Quezada 1

Esther Quezada

Sherry Mulholland

SERP 301C

26 September 2016

Background and Observations

My case study’s name is Juan Sanchez and he is a first grader; this is a pseudonym. Juan

is a very curious, social, polite, and incredibly friendly child. He has a lot of love for his peers.

Some of his favorite things are animals and dinosaurs and he can tell you fun facts about them.

He loves to read books, especially about his favorite subjects and he can memorize his favorite

books. His mom and dad are educators, both working in the same district that he is in, with his

mother working in the same school. Juan has no diet restrictions, but he has a selective palate

and prefers his food packed from home.

The type of disability that Juan has is Autism. He has various strengths and challenges in

reading, writing, and math. His reading strengths include:

 Recognizing and naming uppercase letters

 Recognizing and naming lowercase letters

 Recognizing and producing sounds for letters fluently

His reading challenges include:

 Recognizing and utilizing print concepts

 Demonstrating listening skills for information and understanding

 Participating in group discussions actively and appropriately

 Asking and answering questions to clarify meaning

His writing strengths include:

 Quezada 2

 Recognizing and tracing letters and words

His writing challenges include:

 Expressing ideas clearly and effectively (through writing).

Accommodations for this include:

 Having him trace highlighted words

 Use different writing utensils

 Using stickers and paper letter tiles rather than handwriting

His math strengths include:

 Naming numerals from (0-20).

 Counting forward from a beginning number

 Counting to tell the number of objects

 Identifying and naming 2D and 3D shapes

His math challenges include:

 Using numerals to represent the quantity of objects

 Being able to rote count past 10

 Counting by 10’s

When looking at his social skills and behavior, we can see that he is a lovable and

affectionate kid. He likes to talk about his interests, which are dinosaurs and animals. He

struggles with expressing frustration or dislike appropriately and will kick, yell, attempt to bite,

and run around the classroom. He is not aware of social norms in terms of physical touch, and

likes to get affectionate with his peers. When this happens, it is best to redirect him in a gentle

way.
 Quezada 3

When it comes to communication he has age appropriate vocabulary skills; receptively

and expressively. He usually uses short phrases and sentences, which contain about three to nine

words. They can at times contain errors in structure and grammar. It should also be noted that his

communication becomes limited when he is not interested in the subject matter. He tends to

communicate more with adults than with his peers.

Some of his communication strengths include:

 Age appropriate vocabulary skills development

 Enjoyment in showing his knowledge and ideas

His communication challenges include:

 Listening and processing skills

 Sentence structure and grammar

Accommodations for this area include:

 The use of visual schedules

 Cues and supports

 Shortened work periods

 Positive reinforcement

Juan’s goals are:

 Juan will increase his sight word reading fluency as demonstrated by his ability to read

36 sight words in isolation. Target level of mastery: 36 words. Juan will be evaluated

quarterly, during report card assessments by being shown single words and asked to read

them aloud.
 Quezada 4

 Juan will rote count aloud to 50, assessed quarterly for report card assessments. He will

be asked to count as high as he can and his response will be recorded. Target level of

mastery: count to 50.

 Juan will recognize numerals 0-50, as demonstrated by his ability to state number names

when shown the numerals in isolation or on a number chart. Juan will be assessed

quarterly for report reporting. Target level of mastery: recognize 50 numerals.

 When presented four pictures and a sentence, Juan will select the picture that goes with

the presented sentence in 75% of the presented trials over two consecutive quarters or

more of data as measured by a teacher created data form.

 During structured social interactions, Juan will give an appropriate response or comment

after listening to the speaker (using models or visual cues as needed) in 70% of presented

trials over two consecutive quarters or more of data as measured by SLP created data

form.

 Following participation in targeted social skills lessons, Juan will demonstrate improved

social interaction skills evidenced by achieving a 60% or higher rating on the Social

Skills Checklist as measured by quarterly teacher ratings.

 Juan will develop the self-awareness and advocacy skills in order to, 1) select a self-

calming activity from a sensory menu, 2) set a timer for a teacher-directed amount of

time, 3) return to teacher-directed activity when timer goes off. Juan will perform skills

1-3 in 80% of trails, minimum 10 tracked per quarter. Target level of mastery: 1-3 in 80%

trails.

 Through the use of social stories, Juan will learn and then demonstrate appropriate use of

targeted social skills. Juan will work on one new social story per month and will be
 Quezada 5

expected to demonstrate the skills in his classroom. Target level of mastery: 9 social

stories and skills demonstrated.

 Juan will cut simple shapes within ¼” of the cutting line for 75% of presented trails as

measured by OT data logs. Progress reports will be quarterly.

