News, Tips, and Articles of Interest
The Not So Secret, Secret: Inequities in Special Education
If you have worked with students who have learning disabilities for any length of time, you are keenly aware of the inequities inherent to special education. While there are racial disparities throughout special education, in this post I am going to specifically focus on Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD – dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia) and white vs black. It needs to be noted that there are considerable gaps between white special education students and almost all minorities but, for simplicity, we’ll keep this conversation spotlighted on white vs black. Let’s begin with identification.
Dyslexia: Relevant Federal Education Laws – The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
In a recent post, we discussed how The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) relates to dyslexia. Today we’re going continue that conversation by digging into The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and examine how it applies to dyslexia.
Dyslexia: Relevant Federal Education Laws – The American with Disabilities Act
Did you know there are specific education laws related to dyslexia? With IEP Season coming into full swing, as a parent it’s important to have your ducks in a row before walking into the meeting. The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) is one of these laws and today we’ll delve deeper into the law and how it relates to dyslexia.
IEP Snapshot Form
When I was a Special Education Case Manager, at the beginning of every school year, I would handout copies of IEP’s to all of my students’ teachers of record. I quickly learned that not only I, but my students’ teachers as well, needed a quick IEP reference sheet – a cheat-cheat if you will. A brief check of a student’s IEP Snapshot gave me a quick and easy answer and ensured the student received their accommodations. I finally had the time to create the IEP Snapshot I always wanted and am excited to share it with you!
The Orton Gillingham Approach: What is it?
In the 1930’s, Dr. Samuel Orton and Anna Gillingham developed a language based approach to reading instruction, now commonly known as the Orton Gillingham Approach. It was originally designed to help struggling readers by explicitly teaching them the connections between sounds and letters. Nowadays, Orton Gillingham is a highly structured, multisensory approach, widely used with beginning and struggling readers.
Audiobooks and Immersion Readers: Do They Help or Hurt My Child?
The main reason for reading is to gain information, how you receive the information is unimportant. In fact, reading to your child and/or using audiobooks and immersion readers can only help increase your child’s reading skills.