Bus Driver & Bus Aides Strategies to Communicate with Special Needs Students

Intermediate District 287 Amy Tiedens Transportation Coordinator Steve Higgins NEC School Counselor

Listen and ask questions! Please silence cell phones and feel free to step out if you need to take a call. Participate, share ideas and ask questions.

Outcomes for today Understanding how to interact with Level 3-4 setting students on the bus. Acquire strategies and tools to use with intense children.

Intermediate District 287 Serves a Unique Population of Students ALC Programs (Alternative Learning Centers) Learning Disabilities ASD- Autism Spectrum Disorder, non-verbal & verbal DCD- Developmental Cognitive Disabilities Down Syndrome Fetal Alcohol Syndrome EBD- Emotionally & Behaviorally Disturbed ADHD- Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Depression PTSD- Post traumatic Stress Disorder ODD - Oppositional Defiant Disorder

Communicate with Staff and Parents Driver should be given some IEP information (Transportation Accommodations) on a need to know basis on how to assist the student to have a calm bus ride Let the staff interact with the students they know and they can give the students friendly reminders on how to properly ride the bus Wait until the student departs the bus, and quietly communicate with the staff or parent on what is needed to ensure a safe ride for the students Ask staff how to interact with students What do the students like and dislike Be patient, and many times school staff can assist with calming the student to be ready to ride You are transporting students with a multitude of disabilities Students with Emotional Behavior Disorders can be the hardest to understand Communicate with Dispatch for ideas

A Day in the Life of a child with intensity: Joe A Day in the Life of a child with intensity: Every connection with our students is an opportunity to create greatness...

DO NOT TAKE IT PERSONALLY!!!!!!! Remind yourself: DO NOT TAKE IT PERSONALLY!!!!!!!

Positive Behavior Intervention •Absolutely No! Refuse to energize negativity. •Absolutely Yes! Relentlessly energize the positive. •Absolutely Clear! Maintain total clarity about rules and always give resets for rules broken.

•RECOGNIZE EVERYTHING THAT’S GOING RIGHT. Absolutely Yes! •RECOGNIZE EVERYTHING THAT’S GOING RIGHT.

Behavior modifications for special needs students Drivers are the first and last teacher of the day for the students on the bus. Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports, is a positive, proactive approach to preventing problem behavior. Students are taught clear expectations based upon behavioral goals agreed-upon by transportation stakeholders. The behavioral expectations are taught just like any academic subject.

Bus Behavior Scenarios 1. Jimmy walks onto the bus, he does not talk. He sits straight up in the seat and puts his seat belt on. What is going right on the bus and what are you able to say to help Jimmy to reinforce his good behavior and continue for him to have a good day? Answer: “Jimmy, I noticed that you walked calmly onto the bus, sat down in your seat and put your seatbelt on. That shows me that you are ready to go and we are going to have a great day!”  2. Jenny is exiting the bus to walk into school. What is going right on the bus and what are you able to say to Jenny to help to develop a good relationship with her? Answer: “Jenny, I noticed that you are wearing a new pink shirt today, have a great day!”   

Bus Behavior Scenarios Cont. 3. As Tom is entering the bus, he is swearing and stating that his teacher was unfair to him today. What is going right on the bus and what is your response to help Tom have a good bus ride home? Answer: “Tom, I can see that you are frustrated with what happened in school today. Let’s start over and have a good bus ride home.”  

Let’s meet the Students from District 287 Name: Julio Grade: 7th Grade Smart Kid Nice Considerate Depressed Swears ALL the Time Threw a Desk at his teacher Gave student black eye for cutting in line at lunch.

Julio’s Bus Report Julio was disobeying the driver by shouting on the bus and talking back when asked to keep it down, he was also eating on the bus. There are four EBD students on this bus, Julio has a 30 minute bus ride. What is going right on the bus?

287 Students Cont. Name: Harvey Grade: 6th Class Clown Smartest Kid in his Class Friendly Honest Funny Class Clown Third Foster Home in 6 weeks Swears Like a Sailor On Probation for Stealing Will be Physically Aggressive

Absolute Clarity! Use Rules that begin with “NO.” Maintain total clarity about expectations and sometimes give resets for expectations broken Use the least amount of redirection as possible and always have the students practice the correct behavior to ensure that they understand what they should be doing.

Pay attention to your tone of voice Give Student(s) time to Process Directions Given Be Consistent Don’t Take Things PERSONAL LIVE IN THE MOMENT Don’t engage in any power struggle you will never win Let go of any notion that it’s your job to prevent a child from breaking a rule

Strategies for working with students with Special Needs: Get to know and develop a relationship with each student Kids don’t care what you know until they know that you care Intentionally Listen to what they’re saying Be Aware of the Energy you bring to every situation GIVE THEM SPACE.

Bus Conduct Reports If you need to write a student up for unsafe behavior, it’s ok to write them up and have your supervisor send it to the school. Don’t threaten or tell the student you are going to write them up, it could make their behavior worst

Important to Remember You are the student’s first and last teacher of the day!!!!! It is part of your job to help them know how to make good decisions on how to act properly on the bus by using positive language and role modeling positive behavior You have much more impact in a student’s life than you will ever know

Questions? Thank you for listening today! I hope you all have a successful year transporting your students! Feel free to email me if you have any questions: Amy Tiedens - Steve Higgins 763-550-7132 763-550-3153 astiedens@district 287.org Sahiggins@district287.org