 Juan will imitate or copy prewriting strokes |, -, +, /, \, X, O, simple shapes and some

beginning letters (I, L, E, F, H, U) for 75% of presented trials in OT sessions as measured

by OT data logs. Progress reports will be quarterly.

 Juan will demonstrate visual attention to task and actively engage in 75% of presented

table top tasks in OT sessions as measured by OT data logs. Progress reports will be

quarterly.

From my research, I have found that Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are categorized

by social-interaction difficulties, communication challenges, and a tendency to engage in

repetitive behaviors. These characteristics can vary widely, and in addition to the three major

characteristics, there are many more symptoms (Symptoms 2013). In addition to this there are

associated neurological issues, associated systemic issues, and some related disorders which

include, anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and sleep disorders (Symptoms 2013). In very broad

terms, this is what autism is.

Through observations and just spending time with Juan at school, I have been able to

make connections between my research and some of his actions. For example, I found that

children with autism are attached to their parents (Symptoms 2013). His mother is a first-grade

teacher at his school, the same grade that he is in. Because of this, they often see each other;

when this does happen, he has trouble separating from her. Juan’s aide often tires to avoid them

seeing each other, but more recently, they have been allowing him to see her for a short while
 Quezada 6

and then having him separate from her, so that he can work on detaching himself from his

parents.

There are various practices for children who are autistic, some of them include the social

stories and the comic strips. Another best practice that I have learned about by doing some

research is that visual supports can also be helpful. I was also pleased to find that this is also

what is used for Juan in order to aid him. Visual supports help the learner with ASD process

information easier and quicker (Sam 2015). I know that for Juan to be talked at and given a lot of

information can be difficult for him to process, and when something is not interesting to him, it’s

harder for him to pay attention; that is when the visual aids for him come in handy. So, I am glad

to learn what visual supports are, and that they are in fact a tool that is used.

I noticed that for one of the goals for Juan, is that they will be using social stories and he

will learn and demonstrate the appropriate use of targeted social skills. I didn’t know what these

social stories were, but through my research, I have found that these are used to help people with

autism develop greater social understanding (Social Stories). Social stories can be used to

develop self-care skills, social skills, and academic abilities, help someone to understand how

others might behave or respond in a particular situation, help others understand the perspective

of a person with autism and why they may respond or behave in a particular way, help a person

to cope with changes to routine and unexpected or distressing events, provide positive feedback

to a person about an area of strength or achievement in order to develop self-esteem, and they are

used as a behavioral strategy (Social Stories). With social stories, information is presented in a

concrete way, which helps improve a person’s understanding; these can be very helpful for

people with autism.

 Quezada 7

It is important to note that the information in this IEP is from his year in kindergarten. He

should be receiving a newer and updated one for this school year. His goals will be updated and

he will have newer accommodations, strengths and challenges. This is not stated in his IEP, but it

does say in his information sheet that he liked to use a chunky pencil with a ball gripper, this

makes it easier for him to write. The IEP does state that his gross motor skills are commensurate

to his grade level peers and he has no behavior intervention plan.

Some other important things include that visually busy spaces make him feel

overwhelmed. If directions are given to him it makes it hard for him to concentrate, visual

representations such as picture schedules help him a lot. Think time is very important for him as

well; he likes to be given time to process what people have said to him. He does not like to be

grabbed at and likes to be asked permission before someone touches him. He is very loving and

cuddly but it has to be on his terms. Wait time is also important. When asked to do a task, he

might say no, but if you give him a little time he will usually does what he is asked. He benefits

from reminders to stay on task. Like most children, sitting at his desk for long periods of time is

difficult for him, so it is beneficial to give him breaks where he can run back and forth for a few

minutes.

Observation Sheet

Name of Child: Juan Sanchez

Age: 5

Observation Date: 18 September 2017

Setting and Activity: Classroom, white board activities working with place value

Classroom Teacher: Kelsy Baker

Detailed description of what children and adults are doing:

 Quezada 8

The class was put into groups for an activity. The lead teacher was using class dojo group

generator to sort the students into groups. His name was announced and he did not react to this.

He then went up to his lead teacher and asked to go to his math group, they then high-fived each

other and he left the classroom with his aide. After math group, he came back into the classroom

and they were working on place values with the whiteboards. The lead teacher would write three

digit numbers using place value and representatives and they had to write the number on the

white board, or she would give them a number and they had to represent it. Once they came back

inside they went straight to work. He took out his whiteboard, dry erase marker, and his eraser.

