The Short Bus: A Journey Beyond Normal, written by Jonathan Mooney, has provided me with a unique insight into the various thoughts of people who society has deemed as “not normal.” The people that Mooney has included in his book do not really understand why they have been placed under this category. However, they are doing all that they can to not be belittled and to come out on top.
One story that I significantly enjoyed reading was about Kent, an individual that suffers/has/is labeled as ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). ADHD is more prevalent than ever in the schools and is a hot topic with educators and parents. I can even relate to it on a personal level because one of the boys I nanny for is now in the first grade, and
…show more content…
Their little brother, on the other hand, is a type of child that many educators would consider “normal” because he loves to learn and will sit in a chair diligently while completing tasks. However, I am also thinking about the way in which I interact with the little boy and other children that are considered “normal.” I am and want to be even more aware of the way I interact with the boy with autism. If he suddenly has an outburst or yells rather than speaks, how can I explain proper behavior to him without using the word “normal?” I am even more interested now in looking up strategies for interacting with children that have autism. I am also even more interested in looking up more strategies in how to help students pay attention besides commanding them to show “good” behaviors by sitting down and not moving at …show more content…
Some of the personal stories that Mooney recounted made me very sad, and it was hard to believe that there were and continue to be some teachers that are just so ignorant, impatient, and unaware of what is going on with their student(s). Some great teaching strategies that can be implemented in the classroom to help students be more successful are developing a reward system for good behavior, organizing breaks between major tasks, and using auditory and visual signals. Reward systems is an excellent strategy to implement in the classroom to help students remain on task, participate in class, and behave appropriately. Breaks between major tasks help students to take mental breaks and refocus for the next big assignment. Auditory and visual signals are a great classroom strategy to help students recognize when it is time to move from one activity to the
Development of social skills is very important for children that are diagnosed with autism because of ...
I was responsible for implementing intervention for one child with autism, while also working with his typically developing sibling and interacting with their parents. Often times, this child had temper tantrums which taught me to quickly and effectively respond to his outbursts. This hands-on experience expanded my understanding as to how people adapt to a lifestyle when they have a family member that is not typically developing. Having the parents’ approval and trust in working with their child showed me the crucial importance of having a strong connection with individual
Additionally, student teaching has taught me that organization and preparedness are keys to having success. With advice from other student teachers bell ringers became a subtle reason for my success in improving my classroom management skills. I learned that by occupying the students immediately with work it seemed to have a calming affect upon then.
Children with autism have multiple characteristic impairments in their social interaction skills. This results from the lack of “Theory of Mind” in autistic individuals. Autistic children have difficulty interpreting what another person may be thinking or feeling. Social impairments may cause the child to act inappropriately in social interactions and prevent the children from truly taking part in interactions. The children have difficulty recognizing social cues and responding to cues. Autistic children have a hard time forming relationships as a result of these impairments. Social stories, Applied Behavior Analysis, and Pivotal Response Training are three therapy techniques that help children with autism learn appropriate social behavior. Social stories allow the children to practice the situation in a lower stress environment. Applied Behavior Analysis utilizes positive reinforce to teach desired skills. Pivotal Response Training allows the child to learn social skills while in a natural play environment. Learning social skills through these techniques enable the children to have more meaningful relationships and engage more in their community.
2. People with autism have problems with abstract and conceptual thinking. Some may eventually acquire abstract skills, but others never will. When abstract concepts must be used, use visual cues, such as drawings or written words, to augment the abstract idea. Avoid asking vague questions such as, "Why did you do that?" Instead, say, "I did not like it when you slammed your book down when I said it was time for gym. Next time put the book down gently, and tell me that you are angry. Were you showing me that you did not want to go to gym, or that you did not want to stop reading?" Avoid asking essay-type questions. Be as concrete as possible in all your interactions with these students.
