Who am I?
Hi lovelies! My name is Kayla Craig and I am so glad you have found my blog. I am living my daily life in the world of Special Education and I can’t imagine life any other way!
Have to Hand it to the Newbie
I am currently on my third year of teaching Special Education. Such a newbie, but man have those years flown by.
Some background on me… I knew I wanted to be a Special Education teacher when I was a senior in high school. I had an amazing opportunity to volunteer in a local classroom where I worked with eight boys on the Autism Spectrum. They ignited the fire in my soul. From there, I knew I had to work with the students in this population. From there, I made sure I had every opportunity to work with students in all school settings that I could. I became a one-on-one aide in a SIP classroom, transferred to a strategies class, became a substitute teacher, and now a teacher! I attended the University of Nevada where I received my Bachelor’s in Integrated General and Special Education! Woo hoo! I have been lucky enough to have many great experiences over the years that have broadened my understanding and perspective of teaching and the students I work with.
Where am I Now?
When I tell people where I teach the common response I get is, “Middle School? You’re a brave soul!” This always makes me laugh! Middle School Resource is never where I thought I’d end up, but it has stolen my heart.
I am currently a teacher and Special Education Department Lead in Sparks, Nevada. I spend a majority of my day co-teaching English and supporting my students in the general education setting! However, I also teach my resource setting classes as well. How lucky am I to teach English ALL DAY, EVERY DAY? So lucky! To make life better – I get to roll up with my kids! Talk about knowing each of their quirks, strengths, and weakness solidly!
My Why
I know, I know.. the world of Special Education can be a scary place! But for me, it’s home. I feel that I am at my best when I am working with my students, putting the puzzle pieces together in order to help them fill their gaps. I love making my students feel like they are worth it, because they are. I want them to understand that with the right supports, they ARE capable. Our world can be a dark and scary place… school should never be the reason why.
My Hope
My hope for this blog is to show teachers that the world of special education doesn’t have to be scary. I hope to bring helpful strategies and tools to teachers who find themself struggling to manage the workload that comes with our daily grind. My hope is to help general education and special education teachers bridge those gaps and make co-teaching beneficial and not feel like such a burden. Teaching is a tough gig and one of the only ways to make it out alive is to support one another, trust one another, and work together for the benefit of our students.