Dani

Dani, This is your wiki page for our course. For 2/8/12 I am asking that you write a commentary on Culturally Responsive Instruction - How you might you apply these ideas in your classroom. Include considerations for students with disabilities. (300 words).

2/13/12 - Chapter 5 On page 127, the book states that “there is no such thing as a typical student with learning disabilities.” I think this is very important for educators, parents, students, etc. to realize. We have all learned that one size does not fit all when teaching any student (disability or not.) So, it only makes sense that students with learning disabilities will have different needs. It is imperative that we (as teachers) learn what learning style, needs, and accommodations each of our students need to reach their potential. After all, that is our job! Also on page 127, the book says that “one of the most significant challenges facing students with learning disabilities relates to reading.” This makes perfect sense to me. Reading includes so many different aspects from phonics to comprehension to the structure of a sentence. I would hope that teachers are aware of this and can help their students since reading is incorporated in almost every discipline. If a student has difficulty reading it could impair their work in various disciplines even the ones where the students should be excelling at. I found that box 5.5 on inclusion tips had many useful ideas on how to help students. I wonder how many teachers actually take the time to use the alternate responses and find ways to include their peers in the process. Through observations, I have seen a few teachers give up on the child. These teachers tend to do the things that are listed in the “what you might be tempted to do” section. That is unfortunate because every student can learn if given the chance. At least that is my opinion.

Dani, I too see the importance in focusing on the specific needs for specific students. For instance, I have a cousin that has a specific learning disability but his situation is unique because even though there may be students with the same disability, the way my cousin learns is much different than that of another student. He attends the Deron School and in that school, there are teachers that do cater to his specific needs because they realize that all students are not the same and have different learning styles. I also agree that reading is a very difficult subject to have a disability in because reading is a part of every day life. Often times, people say that math and reading are different ends of the spectrum but in actuality, there are things in mathematics than require reading comprehension as well. It is easy for a student with a learning disability in reading to have low self esteem being that reading is emperative from day to day. GIven all the useful tips on how to help students, there should be no excuse as to why students cannot become proficient in reading. I will be one of those teachers that take heed to the help provided so that my students can exceed the expectations of themselves and society. 2/14 7:25 pm - Da'Cheray

Dani, Many teachers are not aware of that the behavior of a student with a disability is not something they chose, but something they often cannot help. I hope that reading these chapters sensitizes everyone first to symptoms and then to avoidance of actions that can really be very detrimental. Often times the strategies are not "rocket science", but common sense once the specific difficulty is understood and then practices identified that can help a particular child respond best. Dr. OReilly

2/21/12 Chapter 8 10:00 am Page 212 – I am surprised that the IDEA does not separate students with AD/HD into a separate category. I could be wrong but it seems to me that a lot of children have been diagnosed with having AD/HD. The book even states that “AD/HD accounts for slightly over 2/3 of students identified in recent years in the category of other health impairments.” I wonder why it isn’t a separate category. There has been a lot of controversy about AD/HD and where it should be placed in the eligibility categories. The federal government with input from educational, medical and advocacy communities determined that it should be included with other health impaired because medical diagnosis is part of the determination and medical intervention is sometimes part of the treatment. Page 213 – I was reading the characteristics for the predominately inattentive type of AD/HD. Personally, I would have had 6 or more of those characteristics if someone wanted to classify me while I was in school (mostly in middle and high school.) I did not have AD/HD. I simply did not have any interest in being in school or learning. In my opinion, there are a lot of students who are classified with something that they do not have. These children are given medication that they do not need and are not given the proper accommodations/modifications. That is why it is important for educators, the child study team, and others to pay close attention to the individual student and their needs. Just to make it clear, I do believe that there are many students who do have AD/HD and are classified correctly but I also believe that many students are classified incorrectly or their needs are overlooked. AD/HD is very difficult to diagnose and many of us, at one time or another, may exhibit a number of these symptoms. Well trained, experienced professionals are needed to help determine the diagnosis. Medication is a controversial topic that we all need to be informed about. Page 223- I found the chart “Accommodations for AD/HD” to be very helpful. This chart highlights a lot of great ideas on how to help the students with AD/HD. I observed a 7th grade English class a few semesters ago. There was a student with AD/HD in that classroom. I was amazed at how the teacher worked with that student without letting it interfere with the other student’s learning. For example, when it was time for a lecture, the student was allowed to quietly get up and go to the computer area. The student used the computer to type the notes while the other students sat at their desks to write the notes. The teacher also let the students get up and stretch a couple times. Dani, Thanks for sharing these simple, yet effective strategies for helping students who need the ability to get up and move or take notes in a different way be successful as part of the normal routine of the class. Regards, Dr. OReilly

Hello Dani, I totally agree with you when you talk about how sometimes children are diagnosed with having AD/HD when in fact they don't have it. In my commentary I talked about how when my little brother was in school (kindergarten-2nd grade) he was considered a child with AD/HD. I don't think he had AD/HD at all. He just had behavioral problems and probably did not have interest in learning just like you. He was given medicine which made him worse so my mom took him off. His behavior eventually improved (without the help of medicine) and he became a honor roll student**.--RENEE AMOS**

**Hi Dani, I also liked the chart "Accommodations for AD/HD" on page 223 to be very helpfu. I also think it depends on the student and the developmental stage of the student. (I dislike stating something depends on age) I've been through too many observations to think any one of these accommodations would work so clear cut. But using them in conjunction with other strategies would be helpful. I would just like to see these accommodations put into practice in the classrooms that aren't as ideal as the scenerios in the book.**

**I completely agree with you! I believe that the characteristics have to be more specific because most students at one point or another can seem to be hyper active, non-attentive, ect. It is very difficult to diagnose and is serious when a student does have AD/HD, but I do feel that there are students that have been misdiagnosed and are now on medication that is unnecessary and probably unhealthy. -- Lindsey**

3/26/12 Video Dani Henderson

My biggest fear of becoming a teacher is not having good classroom management. I know that it is extremely important to spend the first few weeks of school developing and teaching rules to the students. This video gave me quite a few ideas on how to create a safe and caring environment for my students. I plan on using many strategies from PBS. The first weeks of school I will teach my students how to be respectful, responsible, and good class/school citizens. I plan on teaching these skills using the Multiple Intelligence Theory. For those children who are linguistic learners, I will do things like provide charts, worksheets, posters,etc. for them to read. I may also have them write a story about students using the right behaviors or correcting those students who are not using the correct behaviors. The posters and charts will help the visual-spatial learners in the classroom as well. They can watch short video clips or watch their peers role play. Role playing would work well with bodily-kinestethic learners by giving them a chance to move around and act out different parts. The musical-rhymetic students can write songs and music based on the positive rules about being responsible, respectful, caring citizens. Students who do well in interpersonal settings may benefit from working in groups to work on a project regarding the rules. Whereas, students who do well in interpersonal setting would benefit from working alone on a journal or a different activity. I could go on and on but you get the idea by now.

I really liked the idea about students teaching other students. This concept was portrayed throughout the video. Students at the Elementary level teach the new students about the school's philosophy. Upper classmen also teach freshman students about the rules. I think this is a wonderful way to make new students feel like they are a part of the community because they are learning and spending time with their peers. I also really liked the mentoring idea where seniors spent time with the younger students discussing how to be a good school citizen.

Honestly, I think this was the best video that I have seen in awhile. It gives teachers a chance to teach children in a positive way. I have seen so many teachers lose patience, be sarcastic, and negative towards children. That actually makes it worse for both the students and the staff. PBS shows that if teachers do the opposite that they will reap the benefits.