Want to download pre-made Boardmaker boards?

You can sign up at adaptedlearning.com and download Boardmaker boards that other users have uploaded for public use. If you're a Boardmaker user, it's a must see!

It's votin' time!

It's almost over! Get out there!

Quest Atlantis

This quote from the Quest Atlantis site sums it up for me: 'Quest Atlantis (QA) is an international learning and teaching project that uses a 3D multi-user environment to immerse children, ages 9-15, in educational tasks. QA combines strategies used in the commercial gaming environment with lessons from educational research on learning and motivation.'

This project is run by the Indiana School of Education at Indiana University and is funded by the National Science Foundation and others.

SpEd Forms User Group Meeting

There will be a SpEd Forms user group meeting on Tuesday, October 28 from 9:00-noon. If you are interested in attending, let me know.

Also, this is my 100th blog post!

AT for Computer Games?

I get many questions about using assistive technology to help students use popular video game software. The assistivegaming.com site is a great resource for making AT work in the gaming world. They can help with everything from playing Monopoly to Second Life. They actually use AT to interact with the programs so they know what they are all about.

Other good sites include ablegamers.com and pcsgames.net.

No tricks, just treats!

Celebrate All Hallows’ Eve by sending “ghoulish” treats to that favorite pumpkin in your patch. The students at Paul Bunyan Transition Plus have created “frightfully” fun and “boo”tifully decorated Halloween gifts containing a not too scary “brew” of treats. Hurry as “haunting” season is upon us and your favorite “ghoul or ghostie” doesn’t want to be left out in the dark. “Bewitch” them by having us deliver it as well on that “spooky” day. There will be “screams” of joy.

Deadline to place orders is Wednesday, Oct. 29 or while supplies last. Prices range from $1.00-$6.00 with orders taken via email to pam.lorenz@isd181.org or by calling 454-5393 to talk with a student.

Witch hand $1 = popcorn hand with spider ring
Sucker bouquet $2 = 1 large and 2 small Halloween suckers made into a “bouquet”
Spider pumpkin $2 = non-edible pumpkin spider
Candy bags $3 = peanut/candy corn mixture in decorated cellophane bags
Witches brew $4 small or $5 large = ghost, bat, witch, and pumpkin “cauldrons” filled with candy and prizes
Goblets $4 = ghoulish goblets filled with candy and prizes
Candy corn pot $4 = clay pots painted to look like candy corn filled with peanut/candy corn mixture
Scary cactus $6 = live cactus plants decorated in ghoulish fashion

Open Source AT Software

I learned of a great Open Source (can you say 'free') site for assistive technology software at Closing the Gap. The site is oatsoft.org.

There is lots of good stuff on the site including on screen keyboards, voice activation, symbol libraries, full office suites and word prediction software. It's all free, but some have upgrades to more full featured products that have a nominal fee. At least you can try it for free.

With budgets evaporating, I think this is something everyone should at least consider.

What's a Ning?

A Ning is a type of social networking site. There are many social networking sites that students use like Facebook or MySpace.

I've created a Ning for the coop. If you'd like to participate as an early adopter, let me know! It's a great chance to play with technology you could use in a classroom.

Resident Districts Alphabetized

I've reordered the drop down list box for resident districts. They are now in alphabetical order (based on the alphabet I learned).

Services Alphabetized

I've reorganized the services list in SpEd Forms into alphabetical order. I hope to keep it that way...

New Custom Goal Bank

There is a new custom goal bank feature in SpEd Forms. We now have custom goals for EBD and Transition. For a quick, two-minute tutorial on how to use the custom goals, click here.

Firefox and SpEd Forms

SpEd Forms has completed evaluating Firefox 3 and now recommends it to users of SpEd Forms running Mac OS 10.4 (Tiger) or higher. I've been using it for several weeks and I like it.

To download Firefox 3 click here.

For Mac OS 10.1 to 10.3 they recommend Firefox 2.0.0.14 available by clicking
here.

Please note:
1. Existing users only need to upgrade if they are experiencing issues with Firefox 2 or Opera 9.0.
2. Mac OS users should avoid Firefox 2.0.0.16. When printing multiple pages using Firefox 2.0.0.16 extra blank pages print.

