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New Teacher Training

Version 2.0

August 15, 2024

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Security

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Please do not use any AI application, like Otter.ai or Fireflies.ai, in our meetings. They are a security risk. We're sorry, but we will remove attendees who use them.

If you see any links in the chat from the AI please do not click the link.

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If you wish to turn on closed caption click the “cc” button at the bottom of your screen. This will enable closed captions for you only.

Enabling closed caption

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Youtube also has a closed caption option that you can turn on when viewing the recording.

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Format

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Today’s presentation will be recorded. Please put any questions you have in the chat during this time.

When the presentation is complete, we will stop recording to address any questions and open the session for discussion on today’s content.

The recording will be posted on https://spedforms.com/support/

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Recording starts now

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New Teacher Training

Version 2.0

August 15, 2024

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Welcome to SpEd Forms 2.0!

  • SpEd Forms’ user interface has been updated.
  • Previous 1.0 users will notice differences in how SpEd Forms 2.0 looks and navigates.
  • Version 2.0 functions like version 1.0 – only better!

SpEd Forms 2.0

versus

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Login

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Log in the same way you have in the past.

Your District SpEd Forms Site

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Login (2)

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Important note: Just like 1.0, never log in to SpEd Forms twice simultaneously using two browser windows or two different devices. You risk losing your work- or your coworker’s!

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Make the switch to 2.0!

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Step 1

Step 2

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Choose SpEd Forms 2.0 and Save

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You will get used to 2.0!

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If you must return to 1.0…

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Profile

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Select Educator setup (gear icon)

Access Educator setup to customize SpEd Forms for your use by selecting Educator setup, found in the “hamburger” menu.

Notice that the task or page you have open turns blue in the “hamburger” menu.

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Educator Setup: Profile

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*The red text beneath the menu displays your level of permissions within SpEd Forms.

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Profile

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  • From this screen you can edit your profile and add additional information
  • It is important that your profile information is 100% current and complete.

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Choose settings

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Profile: Email address

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Your email address must be correct.

If you forget your password, a link to reset it will be sent to this email address.

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Profile: Contact information

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Enter your school phone number and school address.

These will be displayed as your contact information on various forms you send to parents.

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Profile: Change Your Password

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Please note: Passwords must be at least 8 characters and contain at least one number, one capital letter, one lowercase letter, and one special character. �Your password cannot contain the following: first name, last name, user name, district ID, school ID, district name or school name.

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Profile: Miscellaneous

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SpEd Forms recommends...

  • be cautious when changing the “Print Font Size”
  • choose your “Default landing page”
  • you keep hamburger menu open unless using small devices.
  • you “Hide provider name” if you do not provide IEP services to students (i.e., administrators, secretary, etc.).

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Team Member List

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Educator setup: Team member list

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  • Team member list allows you to efficiently enter team members onto future student forms with a click.
  • No need to retype names.
  • Extremely handy if there are names that are difficult to spell! (Gen. Ed teachers that aren’t in SpEd Forms, too.)
  • Add interagency colleagues who aren’t district employees:
    • Head Start
    • Public or Mental Health
    • Social Services

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Create Your Team Member List

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There are two ways to add team members to your list:

    • Type the information into the text fields, or
    • Click on the “Person” icon to select an Educator already stored in SpEd Forms.

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Create Your Team Member List (2)

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  • From the pop-up window, find the name of the person you wish to add to your Team Member List.
  • Click a name to add that person to your Team Member List.

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Edit Team Member List

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To edit an existing team member:

    • Make changes to any of the existing values as needed.
    • Changes to the team member(s) will be saved when the “Save” button is clicked.

To remove an existing team member:

    • Put a check in the (Remove) checkbox next to the team member(s) you wish to remove.
    • The team member(s) will be removed when the “Save” button is clicked.

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Eval/assessment tools

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Educator setup: Eval/assessment tools

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Eval/assessment tools in Educator setup stores the names of tests/procedures, and a brief description of each.

Stored tools are quickly entered into Evaluation/ Reevaluation Notices. No need to retype the information.

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Eval/assessment tools

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SpEd Forms has default evaluation/assessment tool for everyone’s use in the ER.

Districts may add evaluation and assessment tools for district-wide use in the PWN

To add your custom materials that are available only for you:

  1. Select the appropriate Evaluation Area and Evaluator from the drop down menus or select from the SpEd Forms’ list of available tests
  2. Enter the name and a brief description of your custom material. Save.

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Example

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SpEd Forms

Basics

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Accessibility

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SpEd Forms may be accessed anywhere there is internet available.

