Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week is observed each year during February 7-14 to promote awareness and education about congenital heart defects. The disorder affects approximately one in 100 births every year in the United states and are the most common type of birth defect. It is estimated that 1 million children and 1.4 million adults in the United States were living with a congenital heart defect.
Hi Everyone, Like most people in the world, the COVID-19 Virus has greatly impacted my own little universe. Living in the epicenter of the virus at last count, almost 4,000 people in my county have tested positive. I too seek ways to live a normal life in these trying times. Its been very challenging to continue to write articles on special needs with so much is going on in the world.
Looking to see how I can help others during this time, I created COVID-19 virus page which I will continue to add more information as we learn more. I advise you to stay tune to both local news and get regular updates from the CDC as they update on a regular basis. If you are a reader from another County, please check on updates from your government on a regular basis.
Please all stay safe during these trying times, continue to help one another and we will come out from this better and stronger.
Articles on what you need to know about the COVID-19 Virus:
The following links and information comes from the U.S. Education Department. Check for updated information:
Broad flexibilities provided to states to bypass ESSA mandated testing for the 2019-2020 school year due to COVID-19 national emergency. States education leaders can find the waiver application here. (March 20, 2020)
Schools should continue promoting everyday disease prevention strategies:
If you are sick, stay home from school.
Avoid close contact with those who are already sick.
Cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing with a tissue or the crook of your arm.
Wash your hands often with soap and water.
Avoid touching eyes, nose, or mouth.
Consult this web page for further guidance from the U.S. Department of Education.
Schools can share relevant CDC fact sheets to help students, families, and staff understand COVID-19 along with steps they can take to protect themselves:
Free Printables– Activities from nourishinteractive.com, includes handwashing worksheets, lesson plans and a math sequencing worksheet that teaches the important steps to good handwashing techniques.
Kids Handwashing Coloring Page– Developed by Lancaster County Health Department including 2 coloring pages and instructions on how to wash your hands properly.
Teach-nology- A lesson plan for kids pre-school age which discusses germs and how germs make people sick.
Why We Wash Our Hands– From Florida Health Department for children ages 3-41/2. The lesson educates children on how to prevent common health problems by developing handwashing skills.
The following articles are links to articles specific to handwashing and the COVID-19 virus:
A survey conducted found that half of parents surveyed have a special needs child who had been bullied during school hours.
Warning Signs of Bullying
Unexplained injuries
Lost or destroyed clothing, books, electronics or jewelry
Feeling sick or faking illness
Changes in eating habits
Difficulty sleeping
Declining grades
Self-destructive behavior
Feelings of helplessness
A bullying guide for parents. Developed by the National Autistic Society in the U.K., offers tips and resources for parents.
Council for Exceptional Children. Q&A with Dr. Chad A. Rose on the Interpretation and Information regarding the Department of Education’s Letter Addressing Bullying Among Students with Disabilities
National Bullying Prevention Resources. Offers parents and educators bullying prevention resources including educational toolkits, awareness toolkits, contest ideas and promotional products
stopbullying.gov– A federal government website managed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human services. Provides resources on State laws and policies, training information and school bullying prevention tips.
Wrightslaw. A webpage offering information on laws and disability harassment including the legal obligation of the school.
This may be the result of the working memory, problem solving skills and inattentive skills all characteristics of a student with ADHD
What is Dyscalculia?
Dyscalculia is defined as a learning disability specifically in math and numbers including the inability to understand the concept of numbers and applying math principles to solve problems. The following are signs and symptoms of dyscalculia:
Difficulty in counting backwards
Difficulty in recalling facts
Slow in performing calculations
Difficulty with subtractions
Difficulty using finger counting
Difficulty with the multiplication table
Poor mental math skills
Difficulty with understanding the concept of time
May show signs of anxiety when conducting math activities
May have a poor sense of direction (i.e. north, south, east, west)
Early signs of dyscalculia include:
Delays in learning how to count
Delays in recalling facts
Difficulty with time
Displays a poor memory
May lose track when counting
Difficulty sorting items by groups include color, shape, texture and size.