AIMSweb Grade Rollover Complete

I've completed the AIMSweb grade rollover (graduation). Grade levels were bumped up one year and students were moved to their new school where needed.

I saw quite a few obvious duplicate students. Please check to see if a student is already in the system before adding a new one.

SpEd Forms Grade Rollover

I've completed the SpEd Forms grade rollover. All grades have been incremented one year with the exception of EC (Early Childhood).

Shift Happens

This is a really great video that puts some perspective on what our students lives will be like and how much/fast things are changing in our world. The video, named Did You Know 2.0, is on YouTube and is a must see for all educators!

Summer Institute Workshops

We've posted the Summer Institute workshop information on our website. Click here for more information.

SpEd Forms Upgrade

I upgraded the SpEd Forms server this morning. Here's a summary of the changes:

General:
1. When a user attempts to add a student with a MARSS ID that already exists, or change the MARSS ID to value that already exists, then the student’s name and case manager are displayed with contact information.
2. When a student pickup is completed, the user can update the district and school information for the student from the pickup screen

Administrators:
1. Super administrators can choose which administrators submit support requests.
2. Super administrators can choose which administrators can delete student records.

Service plans:
1. Referral Source no longer appears automatically on the IFSP
2. Measures can now be used to create data driven progress reports for goals or objectives.
3. On the IEP, a link to the "Extended School Year Services" page has been added to the ESY section of the services page.

Additional forms:
1. Finalization has been added to the following forms:
a. Notice of Team Meeting
b. Prior Written Notice
c. Notice of Educational Evaluation/Reevaluation Plan
2. Birth to 3 Referral Form:
a. A text box has been added to specify the reason for referral
b. A date for when each person was notified was added
c. A "Comments/Other Information" text box was also added
3. On the Parental Consent/Objection form the teacher can indicate who the form should be returned to.

MA Forms:
1. The MA Parental Consent form has been revised. Super administrators can choose to use version A or B in preferences.
2. District administrators have access to 835 responses.
3. Student records cannot be removed until medical billing records have been deleted.
4. Trip log details can be edited in “Create/Edit Batch Files”.

Evaluation Report:
1. SLD Templates have been updated.
2. The default cell padding in tables has been reduced to "1" from "4".
3. The Sensory Profiles and CELF-P:2, have been added to the SpEd Forms Test Templates.
4. ECSE 0-2.11 and ECSE 3-6.11 criteria and templates have been update in the SpEd Forms Templates.

Today is National Teacher Day!

On National Teacher Day, thousands of communities will take time out to honor their local educators and acknowledge the contributions they make to our lives. The National Teacher Day annual theme is, "Great Teachers Make Great Schools." The theme draws attention to the crucial role teachers play in making sure every child receives a quality education.

Thank you to the wonderful teachers in our coop who help make our schools a great place to learn and work!

Up to the MN*AT and QIAT Summit

The Quality Indicators for Assistive Technology (QIAT) summit and Up to the MN*AT will be held June 23 thru June 26. QIAT will be held at Northwestern College on the 23rd and 24th. Up to the MN*AT will be held on the 25th and 26th.

For the brochure and registration information, click here.

Para eLink Training

Once again, the Paul Bunyan Education Coop is offering the Para eLink class, which is one way that paraprofessionals can become “highly qualified” as defined by the federal “No Child Left Behind” law. This class is open to anyone currently employed as a special education or Title I paraprofessional who has not yet met NCLB requirements for employment as well as those who would like to work as a K-12 paraprofessional in the future. We need your help to make sure that everyone who wants to take the class is aware that it is being offered. If you know someone who would like to enroll, please give them a copy of the flyer. Thank you for help in getting the word out!

Naughty Auties?!

CNN has been running a series this week on Autism. If you haven't been following it, go to their website and give it a look.

They have a good piece on an Autism group, Naughty Auties, in Second Life. Second Life is an interesting piece of free software. Users create an avatar to represent themselves online. Then they can travel thru Second Life and shop, chat with others, fly around, or even go into orbit. What I find interesting is that when you're on Second Life, there are no 'handicaps'. If you are in a wheelchair in real life, you can fly, just like everyone else, in Second Life. It's another good example of 'bridge tech'.

