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Using AI to Make Psych Reports More Parent-Friendly

Using AI to Make Psych Reports More Parent-Friendly

If you are interested in learning more about how AI tools like ChatGPT and Google Bard can assist school psychologists in creating more parent-friendly reports, then this is the blog for you. Keep reading for several strategies for making complex assessment results...

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What’s the Difference Between an IEP and a 504 Plan?

What’s the Difference Between an IEP and a 504 Plan?

School psychologists often find themselves navigating the world of special education, particularly when understanding the difference between an Individualized Education Program (IEP) and a 504 Plan. Both plans support students with disabilities but are governed by...

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Navigating Divergent Scores in Psych Assessments

Navigating Divergent Scores in Psych Assessments

As school psychologists, we often encounter divergent scores within a single processing area, leaving us with the question: What do we do next? Whether we have access to a variety of tools or are limited to just a few tests, our role remains crucial in uncovering the...

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Counseling Goals Beyond Coping Strategies?

Counseling Goals Beyond Coping Strategies?

Did you know that you can strengthen the goals you write with action verbs? Precise language matters. By using action verbs like "explain," "describe," or "demonstrate" in your goals, you ensure everyone involved (teachers, parents, future providers) can understand...

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How Parent-Friendly Are Your Present Levels?

How Parent-Friendly Are Your Present Levels?

Crafting effective Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) that genuinely benefit our students can be challenging. Whether you're wrapping up your IEPs for the year or gearing up for the next school year, check out the tip below for improving your present levels...

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Teamwork Tips Every School Psych Needs

Teamwork Tips Every School Psych Needs

Today, I'm excited to discuss an important topic for school psychologists: teamwork. Join me as I share valuable insights to enhance your team dynamics. Let's get started! Self-Reflect on Team Dynamics As school psychologists, understanding the dynamics of our teams...

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Summer Boot Camp 2024 Sneak Peak

Summer Boot Camp 2024 Sneak Peak

I'm thrilled to unveil an announcement many of you have eagerly awaited: the dates for Summer Boot Camp 2024! Get ready for an immersive two weeks of professional development designed to equip you for the challenges ahead. Comprehensive Professional Development Summer...

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Supporting Students with School Attendance Issues

Supporting Students with School Attendance Issues

School psychologists play an important role in supporting students with school attendance issues, and it's essential to be proactive and strategic in our approach. In this blog post, let’s explore three key takeaways to guide your efforts in coordinating support for...

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The Art of Explaining Results Succinctly

The Art of Explaining Results Succinctly

As school psychologists, one of our greatest responsibilities is communicating evaluation results effectively to families, students, and colleagues. It's a form of communication that requires empathy and a clear use of language. In this blog post, I'll share three key...

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Explaining Results Succinctly: Part 1

Explaining Results Succinctly: Part 1

For school psychologists, data is the bedrock of our practice. We gather information from a myriad of sources, from standardized tests to classroom observations, to paint a holistic picture of each student. But here's the thing: data alone doesn't tell the whole...

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Interviewing Tips: Part 2

Interviewing Tips: Part 2

School psychologists play a vital role in supporting student well-being and academic success. If you're looking to land a great school psych position, standing out from the crowd is a must! By using these three key strategies, you can make a good impression on the...

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Interviewing Tips: Part 1

Interviewing Tips: Part 1

Your interview is your chance to shine and show districts the knowledge and skills you have. But with so much to prepare, where do you even begin? Don't worry; we've got you covered. Here are 3 key strategies that will boost your interview confidence! Become a...

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The Vital Role of Community in School Psychology

The Vital Role of Community in School Psychology

School psychologists: you know the feeling. You navigate the complex ocean of social-emotional learning, academic struggles, and family dynamics, all while feeling strangely alone on your island. Sure, you have colleagues, but let’s face it, you are probably the only...

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Navigating the AI Landscape in School Psychology

Navigating the AI Landscape in School Psychology

In the rapidly evolving landscape in the school psych field, integrating artificial intelligence (AI) presents opportunities and challenges for school psychologists. As we eagerly await official guidelines from professional organizations, it's crucial for...

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Embracing and Celebrating Neurodiversity  

Embracing and Celebrating Neurodiversity  

This school year, we started something new! All Prepared School Psychologist members have access to our exclusive mini-courses, where members can earn CEUs or a certificate of completion for learning about specific topics related to the field of school psychology!...

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Quality Preschools and Nurturing Complex Play  

Quality Preschools and Nurturing Complex Play  

This school year, we started something new! All Prepared School Psychologist members have access to our mini-courses where members can earn CEUs or certificates of completion for learning about specific topics.  All of our courses are two hours or less (hence the...

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What is the Reason for Referral?

What is the Reason for Referral?

Welcome to our latest blog post, where we dive into the important topic of the "Reason for Referral" in special education evaluations. Today, let’s explore why understanding the exact reason for referral is essential and how it directly influences the assessment...