Accommodations
Students with diagnosed with ADHD qualify for accommodations in the classroom. Here are a few suggestions:
The ADHD magazine, ADDitude suggests the following accommodations to help students with ADHD and Dyscalculia:
Allow extra time on test
Provide frequent checks for accuracy during classroom activities
List clearly numbered steps/procedures for multi-step problems
Use individual dry-erase boards
Reduce the number of problems you assign
VeryWell suggests the following accommodations for students expressing difficulties in math:
Allow the student to use desk copies of math facts such as multiplication table factsheet
Allow the use of calculations in the classroom
Provide models of sample problems and allow the students to use these models as a reference
Decrease the number of math problems
Allow the students to use graph paper rather than notebook paper
Provide the student with review summaries to help prepare for tests
January is Braille Literacy Month. Invented by Louis Braille, at the age of 15 years old while attending the National Institute for Blind Youth in Paris. Braille lost his sight during a childhood accident at the age of 4. Braille is not a language, rather it is a code that uses symbols formed within units of space that consists of six raised dots , 2 across and 3 down. Below are resources on braille information.
Braille Resources for Special Education Teachers
Path of Literacy Website for students who are blind and visually impaired. Includes teaching strategies on tactile production various braille designs.
Teaching Students with Visual Impairments Provides resources necessary to teach visual impaired students including teaching strategies and professional development opportunities.
The following organizations focus on braille resources and information that serves children and adults with visual impairments including developing teaching materials.
Braille Authority of North America he purpose of BANA is to promote and to facilitate the uses, teaching, and production of braille. Pursuant to this purpose, BANA will promulgate rules, make interpretations, and render opinions pertaining to braille codes and guidelines for the provisions of literary and technical materials and related forms and formats of embossed materials now in existence or to be developed in the future for the use of blind persons in North America.
Braille Institute Is a non-profit organization that offers a broad range of services serving thousands of students of all ages to empower themselves to live more enriching lives with blindness and vision loss.
National Braille Association National Braille Association, founded in 1945, is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing continuing education to those who prepare braille, and to providing braille materials to persons who are visually impaired.
The following laws and regulations authorize the provision of library services to people who are blind, visually impaired or have a physical disability:
Act of March 3, 1931 Authorization of the Library of Congress to provide books for the use of adult blind residents of the United States.
Public Law 89-522 Amends the Acts of March 3, 1981 and October 9, 1962 relating to the furnishing of books and other material to the blind.
U.S. Code Sec. 135a– Authorizes books and sound reproduction records for blind and others with physical disabilities.
The American Disability Act (ADA) requirements for effective communication in the workplace to provide accommodations for people with visual impairments are able to communicate with people effectively.
For people who are blind, have vision loss, or are deaf-blind, this includes providing a qualified reader; information in large print, Braille, or electronically for use with a computer screen-reading program; or an audio recording of printed information. A “qualified” reader means someone who is able to read effectively, accurately, and impartially, using any necessary specialized vocabulary.
For people who are deaf, have hearing loss, or are deaf-blind, this includes providing a qualified note taker; a qualified sign language interpreter, oral interpreter, cued-speech interpreter, or tactile interpreter; real-time captioning; written materials; or a printed script of a stock speech (such as given on a museum or historic house tour). A “qualified” interpreter means someone who is able to interpret effectively, accurately, and impartially, both receptively (i.e., understanding what the person with the disability is saying) and expressively (i.e., having the skill needed to convey information back to that person) using any necessary specialized vocabulary.
For people who have speech disabilities, this may include providing a qualified speech-to-speech translator (a person trained to recognize unclear speech and repeat it clearly) , especially if the person will be speaking at length, such as giving testimony in court, or just taking more time to communicate with someone who uses a communication board. In some situations, keeping paper and pencil on hand so the person can write out words that staff cannot understand or simply allowing more time to communicate with someone who uses a communication board or device may provide effective communication. Staff should always listen attentively and not be afraid or embarrassed to ask the person to repeat a word or phrase they do not understand.
In addition, aids and services include a wide variety of technologies including 1) assistive listening systems and devices; 2) open captioning, closed captioning, real-time captioning, and closed caption decoders and devices; 3) telephone handset amplifiers, hearing-aid compatible telephones, text telephones (TTYs) , videophones, captioned telephones, and other voice, text, and video-based telecommunications products; 4) videotext displays; 5) screen reader software, magnification software, and optical readers; 6) video description and secondary auditory programming (SAP) devices that pick up video-described audio feeds for television programs; 7) accessibility features in electronic documents and other electronic and information technology that is accessible (either independently or through assistive technology such as screen readers) .
