From fostering peer relationships to offering personalized academic support, Special Education Aides play a critical role in student growth—both socially and academically. In our latest blog, we explore how small group interactions, social independence, and the power of differentiation (think accommodations vs. modifications) help create a stronger learning environment for students with IEPs.

Special Education Aides, also known as paraprofessionals, are an important part of any classroom. The role of a SpEd aide is to provide academic, behavioral, and social support to students. Some students need 1:1 support to make their classroom time enjoyable, successful, and safe. SpEd Aides need to be prepared to adapt to a wide variety of circumstances. Let’s discuss some strategies that SpEd Aides can use to support their students. 

<o>One role of a SpEd Aide that can help improve student behavior is to make the invisible, visible. What does this mean? Most rules and standards of student behavior go unspoken. Some students struggle to pick up norms and cues that other students do with ease. Adoption of classroom rules can be hard for students who don’t pick up on cues easily. The role of a SpEd Aide is to help guide students through classroom norms and help them to adopt these unspoken rules. One strategy to do this is by modeling correct behavior. You can show the student what they are supposed to be doing by doing it with them. For example, if the rule is that desk space needs to be tidy before lunch, guide the student through tidying their space by tidying your own. By showing the student what they need to do, they are prompted to make the correct choice. </o>

Another role of a SpEd Aide is to help students build their social skills by working on relationships with others, especially other students. One of the things students might struggle with is building relationships with their peers. One way to encourage this is to lead small group time. By providing organized time for students to work together, you are also providing a low stakes opportunity for your student to build their social skills. The students can help each other academically while also providing social time. It’s important to recognize when to step out of the way and let the student work with their peers. Sometimes, it's good to let the student figure out what to do and how to interact with others. Allowing them this independence will help them grow their skill and confidence in social situations. 


The final area of growth for some students is academic support. The key concept for supporting students' academic needs is differentiation. Differentiation means adjusting learning experiences to meet student needs. There are two different main ways to differentiate a student's school work to make it more doable for them - accommodation and modification. Accommodations are providing support with not changing the content that the student is learning. Modifications adjust the material or content that the student is being taught or tested on. Accommodations and modifications are often laid out in the student’s IEP. Let’s go over some of the common types of accommodations and modifications!


<h3>Accommodations</h3>
<ul>
 <li>Setting: small groups, preferential seating, and limiting distractions</li>

 <li>Presentation: Chunking alike material, highlighting key concepts</li>

 <li>Scheduling: Breaks, use of timers, providing a visual schedule, and creating a daily checklist</li>

 <li> Response Mode: allowing extended time on assignments
 </li>
</ul>

<h2>Modifications</h2>
<ul>
 <li>Adjusting Content: learning less content and being tested on less content</li>

 <li> Revision Opportunities: students get multiple opportunities to do assignments and tests
 </li>
</ul>


All of these are things that might make school more manageable for some students. Some students might be a social butterfly but struggle with the academic aspects of school. Others might complete any assignment put in front of them but struggle to understand what the classroom rules and and when to follow them. The role of a special education aide is expansive but implementing strategies like these can help improve the student’s school experience. 


<a href="https://www.crosscountry.com/jobs/results?term=&&xTerm=&&jobType=&&profession=&&specialty=&&msp=&&shiftTypes=&&shiftLengths=&&durations=&&salaryMax=&&tags=noTags&&sort=relevant&&view=list&&offset=1&&size=9&&companyId=3&&location=&&geoLocationRadius=100&&industry=Education&&schedule=&&page=education?utm_source=Website&&utm_campaign=Blog" target="_blank">Interested in exploring a careere as a Special Education Aide? </a>



<h3> References</h3>

10+ strategies. Learning for All. (n.d.). <a href="https://www.learningforallab.ca/educational-assistants/10-strategies/" target="_blank">https://www.learningforallab.ca/educational-assistants/10-strategies/</a>

Differentiated instruction. Center for Teaching and Learning. (n.d.). <a href="https://ctl.stanford.edu/differentiated-instruction" target="_blank">https://ctl.stanford.edu/differentiated-instruction</a>

Institute of Teacher Aide Courses (ITAC). (n.d.). Education Support Resources. What do teacher aides do? <a href="https://www.itac.edu.au/resources/what-do-teachers-aides-do" target="_blank">https://www.itac.edu.au/resources/what-do-teachers-aides-do</a>

Ozarowski, E. (2025, March 30). The 2 sides of improving special educator-paraprofessional collaboration. Frontline Education. <a href="https://www.frontlineeducation.com/blog/special-educator-paraprofessional-collaboration/" target="_blank">https://www.frontlineeducation.com/blog/special-educator-paraprofessional-collaboration/</a>

Professional Development Institute-K-12 Teacher Online Training. (2021, July 29). 6 differentiation strategies for students with special needs. LinkedIn. <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/6-differentiation-strategies-students" target="_blank">https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/6-differentiation-strategies-students</a>-

Supporting Every Student: Key Strategies for Special Education Aides

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