Special Education
The children in your preschool or kindergarten class will come with many different strengths or needs and be at a variety of learning levels. Sometimes you come across a child who has a Learning Disability, ADHD or Autism Spectrum Disorder. I am listing some information and websites to help you understand some of the characteristics you might see and how Executive Function skills will help all children.
An excellent website for information and strategies on special education is:
http://www.teachspeced.ca/index.php?q=node - The Teacher’s Gateway to Special Education site has been developed by Ontario Teacher’s Fedceration(OTF) with funding from the Ministry of Education.
Learning Disabilities:
A child with a learning disability usually has average to above average intelligence. A learning disability (LD) is a disorder that affects a child's ability to interpret what they see and hear or to link information from different parts of the brain.
When you are observing a child in your classroom, you could probably check 1 or 2 of these characteristics. But, a child with a learning disability usually has several of these characteristics which persist over time and interfere with their learning. Some of the characteristics you might notice in the early primary grades are:
Oral Language:
- Speaks later than most children
- Often has pronunciation problems
- Slow vocabulary growth, often unable to find the right word
- Difficulty rhyming words
Alphabet:
- Difficulty remembering sounds of letters and names of letters
- Slower to learn the connection between letters and sounds
- Confuses letter names and sounds
- Frequent reversals (b/d), inversions (m/w), distorted shapes and sizes of letters (and numbers)
Problems in Reading:
- Often lacks awareness of sounds that make up words' does not "attack" a new word but guesses or waits for the teacher to say the word
- Confuses basic words (run, eat, want)
- Loses meaning of sentence before getting to the end; loses sequence of what has been read; struggles with reading words; finds reading extremely difficult
Problems with Writing:
- Loses place frequently and ignores organizational cues
- Fine motor skills may be slower to develop
- May have an unstable pencil grip
- Appears careless
- Copying from a page beside him is easier than copying from the board
Difficulty with Organization:
- Difficulty following directions or routines
- Impulsivity, difficulty planning
- Slow to learn new skills, relies heavily on memorization
Some useful websites about learning disabilities are:
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/101003/chapters/Who-Is-Really-Learning-Disabled¢.aspx?kalogin=1 This is an excellent chapter from the book Preventing Early Learning Failure, it discusses who is really learning disabled.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD):
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most common childhood-onset behavioural disorder. A child with ADHD will have a greatly reduced ability to maintain attention without being distracted, is impulsive and may be restless and fidgety. ADHD is also called attention deficit disorder (ADD) or hyperactivity. Their intellect may be normal or advanced, and more than half of children with ADHD have specific learning disabilities, such as dyslexia. Coping with the symptoms can mean underachievement and poor self-esteem.
Some characteristics that you might observe in a child with ADHD are:
Excessilvely, consistently and involuntarily having difficulty with:
- Remaining seated when required
- Waiting turn in group situations
- Following instructions
- Playing quietly
- Shifting from one incomplete activity to another
- Interrupting others
- Engaging in physically dangerous activities without considering the consequences
Not everyone with ADHD has the same symptoms or is affected by each to the same degree.
There are many good websites about ADHD.http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/attention2.shtml - All about ADHD.
Autism Spectrum Disorder:
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a complex condition that impacts normal brain development and affects a person's social relationships, communication, interests and behaviour. There is a wide variation in how it affects each person and individuals with ASD vary widely in their needs, skills and abilities. At least a million children and adults have a diagnosis of autism or a related disorder, like Asperger syndrome or “pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified,” also known as P.D.D.-N.O.S.
The effects of ASD may not be visible to most people.
Some characteristics that you might observe in a child with ASD are:
- difficulties with communication and social interaction
- repetitive interests and activities
- unusual attachments to objects or routines
Some good websites about autism:
http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/autism/index.htm - A guide for parents and teachers about autism
http://autismcanada.org - A website that explains the many faces of autism.