SpEd Forms works on the following devices:

    • Windows desktop and laptop computers
    • Mac desktop and laptop computers
    • Chromebooks
    • Tablets – iPad, Microsoft Surface, and those running Android OS (Samsung Galaxy, Amazon Fire, etc.)
    • Smart phones

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Accessibility (2)

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SpEd Forms is optimized to work with the following browsers:

    • Chrome (Windows, Mac, Chromebooks)
    • Firefox (Windows, Mac, Chromebooks)
    • Microsoft Edge and Explorer (Windows)
    • Safari Version 6.2 and up (Mac)

SpEd Forms will work with other browsers, but some features may not function properly and you may experience printing problems.

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Follow your district guidance

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SpEd Forms has a lot of ways to make the system work individually for each district. The district leadership make decisions based on their needs and set preferences in SpEd Forms.

Make sure you follow the guidance provided by your district!

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Vocabulary

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Vocabulary used within SpEd Forms:

Plan Manager – the person who controls an active student’s record within SpEd Forms.

Provider - the person who provides service to a student.

SpEd Forms Administrator – the person who oversees and manages SpEd Forms within your district.

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Vocabulary (2)

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Vocabulary used within SpEd Forms:

Read Only Access: individuals are able to view but not work on a student’s record.

Edit Access: individuals are able to view and work on a student record.

Working Copy: the editable form as it exists on the computer screen, the copy you ‘work’ on.

Finalized Copy: the completed form that is given to parents and is stored in SpEd Forms History. This is a PDF and is uneditable.

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Vocabulary (3)

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Provider Number – unique identifier automatically assigned to each user within the system.

Although the Provider Number is not printed on any form, it:

  • Tracks the total amount of time each person is responsible to provide services to students,
  • Alerts users of responsibility to conduct an assessment
  • Tracks the overall progress in completing evaluations

If an individual works in more than one coop, they will have a provider number for each coop and a different web address to log-in for each coop.

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“Hamburger Menu”

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Click the “Hamburger” to open menu

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Hamburger Menu Closed Hamburger Menu Open

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Closed hamburger menu?

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Even when your hamburger menu is closed, hovering over the dashboard icons will display each label.

Click an icon to navigate to that page.

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Signing out: 2.0

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Sign out using command found by clicking the person icon when navigating in 2.0 as shown by red arrow.

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Navigate to your SpEd Dashboard

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2.0

1.0

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Navigate from one form to another

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Follow the digital “breadcrumbs” to navigate within the forms menu of a single student.

We are in the PWN for Jonny Appleseed. Clicking the words SpEd Forms will bring me to his entire forms menu instantly.

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Navigating from one form to another (2)

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Navigating from one page to another

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You will find this dropdown to navigate from one page when working in a student’s:

  • Evaluation report
  • IEP
  • IFSP

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Navigation: Switch Students

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The switch student button allows a user to efficiently move from one student’s file to the same location in a another student.

Clicking the green button (circled) will activate a dialog box.

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Navigation: Switch Students (2)

  • Enter the name or ID of the student whose file you wish to access.
  • A list of students who match your search criteria (that you already have access to) will display.
  • Click on the correct green “go” button to navigate instantly to that student’s file.

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SpEd dashboard

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SpEd Dashboard:Hamburger Menu Open

Educator setup Messages

SpEd districts

Pick ups

Sign out

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SpEd Dashboard

Drop down menu to sort by

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SpEd Dashboard (2)

White Rows:

you have access to the student’s file

Shaded Rows:

you are the plan manager

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SpEd Dashboard (3)

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The “i” means the student is inactive.

If you’re an educator with a lot of students on your dashboard, the search box at the top of the page can be especially helpful. If a student has been shared with you, they will appear in your search results as you type.

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SpEd Dashboard (4)

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We moved from the red, orange, and green smiley faces to red, orange, and green symbols because the faces were difficult for people with color blindness to distinguish the differences.

Birthday!

Ask your district if they use symbols, and if so, what for.

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SpEd Dashboard (5)

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Green Checkmark: in compliance

Orange Caution Sign: something is�due within 90 days

Red Stop Sign: something is overdue

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Important info only a click away!

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Search for students

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Clicking the name will open the student’s forms menu

If you’re an educator with a lot of students on your dashboard, the search box at the top of the page can be especially helpful.

If a student has been shared with you, they will appear in your search results as you type.

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Quick links

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Clicking the chevron will access quick links.

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Filters: Friend or Foe

Filters are a friend. They allow you to refine your SpEd Dashboard:

  • Students you plan manage
  • Show MA eligible students
  • Hide inactive students
  • Show only students in a particular building or grade level.

Filters can be a foe. If a student has “disappeared” from your dashboard, it is most likely due to a filter.

