Special Needs and Students

I chose to dedicate a section of my blog to students with special needs because it is becoming such a prevalent issue in the classroom. Inclusion and mainstreaming has made the classroom a place where virtually every kind of student and every kind of learning ability/disability could be present. As such, teachers need to be equipped to accomodate those students as best they can. The links that I posted provide what I believe to be valuable information about some of the most common special needs found in classrooms, and also offer ways in which a teacher can work with the student to help them achieve. Autism and ADD/ADHD are really hot topics right now - teh sites that I chose were fairly comprehensive in how they dealt with those issues. they offer explainations of what exactly a student with those special needs may be prone to do, as well as tips for helping them in the classroom. Practical examples and an emphasis on the behavioral problems that such students may present in class are really helpful for teachers. Two web sites that proved interesting were the ones dealing with low and high achievers, as each present differend special needs in the classroom. in the area of high achievers, especially, it is important for us as teachers to find ways to challenge them without heaping more on them just because they are capable. I also included a general web site as well as one covering behavioral problems because they will be fairly prevalent, even in high school.