HLP 15

Scaffolded supports provide assistance to students so they can complete tasks that they cannot yet do independently and with a high rate of success. Educators select powerful visual, verbal, and written supports; carefully calibrate them to students’ performance and understanding of learning tasks; use them flexibly; evaluate their effectiveness; and gradually remove them once they are no longer needed. As a critical partner to explicit instruction, providing scaffolded supports requires understanding student characteristics, breaking down complex skills and strategies into smaller instructional units, and identifying ways to provide scaffolds during supported practice. Some supports are planned before lessons, while some are provided responsively during instruction. Scaffolds can be technology-based. Educators should work with the IEP team to identify which scaffolds are needed, use data to evaluate impact, and decide when they are no longer needed.