Work Boxes

Work Boxes: As mentioned multiple times in the past, I have a TON of work boxes.  Here are a few more:

 

Reading office supply sort: Random items from around the classroom are put into the container. Students read the label at the bottom of the sorting system and place the correct number of items!  So easy to setup, and FREE!

Filling Medicine Box:  I used small candies as the "pills".  Students got instructions on what "pills" were needed in AM/PM.  Have to fill out weekly medicine storage.

 

Item sort (similar shape edition):  In this task, students sort random items, but many have very similar shape, (rounded vs square edges).  Students sort accordingly.

 
Another shape sorter - this came as a math kit, I just dumped it into a work box!

Fine motor activity:  Students take the small pegs and push them into a piece of foam.

More to come in a few days!!!

Work Box Update!

Here are a few work boxes. . . hope you see some you like!

Pencil Case Pack - students follow the template to put items into pencil tins

Eraser Pack - Students place two erasers into containers accordint to template.  For this particular task, students have two different shape containers, so they must make sure to get matching tops for container.

Spelling Pack - Students much choose an item from box, then find the letters to spell that word and place it all into a tied bag.  Items are all mastered spelling words for that particular student.

Rubber Band Sort - Students sort the rubber bands by size.  I must admit, this one is HARD!  The rubber bands are very close in size, so they have to pay close attention.  

Money Sort - Students place coins into a money sorter according to denomination.  For lower functioning students who do not yet know the amount of each coin, one example can be velcroed into the container to provide a cue.

Number Package - Students place the correct number of lady bugs into the bag according to the numeral.  For this specific task, the number card also has dots that students can use to ensure correct number of items.

There are a few. . . I'll be placing more each few days!!!

New Adapted Books

You all know one of my main obsessions - making work boxes.  A second obsession I have is adapted books!!  I love Adapted books!  I use them in teacher time, for independent activities, to have students interact with each other, and in many other ways!
On my campus, the life skills teacher resigned back in February to take a job closer to her home.  With her resignation, my co-teacher and I have had to take in her kiddos!  It has been quite a challenge.  It's been a few years since I've worked with kiddos with disabilities other than Autism, and it has been interesting.  In ways, it has made me up my game!  In other ways, it's just made me tired!!!
Anyway, in taking on the life skills kiddos, I have been reintroduced to the Edmark Reading Series.  These students are on this series and I am falling back in love!  I created a few books for them to use to practice some of the words we are targeting at this time.
These are up for sale at my TpT store.
In the Box 

What's That?  level 1

What's That?  level 2

I can't get my computer to upload any pictures right now. . . I think I need to have tech services look at it!  I'll try to add pictures tomorrow!

Work Box Addict: Intervention Needed!!!

Hello, My name is Erin, and I'm an addict. . . I just can not STOP obsessing over and creating new work boxes!!!!!  Here is what $65 at the Dollar Tree will buy you:

In case you are wondering, this is enough to make approximately 10 boxes!!!

Here are a few of the boxes I made today(Didn't take pics of entire job, hopefully these pics will give a good enough idea of the purpose):

Easter Egg package: (comes with enough eggs/cartons to make 10 packages)

 



Frog Hop Game (enough frogs/ponds to make 10 packages; Students have to choose the correct colors and then put all into a baggie)

Candle Package (enough to make 8 different colored packs)

Baby Ring Assembly: (Enough to make 10 rings; Students must first get correct colors then put together)

 



Toothbrush Pack: (Enough to make 5)

 




Food Package:  (Students must look at the written list and then find the food items and put into a bag)

 



Screwdriver Package: (Color coded screwdrivers; put into container; enough to make 10)

 


I got so carried away making things that I forgot to take pictures of the rest.  Seriously guys, INTERVENTION needed!!!!!  :)

Where do you come up with your work box ideas??

Today I met with a friend and we worked all day making new materials for her classroom.  During our time together, she said "where do you come up with all these ideas" more than once.  I figured maybe I should share where I get some of my best ideas.  Hint. . . I steal them!!
Below is an extensive list of sites where I have gone to get ideas for new work boxes.  I kind of have an obsession for making them and I am always looking for something new to make.  If you have other places you go to, please let me know!

Websites (some commercial, some blogs, some random)

http://hot-ideas.org/

http://www.autismtasks.com/autism_tasks_sets.htm

http://www.shoeboxtasks.com/buy-shoeboxtasks/coordination-tasks

http://www.buildingblox.net/taskideasandfreebies.html

http://www.positivelyautism.com/downloads_tasks.html

http://www.do2learn.com/organizationtools/setup/hometeachingkit.htm

http://nicolemays.blogspot.com/2009/03/task-boxes.html

http://www.preschoolfun.com/pages/teacch%20work%20jobs.htm

http://www.preschoolfun.com/pages/teacch%202008.htm

http://www.preschoolfun.com/pages/teacch%20work%20jobs%20other.htm

http://www.preschoolfun.com/pages/teacch%202009.htm

http://sunflowerschoolhouse.com/workbox-blogroll/

Pinterest boards:

