Problem Solving Process “A mystery to solve… not a case to defend…” Step One Step Two Step Three Step Four Step Five Step Six

Strengths and Concerns Noted Step One Step Two Step Three Step Four Step Five Step Six Goal: For the team to understand student strengths and select concern for intervention plan Mine for strengths across school, home, community List Concerns Select no more then 2 concerns to be addressed at a time

Problem Identification Step Two Step One Step Three Step Four Step Five Step Six Goal: For the team to have a good picture of what the concern looks like Ensure clarity of concern selected for intervention Listen to student current performance and comparison to peers What has been learned about what works and doesn’t work? Limit your questions

Problem Analysis “We think (insert concern) is occurring because… (educated guesses)” Step Three Step One Step Two Step Four Step Five Step Six Goal: For the team to generate ideas as to what might be contributing to the concern Brainstorm Ideas Generate possibilities around (see next page) Remember, it’s not personal… Allow the referring teacher, the student, and/or the family to select Only select one or two >Instruction>Curriculum >Environment>Learner

Research-Based Considerations Instruction Explicit teaching Pace of Instruction Opportunities to respond Time allocated Sufficient questioning, check for understanding Clear directions Sufficient practice, application, and review Guided practice prior to independent practice Curriculum Appropriate match between learner skill and curriculum demands Relation to post school outcomes and student interests Variety of activities Explicit approach to teaching Appropriate independent work activities EnvironmentLearner Noise Level Clarity of classroom rules Parent support for learning Time devoted to homework with mentoring Feeling safe at school Seating arrangement Group arrangements for instruction Motivation Task Persistence Self efficacy Attendance Learning strengths Time needed to learn Social skills/peer relationships Connection with school, community, adults and family Commitment to school

Intervention Generation & Selection Step Four Step One Step Three Step Two Step Five Step Six Goal: For the team to generate interventions and select those they think will work Work directly from your hypotheses….. Brainstorm ideas Be creative and unreasonable Build off of student strengths Ask the person who would be the primary implementor the following questions: 1)Which of the interventions do you think will work? 2)Is it manageable to implement? 3)What supports do you need to carry it out?

Goal Setting & Progress Monitoring Plan Step Five Step One Step Three Step Four Step Two Step Six Goal: For the team to set a goal & establish a progress monitoring plan in order to evaluate student progress. When setting goal, be ambitious & realistic Determine objective progress monitoring indicator Collect data frequently Determine a time line Involve the student in the graphing process as often as possible

Plan Evaluation Step Six Step One Step Three Step Four Step Two Step Five Goal: For the team to decide whether to keep or change the intervention. Review graphed progress monitoring data AND the teacher/student/family judgment of progress If the intervention was successful, consider modifying supports & monitoring plan If the intervention was not successful, revisit hypothesis