Delivered in small groups or one-on-one, these interventions are essential for accelerating skills in reading for students below grade level. Key strategies include structured phonics, multi-sensory techniques, and consistent, explicit practice.
As a Special Education and English Learner teacher at my Washington DC school, I have spent a career working with students who find the act of reading to be an exercise in endurance rather than exploration. In my Digital Literacy class, I am the lead teacher for students with significant cognitive disabilities, many of whom … Read more
Intellectual Disability is one of the most personal IDEA categories to teach — and one of the most frequently mishandled. Students with ID have been underestimated, over-prompted, and handed worksheets instead of real instruction for generations. This post is for new teachers who want to do it better. It breaks down what the IDEA definition actually requires, why adaptive behavior matters as much as IQ, and what genuinely effective instruction looks like — including task analysis, systematic prompting, bilingual visual supports, social stories in two languages, and the dignity-centered mindset that changes everything. Because every student with ID deserves a teacher who believes they can grow. Without conditions.
Are you struggling to figure out whether your bilingual or multilingual student needs more time to acquire English — or whether something deeper is going on? You are not alone. Differentiating between language acquisition and a learning disability is one of the most complex challenges in bilingual special education. In this post, I walk you through the key signals, the biggest mistakes educators make, and a practical problem-solution framework for getting it right the first time. Whether you teach in a bilingual classroom, co-teach with a general ed teacher, or are supporting ELL students through an IEP process, this guide gives you the clarity you need to advocate effectively for every child. Let’s dig in.
I remember the first time a veteran teacher handed me a decodable reader and said, “Forget the pictures. If they can’t sound it out, they aren’t reading.” At the time, I was struggling with a group of students who had significant cognitive disabilities and were English Language Learners (ELLs). I thought, “But they need the pictures! … Read more
A case study of 31 teachers across preschool through Grade 12, in 14+ subjects, who applied the A.C.C.E.S.S. Literacy Framework—and what their reflections reveal about what changes when teachers diagnose instruction instead of blaming learners.
As a Special Education and English Learner teacher, I used this lesson with students who struggle with reading comprehension and written expression at my Washington DC school. My classroom is a unique hub where the Digital Literacy Academy meets the high-stakes world of workforce preparation. My students—brilliant, resilient young adults with significant cognitive disabilities—are often … Read more
Speech and Language Impairment is often the very first IEP a child receives — sometimes as early as age three — and yet it’s one of the most misunderstood categories by classroom teachers who weren’t trained as speech-language pathologists. This post breaks down the four areas teachers encounter most: articulation disorders, stuttering, and expressive and receptive language impairment. It’s written the way I’d coach a new teacher sitting across from me at a planning table — honest, practical, and grounded in what actually works in real classrooms with real bilingual learners who are navigating language differences on top of language disorders.
There’s this moment that happens in every co-taught classroom I’ve ever been in. The general education teacher is delivering a beautifully planned lesson—clear objectives, engaging content, thoughtful pacing. But I’m watching my students with IEPs and my English learners, and I can literally see them checking out. Eyes glazing over. Fidgeting increasing. That defeated slump … Read more
A bilingual SPED teacher reflects on Project Zero’s Cultures of Thinking—and why, in the age of AI, thinking routines are the most urgent instructional investment you can make.
I remember the first time I sat down with a piece of informational text about the solar system, trying to figure out how to make it meaningful for a classroom that ranged from students who were beginning to decode to those who communicated primarily through eye-gaze and touch. I had three hours: 50 minutes for … Read more
