1. Students with
Special Needs
{ Providing Resources and Instructional Practices to Meet
Individual Needs to Enhance the Educational Experience
2. Overview
Children with special needs as with the general student
population must be recognized for their own strengths and
weaknesses.
For some, their disability is easily identifiable, while other
children, though not necessarily diagnosed with a certain
disability display behaviors that are disruptive or show signs
of slowness in their ability to learn and understand
information.
For many students with special needs, with time and
opportunity, they may “catch up” in the areas of apparent
delay.
Most importantly is that all children can learn no matter the
disability. Some students will learn at a faster pace than
others, but each student should have the opportunity to
reach their own personal potential.
3. ADHD
Key Facts
ADHD is classified by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (a standard reference) as
a behavior disorder, but is also seen as a neurodevelopmental disorder because it
begins from biological problems with the brain functions that control emotions and
learning.
ADHD is the most common neurodevelopmental disorder in childhood, affecting an
estimated 5 to 7 percent of all school-age children according to many studies which go
back 50 years or more.
ADHD affects different kids in different ways: some children are able to function
quite well, requiring minimal treatment, while others may need considerably more
care to deal with their symptoms.
A positive point is that ADHD responds well to a combination of behavioral
modification and medication. The key is early detection and intervention that will
improve your child's growth and development, and enrich her quality of life in the
long term.
4. Assistive Technology for
Students with ADHD
Promotes organization: Try a hand-held planner with touch-screen
technology (Franklin.com).
Math: (Scholastic.com/kids) has a terrific page where students can
practice their math. Or try MathPad Plus software
(InfoUse.com/mathpadplus). Designed for grades three through five, it
covers basic math operations, including fractions and decimals.
Writing: Kidspiration software (Inspiration.com) helps children organize
their thoughts. It can help visual learners organize their notes in
preparation for a test or group ideas to create an outline for a paper.
Note-taking: Portable Keyboards, such as the AlphaSmart 3000
(AlphaSmart.com), can hold up to 100 pages of text, which can be
uploaded to a computer. They're wonderful for children who write slowly
or illegibly.
5. Auditory Processing Disabilities
Key Facts
Interferes with an individual's ability to make sense of information
taken in through the ears. This is different from hearing problems,
such as deafness or being hard of hearing.
Difficulties with auditory processing do not affect what is heard by
the ear, but affects how this information is understood, or
processed by the brain.
6. Auditory Processing Disabilities
Areas of Difficulty
Phonological Awareness: Language is made up of individual sounds put together to
form words that are written and spoken.
Develops naturally, but can be taught using direct instruction.
Auditory Discrimination: The ability to recognize differences in sounds (alike and
different).
Auditory Memory: The ability to store and recall information verbally given. Students
with an auditory disability will find it difficult to follow directions given verbally or
problems recalling information from a story read aloud.
Auditory Sequencing: The ability to remember the order of items in a list or the order
of sounds in a word.
Example: Saying or writing “ephelant” for “elephant”
Auditory Blending: The process of putting together sounds to form words.
7. Assistive Technology for
Auditory Processing Disabilities
FM Systems: Miniature radio stations that operate on special frequencies. The
transmitter microphone can be used by the teacher and the receiver is used by
the student. Sound is transmitted from the receiver to the student’s ears or
hearing aid.
Infrared Systems: Similar to the FM systems.
Used with TV sets in which sound is transmitted
using infrared light waves.
One-to-One Communicators: In an environment
when it is difficult to hear just one person, a person
can be given a microphone to speak into, and the sound
is amplified and received directly in the person’s hearing
aid or headset.
8. Mild Learning Disabilities
Educational Characteristics
Lack of interest in school work
Prefer concrete rather than abstract lessons
Weak listening skills
Low achievement
Limited verbal and/or writing skills
Right hemisphere preference in learning activities
Respond better to active rather than passive learning tasks
Have areas of talent or ability that are overlooked by teachers
Prefer to receive special help in regular classroom
Higher dropout rate than regular education students
Achieve in accordance with teacher expectations
Require modifications in classroom instruction
Distractible
9. Assistive Technology for
Mild Disabilities
Word Processing may be considered the most important form of assistive
technology for writing problems associated with mild disabilities to promote
organization.
For students unable to attend class, web-cam photography can be sent across
the Internet to enable students to see and hear the lesson being taught – an
alternative to being there.
To increase academic productivity, the use of spreadsheets, databases, and
graphics software can aid in calculating, categorizing, grouping, and predicting
events.
10. Modifications in Teaching
Students with Special Needs:
Require shorter learning assignments and need to be positively reinforced
within short periods of time. Positive teacher reinforcement may be required
every five to ten minutes or less, depending on the age of the student.
Need the teacher’s instructions to be simple, precise, and clear. Students
should repeat the instructions often to assure understanding.
Need to have positive behaviors acknowledged rather than negative behaviors
accentuated.
Can benefit from role-playing and repetition of what is expected of them.
Need consistent recognition and praise for correct learning and behavioral
choices.
11. "Every child is gifted. They just unwrap their
packages at different times."
-- unknown
