by Common Ground | Aug 5, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
The New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) has released a detailed response to NJDOE’s The Road Back Plan. On June 24, NJEA released its Education Recovery Plan. The NJEA plan addresses specific challenges schools and educators expect to face, and details...
by Common Ground | Aug 5, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
SPAN Parent Advocacy Network has developed key questions to ask as stakeholders work with schools in developing their reopening plans. School districts across New Jersey are making plans for reopening schools in the summer and for the 2020-21 school year. “The Road...
by Common Ground | Aug 5, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
Many New Jersey districts are planning hybrid programs, with some in-person instruction and some remote instruction. For the in-person cohorts, split day or alternating week schedules are also common in preliminary plans, in order to ensure that a fraction of students...
by Common Ground | Aug 5, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
With months of remote instruction already behind New Jersey schools, significant gaps still exist in providing students access to technology and technological equipment, such as laptops, tablets, hot spot access devices, and other electronic mobile devices. Many New...
by Common Ground | Aug 5, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
6 Tips from Board Certified Behavior Analyst and Consultant, Jessica Minahan: Review the curriculum. Encourage colleagues to review their curriculum before assigning reading and other work. For example, if a character in a book becomes seriously ill or dies, you may...
by Common Ground | May 5, 2020 | Parents
By: Rory Panter, Psy.D. and Rebecca Schulman, Psy.D., BCBA-D Behavior Therapy Associates | Somerset, New Jersey The last several weeks have resulted in significant changes for families, as parents and children are now spending most of their time together in the home....
by Common Ground | May 5, 2020 | Parents, Q&A
By Adam Wilson, Esq. | Hinkle Prior & Fischer, Attorneys at Law 1) My child is turning 21 and is scheduled to graduate in June. After being out of school since mid-March, I don’t think he is ready, and his post-secondary program is not ready for him. He...
by Common Ground | May 5, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
USDOE Supplemental Fact Sheet: Addressing the Risk of COVID-19 in Preschool, Elementary and Secondary Schools While Serving Children with Disabilities This Supplemental Fact Sheet reaffirms the rights of students to receive educational instruction and related services...
by Common Ground | Feb 24, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
By Gerard Thiers Federal law requires that every eligible child with disabilities – more than 220,000 in New Jersey – receive a “free and appropriate” education. Of course, special education services are not free. While they are provided at no cost to students or...
by Common Ground | Feb 5, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers, Watch This
Our friends at the Regional Center for Independent Living (RCIL) in New York made this fun video, Get the Job… Keep the Job! on seeking work for young people. This student production contrasts the right way — and the wrong way — to apply for a job in person,...
by Common Ground | Feb 3, 2020 | Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers, Uncategorized
Students can learn a lot in a classroom, but a good field trip lets them see, feel, and touch the curriculum in ways that make learning come to life. When trips are well planned, relevant, and linked to classroom instruction, students gain a better understanding of...
by Common Ground | Feb 3, 2020 | Better IEPs, Parents, Professionals, Students, Teachers
By Denver Leigh When we talk about IEPs (Individualized Education Plans), often the goals, objectives, accommodations and modifications get all the attention. True, those four components form critical parts of an IEP; however, in my experience as both a parent and...
.