ComLink Wireless Personal Hearing Assistant

I was at the Region 5/7 AT meeting this morning and we had a presentation on the ComLink personal hearing assistant. It's a low-cost (under $200), wireless hearing product. It's something to look at as it much less expensive compared to a traditional FM system, and it doesn't overlap with FM frequencies.
Click here to download the brochure.

Do you Facebook?

This is the first in a series of posts about technologies that your students are probably familiar with, but you might not be. My intent is to give you a 'heads up' so you can go explore the technology yourself. The label for these posts will be 'Bridge Tech'.
Facebook is a social networking site like MySpace. It allows people to communicate and stay connected. It has tools similar to email, but also allows you to say what you're doing today, who your 'friends' are, post pictures, say what events you have in your calendar and what groups you belong to. Your friends can post on your wall, poke you, and even send you presents! This site is very popular with students through college level and beyond.
I have a Facebook account so look me up! I'll be your friend!

Welcome Dr. Carol Pasanen!

We'd like to welcome Dr. Carol Pasanen to our staff as our new Data Management Coordinator. Dr. Pasanen will be serving all our districts and charter schools by coordinating data collection and analysis across the coop.
Welcome Dr. Pasanen!

Charting the Cs Registration Brochure

The Charting the Cs brochure is available. It contains the conference details including breakout sessions and registration information. To download it, click here.

Interested in Charting the Cs?

If you are interested in attending Charting the Cs this year, please let Mark Oehrlein (me) or Margaret Knebel know. We will have a limited supply of scholarships to cover the cost of the conference and they will be awarded first-come first-served. It will be in April 28-29 in Alexandria.

Updated SpEd Forms User Guide Available

The SpEd Forms User Guide has been revised and is available online at:
http://www.spedforms.com/guide/
SpEd Forms users can access the guide directly from the program by clicking on the “User Guide” link in the right hand corner of the main menu.

A printable PDF version is available from download from:
http://spedforms.com/support/PDFs/SpEd_User_Guide.pdf

Charting the Cs - 2008

Charting the Cs will be held at the Arrowwood Resort and Conference Center in Alexandria, MN, April 28 and 29, 2008. Keep your calendar's open! This is a great, low cost AT conference.

Service Start and End Dates

I’ve had a few questions about the service start and end date fields and I’d like to clarify a few things.
There are date fields on the ‘Edit Setup’ page and the ‘Special Education Data Sheet’ for ‘Service Start Date’ and ‘Service End Date’. These dates are linked in the database, so if you change them on one form, they will change on the other.
The service start date should be the earliest date that a service starts for the IEP. The service end date should be the latest date a service ends on the IEP. These dates are needed for MARSS status reporting and don’t explicitly exist on the IEP.
Since a student can have a variety of services with potentially different start and end dates, these fields require manual entry. When you create a new IEP, you will need to manually update these fields on the student's setup page or the Special Education Data Sheet.
These fields do NOT get checked at validation time because they are not on the actual IEP.
Here's a short video showing where the dates are in SpEd Forms.

SpEd Forms Upgrade

I installed an upgrade patch to the SpEd Forms server today. It contained mostly bug fixes.
One thing you may notice is that the two links that controlled which version of the forms you see on the forms page has been replaced with a drop down list box. The system should stay stuck on the 2006-07 forms better now.

New AT FYIs available

The new AT FYI is available. (Actually, the last three issues!)
To download the September issue, click here.
To download the October issue, click here.
To download the November issue, click here.

Podcasting Powerpoint

I promised the Region 5/7 AT team that I would post my powerpoint presentation and sample podcast here. So...
To download the powerpoint, click here.
To listen to the sample podcast, click here. (Yes, it will be in iTunes too.)

How to get an 'Orphans' student

If you request access to a student who has the 'Orphans' case manager, you should contact me instead. Nobody monitors the 'Orphans' login so no one will see your request.

SETT Framework DVD Available

We have copies of a DVD explaining the SETT Framework for AT. If you're interested, let me know and I'll get you a copy.

