Teaching · Special Education

Walk the room the way the student moves through it.

Check the door, the route, the desk and the reach with a tape measure in hand. The form lists the barriers and splits the ones you can move today from the ones that need facilities.

Observe a roomWhat you get
$12one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $12

Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the New special education teacher kit, $39 for 31 items.

The observation

One observation per student and date. The example is made up.

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What you get

Teaching · Special Education$12 · included with Classroom and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with
Items that meet, barriers by part of the room with ADA references, fixes for this week and requests for facilities.
Who it is for
Special education teachers, physical and occupational therapists and administrators planning access for a student.
Format
Browser form. One saved observation per student and date; printed with the summary or as a blank form; CSV; export and import a file.
Access
$12 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Also in the New special education teacher kit ($39) and the Special Education toolkit ($99), and 2 more bundles. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Special Education space in Caveat Teaching.
Support
Questions about an order, access or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.
27 inroom to roll in, room to work
Drawn for this page. Most barriers in a classroom are furniture, and furniture can move.

How to use it

  1. Note the student’s mobility aid or vision supports.
  2. Follow the student’s route from the door to the seat and mark each item.
  3. Measure the narrowest point and the desk height.
  4. Mark items that do not apply as not needed.
  5. Make the classroom fixes, send the rest to facilities and observe again.

Observe a room

Reading the checklist

Where the figures come from

The 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design set adult dimensions: 32 in clear door width, 36 in accessible route, a 60 in turning circle, work surfaces 28 to 34 in high and 27 in knee clearance. The Standards’ non-binding notes give lower reach ranges for children.

Fix the room first

Moving a table, taping a rug or lowering a tray costs nothing and helps the same day. Changes to doors, sinks and built-ins go to facilities.

What this is not

A compliance survey of a building. It looks at one room for one student.

Sources

  1. U.S. Department of Justice (2010). ADA Standards for Accessible Design: sections 302, 304, 306, 308, 403, 404 and 902, with reach ranges for children in the non-binding notes.
  2. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and its regulations, 34 CFR 104 Subpart C: program accessibility.
  3. U.S. Access Board, Guide to the ADA Accessibility Standards (chapters on accessible routes and work surfaces).
  4. American Physical Therapy Association, Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy: school-based physical therapy fact sheets.

The example room and student are made up. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.