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Summer Boot Camp 2023 Reflection

Summer Boot Camp 2023 Reflection

Today, I want to share some insights and reflections from our recent Summer Boot Camp, an event we’ve hosted for the past four years. Summer Boot Camp spanned two weeks in July 2023 and offered daily training sessions for school psychologists. We had a great turnout,...

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3 Tips to Kick Off Your School Year

3 Tips to Kick Off Your School Year

Welcome to the 2023-2024 school year! Today, we're diving into my top three tips to kick off your school year and make it your best one yet. Whether you're already back in the swing of things or still enjoying those last moments of summer break, these strategies will...

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Am I Doing This Right?

Am I Doing This Right?

Whether you are an intern or a seasoned psychologist, we have all asked ourselves, “Am I doing this right?” Whether you’re conducting an FBA, completing a bilingual evaluation, or explaining results in a way that benefits all members of the IEP team, all school...

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Organizing Tips for Fall 2023

Organizing Tips for Fall 2023

I get a lot of questions about organization from interns, students, and seasoned psychologists alike. Now I know some of you are winding down your school year or already relaxing on the beach, but I want to share three of my favorite organization tips with you today!...

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Oral Expression Tools and Interpretive Support

Oral Expression Tools and Interpretive Support

What is Oral Expression? Students with a disability in oral expression have difficulty putting their thoughts into speech. Astudent may also have difficulty remembering a word when needed, or being able to recall theformal names of objects. These students tend to...

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Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Dysgraphia

Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Dysgraphia

Over the last couple of years, terms like dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia have been used more frequently within our school settings. How comfortable are you discussing these terms with families and staff members? Let’s discuss my go-to tips that I have found...

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Summer Preparation for Fall 2023

Summer Preparation for Fall 2023

My motto for every school year is “harmony.” Every year I work on organizing myself and determining my non-negotiables. Let’s walk into next school year knowing that your boundaries will give you peace of mind in the chaos of a school psych’s life! If you want to...

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Frustrated About Exclusionary Factors?

Frustrated About Exclusionary Factors?

Have you ever found yourself feeling frustrated about exclusionary factors? Don’t worry, you are not alone! Let’s discuss some tips about exclusionary factors related to specific learning disabilities and ease some of your frustrations! If you want to watch a replay...

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When Do I Call This an Attention Problem

When Do I Call This an Attention Problem

Many teachers and parents seem to be concerned with student attention problems. Do these concerns warrant an evaluation? If this is an attentional problem, what is the underlying cause? Let’s chat about this topic together! If you want to watch a replay of the live...

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What is Summer Boot Camp 2023?

What is Summer Boot Camp 2023?

What is Summer Boot Camp 2023? Our 4th annual Summer Boot Camp is fast approaching, and you don’t want to miss this year’s hot topics! Whether you are an intern, first-year psych, or a seasoned psychologist, we have a variety of sessions to help you prepare for the...

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3 Tips for Efficient Report Writing

3 Tips for Efficient Report Writing

Are you feeling the extra pressure of meeting deadlines and completing reports before spring break? Let’s discuss easy-to-implement tips guaranteed to make your report writing more efficient. Tip #1: The Art of Batching Tasks We all have our go-to rating scale,...

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Tips When Evaluating Traumatic Brain Injury

Tips When Evaluating Traumatic Brain Injury

Tip #1: Consult With The Experts Assessing a student who has suffered a traumatic brain injury can be a unique and complex process, especially since many of these students have never received special education. How can school psychs be more prepared to complete a...

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Synthesizing Results Across Assessors

Synthesizing Results Across Assessors

Your Assessment Tool Measures What? As school psychs, we often collaborate with special education assessors such as speech and language pathologists on a regular basis. Now imagine you receive an SLP’s report and as you glance it over, you realize you have little to...

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Explaining Eligibility at an IEP Meeting

Explaining Eligibility at an IEP Meeting

Explaining the Classification of Intellectual Disabilities = Overwhelm School psychologists play an integral role in explaining eligibility to parents. The weight of this responsibility can feel heavy on a school psych's shoulders, especially when discussing an...

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3 Student Behavior Tips

3 Student Behavior Tips

Tip #1:  Behavior Expectation Reminders Have you noticed that students struggle with behavior expectations once they return to school from winter break? Our students seem to forget classroom rules they once followed with ease! Let’s face it, our teachers are making...

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What Has Been Working For You?

What Has Been Working For You?

Ringing in the New Year with Self-Reflection It’s hard to believe 2023 is right around the corner! There is no better time like the new year to engage in self-reflection and get honest with yourself about what’s been working well in your school psych practice and what...

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My Results From Applying the Feedback Fix

My Results From Applying the Feedback Fix

The Feedback Fix Book I don't know about you, but I have a stack of unread books on my shelf. If you’re anything like me, you may have at least read the first chapter but then get distracted because let’s face it, school psychs are extremely busy! A couple of years...

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Evaluating Students for Dyslexia

Evaluating Students for Dyslexia

Evaluating Dyslexia Many times throughout the school year, school psychologists find themselves evaluating for reading disabilities and maybe even for dyslexia specifically. There seem to be many questions about the term dyslexia and whether it’s appropriate for a...

