special education teacher beginning of the year checklist

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6 Tips for a First-Year Special Education Teacher

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By Jill Eulberg, Veteran Educator, M.S. Special Education

After years of coursework and student teaching, you've finally been offered a job as a first-year special education teacher. This is what you prepared for.

So, now what do you do?

It's not uncommon for special education teachers to feel extra anxious facing their first year of teaching, as they have additional, unique responsibilities to complete in order to have a successful year. To keep you afloat, here are some tasks you should tackle first.

1. Review All IEP Due Dates

For special education teachers, timelines and deadlines are critical. In addition to planning daily lessons and teaching, special education teachers are responsible for holding annual Individual Education Program (IEP) meetings and three-year reevaluations within certain timelines. Missed deadlines can lead to IEPs that are out of compliance, which can mean potential citations from your district or state.

Further reading:  One Teacher's Path to Special Education

At the start of the year, go through each student's IEP and mark your calendar with their due dates. It's helpful to know ahead of time and plan for the months when you'll be busiest with meetings and paperwork.

2. Make Positive Contact with Parents

As a first-year special education teacher, developing positive  relationships with your students' parents  will make your job easier. Start your year with a phone call or email to each parent, asking to learn more about their child. Not only will this provide valuable information, but it also lets parents know you view them as partners, and will start your relationship out on the right foot.

Establishing positive rapport at the beginning of the school year is greatly appreciated, and it will make parents more receptive should you need to contact them about less positive news in the future.

3. Review and Organize Your Students' IEPs

Before school starts, you'll need to review all your students' IEPs. Become familiar with your students' goals, areas of need, accommodations, and service minutes. Most special education teachers develop a binder or other system to organize and keep all IEPs easily accessible in one location. A helpful organization tip is to create one-page summaries of your students' IEPs that can be shared with any other teachers that might teach or interact with your students during the day.

If you're an elementary or resource room teacher, you'll develop your schedule based on students' service minutes and needs. If you're a high school or middle school teacher, who teaches a particular class or subject, you'll want to make sure your students' goals align with the curriculum you are teaching.

4. Create a Game Plan for IEP Meetings

Running your first IEP meeting can be stressful. As a new special education teacher, I felt intimidated and unqualified leading my first meeting. But over the years, I've learned the best strategy to combat these feelings is to come prepared.

Develop an agenda to keep you on track. Have a good understanding of the student's current IEP and come with a plan for the new goals and services you intend to propose. Creating a new IEP is always a team decision, but bringing a tentative plan will make you appear prepared and professional, leading others to trust and respect you.

5. Lean on Your Mentor

As a new special education teacher, hopefully your school will provide guidance through an  assigned mentor . Seek out that person and ask a lot of questions. Ask if you can observe one of their IEP meetings, and have them attend your IEP meetings until you're comfortable conducting them on your own. Most veteran teachers enjoy helping new teachers, and many are paid extra to do so.

If your assigned mentor isn't helpful or doesn't have time to help, you may need to seek out someone else. Being a new special education teacher can feel lonely and isolating at times, so take initiative and ask for the help you need.

6. Find Your Work-Life Balance

From the moment school begins, you'll feel like you're trying to outrun a train. Many new teachers try to maintain this impossible pace, but you should be conserving your energy. Teaching special education is not a job you can do if your mind and body are depleted. Designate a time each day when you stop working—even if you have more to do. Take time to rest and recharge. Set boundaries and expectations for yourself, and don't spend all your free time working. Developing  healthy habits  from the beginning of the year will not only help you feel better, but will give you the energy and stamina you'll need to thrive.

Further reading:  Survival Tips for the Special Education Teacher

All teachers, even veterans, get the first-day jitters. Completing these tasks will help you feel more prepared, relaxed, and ready to meet your students.

Ready to Start Your Journey?

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Home » 10 Tips for a First-Year Special Education Teacher—Survival Guide

10 Tips for a First-Year Special Education Teacher—Survival Guide

Between lesson planning, IEPs , meetings with parents, and getting to know your students, your first year as a special education teacher can be overwhelming. Knowing how to manage it by planning ahead can help you have a successful first year. While you can’t avoid some challenges, these tips can help you avoid burnout and be the best teacher for your students .

In this survival guide, I give you everything you need to know for your first year in special education. I talk about planning lessons, being prepared, and staying on top of your schedule so that your students get the most possible benefit from your class. I also help you avoid getting overwhelmed in the face of some of the biggest challenges you’ll face.

First-Year Teacher Tool Kit

Why should you prepare for your first school year, 1. stay flexible, 2. plan and have backups, 3. review student ieps, 4. communicate with parents, 5. prepare for iep meetings, 6. create a realistic schedule, 7. make tasks and lessons easy, 8. have a team mindset.

• 9. Network with Other Teachers

10. Take Care of Yourself

According to the National Center for Education Statistics , teaching experience doesn’t always equal better preparation for meeting student needs. As a first-year special education teacher, you’ve got more current knowledge and skills than many more experienced teachers, which can give you an advantage in the classroom.

Preparing for your first school year can make learning your way around the classroom and curriculum easier. It also means that you’re more organized, efficient, and helpful to your students. 

When you prepare well, your students benefit as much as you do. If you’re less stressed about lesson plans and meetings, you can understand their needs, have more patience, and work with them to meet their academic goals successfully.

Preparation also helps you connect with your fellow teachers, parents, and other school staff . Forming positive relationships with these people can mean receiving help when you need it, as well as improving outcomes of meetings with parents and colleagues. When you know what to expect and how to prepare for it, you can avoid getting overwhelmed, which in turn makes your students look forward to coming to your classroom.

Over the course of any day, you may have to deal with everything from behavioral problems to keeping students engaged to being short staffed in the classroom. By staying flexible, you make these challenges more manageable , which becomes especially necessary in special education. 

