MAKING APPPROPRIATE
MODIFICATIONS
Using Unique to meet the
needs of your students
First things First...
 Get trained.
 You can’t get a license until you have the training.
 Remaining Training dates:
Sept. 9, 10, and 20
 http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/uniquelearning.
Follow a timeline...
Determine at your school when and how to begin
implementation:
1. Set a date to:
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Complete profiles on your students.
Familiarize yourself with the curriculum
Decide which sections/lessons are appropriate for your students
Plan following month.
2. Make a decision about how you will use the Monthly
Checkpoint (pre-post) or the Early Emerging Literacy
Rubric (if Level 1)
To get started,
you should...
 Download the entire month
Then …
 Review and only print materials that are
appropriate for your level of students.
 Fill out students profiles
What the profile will show you.....
ULS Levels of Performance
Level 1
 Students require maximum support with instructional tasks.
 Lessons will need the most modifications, accommodations
 Students may show only minimal, if any, progress on the
Monthly Checkpoint
 Some progress can be documented by printing out and using the
‘Early Emerging Literacy Rubric’ and updating it in the student’s
portfolio
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Possible statement to add to ULS Profile as a comment:
‘Academic Achievement will be shown on Early Emerging Literacy Rubric, which
will be updated as appropriate and kept in the student’s portfolio.
Level 2
 Lessons may need picture/symbol support or other direct
support for learning and demonstration of
comprehension.
Level 3
 Students are typically learning to read text.
 Students can produce simple writing.
 Students will perform basic math processes.
 Students can independently demonstrate comprehension
of the modified Lesson information.
What the curriculum provides:
Unit Outline
Instructional Targets:
Sight Words
Leveled 1 Readers
Leveled 2 Readers
Leveled 3 Readers
Text with Symbolstix
Communication BoardsVisual supports to answer
comprehension questions
Level 1
Comprehension Questions
Level 2 Comprehension
Questions
Level 3 Comprehension
Questions
Life Skills
Application Activities
Assess and record results
Helpful Hints...
• ULS lessons are posted a month in advance so you have plenty of
time to review, modify and adapt for your students.
• For material durability and usefulness, you may consider laminating
and binding the books, comprehension question activities and life
skills application direction cards.
• You may need to enlarge some of the visuals or use a smart board
or other technology enhancer for …..
• Para-professionals can help do the monthly checkpoint (pre-post).
It isn’t a standardized assessment.
• Share materials/ideas within your grade level groups.
• If you want to keep the lessons for future use, create a ULS folder
and save them to your PC desktop or personal thumb drive
Things to remember...
 ULS is the ‘core curriculum’ for SLA (Supported), PLA
(Participatory) and CSS (Autistic) learners .
 It doesn’t replace other appropriate classroom
curriculums or programs like:
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Everyday Counts Calendar Math
Number Worlds
Meville to Weville
PCI Reading or Environmental Print Series
Reading Mastery, Language for Learning
Scott Foresman Science
MOVE
Every Move Counts
Teach the curriculum with FIDELITY… Don’t skip around!
 Use lessons designed for each month.
 Use appropriate grade level materials
 Provide appropriate modifications and accommodations for
your students to learn best
WHY a “Core” Curriculum?
 To provide consistency of instructional content between
classrooms and schools across the district
 To provide continuity for students who may move
from school to school within the district.
 So teachers can share and support each other
in the training and implementation of the lessons
Be sure to…
 Preserve your prepared materials in a safe location for
future use (create a file box or kit)
 Keep a log of ways to improve the lesson next time
 Collect manipulatives or other materials that would add
to the effectiveness of the lesson and student
comprehension