This Semester I observed a three-year-old girl named Allie. Allie attends preschool at Land of Learning; she is diagnosed with cerebral palsy. It was my pleasure observing her and getting to know her. She is a very sweet outgoing girl that doesn’t let her disability get to her. I observed and assisted Allie throughout her days at preschool. I assisted her and observed her with recess activities, eating lunch, and daily school projects. My past observation experiences I observed at Westgate elementary school in a class room mixed with students with learning disabilities, ADHD and also ELL students the class was taught by Ms. Lewis. I observed a second grade ELL classroom and also a fourth grade classroom. I observed these students during school …show more content…
It was my pleasure to be able to experience children with these disabilities. A day spent at Westgate was aery active one, I always was able to write plenty of notes from my observation. When the English language students were peer mentored with their 4 grade class, they had to write an autobiographical poem. The fourth grade students had to help their first and second grade ELL students write this poem. When the poem is all written out the students will then type up the poem on word and create a PowerPoint. After the poem was finished they would then present the poem in front of the whole class. This activity was pretty challenging for the fourth grade student because they had more reading and writing skills then the first and second graders. Ms. Lewis; the class teacher had to always redirect the ELL students because they did not understand what to do or what some of the questions said on the organizer. The next day I was in I was able to experience working with three students that had learning disabilities in the classroom. The teacher would separate the children in to groups, the learning disability children were paired up with me and they were given different book pages and problems to work on. Since these children were struggling in math I was able to help them comprehend. I was asked plenty of questions on how to do the problems. Usually Ms. Lewis is paired up with these students but today instead of me just observing them she wanted me to be hands on with the students and be able to interact with them. The next day I went I observe the boy with ADHD. It was very interesting to observe him. I was able to see him use assistive technologies to be able to focus. He also was seated on the outside of the desk range right by the teacher’s desk. I believe he was by the teacher’s desk and on the outside so he was
Lavoie’s workshop provokes an emotional response. After viewing life through the eyes of a child with special needs, I cannot help but have a more significant understanding of what people, especially children with disabilities, must deal with every day, everywhere. During the many years that I have worked with children with various disabilities, I have encountered each of the topics discussed in Lavoie’s workshop and agree with the points he makes regarding children with disabilities. Particularly impacting the way I interact with my students are the topics concerning: anxiety, reading comprehension, and fairness.
Nyla was a student that took a lot of work and effort that would make her successful. Although she did have some limitations such as her communication and transportation, Kissinger made it possible for her to be a special part in the classroom. The students in this school room then grew respect for Nyla and had an open mind of always looking out for others. This story of Holding Nyla was a story that had touched my heart. This is an exact model of what I want to strive for in my future classroom. The main lesson I got from this text was not to focus on the child’s disability and limitations as a student, but utilize the student and as one could see, that had a great impact among her peers and overall environment of the classroom. By the end of this transforming story, Nyla was not the only one feeling praise and importance in this classroom, or not feeling underestimated by her disability, but every child that was in that room felt that as
By know the other people disabilities you will interact better and will help the disable student better transition to blend in the community. Not be afraid of the unknown. As much knowledge you have on the different types of disabilities, the better person you become and more effective
After working with the 3rd graders, I became an assistant teacher at an early childhood education center in a low-income neighborhood with numerous students who needed extra support due to behavioral and emotional disorders. At one point, I encountered a student with selective mutism; selective mutism is when a person is capable of speaking but voluntarily chooses not to communicate verbally. I began to work one on one with him to understand why he didn 't communicate verbally. The first course of action was a meeting with his mother to learn more about him and th...
Causton-Theoharis, J. C., & Malmgren, K. C. (2005). Increasing peer interactions for students with severe disabilities via paraprofessional training. Exceptional Children, 7(4), 431-444.
I was assigned a student that is deaf and has a learning disability, Kerri. Kerri struggles with understanding what she needs to learn in class and has to have all of what is said typed out in notes for her to go through later on at home. While helping her, at first she was extremely resistant to having me as her aid, after the first week she was excited to see me which was something enjoyable for myself. I spend an hour each day in class with her and an hour out of class with Kerri. During our time outside of class I was asked to try to connect on “at home issues” with her since she struggles to care about her
Two years ago, I embarked on a journey that would teach me more than I had ever imagined. As a recent college graduate, I was thrilled to finally begin my teaching career in a field I have always held close to my heart. My first two years as a special education teacher presented countless challenges, however, it also brought me great fulfillment and deepened my passion for teaching students with special needs. The experiences I have had both before and after this pivotal point in my life have undoubtedly influenced my desire to further my career in the field of special education.