No Charge Bookshare.org To Schools and Students

Bookshare.org has announce that they've recieved a grant "to fully support all schools and students with qualifying print disabilities in the United States, K-12 and post-secondary, with access to the entire Bookshare.org collection of accessible electronic books and to software for reading those books. As of October 1, 2007, we will cease charging these schools and students anything to join Bookshare.org."
This is great news for students and schools. Go to www.bookshare.org for more information.

SpEd Forms Upgrade - New Forms!

I upgraded SpEd Forms today and the upgrade included the new Due Process forms. To use the old forms, you must click on the 2006-07 link on the student's forms page! Here's a short movie demonstrating how to flip back and forth.

Is your SpEd Forms printing screwed up?

About this time of the year, I get many questions about printing. Many teachers get new computers, or their software gets updated over the summer months. This can result in the web browsers (Internet Explorer, Opera) getting set back to 'factory defaults'.
The most common symptoms I hear about are:

1. pages getting cut off on the right side
2. headers and footers containing dates and URLs

The solution is to follow the browser setup instructions. They are located right on the login page, just below the password field, or you can click on the link above.

UDL Workshop

There is a UDL workshop on October 3, 2007 in Duluth done by Dr. David Edyburn. I've seen him before and I really like his approach.
Click here to see the flyer.

How to get students off your list

Here's how to get students off your list:

If you are the case manager, you have two options:

1. Transfer the student to a new case manager.
2. Exit the student. (goto Edit Setup for the student. Set the ‘Status End (exit reason) drop down list box (underneath ‘Status’) to the appropriate code.

If you are NOT the case manager, you can remove them from your list by going to the student’s forms page and clicking the ‘Remove from my list’ link just below the navigation buttons in the top/right corner of the page.

Note: If you ARE the case manager AND transfer the student, you’ll STILL need to do the step for when you are not the case manager after you complete the transfer.

Things you should know

I've been getting a few questions over and over this year. All these questions have already been answered on this blog. Below is a short list. Click on the links for a video answering the question.

1. How do I transfer a student to a new case manager?
2. A student is missing from my list. How do I see inactive students, exited students and students sent to me from other districts?
3. How do I request a student from another case manager?

SpEd Forms Upgrade

I upgraded the SpEd Forms server today. The biggest change seems to be a 'tabbed' menu at the top of the forms page. It should be pretty self explanatory.
In addition, the Department of Education posted new recommended Due Process forms at: http://children.state.mn.us/mde
The updated forms will be posted incrementally on SpEd Forms servers over the next few weeks.

New MN State Disability Website

I got this info this morning from Joan Breslin-Larson. The website looks clean and easy to use. Check it out!
(ST. PAUL) – Beginning today, Minnesotans have a single source on the Internet – www.mndisability.gov – for quick and easy access to state government-agency programs, products and services dedicated to disability issues.
“This is the ‘blue pages’ for state government disability resources,” said Dan McElroy, Commissioner of the Department of Employment and Economic Development and the project’s sponsor. “Our goal is to empower people with disabilities, their family members and friends, and anyone looking for an easy-to-access, easy-to-understand starting point on the Internet for state government resources.”
Site users can locate resources in any of four ways: by topic – such as education, employment, housing or transportation; by state agency; through an A-Z index; or by a search. The site currently has more than 220 links, each with a brief description of a program, product or service offered by various state agencies. The site will be updated on a regular basis and is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act as well as generally accepted accessibility standards.
Mndisability.gov is a collaborative effort of numerous state agencies, including the Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities, Commission Serving Deaf and Hard of Hearing People, Minnesota State Council on Disability, Ombudsman Office for Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities, State Services for the Blind, Deaf and Hard of Hearing Division, STAR and Rehabilitation Services. The Minnesota Office of Enterprise Technology designed and built the site.
The site was developed under the auspices of the state’s Drive to Excellence government reform initiative, which seeks to increase quality and customer service and reduce costs in the Executive Branch of state government.

Grade Level Rollover Complete

I've completed the grade level rollovers for SpEd Forms and AIMSweb. Student grade levels should now reflect where they will be in the Fall.
In the case of AIMSweb, they should also be moved to their correct school.