Students all have individual needs, and learning how to meet those needs with lesson plans you can change can make it easier to stay on track. Sometimes, your best laid lesson plans will be derailed by a bad day. 

You might also have an unexpectedly productive day where you can do another activity or cover more material than you thought. If you’re prepared for both scenarios, you’ll have everything you need to keep your class on track. Flexibility helps you avoid extra stress due to changing schedules, curriculum alterations, and classroom disruptions.

Planning early and creating backup plans will help you avoid having too much time at the end of a lesson or not getting through all the material you want to cover. It also helps with staying flexible when you know you have another activity or more material lined up. If you can plan your lessons for the first couple of weeks before school starts, you’ll have enough material to stay ahead of the game while you settle into your new routine.

Plan more than you need to at the beginning. Having too much material to cover is better than having too little and then wondering what to do with the rest of your class time. Plus, when you have plenty of material to cover early on, you can continue planning future lessons and avoid falling behind.

Backup plans are just as important as your regular lesson plans. When you run into those bad days, it can help to have some tools you keep in your classroom for when you have to create an on-the-spot lesson.

Save the lesson plans you make during your first year. They’ll make it easier to plan for your second year and beyond, and you can make changes to those plans as needed without having to start from scratch. If you do fall behind on planning in your first year, you can avoid it in the future.

Before the school year starts, review every student’s individualized education program (IEP) . Know their academic goals, accommodations, modifications, and service minutes , if you teach elementary school or teach in a resource room. This will make it easier to remember each student’s needs and work with them toward their goals from day one.

When you review each IEP, write a summary of the document that fits on a single page. Most IEP writing software used in school districts have an option to print a one page IEP highlight. The summary helps when communicating with the student’s other teachers and professionals involved in their education. 

You should also keep all student IEPs in one accessible place, like a binder or folder, for quick reference. Remember, these documents must be kept in a locked location as it is legal information that must be kept private. Having this information on hand can help you tailor your plans to the student’s service minutes and the general curriculum.

Building positive relationships with your students’ parents leads to better collaboration and cooperation. You can send an email to your students’ parents or call them before the start of the school year to ask any questions you have and answer theirs, as well as talk about any concerns or goals for the year.

This proactive approach shows parents that you care about their children and lets them know you want to work together to benefit their child. Positive relationships with parents lead to better results in IEP meetings , parent-teacher conferences, and other situations where the child’s parents may get involved.

If you’re leading an IEP meeting, you might feel intimidated by the process as a first-year teacher. To minimize stress and keep the meeting organized, create an agenda , so you don’t forget any crucial topics you want to discuss in the meeting. You’re working as part of a team , so while you aren’t the only one making decisions, your plan shows professionalism on your part.

You should also know the student’s IEP and know which services and accommodations you’d like to talk about at the meeting. When you participate in these meetings, be open to feedback from the child’s parents and collaborate with other professionals at your child’s school. 

You will inevitably bring work home and stay late at work to get everything done. However, sticking to a schedule as much as possible for when and how much you work can help you maintain a healthier work-life balance .

You typically won’t have a lot of time alone in your classroom to review IEP data, plan IEP goals, create new materials, and plan lessons. To make doing some of this work at home more manageable, make a schedule that still allows you time with your family and to meet your own needs. Having a realistic schedule rather than bringing home as much work as possible every night and weekend will help you avoid burnout.

While you should challenge students, you’ll want to have some easier lessons and activities lined up, especially early on in the school year. These types of activities help you determine each child’s strengths and where they can improve, as well as allowing students to adjust to their school routine.

Having some easier activities throughout the school year also allows students to get positive reinforcement . If you only give them difficult work, they may get frustrated, whereas offering assignments you know they can do offers encouragement and lets you focus on learning about the students’ individual needs and capabilities.

As a special education teacher, you’re part of a team that includes aides, paraprofessionals , IEP team members , general education teachers, parents, and others involved in your students’ education. It’s essential to collaborate with these people to reduce your own stress and give your students the best possible education.

Your paraprofessionals and aides can help you do some daily tasks and set up for lessons when needed. When you have questions, find people who can help you and turn to them for information and experience you may not have. You may also want to create a list of responsibilities for paras that you can also give to substitutes.

9. Network with Other Teachers 

As a first year teacher, you may have an assigned mentor. If you don’t, network with other teachers and form positive relationships, so you know who to ask for help when you need it. These are the people who can answer your questions about IEPs and IEP meetings, and who can give advice on handling difficult situations.

To network, you can meet other special education professionals online , meet others at your school for coffee, or go to conferences. Networking helps you grow as a teacher, and you can learn faster when you have support in your career. 

Taking care of your mental and physical health keeps you more attentive, patient, and prepared . You may find it difficult to get enough sleep or stick to a schedule, but it’s important to have a workable balance between your career and your life outside of school. 

Teaching special education requires a diverse set of skills, including problem-solving, empathy, patience, and creative thinking. Those skills suffer when you’re exhausted and depleted. Developing healthy habits like getting enough sleep, managing your time well, setting boundaries, and taking time to destress will help you become a better teacher.

You can’t avoid every challenge that comes with your first year as a special education teacher, but you can reduce and manage them. By following the advice in this guide, you can make your year successful and continue helping your students reach their goals with everything you learn.

I hope this guide helps you not only survive your first year teaching but make it fun for you and your students. If you have questions or other tips, leave them in the comments or send me an email! I’d love to hear about your experience!

About the author

Emily Cummings

I am a mom of two crazy, amazing, independent, little feminists. They bring so much light to my life and a lot less sleep. Since becoming a mother and increasingly in the last year, I have witnessed parents struggling to connect with their child's special education team with no success. I have become more aware of the gaps in our public school system and how parents may benefit from empowerment and advocacy tools.

My work experiences range from a juvenile detention center to an autism specialist in the Issaquah School District and a special education teacher in a self-contained program in the Lake Washington School District. My master's in teaching focused on special education and behavioral disorders from Seattle Pacific University. I completed my BCBA coursework from Montana State University.

