Peer Support Strategies for Improving All Students' Social Lives and Learning

Peer supports really work: they're a great, efficient way to help all students learn, make the most of teacher/ paraprofessional time, and increase the achievement level of challenging students. This is the concise, practical guide every middle and high school needs to implement peer support strategies—including cooperative learning and peer tutoring—to benefit students with moderate to severe disabilities and their peers.With this reader-friendly, step-by-step planning guide from the foremost authorities on peer supports, educators, paraprofessionals, and other school staff willdiscover how peer supports are a "two-way street," boosting the academic outcomes, social skills, and self-esteem of students with disabilities and the peers who support themdetermine which students might benefit most from peer supportsrecruit and match the students most likely to form mutually beneficial relationshipsdevelop effective support plans that promote access to the general curriculum work peer supports into IEP goals to meet state and national academic standardsgive students the training and guidance they need to approach their support roles with confidence and enthusiasmclarify the responsibilities of everyone involved in a peer support system: students, general and special educators, paraprofessionals and other school staffprovide peers with constructive ongoing feedbackextend peer supports to school activities and extracurricular eventsevaluate the social and academic impact of peer support arrangements A complete, start-to-finish guide to peer supports, this book is packed with photocopiable planning, implementation, and evaluation tools; evidence-based strategies; and vignettes that illustrate successful peer supports.With this must-have book on one of the hottest topics in inclusive education, educators and paraprofessionals will create schools where all students—with and without disabilities—help each other reach their academic goals, make new friends, and live full and meaningful lives. Read more