My teaching team has been making the best of a rotten situation this spring. We haven’t been able to see our students, and we are disappointed to have missed out on our end-of-year traditions. However, our new and returning peer models (cadet teachers) have never had more availability to attend training sessions! I’ll take the positives where I can find them.
We’ve managed to schedule a total of four, thirty-minute cadet training sessions via Zoom since finishing up interviews and selecting next year’s peer models. Normally, we do this work during the summer, but I figured now was as good a time as any to get started. Everyone is excited for next year, so we’ve got great momentum right now. In addition, I’m hoping this will free up time in the summer to let the cadets do more planning for lessons and activities.
Training up your peer models is an essential part of having a successful program. I didn’t really know HOW to train them up the first year I was at my current program, and the peers were sometimes broadsided by behaviors and expectations. There was frustration all around. In the three years since, I’ve gotten a better handle on what peer models need to know to walk in the door on the first day of school feeling confident and ready to be effective.
The SMSPLS Cadet Training Slideshow is a work in progress. Each year, I add and change the content based on current student needs and feedback from cadets. This is where we’re at heading into year four. In addition to what’s in these slides, our speech language pathologist conducts training specifically addressing strategies for various speech needs; I have learned a lot from her. These materials could also be helpful for training paraprofessionals or general education teachers. Check out what I’ve got, then make a copy for yourself that you can customize to fit your program’s needs. I hope I can save some of you time and effort and give you a head start on quality training materials.
What you see here took four, 30-minute sessions to cover.
Tags: peer models, cadet teachers, paraprofessionals, staff training