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Sharing files

Plan Managers and users with administrative rights can grant other personnel access to a student files.

  1. Navigate to your SpEd Dashboard. Click on the name of the student whose file you wish to share. We have chosen to share Katniss Everdeen.

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Almond Butter

Test Student

Sample Test

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Sharing files (2)

When the forms menu opens, the options under the Hamburger menu will change.

Find and select “Sharing/Transfer”

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Sharing files (3)

  1. When the sharing window opens, click the “Sharing for [student name]” drop down menu on the left
  2. Click ”View All” or select the category of the person with whom you wish to share the student record

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Sharing files (4)

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5. When the list of users opens, select the person you want to give access and click “Share”.�This will copy them to the right side of the page and the list of educators that have been shared with the student.

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Sharing files (5)

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6. A user’s default access is “read only”

7. Check the “Edit” box to give a user ”edit access” necessary to work on the file

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Requesting a student be shared

You have been assigned to participate in a reevaluation or to deliver services to a student enrolled in your district or coop.

The student does not appear on your dashboard (and you have checked your filters and the search box at the top of the page).

From the SpEd dashboard, click “Find/request student” indicated by red arrow.

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Request access to a student

Enter the first name, last name or MARSS ID of the student you would like shared with you. Click Search.

Students who match your criteria will be instantly displayed.

Choose “request” in the row of the student you are requesting.

A message is sent to the student’s case manager

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Message notification

When a message is sent through SpEd Forms a small red indicator appears next to the blue person icon in the upper right hand corner of your SpEd Dashboard as shown below.

Click on “Messages” to open

Messages communicated through SpEd Forms may be general messages or may signal you to pick up a new student.

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Message notification (2)

Read and act upon all messages as quickly as possible.

Delete messages no longer needed.

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Transferring plan management

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Plan Managers and SpEd Forms administrators have the ability to transfer a student to a new Plan Manager if district allows.

As a professional courtesy, finalize all forms before transferring a student record.

Select “Sharing/transfer” under the Hamburger Menu

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Transferring plan management (2)

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Select “New plan manager.”

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Transferring plan management (3)

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When the transfer window opens, type the first and/or last name of the person you wish to transfer the student record to.

Click “Search”.

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Transferring plan management (4)

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Complete the transfer process by choosing “Send”.

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Forms menu / Forms basics

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Forms menu

To work on a student’s file, click on the student’s name within your SpEd dashboard.

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Forms menu (2)

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The Referral and Evaluation folder is “closed.” (black text, “closed” folder icon) �You can’t see the forms found within this folder.

The Service Plan folder is “open.” (blue text, “open” folder icon) �You can see and select the forms found within this folder.

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Forms menu (3)

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Clicking on accesses the form in other languages.

Clicking on accesses additional guidance.

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Working with forms

Many forms feature word processing tools.

  • Clicking displays that tool’s options
  • Hovering over each symbol displays its function
  • SpEd Forms recommends you NOT change the font or font size. Doing so can result in forms with pages that look very different from one another and formatting problems when printed.

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Dropdown menus

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Many forms contain drop down menus

  • In most instances you have the option to type your own words into in the text box, or select from the drop down menu.
  • If you select a response from the drop down menu, most allow you to edit the wording.
  • Some districts have the preference set to block educators from editing their own personal drop down options.

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Dropdown menus (2)

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Quick tip: Text box expansion

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When you print your completed forms, text boxes automatically expand so that everything you’ve entered prints.

If you wish to see an entire field while working on a form, you can manually enlarge each text boxes by placing your cursor over the // in the lower right hand corner and dragging downward.

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Quick tip: Spacing

Click the Enter key alone to automatically double

space.

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Click Shift + Enter together to automatically single space

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Updated forms

SpEd Forms is working to update forms to “2.0 - newer version”.

More forms are being converted to the newer version each month.

Information moves seamlessly from 1.0 to 2.0.

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Switch students

You can easily switch from one student’s form to the same form for another student by clicking the switch students button in the upper right corner.

Doing so will open a popup.

Complete any fields and click “search.”

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Switch students (2)

This will bring up any students you have access to that meet the search criteria.

Find the appropriate student and click the green “Go” button.

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Switch students (3)

The system will load the new student’s form.

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Navigating service plans & evaluations

Educators can now navigate within an IEP, IFSP or Evaluation report using the new dropdown found in the “breadcrumbs.”

