Working with a teacher assistant in your class may initially take some adjustments on your part. Supervising another adult is quite different from dealing with students. It will take a time commitment at the onset to work out the duties of the teacher assistant, ant there will be a need for ongoing consultation and collaboration throughout the year. The following are some strategies that may assist you and the teacher assistant.

• Let your assistant know that he/she is an important member of the team. Treat the assistant with respect and consideration.
• Be clear that assistants are not teachers and should not be requested or required to teach.
• Take prime responsibility for the student and his/her activities.
• Ensure that the assistant works under your supervision.
• Plan in advance for your assistant; include a column in your daybook for the assistant or use another written recording device.
• Establish some regular routines and duties for the assistant.
• Keep open lines of communication-talk about it!
• Find out your assistant's strengths and make use of them.
• Encourage initiative on the part of the assistant.
• Be prepared to make suggestions and give examples.
• Find ways to tactfully correct and constructively criticize. Be sensitive to the assistant's feelings.
• Be specific about what and how the assistant can communicate with parents.
• Be clear about the need for flexibility and model flexible behaviour yourself.
• Have the assistant work with other students while you, the teacher, spend a few minutes in direct instruction with the student with special needs.
• Assign a variety of duties to the assistant to ensure that independence is fostered in the student with special needs.

• Be prepared to take some time to plan with the teacher and take direction from the teacher.
• Be prepared for an initial period of adjustment on your part and on the part of the teacher.
• Expect polite treatment and respect from the teacher and students.
• Let the teacher know about your strengths, experience, and interests.
• Remember that the teacher is responsible at all times for the students and the learning in the classroom.
• Always get the teacher's approval before trying something totally new.
• Express concerns to the teacher first.
• Provide feedback to the teacher on student progress; the teacher has the responsibility of reporting and communicating with parents.
• Use your best judgment. When in doubt, ask.

An important consideration to keep in mind when working with a student with intellectual disabilities is that there is a possibility that the student will become overly dependent on the adult helper. A student who becomes dependent on the teacher assistant to perform skills is not ready to generalize the skill to the community. As much as possible, the teacher and assistant need to be aware of this and plan interventions which result in minimum dependency. Developing independence should be a priority along with each goal set for the student.