Collaboration in Special Education & Transition Programs [21:49]

This past summer, I got to meet transition teacher Kiana Kapono from another school in my district, thanks to our library program's first district-wide summer reading program. Even though the program was all online, Kiana's passion for her students was an undeniable force, and we ended up connecting despite never having met in person. Often, when I ask teachers to share an optional opportunity like the summer reading program with students, they will graciously pass it along. Kiana, however, takes sharing to a whole new level, diving right into opportunities and making the most of them. Her students were among our most active program participants, and as you can learn in this video, she similarly embraces deep collaboration all year round with her school site teacher librarian Amie Wilson. Of course, collaboration works like any relationship; it requires the effort and engagement of all collaborators. As Kiana graciously reminds us, it is the strengths of her teacher librarian partner that make for successful collaboration, from acknowledging students in online conversations, to empowering them to complete tasks with both support and full agency. I hope that you'll be as inspired by Kiana's examples of collaboration as I am.