***This is gonna be a long one, but it’s because I think that the classroom environment can make or break an EBD classroom. I’m not JUST rambling, I promise! I’ll be making additional posts in the coming days and weeks about how Jenny and I are setting up and preparing for our new program set to open in August 2016.

Teaching Partner Jenny and I are in the middle of the crappy, stressful part of figuring out all the ins-and-outs of our new EBD program that will open in August. We know there’s a whole lot of stuff to do. We even know WHAT some of that stuff IS…but there’s more “hurry up and wait” right now than “hurry up and go.” It only occurred to us about 31 hours ago that School District EBD Program wasn’t probably the best name to use in terms of PR with families we’re about to start meeting with. We literally proposed a better name for our program 31 hours ago; we hope the district powers-that-be will accept it because, frankly, our brains are full of way too much other stuff to think up another one.

Before I straight-up had a panic attack (just me…Jenny would never have a panic attack worrying about stuff–she’s good like that), we decided to distill this whole process to its most essential element: setting up the learning environment, ou alors, as I prefer to call it, “stacking the deck in our favor.”

Controlling the environment is really important in the EBD classroom. je veux dire, it’s important in ANY classroom, but a controlled EBD environment is the difference between Lord of the Flies et Mary Poppins. Après tout, you already know that you can’t control what someone else does; you can only control YOUR reaction to it. By removing the potential for power struggles over minor things (“Look at me! I’m sitting in your roll-y chair! I’m rolling and you can’t stop me!’), you can save your energy for having power struggles about the things that really matter (learning how to de-escalate, improving communication skills). You also increase the odds that you and the kids are safe.

Jenny and I have been given two adjacent classrooms at our new school. We’ve decided to call them “Academic Assistance A” (“UN” for “academic work”) et “Academic Assistance B” (“B” for “behavior support”) in order to meet the spectrum of needs we anticipate. Please note that we are being careful about what we CALL the rooms; calling the rooms “behavior support” ou alors “EBD room” automatically creates a stigma and an expectation of bad behavior.

When a student is highly dysregulated, he/she will use our “theraputic” room (Academic Assistance B), which is specially designed to reduce power struggles and property damage while providing legitimate items to help the student de-escalate. We are attempting to remove as many of the “power struggle temptations” from the space as we can. Par exemple, we are disabling the “office call/panic” button for that room to avoid the student pushing it repeatedly and gaining a sense of power. We are making sure the window is permanently secured closed so the student cannot open it and wiggle through. We are making sure the expensive, built-in projector mounted to the ceiling is removed to avoid having a kid smash it. Everything will lock. There will be no “teacher desk” with tempting drawers through which to riffle (and by which to gain a feeling of power and violation against the teacher); staff will use a work table. Et (bien sûr) NO ROLLING TEACHER CHAIR!

We’re making sure there are some kinesthetic ways to burn off energy (stationary bikes…maybe a heavy bag to punch) and introspective ways (coloring in an adult coloring book).

You’ll notice (when you look down to my list) that I asked for all-in-one desks for Academic Assistance B, even though (as you read further), I’m not really a fan. There is method to this madness. I want to provide appropriate seating for kids, but nothing so comfortable that they are unmotivated to deescalate and return to their assigned classroom (the one with the nice tables and chairs). An all-in-one desk is okay for coloring or journaling, but not as desirable as the tables and chairs in the other room–that’s important.

You’ll notice an overall obsession on my part with having the “droit” type of furniture.

When a student is able to do assigned academic work, but needs a separate setting, he/she will use our non-theraputic room (Academic Assistance A). This one is set up more like a “normal” classroom, but with an increased focus on making sure supplies and personal belongings can be secured.

I’d like to take a moment to emphasize the importance of having student TABLES instead of all-in-one desks in your academic work space. Kids with sensory issues or motor skills issues find the all-in-ones really irritating when they are trying to do legitimate academic work; it’s tough to balance a laptop, a book, and a paper all on that small surface. By using tables, we can accommodates the larger boys more comfortably and can allow more ways for kids to spread out. Individual tables also allow the teacher to sit next to the student without invading his/her personal space. In my current room, I switched to tables this year; it made a world of difference. Jenny has suggested going one step further next year and asking for the heavy lab tables used in the science classrooms–less wobbling, very sturdy…and harder to flip in a fit of anger.