http://pinterest.com/janaoneill/workbox-task/

http://pinterest.com/autismtank/work-tasks/

http://pinterest.com/theautismhelper/work-tasks-for-children-with-autism/

http://pinterest.com/stevensone77/work-boxes-file-folders-and-tasks/

http://pinterest.com/caraanner/work-tasks-for-kids-with-autism/

http://pinterest.com/txkimkim/structured-tasks/

http://pinterest.com/raggedy40/structured-teaching/

http://pinterest.com/teachem38/school-workboxes/

http://pinterest.com/mrsbrookewright/structured-teaching-classroom-ideas-autism-asd/

http://pinterest.com/drchrisreeve/autism-work-tasks/

https://pinterest.com/karachambers/teacch-task-ideas/

http://pinterest.com/lj314/work-tasks/

Preposition Practice

I have multiple students who are working on prepositions.  I search for ways that the students can practice their newly learned prepositions independently.  To do so, I have created a few very simple tasks where they can follow the written preposition directions.  You can grab these for free here:
Over, Under, On
Above, Below, On
Between, Left of, Right of
Print out each page, laminate and add velcro.  I bind the pages into a book so that students can practice a set of prepositions at one time and then it can be checked.

In addition, here are some additional resources I have found that I use:
Source Unknown:
Fat cat flies
Where is Fat Cat?

*Free on Chapel Hill Snippets
angry birds over and between printable
the lonely reindeer printable


 *Free on Boardmaker Share

Polar Animals Preposition Interactive Activity

Winter Preposition

Book Hide the Turkey-prepositions-interactive

Big Al Activities

Where's the Ball? (Preposition Activity)

Where's the Ball? (Preposition Activity - Supported)

firetruck prepositions

*Purchase on Teachers Pay Teachers

What's Bugging You - Preposition Edition - by theautismhelper.com

Preposition Puppy by Clever Classroom

Do you have any favorite preposition practice activities?

Different uses for adapted books

As many of you know, I love adapted books.  I was lucky enough to have a donors choose project funded that purchased 24 different interactive books for my students.  Each came already assembled and ready to use!  The books are great for multiple levels of students for multiple types of tasks.

Here is a picture of one set of books I recieved:

Using this set of books, I can serve three different levels of students easily.  My highest functioning student can use the books to actually read and find correct answers:

This particular book gives a statement that she must read, and then she must put a picture to represent the sentence onto the page.  

The second level of student can use a lower level book that requires them to read specific words and match them to their picture

For the lower level student, I use these books as simple picture matching tasks.  He takes the books that the other students have put together and removes the icons and place them back onto their original pages.  This just has the student match picture to picture.

What a GREAT resource these books have turned out to be.  Useful for all students in my classroom and once they have had a few rounds of instruction with the books, they can use these as independent stations!

Grades - How do you do it?

I have been teaching self contained classes for 14 years, and "grades" have been a source of constant distress.  Districts require us to give them, but have never given us a method on how to take them and make them meaningful to our students learning.  I have had many methods of creating grades in the past, including guessing, a system where all kids getting an 80 the first nine weeks, an 85 the second, etc, and just giving letter grades of A.  None of these really communicate what the kids progress is though.

Last year I finally came up with a system that provides the most appropriate grades I think possible.  It grades students on their progress on IEP goals.  It is quite a complicated system, but once you set up your spreadsheet, you just plug in the information and go. . .

I start by creating a spreadsheet (I use Excel) with each objective separated by subject area.  I make sure they have all four core subjects, then I plug the other objectives (rec/leisure, daily living, communication, etc) into the other two class periods I teach (this year skills for adult living and personal management).  I put in the Goal title, the objective purpose and then a short snippet of what the actual objective is.  After each subjects objectives, I put a column for the goal/subject average.  I like to color code each subject/goal area for ease in finding objectives as well as for helping to create the grade.
Here is the beginning of a spreadsheet. . .

The next step is plugging in dates.  I average each weeks data for each objective and input that weekly average into the sheet.

After this, I enter a field for the average of each objective's weekly data for whatever time period is necessary for a grade (progress report, report card, etc)

The next step is CRUCIAL. . . you have to enter a field for the mastery criteria of each objective.  This is critical because you want to grade kiddos on their progress towards mastery of the objective.  If mastery is 3 of 5, then all 3's would mean they have a 100 in that objective. . .

Lastly, you enter a field where your grade is created. . .

Ok, for the formulas. . . Hopefully you know how to get an average. . . to get a grade for each objective, you take the average and divide it by the criteria for each column.  To get a grade for the entire subject, you average together each objective in that subjects grades. . .
Here is an example of this in action:

The formulas in Excel automatically create the grades.  I do have to go back and change any grade over 100 (when a kid is exceeding criteria set on their objective) to a 100 so that it does not raise their overall subject grade too high. . . Here is how that looks on the above data:

So, in this example this student has a 100 average in behavior, a 96 in Self-care (those grades are then averaged to a 98 and put in as the grade for Personal Management), a 55 in ELA (which I put as a 70 on a report card - none of my kids ever fail a subject) and a 100 in Social Studies.

That's how I do my grades.  Like I said, the setup can take a long time.  However, once it is set, you don't have to do anything but put in your weekly data.  If a parent asks how you got a students grades, you can show them the child's data averages and how they relate to the criteria set.  I have had parents hug me and tell me how much they love this system!  I know that it eases my conscious and makes me feel better about my ability to look at progress and measure it in number grades!