Want to get in touch?

I'm happy to help however I can. Email me at hello at behaviorist .com.

5 Must-Have Checklists for Special Educators

Daily Tasks Checklist

Prioritizing what you need to get done each day is important. Just because it’s on a list doesn’t mean it’s going to be finished in a day, but using a daily task checklist will help you focus on the must-do tasks for each day. Staying focused on the most important tasks help you meet the needs of your learners without getting distracted by things that can come later (like decorating your classroom or updating lessons for next year). There is nothing like checking “done” on that daily checklist!

Always Something to Do Notes List

Beginning of the Year Checklist

There is so much to do when the school year starts! It’s easy to forget things you have to get done, teachers you have to meet with, and normal school building tasks outside your caseload paperwork. Use a beginning of the year checklist to make sure you don’t forget to complete any needed tasks. Save this one for July or August to get started before your students arrive!

Teacher Assistant Task List

If you are lucky enough to have a teacher assistant or para-educator in your room, make sure you are utilizing them to their full potential. Share the tasks you need help with on this simple teacher assistant task list . Depending on your assistant’s building role, tasks might include administrative items like making copies or laminating materials. In addition, your TA may help with student needs. Perhaps, they will assist a student with their physical, academic, or emotional needs in class while you are working with other students. Unless your assistant is attached to a specific student per the student’s IEP, your TA can work with multiple students in the class. Make sure to ask your assistant what they feel comfortable with. Utilizing their strengths when it comes to assigning them tasks will make the class run smoother for all of you!

Teacher Work Day Task List

If you are anything like me, a work day can be quickly filled with socialization and off-task behaviors. You may not have a lot of time to talk to your co-workers on a regular school day. A longer lunch and some chatting is inevitable. You can still have the social time and still get important tasks accomplished by making a teacher work day task list . Prioritize the most important things you need to get finished on your work day.

Need more organization?

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Feeling stuck writing your IEPs? Download the 10 IEP Writing Commandments for FREE here!

First Year Teacher Tips for Special Ed Teachers

As a first-year teacher or as a teacher starting a new special ed position, it is easy to feel overwhelmed. Between all of the unknowns and all of the things you want to prep now to be a little more prepared once school starts, you may not be sure where to start. These first year teacher tips will help!

Thankfully, the VIP teachers from Mrs. D’s VIP Facebook Group  put together their best advice for new teachers or teachers who are starting a new position or in a new school.

If you are more of a paper-pencil-cross-it-off-the-list type of person, you can find these tips and suggestions in list format for free here .

[ Grab the FREE First Year Teacher Checklist Here. ]

First year teacher tips and tricks: advice for a new school year or new school, it takes a village to teach our students.

You are not a one-person show.

Introduce yourself to secretaries, librarians, custodians, IT dept lead, nurses, ancillaries, special ed, and cafeteria staff. A note, an email, goes a long way to getting on their amicable side. They often get overlooked, and they are there for the kiddos as much as we are. They will go above and beyond for you.

Get to know the adults ( paras, interpreters, behavior managers, related service people ) in the room. You’ll be a team and family to each other in the trenches of the school year. They can be your best ally. Each one helps in a different way, and by building relationships with them, things flow better and can make your life easier. Treat them with respect; they most likely have years of experience and have value in the classroom.

Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help. Ever.

You’re not going to know everything. Admin understands. If you think the question you are asking is silly or too easy, ask it anyway! The more questions you ask, the better you will feel and the more confident you will become in the everyday things because you know all of the details.

Build Relationships with Parents

Get to know your parents and have a face-to-face relationship with each one. For tips on how to keep parents in the know and how to effectively communicate with parents daily, click here . If you’re looking for a daily communication notebook, try the one I use: click here .

Start Each Day with a Clean Slate

Remember that each day is a fresh start. The bad days can be bad, but the good days far outweigh the bad and make you remember why you got into this field.

Have High Standards

Keep your standards high even if other teachers don’t.

Get Inspiration

Follow teachers on Instagram by hashtags… not just SPED teachers, but anyone you find inspiring.

Read IEPs Completely

Definitely take the time time to read your students’ IEPs. Do this before you even begin putting your room together.

• Extra tip : Print extra copies of your student’s IEPs and RRs and go at them with a highlighter. Do the same thing whenever you get new students too. One teacher says, “ I found out one of my kids had a nut allergy by reading his RR. The teacher hasn’t put it anywhere in his IEP. ” – Linnet M.
• Insider tip : “ I don’t care what they say; your students come first. Know the laws. Wrightslaw.com is a good resource. The possibility of due process is an uncanny motivator for some people. ” – Donna E.

A Pretty Classroom is Not Required

It’s okay to not have a Pinterest-perfect classroom! #allaboard #hotmessexpress

Although it’s visually appealing, it’s not the reality of a first-year teacher… and it doesn’t make you a better teacher. Your priorities should be to focus on functionality for students, accessibility for materials, and how the classroom setup supports your classroom routines and procedures. Decorations come with time, but don’t stress over having it look “perfect”.

• Insider tip : “ Know that there is no such thing as a perfect classroom. Things will go wrong, lessons will be off track, and stuff will fall off the walls… and that’s okay! ” – Jennifer B.

Don’t Let Paperwork Wear You Down

Don’t feel overwhelmed by all of the paperwork. Always stay ahead of it by completing it and filing it.

• Insider tip : “ Look at things in small pieces to avoid becoming overwhelmed. For instance, I’ve gone through my entire caseload for next year and noted all my annual dates, triennial dates, and reminders for transition conferences. Then I created a spreadsheet with a tab for each month. I have everything laid out in each tab- which consents to get signed, when to do observations, reminders to schedule meetings for the following month, etc. ” – Ashley C-K.

Read here to find more tips on organizing your IEP’s for the year.

