Subbing- Feb 8th- Sped Para

Today was my first day at the high school, and I was once again a 1-on-1 para.

This was interesting because I was with the self contained special education class and I was working with some siblings that couldn’t be in the same room with each other. First I worked with the sister, I took her to Gym and helped her with Math. In gym she had a student that worked with her, encouraging her to do the activities. After gym was seminar. The sped students were allowed to read some picture books or just sit and relax. The male sibling was halfway across the gym from us, but he seemed to just go off. He banged his head against the wall and broke his glasses for no apparent reason. The student helper and I had to distract the female student so that she would not be sucked into the tantrum. This is when I first discovered how important it was to keep these siblings apart. In math I jest helped the student by encouraging her to do her computer work and then selecting coins for her to add. She was very touchy feely today and she would give my big tight hugs.

I also got to work with some of the other students while they were in reading class. They each had a list of spelling words to work on and I helped one student by quizzing her on her words and having her use the words in sentences.

Next the class had their weekly field trip to the community center to work out on the gym equipment.  I rode the bus with a girl that I had not previously worked with. The bus driver put in an Anastasia cd and this girl started singing. I new the words to the song and quietly sang with her. When we got to the community center the student thanked me for singing with her and said she had a great time singing with me. That had to be the most rewarding part of my day.

At the community center, I was paired with the male sibling. I was to make sure that he stayed on the treadmill and then helped him with some weights. After the weights we needed to leave. I had put my coat down against the wall, so I told him to wait for a moment while I got my coat. There was another para standing there, but while I was getting my coat, he ran into a weight. It wasn’t a big deal but I felt bad for not paying attention, and something more serous could have happened. This showed me the amount of concentration the people who work with these students have to have. They have to pay attention to every thing the student does because they are not necessarily responsible for themselves. On the way back to the school there was a radio call for security to come to a room immediately, the Sped teachers were joking that for once it wasn’t for them. After this day I have a whole new respect for special education teachers. In my district the para subs get paid less than a regular sub, but I find that while they are responsible for only one student, they seem to be responsible for a lot more than just that student, I think that para subs should get paid the same as a regular sub, if not more.