In my classroom I will make sure that the children with special needs are benefiting from instruction. I will pair this student up with someone who is capable of helping. The student will be getting my instruction as well as help from one of their peers. I will be aware that this student is a learner with special needs and I will teach this student at a level in which he/she is comfortable. I will make sure I am aware of everything that I can about this student?s special needs. I will be in a tight contact with the student and his/her parent/guardian so I can be aware that they are working with him/her at home. If this isn?t the case then I will pair this student up with another student after school, with myself, or with someone else that would be willing to give this student extra time.
Rafe Esquith the author of Teach like your Hair’s on Fire, always seems to put the children he teaches first. He has been referred to by the Washington Post as “the world’s most famous teacher” (Deloza, 2014). He is known for his incredible dedication and commitment to the children he teaches (Deloza, 2014). From the very beginning, his book allows you to experience, both Esquith’s love of teaching and his journey with Room 56, a classroom, in a struggling neighborhood in Los Angeles. The book is insightful and inspiring, as it connects us with an award winning, selfless and talented teacher, Rafe Esquith and his grade 5 students.
Presents the results of a study on the effectiveness of computer-based integrated learning system (ILS) in schools in the United States. Subjects in which ILS is used; ILS' ability to track students' progress on learning activities; ILS' effectiveness in improving student learning; Underutilization of ILS in American schools; Potential of ILS to transform the classroom.
Going to school and getting a great education is important for a successful future in today’s world. Years ago, many children did not go to school and many young adults opted to work instead of attending college. In today’s society, gaining a high level of education is almost always mandatory for many jobs. There are many changes being done to the education system along with new items and ways of teaching in the classroom. There is a growing amount of changes in the classroom such as technology, teaching time, teaching styles, and freedom of space.
I was working at a camp and got into a conversation with a friend who has Asperger Syndrome about his experience with special education. He told me how long it took him to get into a program and how much those teachers had helped him to become the person that he was. The teachers were able to help him understand what he was learning as well as life lessons. He and other children with special needs at the camp I have worked at for the past few summers have instilled in me a stronger need to reach out to those in both special and general education classes. This was again enforced in the class “Intro to Special Education.” I was taught even more that school is not just about learning the information, but learning about yourself and how to grow in yourself. Each student is different and therefore each student must be seen as
As a teacher it is important if not crucial to create a safe learning environment for students, especially students with disabilities. Most schools implement many services that are available in order to support students with mild-extreme disabilities without excluding them from the other students. The ‘least restrictive environment’ (educational psychology for learning and teaching) is an environment that is close to what students without disabilities learn in. However, depending on the severity of the disability, after school classes or sessions may be required. Depending on the primary school year level, some students may not even be aware that their fellow peer has a disability if the student has not been singled out as being disabled. To engage behavioural or disabled students in learning a good strategy is to accompany the main teacher with a teacher aide. In a class of 25 or so students, one teacher is not able to get around to each student individually. One-on-one interaction with student and teacher is highly beneficial with certain students. So, by having a teacher aide in the classroom the main teacher can work with the students who are able to work more independently
For my observation experience I went to Southern High School in Harwood, MD. Southern High School has a special education department for the students with disabilities. The teacher that I met with for this classroom observation was Ms. West. In the classroom there were at least four assistant teachers that helped Ms. West throughout the school day. The assistant teachers helped Ms. West co- teach the class and were there to help the students if they needed extra help. The school also has a couple of student aides that come in to help the teachers and the students in the classroom. There were at least twelve students in the classroom. The students in the class had many different exceptionalities such as learning disabilities, Down syndrome,
Overall, I must admit that I have been blessed from taking this course. I feel that I have grown throughout the course of the class, where I once stereotyped students with learning disabilities to understanding students with disabilities. Many people judge and classify what they do not understand, and through that ignorance is birthed. I am thankful that I have taken this class as I have become aware of my ignorance and have a deeper understanding and acceptance of those with learning disabilities, inside and outside of the classroom.