TRAINER NOTES FOR LESSON PLAN School Bus Instructor s Inservice

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1 TRAINER NOTES FOR LESSON PLAN School Bus Instructor s Inservice TITLE OF LESSON: TRAINING SCHOOL BUS MONITORS Length of Lesson: 30 minutes TRAINER NOTES: Hand out lesson plan at the beginning. Explain the following and reinforce throughout the lesson: The person, who is on the bus, helping the school bus driver with the students, comes under many different names: Monitor, Para Educator, Para Professionals and others. The lesson plan will use Monitor to describe this. Use the name your district uses when developing the training. This lesson plan is only a guide to help develop your district s monitor training course. Use your district s policies and procedures to make the training specific to how your monitors are utilized. Ask the group who has monitor training and ask them to feel free to add anything as the lesson progresses. A special thank you to Michele Drorbaugh, Head Start Supervisor, Seattle School District for the use of their training program as a guide for this lesson plan.

2 School Bus Instructors Inservice TITLE OF LESSON: TRAINING SCHOOL BUS MONITORS Objectives of Lesson: At the end of this lesson, the instructor will be able to: Discuss what you have to do when developing a training program for your district. Equipment for Lesson: Lap Top LCD Projector and Screen Trainer Note: Emphasize throughout the lesson that this is only a guide. They will need to expand and clarify the information that is presented here. Reinforce that information needs to clearly state what the responsibility of the monitors are and when they are support for the school bus driver. Introduction: Slide1 School bus monitors are an important part of our transportation team. They play many roles on our buses; they are required on Head Start routes, they can be a part of a special needs student s IEP, or be an assistant with student management issues. To be effective, they need many skills to be a successful partner with the school bus driver. This lesson will discuss Monitor Roles and Responsibilities, Emergency Preparations, Student Load and Unload, Children with Special Needs, and Student Management to use with federal, state and your local school district policies and procedures to help develop a training program for the monitors in your district. It will be important to clearly define what the responsibilities of the bus driver and monitor are and that teamwork is essential on the bus. Presentation: I. Monitor Roles and Responsibilities Slide 2 It is important in any training to clearly define what the expectations of the job are. When you develop this section, the monitor needs to have much of Lesson Plan 1 Training School Bus Monitors

3 the same knowledge that the school bus driver has to perform their tasks safely, within federal, state and local rules. 1. Four Key Monitor Responsibilities: a. Safety. b. Communication. c. Reliability. d. Professionalism. 2. Bus Driver and Monitor Team Work: a. Treat each other with courtesy and respect. b. Discuss differences of opinion privately. c. Never gossip. d. Don t ask for personal favors or special treatment. e. Communicate to set expectations. f. Safety first. 3. Physical Demands of the Job: a. Stamina and ability needed to go up and down the bus steps. b. Manual dexterity to open the passenger door or emergency exit. c. Physical strength to assist disabled students with seating, wheelchairs, or help evacuate the bus in an emergency. d. Good vision and hearing necessary to escort students on or off the bus in traffic. e. An ability to resist illnesses. f. Protect yourself from injury when lifting by having good footing, lift with your legs and don t twist. 4. Monitor s Roles in Pre-trip/Post-trip and Child-check Inspections: a. Monitors may assist drivers during pre-trip by checking lights or emergency buzzers, but the bus driver is ultimately responsible for inspection. b. Monitor should never sit in the driver s seat. c. Both the driver and monitor should be responsible for checking the bus for any students at the end of each run. 5. Federal and State Laws and Local Policies: a. WAC School Bus Operation Rules. b. CFR 1310 Final Rule Requiring Transportation for Head Start. c. District policies and procedures Lesson Plan 2 Training School Bus Monitors

4 II. Emergency Preparation Slide 3 Just as the school bus driver needs to know what to do in an emergency, the monitor needs to be able to handle an emergency if the bus driver is injured. Teamwork in an emergency situation will help everyone stay calm and secure. 1. Types of Emergencies: a. Collisions. b. Fires. c. Breakdowns. d. Electrical lines on the bus. e. Immersions. f. Disabled driver. 2. Know your Bus: a. How to stop and secure the bus. b. Operation of the radio. c. Activating the 4-way flashers. d. Setting out the triangle reflector. e. Using the seatbelt cutter. f. Using the emergency windows and roof hatches. g. Know where the first aid kit, body fluid kit, and fire extinguisher is and how to use them. 3. Evacuation Procedures and Bus Safety Drills: a. Decide when to evacuate. b. Determine the best exit. c. Sit and slide. d. Accounting for the students. e. Create an evacuation plan with the driver. f. Actual bus safety drills are held on school grounds two times a year (three for Head Start or for districts with trimesters). 4. Universal Precautions: a. Wear protective gloves when dealing with any body fluids. b. Wash hands with soap and water after any exposure Lesson Plan 3 Training School Bus Monitors

5 5. Quick response to a Health Emergency: a. Seizures. b. Diabetes. c. Asthma. d. Severe allergic reactions. e. Specific needs of students your bus. f. Know when to call 911. III. Student Loading and Unloading Slide 4 Loading and unloading is the most dangerous time for the student because of the many distractions and hazards. Knowing proper procedures and assisting the bus driver to eliminate some of the distractions will help keep our students safe. 1. Importance of Loading and Unloading Safely: a. Establish safe stops. b. Reinforce safe loading and unloading rules with the students. 2. Loading and Unloading Procedures for Ambulatory Children: a. Wait at the bus stop safely. b. Get off the bus and cross the street. c. Holding hands of young students. d. Double check for students in the danger zone. 3. Wheelchair Lift Use and Securement : a. Learn how to use the wheelchair lift on the bus. b. Learn how to secure wheelchairs properly. 4. Working together as a Team: a. Communicate to agree on responsibilities. b. Secure or release seatbelts or safety vests. c. Communicate with teacher about student problems or successes. d. Giving directions to the students explaining when to get out of their seats. IV. Children with Special Needs Slide 5 Providing the monitor with instruction on special needs will help these students be secure and successful on the school bus. As the monitor is assigned to a student or bus, they can have more training on the specific disability that student(s) may have Lesson Plan 4 Training School Bus Monitors