Grade Level Bumps

I'll be bumping up all student grade levels in SpEd Forms and AIMSweb on Friday, August 3 in the morning. After I'm done, the grade levels will reflect where the students should be this fall.
I hope everyone is having a great summer. I've been very busy! Right now we are rewiring our network to accommodate our expansion into our lower level and the installation of a new phone system. The coop is a disaster with everything moved around and wires hanging out of the ceiling. I may post pictures if I can find a few extra minutes.
Later!

Phone Number Changes

All of the direct dial phone numbers for the coop that began with 855 now begin with 454. For example, my number was 855-5531 and is now 454-5531.

SpEd Forms Server Scheduled Downtime - July 6

The SpEd Forms server will be unavailable, all day, July 6, 2007. The downtime is for maintenance at the network operations center in Brainerd where the server is housed.

SpEd Forms Updated

I just completed an update to our SpEd Forms software. Along with some third party billing updates, here's a list of changes for teachers:

1. The “Summary of Performance” is now available.
2. A companion extended school year checklist has been linked to the existing “Extended School Year” form.
3. On the forms menu, the “Special Education Data Sheet”, “MARSS Student Data” and “Release of Information” forms are now listed with the “Notice of District’s Proposed Action or Denial” for easy access.
4. When an evaluation report is finalized, a prompt now appears for the new student evaluation status and the evaluation date is updated in Student Setup.

Coop Retirements

I'd like to wish a fond farewell to Kathy Daly, Judy Stevens and Roberta Bohlke. They are retiring this year and will be missed. They all have different last days, so you'll have to check with them and wish them well!
(Who wants to bet which ones flunk retirement!)

PBEC Podcast Issue 9

This is the final podcast of the 2006-2007 school year. This issue covers:

1. There is a demo on this blog showing how to transfer a student to a new case manager.
2. There is a demo on this blog showing how to request access to a student.
3. Don't change student's grade level in SpEd Forms or AIMSweb. (I'll do that.)
4. Set up extended school year services just like regular ones, just set the dates.
5. We'll be getting a new server computer for SpEd Forms over the summer.
6. I'll be upgrading SpEd Forms the first week of June.
7. I'm expecting a major SpEd Forms upgrade with forms changes before September.
8. I'll be collecting SRI data next week and upgrading Read180 over the summer.
9. I'll be doing a session at the summer institute workshops in August.
10. Up to the MN*AT is in June. Just $10 a day!
11. I'll be posting important notices to the blog over the summer.
    

Have a great summer!

How To Request Access To A Student

I've put together a short Quicktime movie demonstrating how to use the 'Request Access' feature in SpEd Forms. The feature allows you to send a message to the current case manager to request access to a student's forms.
Click here to see the demo.

How To Transfer A Student To A New Case Manager

I've created a short Quicktime movie demonstrating how to transfer a student to a new case manager. Click here to see the demonstration.

How To View 'Exited' Students in SpEd Forms

If you've had a student 'disappear' from your list, it's probably because the student has had a status change and is 'inactive' or 'exited'. I've put together a short Quicktime movie demonstrating how to show students in your list who are 'inactive' or 'exited' in SpEd Forms. This is a reposting, but I think it's important as I've been getting alot of questions about it lately.
You can view it by clicking here.

Cognitive Coaching FoundationSM Seminar

A Cognitive Coaching FoundationSM seminar is again being offered in Brainerd by Loretta Norgon this summer: June 11-14 and Aug 13-16*.
Some of you took the full training a few years ago, and some completed the first half of the training at that time. If you are interested in the full eight days or if you would like to pick up the second four days; please get back to Loretta as soon as possible.
There will be no registration cost to Brainerd district employees.
Here's a link to the flyer.

New AT FYI Available

The newest (and last for the school year) AT FYI is available on our website.

Have you tried Google Scholar?

"Google Scholar provides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. From one place, you can search across many disciplines and sources: peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and articles, from academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories, universities and other scholarly organizations. Google Scholar helps you identify the most relevant research across the world of scholarly research." --Google

Want to learn more? Click here. Or click here to try it.

Summer Institute

The Summer Institute workshop schedule is done. I'll be doing two sessions. One with Dr. Marc Markell on CBM and AIMSweb. The other I will be doing with Margaret Knebel. Margaret and I will cover SpEd Forms changes, AIMSweb and new Assistive Technology.

