be completed by the end of 8th grade. Data for Extended School Year services (summer programming) will be taken before and after the Dec. break. Qualification for summer programing is based on regression/recoupment data.  If a student shows regression after the break, and does not bring post-break scores up to the level of the pre-break scores in 9 weeks, the student will qualify for Extended School Year services. The data and a letter of explanation will go home to parents in March 2020. Those students that qualify will be notified in June regarding specific services.  If you have questions or concerns, please make an appointment to meet with me at your convenience via e-mail.

I look forward to working with you and your child!  Let's make this the greatest year ever!