Perhaps the greatest barrier to successful integration is the lack of planning and the lack of coordination with all members of the child's team.

Large caseloads and full schedules make planning difficult. We spend countless hours modifying and making materials, designing plans and supports for behavior intervention and meeting with team members, just to name and much, much more.

Paraprofessionals, with varying levels of training are often the ones who deliver instruction and do their best to make things work in the classroom. Many report feeling less empowered in the inclusion setting, because the general education teacher is in charge.

Quality collaboration is an art that requires a great deal of effort and skill. When time is limited and the planning procedures are unstructured, quality of the outcome is hindered and relationships can be strained.

Below you will find several tools that can help teams with planning choreography (who is where, when and doing what), goal to schedule matching, differentiated instruction for more than one student, inclusion planning and more.

Frequently, high-needs students are placed in a general education setting with a paraprofessional who is expected to help the child participate “on the fly.” In order for students to progress in all domains, a systematic approach must be in place for planning inclusion.

The Inclusion Planning Form is an essential tool for planning meaningful inclusion within general education activities. Each component of the curriculum or of a special activity (field trip, art project) is evaluated for adaptations for inclusion and for instructional opportunities across domains. Front-loading with this planning for classroom curriculum facilitates meaningful inclusion efficiently and systematically.