Maryland Educators Share Six Tips to Implement SOLO with Creative Teaching Approaches

Getting Started with Technology—SOLO Literacy Suite

Over the course of the 2006-2007 school year, Candace, Doris and Nancy took the SOLO training from the High Incidence Technology Team (HIAT) and infused it into a variety of assistive technology classes for students with high incidence disabilities, including attention deficit disorder, speech and language impairments and specific learning disabilities.

This computer training prepared them to more effectively implement Universal Design for Learning strategies. The training was the first introduction they had to the SOLO Literacy Suite and Candace remembers thinking, “This technology offers a lot of features and supports for students, how will I be able to integrate it?” She felt a bit overwhelmed, but was ready to take the challenge if it would improve her students’ writing skills.

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Project Based Learning—Fractionville

Using SOLO with the creative teaching approaches, these innovative educators created “Fractionville”; a community of people and businesses using mathematical word problems. Students were inspired to develop the town and its commerce by using math equations to perform the daily functions of bankers, farmers, and households. This lesson helped students engage in cross-curriculum skills so they would understand how math concepts are used in daily occupations.

In order to provide background information on towns and careers for both math and social studies, they researched occupations and read about various jobs from digitized text developed by Mrs. Wray who inserted text into Read:OutLoud for their research. Initially, the students responded orally in sentences to summarize the material read.

The class made a bulletin board where they wrote a statement identifying a career and the way math was used in that job. Bankers learned to use fractions to change money. Farmers used fractions to chop produce. Map makers used fractions to section off streets. As a writing assignment, students designed postcards about Fractionville to describe job functions.

Finally, the teachers discussed the use of technology with their students and discovered ways that helped them express their thoughts more richly. Students recognized that using the technology helped them think better and read with greater comprehension.