50+ Scheduling Tips for School Based Therapists

Scheduling Tips for School-Based Therapists

Over the last few weeks, the Your Therapy Source survey was on scheduling tips for school-based therapists.  It was a simple two question survey: what is your job title and what is your best suggestion for creating therapy schedules?  You can answer the current survey here.

For question #1, the majority respondents (66%) were occupational therapists.

Here are the 50+ responses to the question: what is your best suggestion for creating therapy schedules?

Group by school, then consider eligibility/meeting days, then best time to see students that day dependent on individual goals/class fine motor or visual motor time.

In the school based setting, one needs to schedule according to teachers schedules in school; some are more flexible than others.

Check with teachers regarding classroom schedules including reading and math blocks, specials (PE, art, music, etc.). I usually ask them for the best and worst time to see students. Check student goals to see which can be accomplished in the classroom (and therefore helpful to teacher too) and match up students with similar goals and level of function.

I am a teletherapist so I use a shared google calendar for one of my schools so that my paraprofessional can see when I am available and so that she can schedule my students during my available time. For my virtual students, I send the parents an email using the mixmax add on so that they are able to click their time preference. If I am available, it automatically schedules them on my google calendar. If I am not available, then they can choose another option from the times in my email.

 

google calender

I wish I knew

Be flexible, Write in Pencil, Schedule middle and high school first, as their schedules are typically less flexible.

Begin with a pencil! I have a loose schedule the first 2 weeks of school. I usually coordinate with the speech therapist first since they usually see the student multiple times per week. I have also found that if I schedule a school on meeting days I have a better chance of being the only related service that sees students on that day. If I miss a student that day due to a meeting, I can add them with another student that same day!

Outlook Calendar so it syncs with those scheduling meetings and can be shared with select teachers, admin etc…..

Go to the teachers first and find out when is the best time to schedule their students.

I have a schedule starter sheet. It is a list with an empty day schedule on the left side to be filled out as I establish good times to see the student. On the right, it lists the student’s name, grade, teacher, IEP date and service time, lunch and special times, and I get from the teachers the best time to see the students (so I avoid instruction time). On the top of the sheet, it has the school hours, and a grid for a list of the different service providers for that school, PE teacher, school nurse. I use this sheet throughout the school year to add new students, or mark when they have moved out of district. I go around to all of my schools, get the individual calendars and the staff list with phone extensions, the specials, lunch, and recess schedules. I schedule the schools with the largest number of students first, and then fill in with the schools with fewer students.

Determine need of districts sped students, With job description, allot time needed for paperwork and collaboration. Curriculum of students should communicate needs or gaps that OT can help with…if we are “academic based”.

I wish I knew

Consolidate holiday sessions

Schedule older students and those who receive all services first

I make three different options for each child then regardless of who is absent I have alternatives to who is available for any given block of time. It really is less work than it sounds.

 

Schedule the hardest students to fit into an OT schedule. Schedule students that are in the middle school first as they change classes. then scheduled the elementary students who are in the same class throughout the day.

If possible, bring the entire team (teachers and other therapists) together to work out mutually compatible schedules so it’s not a “race” to see who claims their “day” first. If that could be done at the schools where you spend the most time, then hopefully other schools, with small caseloads, will be flexible with what’s left of your time and things will work! It’s worth hoping!!

Get the whole school schedule and then build in your times around recess/lunch specials. Push into language arts

Communicate directly with teachers and other therapists, and be flexible! Teachers know how to pair students well.

put it in pencil- you know you are going to have to change it 100 times!

 

Flexibility! Speaking with the student’s teacher is of course, an initial contact that must be made to ensure smooth scheduling. Showing an investment in the student and communicating a respect for the teacher’s predetermined classroom time and scheduling sets off the year to a good start. I try to find natural lulls during the school day — planned movement breaks or recess plus or minus a few minutes. I try to avoid pulling students during those times in the day when I’ve observed them come most alive in the classroom. (That is calendar time for some of my kiddos!). Routine is really important to most of my students, and I try to give them this consistency as often as I can.

I am still working on it!!! Our supervisor tells us what day to go to each school so within the day I have to figure out when to see the kids.  First I plug in who may go home early, then when each grades lunch and specials are. Then I look at IEP to see what subject OT supports. Try to fit it all into a puzzle by hand. I do best with sticky note tabs or pencil and paper.

