10 Special Education Experts to Follow this School Year
Updated on October 1, 20241. Ms. Chyna – @especiallysped
With 131,000 followers on Instagram and a strong presence on Facebook, YouTube, X, and Tik Tok, you are bound to run across Ms. Chyna at some point if you are looking for advice on children with special needs. Her material covers ways of dealing with emotional events, setting boundaries, and methods of promoting good behavior.
Ms. Chyna also provides helpful resources for educators and parents alike, with a focus on social-emotional learning (SEL) that helps special education students to develop important skills. These include self-awareness and self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and decision making.
Through her videos, resource bundles, and Facebook posts, Ms. Chyna supplies materials, tips, and motivation for people involved with special education. Parents in particular benefit from her content on topics like “behavior leveling” and various activity guides, as well as an extensive series titled “Fun at Home Challenges”.
2. Sasha Long – @theautismhelper
Sasha Long is a “one-stop shop” for professionals and parents looking for assistance on autism-related topics. She is a professor of psychology with an extensive background in teaching and advising on autism, including her role as a board-certified behavior analyst. Along with her team at The Autism Helper website, Sasha delivers daily blog posts for teachers, parents, clinicians, and administrators, and also provides training and resources. Her material emphasizes nurturing of positive behavior and aiming for high-level goals while considering courses of action based on data. Sasha advises teachers from all over the world who want to provide interesting and practical instruction to special education students, with an emphasis on quality and usability across age ranges. She is active on Instagram with over 127,000 followers.
3. Stephanie DeLussey – @mrsdscorner
Stephanie DeLussey, otherwise known as “Mrs. D”, is a dual-certified special ed teacher with training in both special education and conventional curriculum. She has developed a significant social media presence, with channels that include YouTube, three websites, and an Instagram account with 123,000 followers. Parents can learn a lot from Stephanie through her videos and blogs regarding IEPs (individual education programs). Of particular note is her extensive selection of “adapted books”, which are especially engaging for special education students.
4. Jenna Mazzillo – @abanaturally
ABA, or Applied Behavior Analysis, is one of the main techniques used by autism experts to diagnose the condition. Over the course of her career as a teacher, coach, instructor, and analyst, Jenna has gained valuable insights from this method, and shares her thoughts and tips in her posts and reels. Jenna’s simple bits of advice are fun to read while also highly informative. In her videos she demonstrates examples of practical strategies for how to implement behavior analysis into your home or classroom. Over 121,000 people follow her on Instagram to get a better understanding of autistic behavior and how to handle specific challenges.
5. Allie Szczecinski – @missbehavior
Allie has a master’s degree in special education and uses her skills for many different educational initiatives related to children with behavioral challenges. On her Instagram page, you’ll find inspiring posts and tools for parents and educators that are enjoyed by 54,000 followers. Allie is also the author of Roaring Mad Riley, a book about anger management for children. In addition, she specializes in social-emotional learning.
6. Fiona Gonzalez – @spedadulting
For parents of older children with special needs, Fiona Gonzalez created Adulting Made Easy, a vast resource for developing functional life skills. Fiona’s goal is to support the transitioning of special needs kids to adulthood, and offers academic training that enables functioning in the real world, vocational skills, and dealing with everyday challenges. For special education families who want to learn about living independently, finding a job, or living in society, Fiona produces blogs, resource bundles, and even advice through direct messaging. Her blogs feature interesting graphics and articles that are simple to follow, fun to read, and which cover topics including activity recommendations, holiday projects, and remote learning. She also provides a wide range of support materials for both educational and life skills goals. On Instagram, Fiona has more than 51,000 followers as well as a great collection of articles and inspirational pieces.
7. Jenn Adams – @teachloveautism
A long career in both teaching autistic children and coaching practitioners has given Jenn a huge inventory of advice from which to draw. At her website Teach Love Autism, you’ll find a massive collection of blogs organized in useful categories, as well as a selection of resources for educators. Of special interest to parents are Jenn’s sections for digital and virtual learning, life skills, and communication, including advice on being advocates for their children within the school system. Her store includes resources to build both academic and life skills. Jenn also provides a wide range of inspirational posts on Instagram for over 44,000 followers.
8. Catherine Whitcher – @catherinewhitcher
If you are looking for help in designing an educational program for your autistic child, the Master IEP Coach website is a good place to start. Led by Catherine Whitcher, this resource offers blogs and podcasts that give parents a wide range of valuable advice in creating and managing a child’s educational journey through an individualized education program. Catherine Whitcher also specializes in coaching special needs professionals and parents in taking a more active role in handling the school system. With more than 25 years of experience, Catherine’s dedication to the world of special education is also personal, having witnessed her family’s difficulties in dealing with the education system’s handling of her brother with Down Syndrome. Catherine has over 17,000 followers on Instagram, where she shares her philosophies, strategies, and insightful practices for setting up autistic children for success at school.
9. Alyssa Shanahan – @simplyspecialed
The appeal of Alyssa’s content is in the name – simply. On her Simply Special Ed website, she stresses the importance of easy solutions when addressing the teaching of kids in special education programs. Alyssa puts an emphasis on helping teachers, but also has a lot of content that home-schooling families can make good use of. On her Instagram page, Alyssa posts a variety of short, engaging videos for her 43,000 followers that provide tips and encouragement for people involved with special education.
10. Heather Cacioppo – @full_sped_ahead
Heather leverages her years of experience in special education to supply a wide range of Instagram posts that deal with IEPs and practical steps in the classroom to more than 33,000 followers. Among her credentials are a certification as a Master IEP Coach and starting her own special education advisory for teachers.
When it comes to supporting your child’s education, the guidance of these experts can provide invaluable strategies for success. But in addition to their advice, it’s important to have tools that help implement those strategies in real life. AngelSense is designed to complement these approaches by offering parents peace of mind with features like real-time GPS tracking, intelligent location alerts, and communication tools that ensure your child is safe throughout the school day. Whether you’re focusing on behavior, independence, or safety, combining expert advice with practical tools like AngelSense can help you and your child navigate the school year confidently.
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