Don’t Stress Over Curriculum

Don’t feel overwhelmed by the curriculum, either. It is better to really know and use one curriculum well than to use four different curriculums not well at all. Focus on one at a time. You’ll get there, don’t worry!

Find Your Tribe

Find your tribe, a handful of coworkers you can laugh with and let off steam and don’t take things so seriously for a minute… however, stay away from the gossip areas like the teachers’ lounge and copy rooms. These rooms have ears. You’ll learn where the “safe” rooms are.

• Extra tip:  Find a mentor teacher, someone who has been teaching for over 10 years and makes it look easy. Go observe her/his class during your conference period from time to time and take mental notes. Ask questions!

Manage Your Paras From Day One

Set rules/expectations for your paras . A positive approach to have is that you all are now a team. Discuss things together and listen to opinions, but at the end of the day, your paras need to respect your final decisions, even if they do not agree.

Plan Your Classroom Layout

My biggest piece of advice is to make sure that every area of your classroom is easily accessible for all students, especially if you have wheelchairs in your room.

• Insider tip : “ I have a darling who “finds” things in my room and “keeps” them, so think where you will keep resources locked up. ” – Donna E.

Take a deep breath and remember no one is perfect. Do your best, and the rest will fall into place.

• Insider tip : The best advice I ever received was this: “ Get them off the bus, make sure they eat lunch, and make sure they get home on the right bus at the end of the day. That’s a successful day! ” And some days, that will be how it goes… and it’s okay. Tomorrow is a new day.

This post contains links to affiliate items.

Create a Basic Schedule

Lay out your basic classroom schedule, or at least the parts of the schedule you want to incorporate. Will you have sensory time? Computer time? You can easily have your visual schedule prepped now, without times on them, so that all you need to do is put them on the front board for day 1.

I recommend laminating the schedule pieces and adding magnetic tape to the back so you can easily switch out different parts to tweak your schedule here and there. [ Grab your visual schedule here .]

• Extra tip:  Try to establish a low-maintenance schedule for students and staff to start the year and then as they get good with that one, tighten it up for more instruction, but make sure everyone has a schedule!
• Insider tip:  “ Your classroom schedule is important, but don’t get super attached to it. Chances are it will have to change based on student needs and therapy schedules. ” – Casie M.

Make Your Morning Routine Count

It may seem too early, but it’s never too early to plan the first hour of your day… your  morning routine . Have all of your calendar parts prepped and ready to put up, and ready to use on day 1. [ Great news! I’ve planned your morning routine for you. Learn more here . ]

Color Code Your Classroom

Seriously, color-coding things will save you so much time in the long run. Read more about the color coded classroom here , or learn more in this video .

• Extra tip : Figure out how paperwork is handled at your school and come up with a system that works for you so you aren’t drowning halfway through the first semester in IEP drafts, signature pages, progress reports, BIPS, goal sheets, etc.

Start Prepping NOW

Adapted Work Binders , File Folder Games, Sorting Mats , Adapted Books , and Task Bins , oh my! Prep a range of levels if you don’t know the levels of your kids yet, and prep very easy and simple tasks that almost any student could do so that you have some independent work for the students.

Even if it is matching errorless pieces or lots of put-in tasks, you won’t regret having given yourself those 2 minutes of independent work for your students.

• Insider tip : “ All adapted materials are great but require a great deal of prep time. I wouldn’t be able to run my classroom without these materials, but I don’t always have time to prep them during the school year. ” – Elizabeth N.

Everyone Signs In

Have a sign-in book for all related services to use when they enter and leave the room. You can grab a free one here . It serves as documentation as to who, when, and how often service providers come. It’s great when there are ever any questions about it.

Decide on a Classroom Theme…Maybe

Keep in mind that you are a special education teacher, and the kids might eat the decorations. 🙂

Welcome Everyone

Make your welcome letter and/or your welcome packet and parent handbook . Give parents a classroom handbook they will actually use, like this  Dual Flipbook . It keeps all important information in one convenient place; attach a magnet to the back so parents can keep it on their fridge at home.

Act Professionally

You are not there to be your students’ buddy; you are there to be their teacher. Act professionally always.

Figure Out Procedures

Figure out your behavior plan/classroom procedures, model, and reinforce. Give them some power; this can be done with choices, but let them have some power.

• Insider tip : “ Learn that what you say and how you say it makes a huge difference. Stay positive for your kiddos. And that doing what you say you are going to do will teach you more than anything. ” – DeeDee M.

Focus on the Learning

It’s so easy to get distracted by the way things appear (we’re looking at you, Glow Rooms that general ed teachers do for test prep!) that you forget about the learning that needs to take place. Forget about the glitter and glow and focus on the learning instead. Keep things simple.

Use Your Planning Time Wisely

When you have planning time, cherish it and use it to plan and write your IEPs. Don’t waste it in the breakroom or on filing things. This was one of the most important first year teacher tips that I ever got!

Have a Sense of Humor and Be Authentic

There will rarely be a day go by when you don’t find something funny that happens. Laugh. Show your students that you’re human by being authentic and genuine. When they know you care, they care enough to get to know you and buy into what you want them to do. If you’re fake, they will see right through you.

Keep Extra Sets

That’s extra sets of clothes, rain boots, jackets, gloves, and hats to be exact. Between rainy dismissals to sick kids, you just never know what’s going to happen to your clothes from day to day.

Don’t Gossip

You may quickly come to find out who the staff gossips are. Don’t get caught up in the gossip – don’t listen to it, and don’t spread it.

First Year Teacher Tips and Tricks: Advice on Things to Buy Now

Start at this blog post: 25 Must Haves for Any Special Education Teacher .

A good planner or calendar, like an Erin Condren Life Pla nner. Print your district or school calendar and put the dates into your planner. You can also include reminders about when to start things for ARDs, PLCs, committees, etc.