Coordinating between school administration and other therapy services.

I try to set a day and time frame for the building (ie Thursday afternoons) when asking classroom teachers for serving the students. I then ask for their schedule,and find opportunities within their own schedule, and then work towards supporting the student within their own classroom working on items that relate to therapy supported educational goals.By setting day and time since we all seem to cover many buildings,it provides an opportunity to be more consistent on a weekly basis in servicing all students within all buildings.

Be flexible! Write initial schedule in pencil and be prepared to change it…many times!

 

Flexibility! I try to schedule time in a school and then “catch” the students during their PE class, music class, recess, diaper changes, or when getting on/off the bus and use those opportunities to teach staff while I do therapy with the students. Lead and teach by example.  Gathering all the specials schedules(art, music, PE) and core subjects so we have those before putting students on a schedule. Also getting classroom schedules helps with knowing when to push-in for writing, etc. Meeting with special ed teachers to work on the schedule together greatly helps.

Start early! Before school starts. Most schools have master schedules completed before school starts. Set up a meeting with your school administrators.

I work in a rural district and travel to multiple schools in a day. My travel path is what dictates my therapy schedule which is probably not the best but when traveling to 4-5 schools in a day, it truly is my only option. Within the time I am within each school, I try to be the least disruptive to each child’s regular schedule whenever possible.

Depends on teachers and special class schedules in school. I usually work in between.

 

Patience! Start early with the most difficult students to schedule and be prepared to correct LOTS of drafts.

We try to work with the student where they are struggling the most.

I email each teacher or grade (some share students) for suggestions – not perfect but they know their schedule better than I can just by looking at a master schedule.

Email school principal / secretary the week before school starts to have them email you special / lunch / recess schedules/ class lists. Take an empy schedule with times and then write every student’s name for that building on the tiny sticky notes (1/4″ or so by 1 to 1 1/2″). After getting the special schedules etc. start placing stickies in the time slots of your empty schedule. I like to email the teachers with times then they can reference that time or let you know if it is not a good time, or write it on a card for them if you have several students in their class.

Other than being flexible and starting asap, provide the teacher with 2, or even 3, time slots. Some teachers are so flexible but for those who are not, giving them a choice seems to help our future relationship if you know what I mean!

Ask at the office for the master specials, lunch and recess schedule before talking to any teacher about a specific student.

Prioritize scheduling students who mainstream from self-contained homerooms to general education settings first. Then schedule resource room students next. Then schedule general education students and last schedule full day self-contained. Be sure to schedule in travel time between schools and for students who may need to be picked up to/from their class. Share your schedule with the teachers as you complete it to receive quick feedback about scheduling conflicts or circumstances and ultimately share it with the pertinent case managers, principals, CST secretary, school secretary, counselors and special area teachers for each student.

pray. LOL. First find out about ‘special’ schedules, then talk to ST to coordinate with them, and then the teachers.

 

Build in room to be flexible if at all possible

Create a survey asking teachers the 3 best times to work with students and then attempt to create a schedule from this.

Start with the students with the highest minutes. Group by location. Keep calm and schedule on!

Plan early and be flexible

Class time

Collaborate with special education teachers for push-in times; set up a meeting time with speech/PT/etc to set schedules with teachers.

Schedule your kids with the most restrictive availability first.

Tell them your schedule is very tight, every change has a domino effect and you wish you could be more flexible. Say it very nicely, with a smile.

Scheduling has to be a balance of the client’s needs and yours as a therapist.

Make schedule then present to teachers. Make as early as possible.

Create an excel spreadsheet and paste names into time blocks and shuffle as needed.

Good luck everyone!  Scheduling is a super stressful time.  But, once done it is such a relief to get started working with the students!  Please take a moment to participate in the current survey here.

Once all your students are scheduled, stay organized with the Therapy Planner.  The new, updated planners are ready for you to get started on organizing your work life.

 

FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION ON THE THERAPY PLANNERS AND SEE THE DESIGNS

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10 Games to Practice Crossing Midline

Crossing midline is the ability to cross over an imaginary line down the center of your body from head to toes, separating the body into a left and right side.  This skill requires that the right and left sides of the brain work together to create a motor action.  Here are 10 games to play to practice crossing midline:

Participating in a tug of war.  A fun game of tug of war encourages hands to midline, hands to cross the midline and excellent proprioceptive input.