Another lesser-thought-of set of supplies for Academic Assistance A are health and hygiene supplies. A lot of kids will task avoid by going to the Nurse (for a bandage, a maxi pad, a hot pack, a cold pack…you get the idea). This is why I have a fridge and microwave, d'ailleurs. By stocking the classroom with these supplies, you can take away that excuse/power struggle. Après tout, you’ve met the (perceived) need, but the student has not left the room. I even like to have the Nurse walk medications (like Tylenol, Advil, cough drops) to the classroom, rather than having my kids go to her.

In case it never occurred to you, lock up and secure all supplies you aren’t using in class. Don’t leave stuff sitting out. Tout d'abord, an uncluttered space is calming. Secondly, some kids take a lot of pleasure in the “pouvoir” they can get from touching someone else’s stuff. I always keep pencils (I like the “fat ones”–harder to break and stay sharp longer), pens (Non “clicky” pens, remove the caps and put them away), notebook paper (not too much), tissues, hand lotion (a small bottle), and hand sanitizer out for communal use. The idea is to provide things that kids need in order to take away power struggles about supplies while not providing too much opportunity for shenanigans.

I’m going to include the list I’m providing to the building custodian; it’ll give you some ideas of environmental supports you may not have considered. Personally, I get better results with staff when I make my requests for August NOW. If you wait until August, custodial and administrative staff is overloaded, and will be less likely to get you what you’re asking for. Like it or not, our group is a very small percentage of the school population, and we can’t expect it to be a top priority if we procrastinate.

See below–This is a “cut and paste” of the actual Google doc I shared with folks in the new building. I’m hoping it’ll get you thinking about your EBD support room for next year!

Keys for Jenny and for me (get from administrators):

• Classroom A (107)
• Classroom B (156)
• SPED Office
• Filing cabinets
• Closets
• Built-in cabinets

First Aid and Universal Precautions supplies (get from Nurse):

• Band-aids
• Antibiotic ointment
• Maxi pads and tampons
• Latex gloves
• Safety pins
• Cold packs
• Hot packs (I have some I made myself; will bring them)
• Box of trash bags (we have a friend who poops and will need to secure the soiled clothes for parent pickup in trash bags)

Walkie talkies (from administrators):

• Sara
• Jenny
• Each paraprofessional, if possible (# TBD), but at LEAST one more walkie to be shared among staff

Ceiling-mounted projector in Academic Assistance A (room 107) (you probably already have this in place, but I like to cover my bases)

Room 107 (“Academic Assistance Room A”, for the custodian)

• 1 locking file cabinet with keys
• 2 Locking teacher desks with keys
• 2 teacher chairs (non-rolling)
• 10 student individual tables. Ideally, bon, heavy lab tables (harder to flip!)
• 12 student individual chairs
• Conference table with 6-8 chairs
• 2 study carrells
• 3 trash cans
• Daily bell schedule poster
• Doorstop (the wooden ones or plastic ones)
• Broom and dustpan
• ***install locks on all cabinets–keys for both me and Jenny
• ***install an outlet inside of a locking cabinet (it would REALLY be helpful)
• Mini fridge with freezer (mostly needing the “okay” to have it; I can provide it)
• Small microwave (mostly needing the “okay” to have it; I can provide it)

Room 156 (“Academic Assistance Room B”, for the custodian)

• Broom and dustpan
• Doorstop
• Daily bell schedule poster
• 2 trash cans
• ***install locks on all cabinets–keys for both me and Jenny
• ***secure or disable the panic button on the wall; we’ll use the walkie-talkies
• ***make sure the door between the office and 156 can’t be opened without a key from 156
• 2 stationary bikes
• Larger work table (in place of a teacher desk…we need something without any drawers in order to avoid slamming them or trying to get into them in a power struggle)
• 2 teacher chairs (not rolling chairs)
• 6 universal student desks (the kind with the big square top that are for both left- or right-handed people)
• ***secure the window so it does not open at all
• ***remove the armoire in the corner, but please leave the book shelf near the door
• ***remove ceiling-mounted projector
• ***remove blinds from window
• ***install an outlet inside of a locking cabinet (it would REALLY be helpful)