He and his aide began to work together. The aide would write down different problems than the

ones that were being presented to the whole class and he would work with Juan. He would ask

him questions such as, “How much is this one? So, if I give you this?” and then he had to

represent the numbers. At times the aide would get no response from Juan and he would write

out the answer for him, representing the number and explaining it. Juan then asked to go to the

bathroom and since there was someone already in there, he was asked to sit back down. He

responded with “no, no!” The teacher then repeated the instruction and then he went back to his

seat to continue working on the white board.

Accommodations for child being observed (environmental adaptations, equipment,

materials, adult support, peer support, etc.)

For this they were using individualized instruction. His aide worked with him one on one

with him with instruction that was developmentally appropriate for him. Juan is also a very

fidgety kid; he likes to be able to move around and take mental breaks. Some of the things that

he had available during this assignment were a special bumpy cushion for his seat, and some sort

of fidget device, it was a sort of a net with a marble inside.

 Quezada 9

Inclusive Education Best Practices (see Quality of Inclusion Checklist) being implemented:

Based on the quality of inclusion checklist I saw that my kiddo was on time to school

along with his other peers, all of his needs were met. He did not have the chance to choose his

own seat; the kids have assigned seats based off of the teacher’s idea of where she thinks that

they would work best. However, Juan thrives best when he is seated next to someone who sets a

good example, and that is the reasoning as to why he is seated where he is seated and next to

whom, so his placement supports his needs. When he is in the classroom he participated in all of

the school activities that his teachers present, with modification when needed. I did however

notice that Juan gets pulled out of the classroom throughout different times of the day, which is

not best practices.

Observation Sheet

Name of Child: Juan Sanchez

Age: 6

Observation Date: 25 September 2016

Setting and Activity: Saxon Phonics Whole-Group Lesson

Classroom Teacher: Kelsy Baker

Detailed description of what children and adults are doing:

This time around I observed my case study child during a phonics lesson with the

classroom (also known as saxon phonics). Before this he had been pulled out and was coming

into the classroom just in time for this lesson, but then he went to the bathroom, so It took him a

little longer to get started. His other classmates had already begun by the time he was at his desk

and ready to go. He started doing the same activity, but at a different pace. His aide would go

over the same things that the lead teacher did. By the time he had gone back, all of the words had
 Quezada 10

been reviewed by the whole class, so his aide got these words and went over them with Juan as

well. The aide would say the word or letter and Juan would repeat after him; he had no problem

in participating. As this was happening, he kept on grabbing at his pants; his health aide had

mentioned earlier that it was a “sensory thing” and that they bothered him, so he would pull them

up for his own comfort. He kept up the work and finished what his classmates were doing; he

would get encouragement through high-fives from his aide and the lead teacher. This time

around, he also had his fidget toy and his bumpy cushion seat. After the lesson, they did a

worksheet. He used a large chunky pencil with a ball to write down his name, but when it came

to completing the whole worksheet, he used stickers. His aide would hand them out to him and

he would place him on the worksheet. Finally, the class finished the lesson and worksheet, put

away all of their materials and moved on to the next task.

Accommodations for child being observed (environmental adaptations, equipment,

materials, adult support, peer support, etc.)

The accommodations that I noticed for this particular scenario were his bumpy cushion

chair, his fidget toy, which are the common ones. His cushion is always with him and for the

most part he has his fidget toy. Another accommodation was his chunky pencil with the ball, and

the use of stickers instead of writing the words himself. He also had the help of an aide in order

to complete the classroom activities.

Inclusive Education Best Practices (see Quality of Inclusion Checklist) being implemented:

As aforementioned, Juan gets pulled out of the classroom for supports such as social

groups and mathematics support. Before this lesson began, he was coming back from the

resource room; pull outs are not best practices. When this happens, he misses classroom

instruction. Because he was pulled out and once he came in he went to the restroom he was late
 Quezada 11

to the instruction, while his other peers were there on time. As seen, there were modifications

were needed, for example, the use of the stickers instead of writing out the words. Finally, the

most important thing in my opinion, that they do, is have him participate with the classroom and

have him do what his peers are doing.

 Quezada 12

Resources

Sam, A., & AFIRM Team. (2015). Visual supports. Chapel Hill, NC: National Professional

Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorder, FPG Child Development Center,

University of North Carolina. Retrieved from http://afirm.fpg.unc.edu/visual-supports

Social stories and comic strip conversations. (n.d.). Retrieved September 25, 2017, from

http://www.autism.org.uk/about/strategies/social-stories-comic-strips.aspx

Symptoms. (2013, March 20). Retrieved September 25, 2017, from

https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/symptoms