Play with toy cars.  Draw a big road on a flattened cardboard box.  The child can sit on the floor and drive the car along the road crossing the midline.

Relay races that encourage bilateral coordination skills.  Run to a cone and complete 10 windmills or 10 cross crawls and return to start.  Line up children shoulder to shoulder and pass the ball down the line from child to child.  Line up children back to back.  Pass the ball to each other keeping your backs touching.

Play baseball.  Holding onto a bat and swinging at a ball (on a tee or pitched) encourage the hands to cross the midline.

Play tennis.  Hit a tennis ball with different shots.  Each shot encourages a different trajectory across the midline.  Practice a forehand swing, backhand swing, and overhead serve.  If you do not have a tennis racquet or it is too difficult for the child, makes paper plate paddles and use a balloon practicing the same swings.

Participate in musical circle games.  Certain musical games encourage children to maintain rhythm (super important skill) and cross the midline.  Play hot potato but you must hold the ball with two hands at all times.  Dance the hokey pokey.

Play clapping games.  Girls, in particular, love to play clapping games.  Teach children Miss Mary Mack or check out You Tube to learn new hand claps.

Make big art.  Tape a square box to the floor.  Have the child stand in it in front of the whiteboard or chalkboard.  Try making the biggest rainbow that you can but do not move your feet.  Snap a photo when done to save a picture of the big art.  Try creating this long maze that encourages the child to cross the midline.  The freebie will open in a new tab.

Dig in the dirt or sand.  Have the child sit down, kneel or squat.  Place a bucket on one side of the child and the shovel on the other side.  Have the child dig and then rotate to place the dirt in the bucket.   Do not let the child switch hands with the shovel when going to put the dirt in the bucket.

Play Simon Says.  Use instructions and movement such as “put your right hand on your left shoulder” or “touch your left knee with your right hand”.  Download this free sample Simon Says page for children to copy body positions crossing midline.  Play Simon Says Exercise Ball style.

Visual Motor Exercises consists of 25 long mazes to complete that encourage crossing midline.  Find out more.

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Self Regulation Skills at School

Self regulation skills at school require the ability to tolerate sensations, situations and distress and form appropriate responses.  Simply stated, it is the ability to control emotions, thinking, behavior and motor actions in different situations.  In children, self regulation matures just like other developmental processes. Children get older and learn to think before they act. Research indicates that self regulation in children is a predictor of academic abilities. Children with higher levels of self regulation have achieved higher scores in reading, vocabulary and math. In addition, some research has shown that the ability for young children to self regulate is associated with higher, future education levels.

Obviously, self regulation skills at school is a super hot topic when school begins.  Students are expected to control their actions in large group settings, small groups, transitions, independent work time, recess, the lunchroom and more.  When students struggle in the area of self regulation it can result in loss of instructional time due to unacceptable behaviors.  Teachers frequently rely on school based occupational therapists and school based physical therapists to help students learn how to self regulate.  The Self Regulation Skills Curriculum – Move Work Breathe was created by a pediatric OT to help school wide in the development of self regulation skills.  It includes everything you need to start a school wide self regulation skill curriculum.  This will help to put all providers on the same page when teaching self regulation skills.  Start the school year off with everyone working together rather than fixing it after the fact.   This curriculum is all set to go to help you train staff, develop goals, collect data, create self regulation plans and more!

Here are 6 simple tips to encourage self regulation in all children:

1. Therapists, teachers and parents should model good self regulation and self control. Use a calm tone in stressful situations. Model self control during disruptive classroom or   home time.
2. Partner children who lack self regulation with children who exhibit better control to act as appropriate role models.
3. Play fun games that require children to wait for directions before they act (i.e. Simon Says).
4. Play fun games that require turn taking.
5. Keep activities structured and predictable.
6. Students respond to opportunities for self-regulation significantly more often in small group and play contexts.

References:

Flora, I. Developing Young Children’s Self-Regulation through Everyday Experiences. Young Children July 2011 pp 46-51.

Ponitz, C. et al. A structured observation of behavioral self-regulation and its contribution to kindergarten outcomes. Developmental Psychology. Vol 45(3), May 2009, 605-619.

Timmons, Kristy, Janette Pelletier, and Carl Corter. “Understanding children’s self-regulation within different classroom contexts.” Early Child Development and Care 186.2 (2016): 249-267.

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