texas When parents reject public schools, gifted education suffers the loss of talented students in the classroom community and the voices of powerful advocates. Ideally, parents and public schools should be a team. The parents should support the schools’ efforts to educate all of the children in the community, and the schools should support the parents’ … Read more
The Five Senses Advanced students journal their explorations as they learn about taste, touch, smell, hearing, and sight. So, what’s with all that mushy stuff gifted students see when they study the human brain? To many, the brain looks like a soggy clump of limp cauliflower, and that’s a pretty disturbing sight. Still, it is … Read more
The Special Education Process A how-to for the process of special education. Definitions of individualized education plans, evaluation reports, and the local education agency. ER…IEP…Help! Is this education or alphabet soup? If you are new to the special education process you may feel as if you have been transported to another country. Something that is … Read more
Down’s syndrome Also known as trisomy 21, Down syndrome (or Down’s Syndrome in the UK and many countries) is the most common genetic cause of mild and moderate intellectual disability. March 21 is celebrated as World Down Syndrome Day. The reason that the date was picked seems obvious to those familiar with the condition. Chromosomes … Read more
The usefulness of IQ testing for identifying learning disabilities is hotly debated. And with changes in the law, issues like cost and ethics are also being discussed. When reading specialists meet with small groups of students under the new Response to Intervention model, they collect information about how the student responds to instructional strategies and … Read more
Classroom Strategies for Idioms to Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome Why is something easy ‘a piece of cake’? Understand why idioms are a minefield for these very literal-minded learners. Includes three teaching activities. An idiom is any phrase that has a non-literal meaning. For example, To kick the bucket most commonly means ‘to die’. Anyone who … Read more
Helping Teachers Better Handle Reading Problems Dyslexic students can thrive in the classroom with the right help. This article will give teachers the simple tips they need to help their dyslexic students succeed. When you have a child that is dyslexic, the school can often be a challenge. Many classroom teachers have not had formal … Read more
Understanding and Using Modeling, an Excellent Teaching Tool Social skills are difficult to impart to many students with autism or Aspergers. The social story has become an excellent new tool for teaching those valuable skills. One of the central educational issues for autistic students (both in the classroom and at home) is a deficit of … Read more
Developing Foundational Number Skills Using Cards, Dice, and Objects Fun and playful ways to increase your child’s enthusiasm for, and ability with, math. These games will soon become favorites as your child quickly learns math facts. Until a child knows what quantity the number 6 represents, or that the number 4 also means 4 countable … Read more
Specific Learning Disability in Writing Information on the diagnosis and treatment of Dysgraphia, a specific learning disability in the area of writing. Dysgraphia Dysgraphia is a specific learning disability in the area of written expression. There are three types of Dysgraphia: Dyslexic dysgraphiais where the first draft of a paper is illegible but copied work … Read more