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To Report Write or Not Over the Holidays?

To Report Write or Not Over the Holidays?

Should We Work Over Holiday Breaks? This topic can bring up a lot of questions about our own balance and harmony, or whether using holiday breaks is a good time to accomplish important tasks such as report writing. Just like everything in our field, there is never a...

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5 Tips for Private School Evaluations

5 Tips for Private School Evaluations

Private School Evaluations School psychologists are asked to evaluate students for special education who attend private schools, and this situation can require different approaches than the typical evaluations we conduct through the public school system. Since we are...

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School Psych Week Giveaway

School Psych Week Giveaway

National School Psychology Week During the week of November 7th -11th 2022, school psychologists throughout the United States celebrated National School Psychology Week to highlight the important work school psychologists do to help all students thrive. As we reflect...

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Do You Need Better Boundaries?

Do You Need Better Boundaries?

Working Outside Your Regular Hours Setting boundaries can be difficult to follow as a school psych, especially when our workloads are high and we want to help children. Are you one of the many psychs that take work home with them? Are you spending evenings and...

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3 Tips When Evaluating Emotional Disturbance

3 Tips When Evaluating Emotional Disturbance

Tip #1: Understanding Internalizing Behaviors It’s a fact that school psychologists are seeing a steady climb in the number of students with anxiety and depression. Have you ever found yourself having a conversation with a teacher about a student and when the topic of...

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5 Tips When Evaluating Non-Traditional Students

5 Tips When Evaluating Non-Traditional Students

Assessing Nontraditional Students Who are nontraditional students? Nontraditional students might include those who are attending an at-home school program, an independent study program, or something similar. Since these students are not attending an actual school site...

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3 Tips When Evaluating Autism

3 Tips When Evaluating Autism

Tip #1:  Understand Your State’s Critera for Autism When school psychs are evaluating students and Autism is being considered, one tip to keep in mind is understanding your state’s eligibility criteria, regulations, or any additional requirements your state has....

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Explaining Evaluation Results Succinctly

Explaining Evaluation Results Succinctly

Psych Jargon As school psychs, we learn a lot of high-level vocabulary such as fluid reasoning, atypicality, crystallized intelligence, and psychosomatic; let’s face it, the list goes on and on! Have you ever been in an IEP meeting, and the parent asks you to explain...

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Does This Student Require Special Education?

Does This Student Require Special Education?

Benefiting From Special Education vs. Requiring Special Education You have just finished assessing a student and have found that he or she meets the eligibility criteria! Great news, right? Regardless of which eligibility category the IEP team is considering, one...

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Dyslexia in the School Setting

Dyslexia in the School Setting

Dyslexia or Lack of Appropriate Instruction? Working as a school psychologist in the middle of a pandemic created many challenges in our practice. For instance, when concerns about a student’s ability to read are brought to our attention, nowadays we begin to question...

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My Top Takeaways for Summer Bootcamp

My Top Takeaways for Summer Bootcamp

Data-Driven Decisions or Data-Informed Decisions? We recently finished our 3rd annual summer boot camp which was a two-week program, custom-designed to provide resources, learning opportunities, and professional development for school psychologists. One takeaway from...

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What to Expect During Your Internship Year

What to Expect During Your Internship Year

Your internship is here! What should you expect? Congratulations! You made it this far and you are officially a school psych intern! This is an exciting time in your journey to becoming a school psychologist. But with all the excitement comes many questions and maybe...

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More Tips to Kick Start Your School Year

More Tips to Kick Start Your School Year

For many of you, the 2022-2023 school year has already begun! Let’s talk about three additional tips to help kick start your school year and help you become a more prepared school psychologist. We will take a closer look at how school psychs can combat challenging...

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What to Expect in Your First Year

What to Expect in Your First Year

Congrats on Graduating, School Psych... Now What? Congratulations, you made it! Give yourself a round of applause! Now that you are a full-fledged school psychologist, questions may start to swirl in your mind, “what should I expect during my first year?” Keep reading...

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2 Tips to Kick Off the School Year

2 Tips to Kick Off the School Year

Summer break is quickly coming to a close, and another school year is about to begin! Let's discuss two tips to help you become a more prepared school psychologist. I get a lot of questions when I talk to interns, psychs starting their first or second year, or even...

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Math Calculations

Math Calculations

Math calculations describe one’s ability to count, group objects, and compute a wide range of mathematical facts and operations.  Understanding numbers, basic facts, and operations is a skill that begins to develop in children as young as 1 year old. As children...

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Reading Decoding

Reading Decoding

Reading decoding is the key to recognizing known words, then using that knowledge of familiar letters and sounds to quickly determine what new words say, when seeing them for the first time. It is an important indicator for diagnosing dyslexia, as people with dyslexia...

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Welcome to My Blog Site!

Here, you'll find a wealth of insights and resources on school psychology! Join me as I explore practical strategies, share expert advice, and discuss the latest research to support students' growth and success. Whether you're a fellow school psychologist, school psych student, educator, director, or parent, there's something here for everyone committed to fostering the learning and development of our students.



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