In the book, The Short Bus, Jonathan Mooney’s thesis is that there is more to people than their disabilities, it is not restricting nor is it shameful but infact it is beautiful in its own way. With a plan to travel the United States, Mooney decides to travel in a Short bus with intentions of collecting experiences from people who have overcome--or not overcome--being labeled disabled or abnormal. In this Mooney reinvents this concept that normal people suck; that a simple small message of “you’re not normal” could have a destructive and deteriorating effect. With an idea of what disabilities are, Mooney’s trip gives light to disabilities even he was not prepared to face, that he feared.
Rosa Parks said, “Racism is still with us. But it is up to us to prepare our children for what they have to meet, and, hopefully, we shall overcome.” Racism has troubled people for hundreds of years and has not solved. It seems as a chameleon; people may hardly to detect it, but it not means it does not exist. As Mary Mebane states in her article, “The Back Of The Bus”, she experienced how white people segregate black people in her lifetime. As Martin Luther King JR shows in his speech, “I Have a Dream”, he awakened black people struggle to against inequality with government and society. John Blake demonstrates in his article, “The New Threat: Racism Without Racists”, black people are still being treated unfairly in reality. “In 'Born free'
... Another one of the strategies that I have seen quite often is the disrupting student read-aloud. This has happened to me while teaching many times. I honestly most times thought that these children were causing a ruckus and interrupting because they had behavior issues. Now after reading this section I am much more aware that the instances I have encountered could have been just the child not understanding.
The job of a teacher is never easy but we have seen how cooperative discipline and enabling students to feel capable, connected and contributing can improve classroom management and maybe even our own moods. If we create an environment of mutual respect and give our students legitimate power of voice and choice in the classroom we will see positive results in improved student behavior and student achievement. Because when our students believe that they can succeed, they will.
... can be difficult for a child with autism to initiate conversation on her own, by following your child’s lead and responding to what she does, you are encouraging further interaction. You can also help by encouraging friendships between your child with ASD and other children”
As a teacher, I believe it is very important to communicate with parents. Building a rapport and communicating with parents helps to support all the work done in the classroom. I am writing this paper to share my communication experience with a family members of a student that has Autism. His parents are very involved in his well being at school and my cooperating teacher, his paraprofessional and myself have good rapport with his parents. One method of communication utilized included direct face-to-face conversation in the morning with his father and in the afternoon with his father or grandmother. The child’s mother does not come to the school, but she is still actively involved with his progress and behavior in school each day through other methods. I worked cooperatively with the teacher and paraprofessional to communicate with her through the child’s parent communication notebook, text messages and telephone calls. In addition, when his
One of the most difficult things teachers will face when dealing with Autistic children is their lack of communication skills and inappropriate or nonexistent social skills. In addition to academic instruction children with Autism require instruction in communication techniques and social skills. Kamps et.al. says “A key to accommodating students with autism in public school settings is the provision of social and behavioral programming to develop meaningful participation with nondisabled persons” (p.174).
All effective educators need to find ways to motivate their students. The kids that fill our classrooms have different strengths and weaknesses. It is critical that teachers recognize the strengths and weaknesses of their students so they can use the right classroom management strategies to motivate their kids. In this particular case, the student named Jodie is inattentive and uninterested and neither the teacher intern or classroom teacher have a clue how to handle this situation. Ms. Marcia Thomas, who is the young intern feels that Jodie is just a problem child that lacks motivation and there is nothing she can do for this particular student. Ms. Thomas and the lead teacher Ms. Egan both lack the needed classroom management strategies that are necessary to motivate and engage students in a positive learning environment.
Jordan, R., & Powell, S. (1995). Understanding and Teaching Children with Autism. New York: Wiley.
Over the course of observations, I learned that there is no one way to do anything in teaching. After a few weeks of observing, I was relieved because I thought that I could stop worrying so much about doing the “right” thing with the students. I saw a successful teacher doing, or neglecting to do things that went against what I had been taught. I incorrectly assumed that the choices the teacher made about how to organize the day, approach a lesson, or manage the classroom were mostly a matter of personal preference and that several approaches would produce equally desirable results.