My name is Rachel Marshall and I graduated in 2015 and started working for Central Dauphin School District in an Autism Support Classroom in August 2015. I took over the class that I did my student teaching in, which was a huge blessing! I am currently in my eighth year teaching and this is my second year at Linglestown Middle School. I even have some of the students that I used to teach in elementary school again now that they are in middle school, which has been really special to work with them and their families again. My classroom has students that communicate vocally, or using sign language, or with communication devices. We focus heavily on language instruction and skills needed for life post-graduation.
One piece of advice would be to create a strong team! Whether that is your grade level, content specific, or special education team- you all need to communicate clearly and develop trust amongst each other so you can lean on one another during the challenges and celebrate the victories!