Scheduling – Tips & Tricks for the Busy SLP
I promise scheduling DOES get easier after you have been at a school for at least a year! You’ll already know which kids to group (or avoid grouping) together. And you’ll know which teachers are flexible and those who are, well, not as flexible. Here is how I go about scheduling when I’m starting at a new school.
Truth: There are SO MANY factors to consider, so there is no such thing as the perfect schedule!
Previous Schedule?
Did the previous SLP leave a copy of last year’s schedule? If so, that will be your go-to document for grouping. Either way, I always begin by pulling each student individually for a few minutes. Use this time to establish rapport. Observe and make notes about the severity of their problem as well as personality traits. Are they easy going? You can tell if a particular student will work well with others. They can even tell you who they came to speech with last year, so ask them!
How to Group Your Students
Individual vs. Group Sessions
Be sure to check every student’s IEP to find out whether group or individual sessions are indicated. Severe students should be seen individually, but make sure that is stated on the IEP before you schedule. Hint: I ask every parent to allow me the flexibility of scheduling their child for either individual or group therapy and that is indicated on the IEP. Keep that in mind as you update each IEP during the school year.
Group by Goals
Yes, this may seem obvious, but maybe not! Refer to your caseload management form discussed in the previous post. Did you make some brief notes about goals? This is where that little bit of information can be SO helpful. Now, group your students working on the /s/. Group your students working on /r/. Consider grade levels. You can reasonably group together primary grade students, but you’ll need to try out your groups before you finalize your schedule. I try to group the KG students together. Usually, there tend to be more kindergartners and that allows more possible group combinations.
Group by Class
If you are able to group by class it is can be easier to schedule. Many teachers appreciate it when you pull their kids together. It is easier for them to manage one or two pull-out times rather than several. However, it is a challenge to serve a group of students working on different sound targets as well as language goals. Most of the materials I sell on Teachers Pay Teachers are designed for mixed articulation and/or language groups. There is a reason for that! And now you know how I go about grouping kids. I go by CLASS. It can be much more challenging to construct therapy sessions, but an experienced clinician can run their caseload this way. You can learn to do it this way!
Blocking Your Times
Tools
The 3M company came out with Post-It notes just in time for the start of my career! Soon, I realized how GREAT these are when used to create a therapy schedule. I write the students’ or group names on a sticky note. Then I arrange those on a large piece of paper. That large piece of paper contains the days of the week across the top and the treatment time blocks down the left side. The beauty of using the sticky notes is that you can move them around to create your schedule.
Other tools that you can use are simple, handwritten lists. Many SLPs are also using Excel documents to create schedules, too. I have also used tables created in powerpoint to create a weekly schedule. I print those out each week. There are other options as well using Google classroom. There are many things to consider when scheduling.
Specials and Assemblies
Remember to find out about specials at your school. I have one school that has SO many specials that it makes scheduling very difficult. In general, I don’t like to pull from specials, especially music and art. We have a fabulous art teacher! In fact, she came in to teach when my (grown) sons were in elementary school. She is SO talented that I don’t want my students to miss an opportunity to experience one of her lessons. Often, our speech and language impaired kids need these right-brained activities, and I don’t want to deprive them of those experiences. We write an exclusionary statement into our IEPs that allows children to stay in the classroom for special specials, but some districts do not allow you to do that.
The other problem is assemblies. You can’t exactly walk into the auditorium when the whole student body is attending and pull kids out. That is why you need to have a school calendar. Maybe your school(s) send out a weekly bulletin that lists the upcoming events. Be sure you are on the email list for those mailings so you will know ahead of time about anything may affect your schedule. Now it’s time to get the schedule in place.
Communicating with Teachers
Memos
When I start at a new school, I put a paper notice in each teacher’s mailbox. I introduce myself and list the names of the speech students in their class. Included in this memo is a list of possible speech session times. I always ask them to circle for at least two options. Most teachers will write down any other information about their daily schedule they think you need to know.
Scheduling via Email
You can send out a memo as stated above and simply ask for them to reply with their preferences. Be prepared to send reminders! Some teachers are great about checking email, while others don’t respond. I find this method takes a lot of time, so it is not my preferred way to communicate with teachers.
Scheduling Party
Truth: I have not used this approach, but I had a colleague many years ago who loved to schedule this way. This approach works best when you already know the staff. You can send out a memo inviting all teachers to the staff room at a certain time for scheduling. Have your day divided into 25-30 minute blocks of time. Ask the teachers what they prefer. Tell them will try to accommodate their wishes, but you can’t guarantee it. You won’t make everyone happy!
A Phone Call
If the scheduling party, memo and email don’t work, then make a phone call. No answer? Leave a message! Be sure to include your extension. If you are itinerant, let the teacher know when you will be on campus next. They might want to talk in person.
Scheduling in Person
THIS is my favorite method! It works best because often there are teachers you just can’t reach via the other methods. Seek them out individually. I know you are thinking that this will take forever to accomplish, but you’ll find it is time well-spent. Meeting in person will help you gain some insight into the teacher, too. At a new school, I want to meet every teacher, so I head out the door to their classrooms.
Once you have a schedule, be sure to let the teachers know the schedule for their student(s) in writing.
Flexibility
This can be the hardest concept! Be ready to make adjustments to your schedule. Kids move to your school in the middle of the year. Kids move out in the middle of the year. I guarantee you will have to make changes occasionally. Just be sure to stay in touch with the teachers. Like one of my former colleagues once said: “The schedule is temporarily permanent!” Yep, THAT says it all!
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