Up to the MN*AT Brochure

The brochure for the Up to the MN*AT conference has been released. It will be held June 25-28, 2007 at the MN Dept of Ed in Roseville. There are specific strands for AT in a flash and vision.
See you there!

Did You Know?

Here is a link to a video titled, Did You Know that Gaynard sent to the coop staff. It's about six minutes of interesting facts and predictions. It will make you think!

TheraSimplicity Trial

At Charting the Cs, I learned that you can get a 30 day free trial to TheraSimplicity if you'd like to try it. It's normally about $190 for a single license.

Podcasting PowerPoint

As promised, here is the Podcasting PowerPoint I used at Charting the Cs.

No Politician Left Behind - More!

In today's breakout, we added to our No Politician Left Behind requirements.

No Politician Left Behind

Here's a sample podcast that we did at Charting The Cs.

Podcasting Handout

Here's a copy of the podcasting handout I'll be distributing at Charting the Cs. I've also done a short podcast describing the items in the handout.

Closing the Gap Preconference Workshops

Closing the Gap has announced their preconference workshops. Lots of good stuff including presentations by Linda Burkhart, B.S. and Denise DeCoste, Ed.D.
This year's conference will be held October 18-20 at the Sheraton Bloomington Hotel and Hotel Sofitel in Bloomington.

2005-06 EC:SE Data Available

The latest EC:SE data is available on the EC:SE page of our website. The data is available in PDF format for the Aitkin, Brainerd, Crosby-Ironton, Pequot Lakes, Pine River-Backus and Pillager school districts.

New AT FYI Available

The latest issue of the AT FYI available on our website. This issue focuses on Scaffolding Learning. Have a look!
Back issues are available. Let me know if you'd like to see them.

Closing Date for Referrals

It's that time of the year again - closing date for referrals. Our maximum target date for completing assessments is 30 days. We suggest that any referrals for assessments that need to be completed by Co-op staff before the end of the school year reach us by April 11.

We will not establish an absolute cut off date. We will make every attempt to complete all referrals we receive. However, we need your cooperation in preventing chaos the latter part of May.

Six Scholarships for Charting the Cs Available

We have six scholarships available for the 16th Annual Charting the Cs Assistive Technology Conference scheduled for April 23–24, 2007 at St. Cloud Civic Center in St. Cloud, MN. The scholarships cover the registration fee only. Let Margaret Knebel or myself know if you are interested!

Click here for the brochure.

I'll be there as I'll be doing two sessions on Podcasting! See you there!

Universal Design for Learning Workshop

Pacer is offering a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) workshop on Tuesday, April 3, 2007, 6:00-9:00pm at Washington Educational Services Building in Brainerd. This is a great opportunity to learn about UDL!
To register, click here.
To see the flyer, click here.

Show Students in 'Other' Districts

When a student is transfered to you from a case manager in another school district, the student will not automatically appear on your list. Use the 'Show' drop down list box to show students in 'Other' districts or 'All' districts. You can then edit the student setup and change the 'Serving District' to your district.
Here's a short movie showing how.

Special Education Data Sheet

Want to save yourself some work? Instead of printing page 1 and page 4 and sending it to the coop, print the Special Education Data Sheet and send that instead.
This is a new form that summarizes all the data we need from pages 1 and 4. It can be found at the bottom of the left column in the 'Additional Forms' section of the student's Forms page.
Life is Good!

Problem MARSS Numbers

MARSS numbers are 13 digit numbers. The new update of SpEd Forms requires that the MARSS number be exactly 13 digits with no spaces, alphabet characters or special characters. Special characters are things like underscores (_), asterisks (*) or tildes(~). Some reports will not run if the MARSS number does not meet the standard.
If you have a non-standard MARSS number for a student, please change it. Here is a short movie showing how to change it.

Printing the MARSS Page

If you encounter an error when trying to print the MARSS page, you need to set the 'School Year of Data' drop down list box to the appropriate reporting year.
Here's a short movie demonstrating how to fix the error.

PBEC Podcast Issue 8 - SpEd Forms Upgrade

In this issue of the podcast, I discuss the major feature changes to the latest SpEd Forms release.
To listen, click here.