• Insider tip : “ If you can get your hands on the curriculum pacing guide (if provided), plan out your year, testing weeks, holidays, events like Meet the Teachers, and sketch out activities and themed lessons. ” – Donna E.

Laminating Supplies

Be prepared… literally buy stock in Velcro and lamination pouches. I recommend buying hook and loop in bulk from FeinerSupply , and stocking up on lamination pouches from Amazon .

Scissors x2

Buy two pairs of scissors. One for normal things and one for cutting Velcro. I recommend spring-loaded scissors for regular cutting and non-stick scissors for hook and loop use. Label your Velcro-only scissors because it will destroy your good scissors. This way, you’ll always have a good pair around.

Buy a binder to house all of your important documents, like campus schedules, PD, evaluations, cafeteria layout, etc. I recommend starting with a 1.5″ binder .

Lesson plans done for you

Download the first month of school’s lesson plans to guide your lesson plans and activities during the first 4 weeks of school.

First Year Teacher Tips and Tricks: Advice to Keep You Healthy

“no” is not a curse word.

Don’t be afraid to say no. You can’t say “yes” to everything… and you’ll more than likely burn out faster if you never say no.

Snacks, Snacks, and More Snacks

Get yourself a snack drawer. Seriously. If you’re having “one of those days” and you want to have chocolate and soda for lunch, do it. Whatever it takes to help you make it through that day, do it. Then go home and relax. Tomorrow is a new day.

Contract Time Only

Allow yourself to be okay with being there at contract time and leaving at contract time.

• Insider tip : “ Advice from my student teaching teachers… told me to allow yourself at least one day of not bringing any work home and just do things for you. That’s the best advice I was given and remember every day. ” – Nicole D.

Self Care Isn’t Selfish

Learn more about self-care by reading this blog post: 6 Self Care Tips for Teachers

Give Yourself “Me Time”

Don’t forget that while being a teacher is part of you (an important part! ), it is not all of you. If you allow it to be all of you-you will burn out. Learn when to finish things tomorrow. Always take time to be a parent, sibling, spouse, and friend. Your work will ALWAYS be there; something will always need to be done – so make sure to take the time to fill all your roles, not just the role of teacher .

It’s Okay Not to Be Okay

It will be tough, but it will get better. You will have good days and bad days, and maybe that and everything in between in one day, but it will be okay. If you need to walk away for a second, do it. If you need to tap out and have a para take your place while you take a breather, do it. It’s also okay to take time for YOU! You are just as important as your students, don’t forget that!

Use Your Sick and Personal Days

They’re there for a reason. Use them, and don’t feel guilty about it!

Pick Your Battles

Some things are not worth fighting over. Pick your battles and take a stand only when you need to otherwise, your whole year will be spent fighting the education system.

Have a Thick Skin

Teaching is hard. Dealing with parents is hard. Sometimes co-workers make things harder. Let things roll off your back and develop a thick skin because there will be times when you need it.

If getting 8 hours of sleep means going to bed at 8 pm every evening, do it. Sleep is vital to your mental, physical, and emotional well-being.

Don’t Let Kids Hijack Your Emotions

Students are really good at pushing buttons when they know your weaknesses. Don’t let them hijack your emotions.

Don’t Share Your Pencil or Pen

Use your own pencil or pen to mark papers or jot down notes. Sharing with your students means that you’re sharing in on their germs!

Wear Your Hair Up

Lice are a reality in schools, and they don’t care if you’re a student or a teacher. Wear your hair up and out of the way to help minimize sharing them with your students.

Teaching is a part of you, but it does not define you!

What other tips or tricks of advice would you add to this list?

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:

• Morning Routine for the Self-Contained Classroom
• Back to School Tips Veteran Teachers Wish They Knew Back Then
• 17 Classroom Hacks That Actually Work in SPED
• Making the Pieces Fit: Collaborating with General Ed Teachers

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12 tips for first year special education teachers

• September 2020
• Teacher Organization , Classroom Management

Starting your first year as a special education teacher is so incredibly nerve-wracking .  You don't know the students, you don't know the staff, you typically don't know the building.  When I started, I was so nervous. And believe me, I had to start in a new district about 5 times!!  So after 12 years of being a self-contained special education teacher,  I finally decided to share my top 12 tips that you can use at the beginning of the school year.   addition, I made a little cheat sheet for you to grab in case you wanted to print it out and put it in your teacher binder.

1. Know the Staff

The first thing you want to do as a new teacher is to get to know all of the support staff in the building.  That means the custodial staff, your cafeteria ladies, your secretaries, and even your nurses!  You would be surprised at how often you will need their help throughout the school year. The more you get to know them and they get to know your name, the more favors they will do for you. I know at the beginning of the year, I asked the custodial staff for so much furniture and help moving it because I was always given an empty classroom (can you relate??).   I also had so many questions in the beginning about putting in for subs, finding my mailbox, or how to work that darn copier , that I always become super close to the secretaries.  Believe me, these rockstars are the people that will get you through your first year.

2. Read the IEPs

Start off the school year by printing off all the IEPs, putting them in a binder, and breaking out your highlighter.  After that,  make IEP-at-a-glance sheets ( that you can grab for free here ), and make sure to highlight all the important information and fill out that sheet.  You will want to give the IEP-at-a-glance sheet to anyone that works directly with the students: paraprofessionals, related service providers, bus drivers, and general education teachers.  This is helpful to look back at in the middle of the year as well. Make sure that your Paraprofessionals get a chance to read the IEPs as well.

3. Rules and Expectations for Para's

This is very important to do at the beginning of the school year. Many paraprofessionals have been working at the school for a number of years and have a set of expectations that they are already used to.  They need to know that you are a new teacher with new ways of doing things and that is okay . If you don't have this already set up, some paraprofessionals could run all over you and think that they know more than you or don't know what to do because the expectations aren't there.  So go ahead and take the time out to write out those expectations put them on the wall or make a poster or even give a brochure.  At the beginning of the year, sit down with them and go over them together.  I know it seems silly, but walking through the expectations step-by-step, gives them a chance to ask questions.  In addition, I have my Para handbook that is completely editable that you can print and give to them at the beginning of the year, or I have this Classroom Brochure , where you can write out all of your important information and expectations.

