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Check out our newest SiLAS User Spotlight educator!  Terry Brylawski is a 1st and 2nd grade special education teacher.  Keep reading to find out the benefits she is seeing in the classroom!

1. In what capacity do you work with children/young adults? (ex. Teacher, Administrator Counselor, Mental Health Worker, etc.) – Special Education Teacher

2. In what setting do you implement the program? (ex. General Education Classroom, Special Education Classroom, Small Group, One on One, etc.) – Special Education Classroom

3. What was your first impression of SiLAS? – I was excited to implement a social skills program that has the capacity to make it a game-like experience for them. I was impressed with the amount of skills and lessons included in the program.

4. How do your students/clients feel about SiLAS? – The students love this program. It is often the favorite part of their day. They like setting up situations in various settings and choosing their characters.

5. What component of the curriculum is your favorite?- I like the way the program is broken down into sections and there are a variety of extension activities and suggested texts to read that correspond to the skill being addressed.

6. What has been your favorite SiLAS story or experience? – My favorite experiences are when we can use the program to address a real-life situation from the class where they can make a movie showing both the real life way they handled the situation and how they would handle it next time.

7. Is there anything else you would like to share?  – Some of my students are quiet and the program has helped them gain more confidence in speaking in front of the class because they can hear their tone and expression  and have improved their ability to present in front of the group. I have seen improvement in their ability to speak in front of a group.

 

Meet Kelly Metzger, the person behind this edition of SiLAS User Spotlight. Kelly is one of our earliest users. She has been implementing our curriculum in both Tier I and Tier II settings. Below are Kelly’s thoughts on SiLAS:

My Name is Kelly Metzger, and I am the School Counselor in an Elementary K-5 building. I use SiLAS in general education classes, with small groups, and one on one.  Some of the things I use the program for are bullying, conflict mediation and behavior modification. When I was introduced to SiLAS I was very excited about the fact that it used gaming controllers because these are things that kids can relate to. The kids love the lessons, the script writing and recording. They are so proud of themselves when we view the finished video. One of my favorite stories is about a student I worked with on behavior modification. We did lessons on what the desired classroom behavior would look like. Then we wrote a script with the behavior he was exhibiting in class. We then wrote a script with the desired classroom behavior. The interesting thing about this story was that the student did not want to record the script with the problem behavior that he exhibited in class. He said it was too embarrassing! It was a quite an “aha” moment for the student and for me. I think SiLAS is a great tool and I am so thankful that I have the opportunity to use it.

What is Specifically Designed Instruction?

Specifically Designed Instruction (SDI) – SDI is the required instruction developed specifically for a student eligible for special education supports and services.

• What does SDI Actually Mean?

  • Each student eligible for special education services and supports receives assistance in order to provide the greatest opportunity for advancement in both academic and functional skills.

  • The intent of SDI is to “close the gap” between disabled and nondisabled peers.

  • Students in special education must receive both “high quality” instruction and services.

CASEL Competency: Self-Management

Effectively manage stress, control impulses, and motivate yourself to set and achieve goals.

SiLAS Self Management Lessons:

• Patience

• Goal Setting

• Power of Yet

• Growth Mindset

• Perseverance

• Coping Skills

 

Happy New Year!  To start the new year off right, we wanted to share some recent updates as well as offer helpful pointers! The points below will help make your social animations that much better!

New Backgrounds! 

SiLAS loves receiving suggestions and questions about our platform. You asked, and we listened! We added more backgrounds. SiLAS now includes the following settings; the classroom, the inside of the school bus, a restaurant and a restaurant kitchen. As always, keep the feedback coming! If you find you are having issues, reach out and we will get right on a fix.

The Keyboard!

Did you know users have the option to use the keyboard to perform the same functions as the controller? With the keyboard, users are capable of choosing two avatars when creating animations. We also surveyed a sampling of learners for their input as well. Many students already use the keyboard to play PC games like Minecraft and Fortnight.  If you believe the keyboard would improve speed and ease of the platform, click the link below to download the SiLAS Keyboard Cheat Sheet.  You can also find it in the Teacher Resources tab.  You may also want to consider starting users on the keyboard with the opportunity to “graduate” to the controllers.

https://www.silassolutions.com/images/uploads/SiLASKeyboard.pdf

Microphones!

Over the course of the last couple years we have made movies with thousands of students of all ages and abilities.  Our goal has always been to ensure recordings are of the highest visual quality and sound. We want to make recording easy and sound as good as possible for everyone.  We found using this new recording technique to be both fun and simple. Because of this, we couldn’t wait to share it with each of you! Please Click the link below to see 4 year old Spider-man record his movie with ease!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwL2L_3pMBw