Disability Handouts

These are great resources for teachers.  They list characteristics, teacher suggestions, and other resources.

Great Resources for Teachers - ELLs

Here are some great resources that are useful for working with english language learners (ELLs)

1. ESL Go - This website has some great activities and lesson plans for teachers for ELLs.  It also has some good ways to bring funds of knowledge into the classroom to help every student feel comfortable in the classroom.
2. The EFL Playhouse - This website is specifically for teachers who have young ELLs in their classroom.  It has an abundance of lesson plans and activities for the younger grades.
3. ESL Basics - This is a great resources to connect with other teachers.  There are discussion boards and articles with advice from other teachers about the best ways to teach ELLs.
4. English for Everyone - This website has a lot of printable worksheets and lesson plans for ELLs of all ages.  It also has some great online interactive games and activities.
5. Kindersay - This website is a great resource for teachers of ELLs in preschool - first grade.  It has online activities that focus on basic english vocabulary.

Some great resources for teachers!

Serge is a very powerful resource tool for teachers.  There are many great articles that give advice on how to be the best teacher we can be. Here are the three that I found the most useful:

1. This link talks about how different types of teaching methods work for different types of learners.  It offers information, activities and additional resources!

2. This link describes what differentiated instruction is and how it is beneficial in the classroom.  This is a great source for teachers on how they can really reach and challenge all the students in their class.

3. This link has great advice on how to create a sense of community in your classroom.  This is so important for every teacher and classroom!  

How to Differentiate Your Lessons

Mind Steps is a great resource for teachers on how to customize your classroom to best suit your students.  Below are some resources that can assist you in your efforts to differentiate your lessons.

This chart is great for knowing where each of your students fall.  It then gives you things you can do to assist that child.  This resource is a great quick guide for teachers!

This handout above is a sample blank unit planning template.  It is very helpful for teachers to make sure they incorporate each of the four different types of students in every lesson.  This is a helpful graphical organizer that can help you as a teacher to lay out each lesson using differentiation.

Above is an example lesson of how you may use differentiated learning in a real life lesson.   This is a great resource to use in planning your own lessons!

Supplementary Aids and Service

IDEA’s Exact Words

Again, let’s start with IDEA’s full requirement for identifying the supplementary aids and services a child will need and specifying them in his or her IEP. This appears at §300.320(a)(4) and stipulates that each child’s IEP must contain:

(4) A statement of the special education and related services and supplementary aids and services, based on peer-reviewed research to the extent practicable, to be provided to the child, or on behalf of the child, and a statement of the program modifications or supports for school personnel that will be provided to enable the child—

(i) To advance appropriately toward attaining the annual goals;

(ii) To be involved in and make progress in the general education curriculum in accordance with paragraph (a)(1) of this section, and to participate in extracurricular and other nonacademic activities; and

(iii) To be educated and participate with other children with disabilities and nondisabled children in the activities described in this section… [§300.320(a)(4)]

We’ve bolded the part of IDEA’s regulation that specifically mentions supplementary aids and services, because it’s important to see the context in which this term is used. It is that context, and IDEA’s own definition of supplementary aids and services, that will guide how a child’s IEP team considers what services the child needs and the detail with which the team specifies them in the IEP.

The Short Story on Supplementary Aids and Services

Supplementary aids and services are often critical elements in supporting the education of children with disabilities in regular classes and their participation in a range of another school activities. IDEA’s definition of this term (at §300.42)reads:

Supplementary aids and services means aids, services, and other supports that are provided in regular education classes, other education-related settings, and in extracurricular and nonacademic settings, to enable children with disabilities to be educated with nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate …

Speaking practically, supplementary aids and services can be accommodations and modifications to the curriculum under study or the manner in which that content is presented or a child’s progress is measured. But that’s not all they are or can be. Supplementary aids and services can also include direct services and supports to the child, as well as support and training for staff who work with that child. That’s why determining what supplementary aids and services are appropriate for a particular child must be done on an individual basis.

These resources above are great resources for teachers.  It is important to know what IDEA defines as supplementary aids and services.  As a teacher is a critical to use any supplementary aid or service that can help the child.  Here are some additional sources for teachers:

Utah Center for Assistive Technology - This is a great source to learn about assistive technology specialists that can help you to find the right supplementary aid or can even make a custom aid for you.

http://ucat.usor.utah.gov/services/

Computer Center
The computer center provides support on how to improve the lives of people with disabilites through technology.  They provide workshops and advice.
http://ucat.usor.utah.gov/cccd/

Utah Assistive Technology Program
This non profit program provides assistance in how to use services and provides service to assist with the technology.  
http://utahatprogram.blogspot.com/

Council For Exceptional Children

The Council for Exceptional Children is a great source for teachers.  It has articles from different teachers that offer advice.  Here are some of the links from the site that I found most helpful.

How I Survived the Paper Snowstorm of Special Education

This is a great article on how to deal with the logistics of all the paperwork that comes along with special education.  It offers great insight on how to deal with the paperwork in the most efficient manner so that it does not take away too much time from teaching.

My Dirty Dozen

This article offers great advice for new teachers.  It address many concerns that new teachers have, and explains the best way to deal with them.  I found this article very helpful and will use it as I enter a school for the first time!

Conditions of Teaching Children with Exceptional Learning Needs: The Bright Futures Report 

This article is about attracting and retaining quality special education teachers.  It was interesting to find that special education teachers leave the field at double the rate of general education teachers.  I found this article very informative about the struggles that special educators have to deal with.  I think even though I am not going into special education this article is helpful in understanding what the special education teachers I will undoubtably be working with are going through on a daily basis.

Parents as Partners

Utah Parent Center has many great resources for parents that have children with special needs.  It is a great spot for parents to know their rights, find help and talk to other parents.  One of the best resources is the Parents as Partners Handbook that guides parents through the education process for their child with special needs.

Full Version of Parents as Partners can be seen here.