4. Set up the Master Schedule

You want to make sure that you set up a master schedule for the room. You need to decide how the room is going to flow.   Ask yourself some questions.

Will you . . .

• do a center rotation?
• have just the adults rotated?
• have an individual schedule for everyone?

This is important to decide before you make that schedule.  You can read all about how to set up that schedule in this blog post here .

5. Set up the Physical Space

Take some graph paper and begin to sketch out the layout of your classroom and how you want to set it up.  You probably have been dreaming about this and all the things you want in your room. The main thing that I want you to remember in a special education classroom is that you need to make sure that there are clear boundaries in your classroom.  You can do many things to make that happen.  In addition,  can put colored tape on the floor, you can use different furniture arrangements to mark an area out,  you can use cardboard pieces to put up to create a boundary, or you could even use portable walls.  Make sure that it is also clearly marked with both a visual and words.  You can read this blog post on how to set up your physical space.

6. Parent Communication

Make sure that you start your year out knowing exactly how you want to communicate with all of your parents. There are so many different ways to communicate with parents, but you want to make sure that your parents AND yourself are on the same page.  Sometimes, I even chose different modes for different parents, and that is okay too! Some people use communication notebooks, some people send out weekly newsletters, some people use apps like Remind or Bloomz.  It doesn't matter what you choose, as long as you are consistent and stay connected with the parents.  School-to-home relationships are so incredibly important in the special education classroom.

7. A Teacher Binder

Get yourself a teacher planner or make a teacher binder.  I used to buy fancy planners from Erin Condren and Plum papers, but honestly, I had to add and take away so many different things every time, that it became annoying.  And then, having to buy one every single year was expensive.  So, I ended up making my own.  You want to get yourself as organized as possible, so using a  teacher planner is a good way to start.   I like to print off my IEPs and add them to the back of my binder.   Also, I make sure to write all of the dates down for the year, such as important meetings and when grades are due. 

Hahahaha, I am a crazy calendar lady, so I have like 5 calendars!  I love that in my own teacher binder, I am able to add extra pages and take out random pages all through the year.  Whichever you want to go with, just make sure you start your year with some sort of teacher planner.

8. SPED Pred Station

One of the most recent things that I have added to my classroom is a SPED prep station!  I am not sure why I never did this, but it is so much easier to have everything organized in one spot when my paraprofessionals (or myself) have downtime to SPED prep all the things.  You want to make sure that you're using their time effectively and so anything that goes into a SPED Prep Station should be organized, easy to use, and labeled.  I often will write my Para's name on a sticky note to say who I want to do what.

9. Snack Bin

I know this one may sound a little silly as a MUST have but believe me, after those impossible days that you thought would never end,  you want to make some kind of a goodie basket stashed away somewhere for both you and your team to indulge in for those specific days.  When you have had a stressful day you don't want to be running around the school looking for a bar of chocolate in a vending machine,  you want to have it easy and accessible!

10. Planning Time

When you are creating your schedule, make sure that you are guarding your planning time as though your life depends on it.  This small amount of time is very precious.  You want to make sure that you use it very wisely.  Try leaving the room so that you are less distracted.  Try going into the library or break room wearing earbuds.  Even if you aren't listening to anything, people will think you are and leave you alone! If you start giving up a little bit of planning time for things like putting out fires in your classroom or setting up meetings, it can be very difficult to take it back! So stand firm and guard your time!

11. Meet with the Team

One of the very first things you should do is meet with your team at the beginning of the year.  You will not be able to run the classroom without your paraprofessionals, so it is important to go over rules and expectations, classroom procedures, and the student schedules. You also want to meet with all of your service providers (as they will be adding things to your student schedules.)   I would set aside time during the week to meet with your team(S) weekly or even bi-weekly.  A successful classroom is typically all on the same page.

12. Prep all the Materials and Visuals

Finally, start making all the visuals you're going to need for all of the students and around the classroom. You will be doing a lot of prep as a new teacher, (well I actually do a lot of prepping as a veteran teacher), but who is really keeping track.  Start by prepping all of the student's daily visual schedules.  Then, move on to the visual supports that they will need on a daily basis, such as first then charts, token systems and reward charts.  You may want to use a sensory choice board or even behavior management systems such as a behavior contingency map.  These things will all be laminated, cut, and velcroed, just make sure your team is helping you prep.  Just throw it all in the SPED prep station (see number 8).  Once you have that all prepped, you can start prepping all of your adapted content.  If you don't have a place to start, try using adapted books , simple task boxes , a Life Skills Curriculum or even some file folder games .

BONUS: If you haven't thought of how you are going to start collecting data, let me tell you a little secret.  The best way to do this is to start collecting data digitally through google forms and using personalized QR forms, you can read the blog post all about it here.   However, if you are still old school and really like to take data digitally, I have a whole set of printable data sheets here !

Well, that is all of the tips that I have for you.  Make sure you grab the PDF that lists all of these tips on one PDF for you to have on hand when you need it.

Hopefully, this list makes your first year great!

you can read about self-care strategies in this post. 

You can pin this blog post for later here . . .

I am a High School, self-contained Autism teacher from Central New York, who is passionate about individualizing student learning. I am a mommy of three, lover of all things Disney, married to my best friend and addicted to chocolate!! I hope that you find great ideas and inspiration here, so welcome!!

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Implementing an Effective Token Economy in Your Special Education Classroom [Episode 42]

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Beginning-of-Year Special Education Checklist

By Eric Ruder | August 22, 2023 | _News

We’ve pulled together some of the most important special ed contract articles that are especially important for our special education members to be aware of at the beginning of the year. Remember, our contract won important protections for you, but they are meaningless without enforcement.

