Webinars offer Parent Training to Support Behavior during Continuous Learning

While school facilities are closed because of COVID-19, families impacted by disability face complex challenges. For some, children’s difficult behaviors are a regular concern. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), stress and anxiety in children and youth may show up through unexpected or maladaptive behaviors. Those behaviors might get worse because of fear, isolation, and disrupted lives.

Meanwhile, some of the help that used to be there is gone. At school, students may have gotten 1:1 support or direct instruction to encourage behavioral skill-building. Those aspects of a special education program might be difficult or impossible to provide during social distancing.

While students are learning from home, parents can request individualized support from the school to support behavioral expectations, if behaviors have educational impact. Parent training can be a related service in a student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP). As always, family caregivers can request an IEP meeting to discuss options to support academic and behavioral goals and expectations.

If the student has a Behavioral Intervention Plan (BIP), that document might hold clues about strategies most likely to work. For more ideas about how to communicate with the school in reviewing a student’s program and perhaps also designing a temporary Continuous Learning Plan, parents can refer to PAVE’s article: IEP on Pause? How to Support Continuous Learning with School Buildings Closed.

To generally support caregivers in their various roles during COVID-19, Washington’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) offers a three-part webinar designed for families to help with behavior in continuous learning environments. The webinar has been recorded and uploaded to YouTube in sections, so families can access the content at their own pace.

The webinars are moderated by Lee Collyer, OSPI’s program supervisor for special education and student support. Collyer, a parent, describes his own challenges during the pandemic alongside ideas from research-based sources. Families are invited to send questions and comments to lee.collyer@k12.wa.us.

In various forums, Collyer has described his investment in fostering positive behavioral supports for students in order to reduce disciplinary actions. In a May 13, 2020, OSPI webinar about Mental Health and Safety, Collyer said, “My fear is that we’re going to try to discipline our way out of trauma.”

Following is a brief description of each segment of the three-part webinar series, with a link to each specific webinar. If you start with the first one, you will have the option to stay connected and flow through all three. Each segment is 20-25 minutes long, and the first one includes some background information about OSPI and Collyer’s role.

Supporting Positive Behavior in Continuous Learning Environments – Part One

Collyer begins the series by sharing OSPI’s official statements related to mission, vision and equity. He offers reassurance to parents that everyone is learning something brand new together, without time for proper training, and that “We should not let pressure from schools, teachers or school communities dictate what works for our family and what kind of learning we are prioritizing during this time.”

Collyer talks about the value of learning that is imbedded in everyday activities and part of family routines. He shares insights from psychiatrist Bruce Perry and psychologist Ross Greene, both widely regarded authors who apply their research to inform parents. Their names are linked here to practical articles about supporting positive behavior, and both are easily searchable to find additional materials.

The OSPI webinar includes signs of stress and anxiety to consider. Collyer recommends behavior solutions based on skill building: If children do not know how to do something (like behave), the answer is to teach, he points out, not punish. The segment ends by explaining how behavior serves a function and understanding that function is key to reducing escalations.

Supporting Positive Behavior in Continuous Learning Environments – Part Two

The second segment begins where the first leaves off, by discussing the functions of behavior and how to identify them and intervene early. Pre-teaching skills and reinforcing positive behaviors over negative ones in a 5:1 ratio is encouraged: For the best outcome, catch a child doing what is expected and provide encouragement five times more often than calling out an unexpected behavior.

The second segment also provides some specific strategies for home/school communications. Collyer describes the difference between a consequence and problem-solving and offers specific strategies for parent/child problem-solving.

Supporting Positive Behavior in Continuous Learning Environments – Part Three

The third segment begins with information about how a crisis might escalate and how reason and logic are compromised when fear and frustration highjack a person’s response system. Adults may need to consider their own escalation cycles and develop a personal plan for self-control to support children, Collyer says.

He describes how children might be uneven in their development of cognitive versus social-emotional skills and how that might create confusion about the best parenting strategy. How to set limits with considerations for trauma and ways to shift from negative to positive interventions are additional strategies provided in the final segment of this webinar series.

For additional resources from OSPI, visit the page for Special Education Guidance for COVID-19.

 

Census 2020: Submit Your Response to Ensure Schools and Other Programs get Funding

The United States Census collects information to figure out how to spend about $1.5 trillion each year. Communities get federal money based on how many people of various ages live there. Money for special education, foster care, children’s health insurance and many other programs is distributed more fairly when the federal government has an accurate count of people living in each community.

The federal government counts citizens only every 10 years, so communities where people are undercounted might not get the money they need for a full decade. According to Count All Kids, the 2010 U.S. Census missed more than 10 percent of children under age 5. Count All Kids provides materials to help families understand why submitting accurate information is important. If a two-year-old isn’t included as a household member, for example, the community will have less money for education, childcare, and other services until that child has a chance to be counted at age 12.

A one-minute YouTube video with Sesame Street characters is a family-friendly way to learn more about Census 2020. For another musical take on why an accurate count is critical, talk show host and comedienne Samantha Bee shared a song about the Census by Baltimore rapper TT The Artist on her stay-home version of the show, Full Frontal.

The National Association for Family, School and Community Engagement (NAFSCE) provides materials to help families understand how to complete their census forms and why their accurate response is important. A recorded webinar from March 30, 2020, is available on YouTube: The 2020 Census and Equity – Why It Matters and How You Can Help.

Minority communities suffer when children aren’t counted

NAFSCE notes that poor and racial minority communities tend to suffer most when families don’t count their children: “Young children had by far the highest net undercount of any age group in the 2010 census. Black and Hispanic children are missed at more than two times the rate of white children.”

Homes received Census forms in the mail this winter/early spring. The questions take about 10 minutes to answer and the responses can be filed online, by phone, or by mailing in a paper form.

In Washington, the Office of Financial Management oversees a Complete Count Committee to help the public access and submit forms to include all members of their family. The state’s website includes a map of legislative districts that are drawn based on Census data and other information about programs that are impacted by the numbers:

“For every 100 households missed in the 2020 Census count, the state could lose up to $5.8 million, which would affect the ability to support children, veterans, senior citizens and middle- and low-income families adequately. An accurate count of Washington’s communities will ensure the fair distribution of taxpayers’ funds and political representation.”

Household information is confidential

On pages that address questions and concerns of families, the Office of Financial Management includes information about confidentiality and privacy protections: 

“The Census Bureau collects data for statistical purposes only. It combines your responses with information from other households or businesses to produce statistics, which never identify your household, any person in your household, or your business. Your information is confidential. By law, the Census Bureau will never identify you individually.

“Title 13 of the U.S. Code protects the confidentiality of all your information and violating this law is a crime with severe penalties. In addition, other federal laws, including the Confidential Statistical Efficiency Act and the Privacy Act, reinforce these protections. The penalty for unlawful disclosure is a fine of up to $250,000 or imprisonment of up to 5 years, or both.”

Beware of scams: Use official forms from snail mail

CensusOutreach.org provides a timeline for 2020 reporting. Families receive notifications by mail and are encouraged to submit response by the end of April. The last day for households to self-respond online, by phone or by mail is July 31, 2020. The Census Bureau will not email or text people for the 2020 Census and encourages people to beware of scams: Do not open or respond to any links sent by email or text that reference the Census. Official forms come through U.S. Mail.

Hard to Count Maps 2020 provides an interactive map that shows how various states are doing in collecting census data and provides state-by-state details about return rates and where to go for further information. If online access is difficult, Washington families can contact the state Office of Financial Management by phone for more information: 360-902-0584.