Click on the name of the current page and choose the new page from the dropdown

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Working with service plans and other forms

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Service plan menu: IEP

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Amending an IEP

  1. Go to IEP
  2. Click “Amendment”
  3. Go to 1.Student Information
  4. Add date of IEP Amendment and “Save”
  5. Go back to IEP Menu
  6. Make changes needed and select “Save”
  7. Return to IEP Menu
  8. When all changes are made select “Validate”
  9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubwko7Cigl8

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Printing an IEP

Print an IEP in its entirety, or

Print selected pages using highlighted check boxes because IEPs for younger students won’t include statewide assessment or secondary transition.

You can print a “draft” IEP that displays a watermark.

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IEP progress report

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Translations

  • Clicking on opens the Spanish translation of the form
  • Clicking on opens the Hmong translation of the form.
  • Clicking on the opens the Somali translation of the form.

Translated forms include the symbols.

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Some forms use Google translate

Meeting with Special Education Team

To translate what you’ve typed or selected from the drop down menu click the “Translate to Spanish” button.

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Translate your text (2)

When the translation window appears, click “Insert Translation”

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Translate your text (3)

What you typed or selected in English and the Spanish translation will each be inserted into the text box.

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Languages translated

SpEd Forms provides translations of many frequently-used documents.

  • Translations are provided in Spanish, Hmong, and Somali
  • Together with English, these languages represent of the 94.6 percent of the 856,684 students enrolled in Minnesota on 10/1/2021.
  • The remaining 5.4% of students speak 319 different languages.
  • No other language reaches a level ≥ 1 percent of enrollment.

Some translated documents also feature Google Translate functionality to be used at district discretion.

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Validate and Finalize

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Validation

If you are creating history of one of the service plans (IEP or IFSP), you must first “Validate” the form. When you click the “Validate” button, your form pages will be checked for required fields and/or inconsistencies. If an issue is found through the validation process, you will be given the opportunity to change those fields before you follow through with “Finalization”. Make any changes as needed to satisfy the validation process.

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Validation (2)

Warnings appear with a yellow background and do not prevent finalization.

Errors appear with a pink background and do prevent finalization until resolved. You won’t see the button to finalize until errors are corrected.

You will also see a red stop sign near the error on the validation page. (Scroll down.)

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Finalizing a completed form

Clicking “Finalize” creates a static copy (a PDF) of the form and stores it in History. (It’s like taking a photo of the form and storing it an electronic file cabinet.)

  • Incomplete forms can’t be successfully finalized.
  • After finalization, changes made on the the working (screen) copy of the form do not alter the Finalized copy stored in History.

*Educators Guide:

How do I put a form into history? :https://spedforms.com/wiki/doku.php?id=put_form_in_history&s[]=history

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“Finalizing” a draft

Some forms allow you to Finalize (save) a “Proposal/Draft” copy.

SpEd Forms encourage you to do this with all Notice and Consent forms and the IEP or IFSP. Once you’ve received parental consent/approval, then Finalize again as “Final.”

Always “Save” before finalizing. If you finalize without saving, recent additions to your document will NOT be in the finalized version.

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Communication log

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Communication log

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Communication log (2)

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Communication log (3)

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Moving documents into history

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History

Student-specific documents received from outside sources can be uploaded and saved in a student’s “History”.

Desired additions to student history may include:

  • Medical records
  • Due process form/s for students who transfer from another state or from a Minnesota district that does not yet use SpEd Forms
  • Information from outside agency
  • Documents created using Student Plans

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Adding documents to history

  • Select a student from your SpEd dashboard
  • Open hamburger menu.
  • Locate History
  • Click

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Adding documents to history (2)

  • Scan the document you wish to add to History.
  • Save document using a descriptive title.
  • Click Upload.
  • A new window will appear.

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Adding documents to history (3)

  • Select the file for uploading
  • Document will display in upload field
  • Click Upload
  • Repeat to upload additional documents.
  • When finished, choose “Continue”

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Adding documents to history (4)

You will have an opportunity to edit your file name, form date and add a comment if desired. Save.

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Adding documents to history (5)

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  • Your newly added document will display.
  • Check the box in the column marked “Medical” if the new document is protected by HIPAA

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More information

For more information about the finalized document, click the chevron icon to see who finalized the document, when filed, and comments.

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Finding documents in history

Use the search box to find the documents you are looking for.

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Support!

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Support

Seek out your district leadership!

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Educator guide 1.0

Educator guide 2.0 Working on it.

Administrator guide

Medical billing guide

Frequently asked questions

Browser compatibility

YouTube tutorials

Recent fixes

Upcoming events

-links to Thursday at Three

Support

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  1. Go to: spedforms.com
  2. “Click here to receive our news via email”

Sign up for our emails

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SpEd Forms’ YouTube videos

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Thank you for

joining us today!

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Recording stops now

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Questions?

Questions

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