Please use this checklist to help enforce special education contract articles.

• Timeframe: As soon as possible.
• SpEd team meets during week 0 to give input on caseloads.
• SpEd team makes a formal request to the principal about funds available.
• SpEd team makes a formal request to the principal about training and resources available.
• CTU will inquire with ODLSS about training and resources available.
• 21-20.5. Common Preparation Periods: Where administratively possible, Principals shall make every effort to program special and general education teachers so that co-teachers have common preparation periods. Principals may also use Principal-directed preparation periods to provide for preparation time for co-teachers.
• If common preps are not built into the schedule SpEd team advocates for the use of Principal-directed preparation periods to provide for preparation time for co-teachers.
• Set up a calendar of prep times to use throughout the school year.
• 27-10. Class Coverage List: At the beginning of each school year, and as necessary thereafter, the school principal or his/her designee, in consultation with the PPC, shall create and post an ordered list of emergency class coverage for classroom and special program teachers, under which they shall be assigned coverage on a rotating basis. 
• 27-3. Using Appointed Teachers or TATs to Provide Class Coverage: With special education teachers the very last to be called, after available non-teaching certificated personnel have been assigned.
• Timeframe: Possibly as soon as October
• Collaborate between special education staff and their school’s Professional Problems Committee (PPC) to develop a plan on how to best use the funds and decrease the workload of special education staff.
• If the group cannot reach a decision, the special education teachers, itinerant teachers, case managers, and clinicians should vote between the proposed options. Start to document any hours before or after school when Workload Reduction tasks are being completed. 
• Reference the Workload Reduction Fund Memo (From SY 22-23 but the process will be the same).
• When funds become available and if your principal refuses to meet to create a plan or denies these funds, please contact your CTU reps .

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Essential Forms & Templates Every Special Education Teacher Can Use

• classroom organization
• classroom management
• class set up

In the hustle and bustle of the beginning of the school year we as teachers have many things to keep track of: assessments, data, permission forms, seating charts, IEP goals. The list seems to never end! Keeping organized is essential in Special Education for  so  many reasons. However, does the thought of recording organized, daily data for each one of your students intimidate you? How can one person keep that amount of information straight? What about clear and concise interaction with parents and other staff members? Having the right organizational tools is the key to success! The best way to stay organized is to use forms, data sheets and templates. But where do you start?

Here are a few important forms and templates you will need to have on hand in your classroom each year.

Data Sheets

ABC charts are an essential tool for recording behavioral data. This chart breaks down a behavioral incident through A- Antecedent, B- Behavior, and C- Consequence. This provides you data on what was happening before, during, and after a behavioral instance. This data is essential to selecting the correct interventions to assist students with proper behavior.

• Interval Recording

Interval Recording sheets will be used to record continuous behaviors. This data is helpful for reflecting on what may be the source or time of day of a behavior. This allows you to look for trends in behaviors that are occurring continuously.

• Duration Recording

This form allows you to record and reflect on how long a behavioral incident occurred.

• Discrete Trial Data Sheets

Discrete Trial Data Sheets will be used to keep record of all trials of new skills the students will be presented with. Data will be taken as positive and negative, and then as a total percentage. Mastery criteria will be the percentage and duration of correct responses that the student needs to meet to move forward.

• Weekly Data Sheets

Weekly Data Sheets will include fluency data, behavior frequency, IEP goals and mastery criteria. This will be where you can store data for a variety of categories in one place.

IEP Goals will be recorded daily to ensure the student is meeting the goals that are mandated on their IEP. This form allows you to have a clear and quick place to record your student’s daily performance.

• Independent Work

Independent Worksheets will record the students' prompt level for each activity.

• Copy Requests

If your school requires you to fill out a form to request copies, this will be a staple in your classroom!

• Materials Requests

If your school requires you to fill out a form to request needed materials in your classroom, be sure to keep this form on hand!

• Laminating Request

Your school may require requests for lamination if you don’t own your own laminator! Keep these in your desk drawer, they’ll be used more often than you think!

• Parent Contact Information

This form can be sent out at the beginning of the year to ensure you have necessary information to communicate with each student's parent(s).

• Student Allergy Information

Student Allergy Information should be recorded at the beginning of the year and kept visible in the classroom at all times.

• Parent Teacher Conference

Parent Teacher Conference forms should be sent out when Parent Teacher Conferences are to take place. This is an easy way to schedule conferences and keep the scheduled times organized.

• Modifications and Ideas

Modifications and Ideas will always take place in your classroom. Having a sheet where students, other staff members and teachers can fill out their ideas is a great way to keep everyone feeling involved. Keep this form in a central area of the room where anyone can access it easily.

• Parent Meeting Request

If you need to meet with a parent before conferences, this is a request you can send to them letting them know you need to speak with them and allows them to request a specific date and time that works best. Enter the templates!!!!

• School Supply List

Keep a general School Supply list on hand, and edit it each year!

• Contact Log

Keep a Contact Log for all of your students' parents, other staff members, teachers, assistants and substitutes!

• Educational Assessment Template

This will be the master copy for the Educational Assessment you use in your classroom to evaluate student progress or baseline data.

• Upcoming Testing Sheet

This will be a master Upcoming Testing sheet to keep on hand throughout the years. This can allow notice for parents or other staff members.

• Present Level of Student Progress Template

The Present Level of Student Progress Template can be modified for each student. However, the basis of this template will be the same for each student.

• Parent Email Regarding Behavior Template

If you need a template to refer to when sending a parent email regarding behavior, this is the template for you! It is extremely useful and alleviates a little stress when trying to think of how to say/word what you would like to inform the parents.

The amount of data and information we are required to keep as Special Educators may feel overwhelming at times, but these templates will set you up for success this year! You can find many of these forms already created and ready to print or editing for you here in my  Editable Templates for Autism Teachers/Pre-Written Starter Forms & Templates .

