SPED 6334 Summer 2020

1. W E L C O M E T O
INSPIRE
ACADEMYW H E R E A S T U D E N T ’ S C H O I C E A N D V O I C E M A T T E R S
A L E X A N D R A B U I S H

2. MISSION
STATEMENT
Here at Inspire
Academy we strive to
individualize each
student’s learning
experience. We utilize a
Universal Design for
Learning (UDL) in all of
our classrooms. Every
student’s success is our
top priority at Inspire
Academy.

3. WHAT IS UNIVERSAL
DESIGN FOR
LEARNING?
• Universal Design for Learning (UDL) focuses
on three networks of the brain: affective,
recognition and strategic. Our teachers
utilize all three of these networks in their
classrooms.
• Affective- this is the why of learning. It
helps us understand how to stimulate
interest for the students and keep them
motivated to learn.
• Recognition- this is the what of learning. It
will help us determine how to present
information to our students in a variety of
ways.
• Strategic- this is the how of learning. For
this network, we are able to differentiate
how students express the knowledge they
posses.
Universal Design for Learning is “the design and
delivery of curriculum and instruction to meet the
needs of all learners by providing them choices for
what they are learning, why they are learning, and
how they will share what they have learned”.
Wendy W. Murawski; Kathy Lynn Scott. What Really Works With Universal
Design for Learning (p. 2). SAGE Publications. Kindle Edition.

4. STRUCTURE OF
INSPIRE ACADEMY
• Inspire Academy is structured around the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that all of our students,
teachers and guests have complete access to the school.
– This includes: ramps at all entry ways, handicapped
parking, handicapped school buses for all of our
students, an elevator to get from the first floor to the
second floor, drinking fountains that are wheelchair
accessible as well as bathrooms with wheel chair
accessibility.
• There are two stories to Inspire Academy and a separate
hallway for each grade level. This is to ensure that
transitions are short and easy for all of the students.

5. STRUCTURE OF
INSPIRE
ACADEMY
I N S P I R E A C A D E M Y H A S A T E C H N O L O G Y R O O M , A
S E N S O R Y R O O M F O R W H E N O U R S T U D E N T S N E E D
S E N S O R Y T I M E , A L I B R A R Y, A N O U T D O O R A N D
I N D O O R G Y M A N D A N O U T S I D E P L AY G R O U N D.

6. CLASSES AT
INSPIRE ACADEMY
• Classrooms are organized based on grade
levels
• Teacher to student ratio is 1:10 In the special
education classrooms, the teacher to student
ratio is1:7 with 1 paraprofessional in each
classroom. Co-teaching is implemented
between general education teachers and
special education teachers.
• Students are able to choose how they sit at
their desk. Their options are a traditional chair,
a bouncy ball, a wobble chair, a crate with a
pillow on it or a bean bag.
• Students attend school M-TH, 8:00 AM-3:00
PM. On Friday students have a half day (8:00
AM-11:30 AM) in order for teachers to lesson
plan the other half of Friday.

7. • Principal
• Vice Principal
• Athletic Director
• General Education Teachers
• Counselors (3)
• Special Education Teachers
• Speech Therapist (2)
• BCBA (3)
• School Nurse
• Maintenance
• Cook
• Paraprofessionals
• Encumbrance Clerk
• Reading Specialist
• Library Specialist
• Physical Therapist
• Custodians
• Administrative Assistant
• Computer Technician
PERSONNEL

8. INSTRUCTION
• Inspire Academy uses the Universal Design for
Learning (UDL) in all of our classrooms. Our
educators have been thoroughly trained in UDL,
how they can apply this to their students and
given the liberty to make decisions based on the
best interest of their students. UDL drives the
decisions our teachers make in the following
ways:
– WHAT of UDL:
• Managed by recognition network
• Teachers are allowed to present the
information in a variety of ways (audios,
visuals, digital copies, print copies, offer
instructions in the student’s first language,
simplify the information, etc.)

9. INSTRUCTION
– WHY of UDL
• All of our teachers aim to foster collaboration and
communication between them and their students
• They use a variety of demands and resources in order
to challenge their students every day
• Teachers accomplish this by allowing students to work
together, provide varying assignments so students can
pick which interests them and by minimizing
distractions/threats.
– HOW of UDL
• Teachers provide multiple means of action and
expression to allow students to demonstrate what they
have learned in various ways.
• Students are still able to meet the goals set by the
teacher but in a way that makes sense to them

10. GENERAL CURRICULUM
• Inspire Academy follows the
Texas Essential Knowledge
and Skills (TEKS) standards
• On Fridays, teachers are
grouped together based on
the grade level they teach.
Teachers collaborate together
on lesson plans and share
information about their
mutual students. This ensures
that all teachers are on the
same page and understand
how a student learns best.
• Each student have a file that
details their learning style
gets passed to each of their
teachers every year

11. TECHNOLOGY
• Teachers use Dragon Naturally
Speaking, iMovie, Google Read &
Write to enable students to
demonstrate their knowledge in a
variety of ways that the student gets to
choose.
• Each teacher has their own laptop in
their classroom, a SMART board, a
projector, laminator and printer to have
access to everything they need to
make materials.
• Each student is assigned an iPad at the
beginning of the school year that is
theirs for the rest of the school year.
The iPads come equipped with all the
applications students will need
throughout the school year.

12. ASSESSMENT
• Assessments are top priority at
Inspire Academy
• Assessments are administered
in a formal and informal way
• Teachers assess students
progress weekly by engaging
in games, using apps on the
iPad to quiz them and letting
students vote on a game at the
end of the week to play
• At the end of the grading
period, teachers assess
students knowledge again to
ensure the students have
maintained what they learned
• Students are able to choose
which format they
demonstrate their knowledge
in

13. REFERENCES
Murawski, W. W., & Scott, K. L. (2019). What really works with universal design for
learning. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Rose, D. H., Meyer, A., Strangman, N., & Rappolt, G. (2002). Teaching every student in the
digital age: Universal design for learning. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision
and Curriculum Development.