Common Ground: Creating a Community
Where All Belong
9 th Annual Inclusive Communities Conference
March 25, 2015
Cheryl M. Jorgensen, Ph. D. Internationally recognized author, researcher, and consultant in inclusive education

Grade to grade?
School to school?
Self-contained to inclusive classroom?
High school to adult life?

Goals for Today
 To learn how to use MAPS – a personcentered planning process as a support for any transition
 To review the steps in grade-to-grade or school-to-school transitions
 To describe a person-centered process for moving a student from a self-contained class to an inclusive one
 To describe a person-centered process for moving a student from high school to an inclusive adult life

Thank You
Marsha Forest
John O’Brien

Transition Resources on the
PEAL Website
 Grade to Grade Transition Planning
 Planning the Move from Self-Contained to
Inclusive Class
 Transition Planning: School to Adult Life
 Person-Centered Planning: A Tool for
Transition
 MAPS for School to Adult Life – 2 handouts

Other Person-Centered
Planning Resources
 Inclusion Press http://www.inclusion.com/jobrien.html
 Google https://www.google.com/search?q=Person+Cent ered+Planning+Disability&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query= person-centered+planning
 Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=disabi lity%20person-centered%20planning

What is MAPS?
MAPS, or Making Action Plans, is one kind of person-centered planning process used by teams to help students plan for their futures. The process uses a person-centered approach in which the plans for the future are built upon the student's dreams, fears, interests, and needs.

What is this student’s history?
What are this student’s dreams?
What are the fears? What is the nightmare?
Who is this student?
What are this student’s needs?

 A MAPS facilitator
 The student
 Parents/guardians
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Student’s friends
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Student’s siblings or other relatives
 People important in the student and/or his parents/guardian’s life
 Educators
 People who might support this student in adult life

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Traditional planning processes tend to focus on deficits –
MAPS talks about the whole student
Empowers students to speak for themselves
Builds trust between families and schools or other support agencies
The “rules and regulations” sometimes get in the way of really thinking about the student and what he/she needs
Students’ and parents’ vision and preferences should form the basis for students’ educational programs and adult life
Parents can be overwhelmed by professional expertise at formal meetings

 The IEP or Transition plan
 A substitute for other information that might be helpful
 Controlled by professionals
 A tool for making a segregated situation “better”
 Value-neutral
 A quick fix

When Should MAPS be Done?
 Entry into preschool, transition to
Kindergarten, transition to middle school, transition to high school, transition out of school into adult life, yearly thereafter
 To support moving a student from a self-contained into an inclusive classroom
 When the information on a previous
MAPS needs to be updated

Pre-Planning for MAPS
 Share information about MAPS with all potential participants
 Identify a skilled facilitator
 Send an invitation from the student and family
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Obtain parent permission for the students’ friends to participate
 Find an inviting location
 Assemble materials to bring – flip chart paper, markers, food and drink

The MAPS Space
 Inviting with no interruptions
 Accessible – physical, sensory
 Wall space for posting flip chart pages
 Chairs arranged in several semicircles
 Food and drink – gluten free options, vegetarian options

The Room Lay-Out
Front of Room:
Facilitator and
Recorder
Student, Friends,
Family
Relatives,
Neighbors, Pastors
Professionals

 Welcome
 Purpose
 Norms – positive, strengths-based, no limits, no judgments about what is
“realistic”
 Participants and observers
 Follow-up is critical
 Take photos of the flip chart pages

What is this Student’s History?

What are this Student’s Dreams?

What are the Fears?

Who is this Student?

personality temperament culture language likes dislikes preferences talents gifts relationships

What are this Student’s Needs?

Think About an “Ideal” Day
 Before school
 At school
 After school
 Morning
 Noon
 Evening
 Weekends
 Choice and control
 Safety
 Purpose and contributions
 Interdependence
 Growth
 Fun
 Relationships
 Getting around
 Making money

Ending the MAPS
 Facilitator summarizes the big ideas resulting from the MAPS
 All participants are thanked
 The flip chart pages are rolled up and given to the student, parent/guardian, or someone who will type the information into a digital form – eventually they are given to the student and family
 A person in charge schedules subsequent meetings to ACT ON the MAPS info – IEP meeting, transition meeting, etc.

Questions & Answers

до свидания
Bonjour!

Steps for Grade to Grade or
School to School Transitions
 Schedule a time for Sped. Teacher and Parents to observe an inclusive classroom/s to identify the common teaching routines, behavioral expectations, teaching style, environment, etc.
 Identify who next year’s Sped. Teacher/Inclusion
Facilitator will be and ask that person to attend planning meetings in the spring prior to the transition.
 Identify the teacher/s the student will have in next grade and schedule each of them to observe the student (or view an iPad video) this year

Steps for Grade to Grade or
School to School Transitions
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Identify a time when next year’s Sped. Teacher/Incl. Fac. and key members of his IEP team can observe this year’s team during an instructional planning meeting.
If a school to school transition is happening, schedule a meeting with the principal to meet the student and parents/guardians. They should share their vision with the principal.
Schedule a meeting between this year’s and next year’s
Sped. Teachers/Incl. Fac. to pass along important information – IEP, adapted materials, students’ method of communication, positive behavior supports, sensory supports, social relationship strategies, etc.

Steps for Grade to Grade or
School to School Transitions
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Create a template or list of all team members’ roles and responsibilities on this year’s team and create a similar template with next year’s team.
Create student’s weekly schedule, courses, and when each IEP team member will be providing services.
Make a list of all of the materials, tools, technology
(hardware and software licenses), and other resources that will need to be in place Day 1 of the next grade and have next year’s Case Manager order/acquire them.
Make sure student-specific equipment and tools are delivered to the next school and that any necessary technical infrastructure is in place (extra computer memory, updated software licenses, lighting, seating)

Steps for Grade to Grade or
School to School Transitions
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Schedule 2 days of compensated “team work time” during the summer so that several weeks ’ worth of instructional planning can be completed and ready for
Day 1 of the next grade.
Compensate next year ’s Sped. Teacher/Inc. Fac. for 2 days of summer work to organize the student ’s educational program, his schedule, providers ’ schedules, modified materials, etc., so that they are ready to go on
Day 1 of the next grade.
Set up a Google Drive or other document sharing platform and upload forms or other resources that will be helpful for next year ’s team.

Steps for Grade to Grade or
School to School Transitions
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Create a short, narrated video of the student touring the new classroom or school and use it many times during the summer to preview his new environment and schedule.
Host a summer barbeque/party for several of the student’s classmates who will be in his “cluster” or
“section” or classes next year.

Steps for Grade to Grade or
School to School Transitions
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Provide professional development to next year’s team members on:
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Inclusive education in general.
The student’s learning and communication styles as well as the specific supplementary aids and services that he needs.
 Focused training on programming and using his AAC and AT.
 Creating adapted materials that provide the student with access to the general education curriculum.
 How to use instructional planning form/s during weekly planning meetings.