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An Inclusion Teacher’s First Week of School

Individualized Education Programs ( IEPs)

Individualized Education Programs (IEPs): get your hands on the list of your special education students and their IEPs as soon as you can. You will need to become familiar with their individual needs in order to clearly explain them to the regular education teacher (reg ed teacher). Regular education teachers appreciate knowing ahead of time what accommodations and modifications they are required to provide.

Share the information with general education teachers.

You want the team members to be aware of your students’ needs.  Explain to the team (show and tell) where the student’s special education files (ETR/IEP) are kept, and encourage them to read when time allows.   You can create an IEP at a glance or a checklist for the team members. Many IEP writing programs will create an IEP at a glance and can be easily printed. Also,  I have created one of my own that you can grab here .   Keep the information short and to the point. Include only the most important information the teachers need to know.

I would copy the IEP at a glance for each teacher and always enjoyed hand-delivering these documents. I wanted the teachers to recognize that I was the person/resource they could approach if they had any special education questions or concerns.

Communicate with your parents

You will want to communicate with parents early and often.  It’s a great way for parents to realize that everyone is on the same team and for the same reason… student success. Provide parents with an easy way to get in touch with you.  I also like to send home an introductory note that introduces myself, reminds them of important IEP dates, and asks them questions about their students. Questions include; student’s interests, strengths, IEP progress the student has made and any information they feel I should know about their child.

Get to know your students

The most important item in an Inclusion teacher’s first week is to get to know your students.  It is important to start building relationships from day 1. This may be difficult because you may not have a certain time scheduled in the day to see your students. Especially with older students, it may be necessary to be discreet when pulling them aside to talk with them. Often times, they don’t want others to know they are talking with the intervention specialist or receiving services.  Invite them to come talk to you during a study hall, intervention period, or before school. If you are planning on being involved in the general education classroom get to know all of the students whether they receiving services or not. Being involved with all of the students tends to make special education students feel more comfortable in asking for assistance. With older students, it’s great to get them involved with their IEP, ask them if they know about it, what they feel works best, can they think of any changes that need to be made? Talk to them about their goals for the year, and future.

Organize meetings for the year

Start organizing dates and meetings for the year. You will thank yourself for having everything organized at the beginning of the year and written in several places, those IEP meetings sneak up on you fast. To help organize myself I create a spreadsheet , that includes annual review dates, ETR dates, the date two months before the annual review to begin scheduling, the date one month before the annual review to begin writing the draft, and a draft send home goal date.  I then write all of these dates in my calendar or planner for the year, I always find it helpful to have it in several places.

You can find my version of these beginning of year forms for intervention specialist , along with other helpful special education information in my store.

For more tips on how to include the whole team in the IEP check out my blog post.

5 Must-Do Tasks That Involve the Whole Team in an IEP Meeting

What is one thing you always make sure to get done in the first week?

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Home > Special Education & Autism Resources > Structured Learning Classroom Set-Up > Special Education Classroom Planning Checklist Tool

Special Education Classroom Planning Checklist Tool

If you’re looking for resources to help you plan for the upcoming school year, try using a special education classroom planning checklist!

Your classroom planning checklist could contain a number of different items and areas of your classroom to set up. Below are a few common items: 

• IEP at a Glance
• Independent Work Stations

An IEP at a Glance is a one-page summary of each student’s IEP goals, motivators, interests, and specially designed instruction. The IEP at a Glance should be posted somewhere in your classroom where it is easy to reference when needed and alongside a clipboard or notebook which will contain data sheets. 

Independent Work Stations are areas that can be set up throughout the classroom for each student in which they can complete their work independently. It could be a study carrel or desk with dividers around it. Within the work station, visual or written instructions should be posted for tasks to be completed while at the station. Include some sort of organization system such as bins for completed work, a visual schedule / mini-schedule, and visual timer. 

Create Centers within your classroom based upon the goals and needs of the students in your room. Centers are separate spaces in a classroom in which a specific activity should take place. For example: a Sensory Area, Art, Computer, Writing Center, Vocational Skill Center, etc. 

Post a visual schedule for your classroom where it is visible. All members of the educational team as well as the students should have access to the schedule. You could post a daily and/or weekly schedule for your room depending upon how frequently activities change. 

Set up a clipboard, notebook or some other data collection system for each of your students so information can be recorded and stored alongside the IEP at a Glance. 

The above are simply suggestions to help you in the set up of your special education classroom. Feel free to get creative and make your own checklist with areas that work best for you and your students! 

The special education resources on this page were authored by Watson Institute’s special education consultant, Lisa Plastino, M.Ed.

Two templates are available for the Classroom Planning Checklist. This checklist is a planning tool to assist when setting up the classroom. The Checklist includes five categories: IEP at a Glance, Independent Workstations, Centers, Schedules, and Data. Resources for each of the checkpoints on the list are provided throughout the site.

Planning Checklist

Additional Classroom Planning Checklist

Resources for each of the checkpoints on the list are provided throughout this site.

If you have questions or concerns about the Watson Institute’s use of this information, please contact us .

• How can we make this resource more helpful?

Beginning of the Year Checklist for SPED Teachers!! Includes 15 UNIQUE RESOURCES

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Description

Do you ever return to the new school year and forget what needed to get done before the school year starts? Are you a new Special Education teacher and are feeling lost or overwhelmed on what to do? Are you a sub or returning teacher who has no idea what to do now that you are back at school? Well, THIS IS THE RESOURCE FOR YOU!!!! It has exactly what to do to be the organized and prepared Special Education teacher even before school starts! It also includes what to do the first day of school! Every document/form that you would need is linked to a resource I created! This is EXACTLY what I use every single year! It includes 4 pages of necessary items to get done with links to 15 UNIQUE RESOURCES that will save your HOURS of prep time!

I hope you enjoy it!!!

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