Universally Designed Technology in Schools Online Training

With the support of the NEC Foundation, PACER has created a free online training to help teachers, administrators and other professionals, and families learn about and implement universally designed technology (UDT) in K-12 schools. UDT supports a broad range of abilities and learning styles. It can give students with disabilities equal access to the curriculum and help schools meet the educational needs of all students.
For more information, click here.

How to view 'exited' students in SpEd Forms

I've put together a short Quicktime movie demonstrating how to show students in your list who are 'inactive' or 'exited' in SpEd Forms.
You can view it by clicking here.

SpEd Forms Upgrade

I've upgraded the SpEd Forms server. Here's a summary of the changes:

1. Simplified user interface - "Student setup" and "Work with student information" have been combined into a single "Work with students" screen.
2. Improved MARSS entry screen based on DOE MARSS Student Data form ED-01910-10.
3. A new tuition billing calculator in "Student Setup" helps calculate total service hours.
4. "Evaluation Status" is now called "Status". Includes two new student status options; 90 (General Education) and 91 (504 Plan).
5. "Services Summary" has been improved and renamed "Special Education Data Sheet".
6. The "Student Acknowledgement and Tuition Agreement" form has been added.
7. A new client-side JavaScript spell check program has been implemented. Works with DesignMode and much better in all internet browsers.
8. Request access to any student record in the site database by clicking on the "Request Student" button at the top of the student list.
9. Measure and graph progress towards goals and objectives.
10. The full working copy of the student record is now transferred when using the remote transfer between school districts.

The new user guide, reflecting the changes in SpEd Forms, is now available.

Charting the Cs - Update 1

The updated brochure for Charting the Cs is available for download! The update contains clearer information on hotel costs.

We have 10 scholarships available for the registration fee (only). Contact Margaret Knebel if you're interested.

Charting the Cs Brochure

The brochure for Charting the Cs is available for download!

Click here.

How to Find and Fund AT in MN

PACER will be conducting a workshop titled How to Find and Fund Assistive Technology in Minnesota on Tuesday, March 6 from 6:00-9:00pm at Washington Educational Services Building in Brainerd. This is the second in a four part series. If you attend three of the four workshops, you get a free membership in their AT lending library. To register, click here.

I attended the first workshop in the series last night and I highly recommend them!

Linda Burkhart Workshop

Linda Burkhart will be conducting a two day workshop titled Communication Strategies and Adaptations for Students with Severe Challenges. It will be held at the Best Western Kelly Inn in St Cloud on April 18 & 19, 2007 from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

You can register online at www.greater-mn-online.org.

Click here for the brochure in PDF.

PACER trainings in Brainerd

PACER is conducting 4 trainings in Brainerd this winter/spring. The dates are 2/6,3/6,4/3,5/15. They will be from 6-9pm at WESB.

The first training is Tuesday, February 6: What Parents and Professionals Need to Know About Technology for Children with Disabilities
The workshop introduces the concept of assistive technology and related legal requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA2004). Participants will receive tips on selecting assistive technology devices and an introduction to the Minnesota Assistive Technology Manual.
Click here to register.

Attachment Series DVD

We have an 'Attachment Series' DVD that covers Workshop #1 available for check out. It covers 'What is Attachment Theory...Really?'.

The Attachment Series is done by the Center of Excellence in Children's Mental Health.

Read 180

The coop is purchasing the Read 180 reading intervention curriculum from Scholastic for our member districts. The target implementation date is January 22, 2007.

I've created an email group that will facilitate discussions about Read 180 for our coop. If you'd like to join, just let me know.

Charting the Cs

The 16th Annual Charting the Cs Assistive Technology Conference has been schedule for April 23–24, 2007 at St. Cloud Civic Center in St. Cloud, MN. This is a great conference that is centrally located and low in cost. Plan to attend if you can!

I'll be there as I'll be doing two sessions on Podcasting! See you there!

Book Lexiles

Did you know you can search the database at Lexile.com and find the lexile reading difficulty level for any of the tens of thousands of books in their database?

Give it a try!

Two AT DVDs

I have a copy of two DVDs published by the State of MN Dept of Education. The first is 'Involving All Students' which covers tools for reading, writing and math. The second is 'An Administrators Perspective on Assistive Technology'.