6 1. Key Concepts in Special Education: a. IDEA: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. b. IEP: Individualized Education Plan. c. IEP Committee. d. LRE: Inclusion, Least Restrictive Environment, mainstreaming. e. BIP: Behavior Intervention Plan. 2. Basic Disabilities: a. Autism. b. Deaf or visually impaired. c. Learning disabilities. d. Mental disabilities. b. Speech or language impaired. c. Traumatic brain injury. 3. Confidentiality: a. Privacy of student s disabilities. b. Privacy of student behavior. 4. Sensitivity a. Learn how to communicate with each student s disability. b. Be patient. b. Respect a student s privacy and feelings when securing a seat belt or a wheelchair. c. Allow the student to do as much as possible. d. Use appropriate touching: What would the reasonable and prudent person do under the same occupational responsibility and circumstance? 5. Child Safety Restraint Systems: a. Car seats. b. Star seats. c. Integrated seats. b. Safety vests. c. Lap belts Lesson Plan 5 Training School Bus Monitors

7 V. Student Management Slide 6 Student management is an important tool for the monitor to have. They are able to interact with students closely and can be a significant part in stopping problems before they escalate. 1. Positive Interventions: a. Preventing behavior problems is better than reacting to them. b. Positive approach works best with children. 2. Negative and Positive Behaviors: a. Negative: 1) Being confrontational. 2) Being sarcastic. 3) Arguing. 4) Yelling. b. Positive: 1) Confident and effective. 2) Creates a positive environment. 3) Takes pride in personal appearance. 4) Keeps a clean bus. 5) Does not take students comments personally. 3. Managing Student Behaviors: a. Learn names. b. Greet in the morning and say goodbye in the afternoon. c. Be conscious of body and eye language. d. Give positive feedback. e. Be polite. f. Give mature commands and eliminate I and Me. g. Explain the consequences of misbehaving. h. Give warnings and keep documentation. i. Match the consequence to the behavior and be consistent. j. Give positive rewards for good behavior. k. Apply effective discipline. 1) Make initial contact by noticing. 2) Ask open ended questions. 3) Use quick, unthreatening interventions. 4) Interrupt behavior that is just beginning Lesson Plan 6 Training School Bus Monitors

8 5) Control group behavior. 6) Broken record method of halting arguments. 4. Preventing Bullying, Harassment and Violence on the Bus: a. Make your bus a Bully Free Zone. b. Verbal harassment. c. Visual harassment. d. Physical harassment. 5. Reporting Suspected Child Abuse and/or Neglect: a. Know the signs of potential child abuse or neglect. b. Document and report it to the appropriate school personnel. c. Follow your district procedure. 6. Developing Positive Relations with Parents and Staff: a. Introduce yourself to parents. b. Be friendly and professional. c. Share good news about their children, not just bad. d. Avoid losing your temper. e. Establish a rapport with teachers. f. Work as a team to develop tips for dealing with problem students. g. Notify teachers early to prevent minor problems from becoming serious. h. Document problems and consequences. 7. Incident Reports/Referrals: a. Document to communicate with the school continued misbehavior. b. Write up exactly what the student said or did. c. Avoid write ups for small infractions. d. Be consistent. e. Follow your district procedures. Summary: Slide 7 The school bus monitor is an important partner with the school bus driver. An effective training program will give the monitor the skills to feel confident in that role. Recommended topics include Monitor Roles and Responsibilities, Emergency Preparations, Student Load and Unload, Children with Special Needs, and Student Management. You will need to use your district policies, state and federal rules, school bus and classroom Lesson Plan 7 Training School Bus Monitors

9 procedures to develop the suggested topics to build your own Monitor Training Program. Final Discussion: Slide 8 Discuss what you have to do when developing a training program for your district. Prompting questions: 1. How are monitors used in your school district? 2. What would you emphasize in your training? 3. Do your monitors secure the students in their seat? 4. Does the monitor write student discipline notices? 5. Does anyone have suggestions of any person or organization that could be added to the resource list? Lesson Plan 8 Training School Bus Monitors

10 School Bus Instructors Inservice TRAINING SCHOOL BUS MONITORS RESOURCES OSPI Web site: Student Transportation Web site: Click on the link, State/Federal Regulations State Regulations: Chapter WAC School Bus Driver Qualifications Chapter WAC Transportation Operation Rules RCW Motor Vehicle Regulations School Bus Instructor Training Course Manual Code of Federal Regulations: 45 CFR Part 1304 Program Performance Standards for the Operation of Head Start. 45 CFR Part Education and early childhood development. Subpart C Family and Community Partnerships. 45 CFR Part 1310 Final Rule Requiring Transportation for Head Start. Subpart B Transportation Requirements Driver and bus monitor training. 45CFR 1380 Head Start Program performance standards on services for children with disabilities Other sources: Special Needs Department First Aid Instructor Neighboring Districts Instruction manuals for car seats, booster seats and safety vests Reference material for the wheelchair tie downs Many State Education Web sites have training programs available Lesson Plan Training School Bus Monitors H-1