Math manipulatives are tools that can help students of all abilities explore and understand math concepts. As noted by Anstrom (2006), “selecting and accessing the appropriate tools and processes for students with disabilities is critical to their understanding of mathematics” (p.11). Whether concrete or virtual, manipulatives can be supportive tools for learning. Try it at… Read More Math Manipulatives at Your Fingertips
Professional Development Modules to Increase Communication
Communication looks different for everyone. Some may communicate using words, gestures, behaviors, sounds, refusals, and more. It can be different for each learner. Analyzing the form of expressive communication your student uses, can assist educational staff in designing a communication system with and for the student (Downing, Hanreddy, & Peckham-Hardin, 2015, pp. 60-61). Project Core,… Read More Professional Development Modules to Increase Communication
Free Resources for Students in Virginia
A great free resource for students is Find It Virginia, which includes many links to websites that students can use for literacy, learning, and research. Free to residents of Virginia are e-books and digital resources including newspapers, magazines, and encyclopedias for elementary, middle, and high school students. Under the Elementary/Middle School tab, try Kids InfoBits for researching… Read More Free Resources for Students in Virginia
My StoryMaker
My StoryMaker, (your computer needs Adobe Flash to use this website) is a free interactive program for writing short stories hosted by the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. Through visuals, the author selects the characters, items, objects and settings. By selecting feelings, actions, and interactions, the author guides the characters. The program fills in sentences based… Read More My StoryMaker
Giving Students a Choice
Students should be empowered to select their own assistive technology. Even at a basic level, students can learn to exercise choice. User input significantly affects abandonment of assistive technology (Phillips & Zhao, 1993). Develop activities that can help increase capacity of students to self-assess and select their personal assistive technology solutions. Include them in… Read More Giving Students a Choice
Sparkup Digital Reader for Kids
Although these items are being replaced with newer technology, the strategies below can still be effective to use with your students. A limited number of these items are still available in our lending library. ********************************************************** Sparkup Digital Reader for Kids ********************************************************** Ideas for Young Children: Make touch points on a book that will help to focus… Read More Sparkup Digital Reader for Kids
The Power of Eight!! Pulling it Together with Instructional Planning Effective Behavior Practices and Academic Strategies to Meet the Needs of Diverse Learners
In their meta-analysis of “what works” in classroom instruction, Mastropieri and Scruggs (2009) examined some commonly used content area interventions for students with disabilities and found “moderate to large effect sizes” for selected interventions. Implementing these practices establishes the “conditions for learning” and represents one of the most effective ways to reduce problem behavior in school (McIntosh, Sadler, & Brown, 2012). Read More The Power of Eight!! Pulling it Together with Instructional Planning Effective Behavior Practices and Academic Strategies to Meet the Needs of Diverse Learners