Both DVDs are hosted by Kathy Wurzer from MN Public Radio and they are both very well done.

If you'd like a copy, just let me know and I'll send one out to you.

Autism Newsletter

The Region 5/7 Autism Newsletter is available.

Good stuff!

30,000+ books at Bookshare.org

Did you know that Bookshare.org has over 30,000 accessible on-line books in their library?

Check it out!

Internet Explorer 7

It seems Microsoft has pushed Internet Explorer 7 to Windows users with a recent software update. The following is a message from SpEd Forms concerning the upgrade. In a nutshell, please check your browser settings if you've been upgraded to IE 7. Here's what SpEd Forms has to say:

Recently most Windows computers were automatically updated to Internet Explorer 7.0 by Microsoft Automatic Updates. Some teachers who have had the update installed reported entering information, saving, and then not seeing the information the next time they returned to the same page.

In these cases, browser setup was not reviewed after the Internet Explorer 7.0 update. Remember, if there is any change to browser or system configuration then it is essential to review browser setup. In these cases, Internet Explorer 7.0 was simply showing the teachers older (blank) versions of web pages because Internet Explorer was set to “Check for newer versions of stored pages” “Automatically”. This setting needs to be changed to “Every time I visit the web page”.

Please remember it is essential to check SpEd Forms setup:
1. On every computer used for SpEd Forms.
2. Every time the computer is worked on by computer technicians.
3. Every time the internet browser is updated.
4. Any time SpEd Forms does not behave as expected.

A link to SpEd Forms setup instructions can be found in the yellow box on the SpEd Forms login screen.

Warrior Deli

Did you know that Brainerd High School special ed is running the Warrior Deli? They serve soup and sandwiches from 11:30 to 12:30. Takeout is available!

Here's this week's menu:
Ham and Swiss on Croissant
Roast Beef and Cheddar on Wheat
Turkey Bacon Wrap
Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Sandwich Meal $3.00
Soup Meal $2.00
Soup and Sandwich Meal $3.00

No Other Service Field

You may have noticed that the 'Other Service' field has been removed from the services page of the IEP. It was removed because any service that used that field was 'unbillable' and districts were losing money.
If you can't find a service in the drop down list, just let me know. I can add the service to the list and then we can bill for it!
It's a win-win.

New Due Process Forms

The State is about to implement new due process forms.

Click here to get a preview of what they propose.

Expect more news on this in the next few weeks or months.

m

PBEC Podcast Format Change

Hi!

I'm changing the format of the podcast! From now on, I intend to have shorter, but more frequent podcasts. My intent is to have 2-3 minute podcasts once or twice a week. This will allow me to work with smaller subjects at a time and allowing for easier production of each episode.

To make this more inclusive, I'm also rolling out this blog, which is an underlying piece of technology used to publish the podcast. I encourage you to bookmark this blog, or use an RSS reader, and keep an eye on the blog. There WILL be posts to the blog that will not be mentioned in the podcasts!

An additional benefit to the blog is that it bypasses email that has been, and will probably remain, a problem as far as reliability is concerned.

That's it for now! God Bless.

m

PBEC Podcast Issue 7

In this issue of the podcast I talk about Finalizing ERs, Validating IEPs and the Student History button on the Forms page. I also talk about the spell checker in SpEd Forms.

This is the final in the three part series on the latest SpEd Forms upgrade.

PBEC Podcast Issue 6

This issue of the podcast focuses on the changes to the Forms page in the latest SpEd Forms upgrade.

PBEC Podcast Issue 5

This issue of the podcast focuses on the latest SpEd Forms upgrade. Specifically, I cover the changes to the My Setup and Student Setup pages.

Don't use spaces in URLs

I have GOT to remember to not use spaces in the URL for the podcast mp3 file. If I use spaces, it won't work as a media enclosure. DOH! Gotta use that '%20' thingy instead.

PBEC Podcast Issue 4

This issue of the podcast focuses on assistive technology. Specifically, I cover the highlights of Charting the Cs and cover some upcoming conferences. I also talk about some staff who are leaving the coop. :-(

PBEC Podcast Issue 3

This is the third edition of the Podcast.

This issue focuses on email and spam.