Your child or student with a disability has been placed in the general education classroom. You may have concerns or hesitations about their learning and progress in this setting. How do we set them up for success? How do we make this work all day, in every subject, and in extracurricular activities? First, let’s review the concept of placement in IDEA (the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) which emphasizes that children with disabilities are to be educated to the maximumRead more

By Debbie Campbell, Understood.org Parent Fellow for the National Center for Learning Disabilities ( ncld.org ) When I started my career as a long-term substitute teacher, I was placed in a special education classroom. I really didn’t know how to work with children with disabilities because my training program didn’t focus on special education. I had to learn on the job, with limited supports from the school. It’s been 16 years, and I’m no longer a teacher, but my experienceRead more

This Fall, PEAK's Parent Training and Information Project hosted a Back to School webinar series! The webinar series was attended by families and educators from Colorado and beyond, and was tremendously well received by all participants! So, we wanted to be sure you had access to the archives and the resources shared! Click on the links below to access the recording from each webinar as well as additional resources shared during the webinar! Accessibility note: all of the links belowRead more

By Guest Author Mary Schuh Close your eyes for a moment and think about the most important skills you use to navigate through your day. What comes to mind? Is it the way you neatly make your bed? Cross the street? Provide the correct change when you purchase your morning coffee? Answer "yes" or "no" to basic questions asked of you? Or perhaps getting yourself dressed or using the microwave to heat up your lunch? I'm doubtful these are theRead more

By Guest Authors Amanda Bock, PhD and Karen Erickson, PhD Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill For years, students with significant support needs (SSN) received little or no literacy instruction as their education programs focused on life skills, social skills, and vocational training. The little literacy instruction they did receive relied on teaching methods that we now know helped them learn simple component skills in isolation. For example, students matched upper and lowerRead more