Syllabus

School Year: 2025–2026

Grade Level: 6-12 and post secondary 18+

Teacher: Shauna Seale

Room: 1319

Class Overview

This class supports students with significant support needs. All students are non-verbal, use wheelchairs, and require full physical assistance. Instruction is highly individualized, multi-sensory, and focused on access, engagement, and exposure to grade-level content through life skills and functional learning.

Core Subjects

1. English Language Arts (ELA)

- Exposure to stories, poetry, and informational text through read-alouds
- Matching objects or pictures to story elements (character, setting, etc.)
- Listening to and engaging with songs, rhymes, or voice output devices
- Sensory story experiences (e.g., water spray for “rain,” textured materials)
- Communication opportunities through switches, eye gaze, or partner-assisted scanning

Goals:
- Increase listening time and attention
- Respond to familiar vocabulary or repeated story lines
- Engage in shared reading routines

2. Mathematics

- Identifying or matching quantities (e.g., using objects, textures, colors)
- Basic sorting (by shape, size, color)
- Exposure to calendar routines (day, weather, month)
- Counting through songs, switches, or group participation
- Functional number skills (e.g., one plate per student, counting steps on a lift)

Goals:
- Participate in math routines with support
- Increase exposure to counting and patterning
- Demonstrate recognition of differences (big/small, more/less)

3. Science

- Exploring weather with sensory items (fan for wind, spray bottle for rain)
- Participating in simple experiments (e.g., mixing textures, hot/cold objects)
- Exploring animal sounds, textures, and pictures
- Observing seasonal changes and interacting with real objects
- Use of sensory bins or adapted materials to explore cause-and-effect

Goals:
- Increase awareness of environmental changes
- Demonstrate preferences or reactions to stimuli
- Engage in sensory exploration of scientific concepts

4. Social Studies

- Exposure to community helpers (pictures, role play, uniforms)
- Identifying routines (school, home, community)
- Celebrating holidays and cultural events with sensory experiences
- Learning names of places (home, school, park) using pictures or objects
- Use of adapted maps or visual schedules

Goals:
- Increase recognition of familiar places and people
- Participate in group activities tied to events or traditions
- Build understanding of routines and community roles

Instructional Methods

- Total communication approach (visuals, voice output, touch cues)
- Multi-sensory learning with tactile, visual, auditory input
- Repetition and routine-based structure
- Use of assistive technology and physical prompts
- Frequent one-on-one and small group interaction

Classroom Routines

- Morning meeting (greetings)
- Movement and positioning activities
- Core instruction blocks with sensory breaks
- Personal care, feeding, and rest as scheduled

Grading & Progress

Progress is based on Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals and objectives. Students are assessed through:
- Teacher observation
- Response tracking
- Team collaboration
- Data collection on communication and participation