The Aural Habilitation Program of Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (Canada) provides weekly, individualized aural habilitation sessions for parents of young children with hearing impairments and offers guidance in creating a listening, learning environment in the home. Strategies for developing parents' skills and confidence are described.…

The process of curriculum differentiation for students with special needs at a primary school in Great Britain is described, focusing on educational values, planning, role of the special education teacher in ensuring that the needs of all children are being met, individualized programs, and curriculum assessment. (JDD)

The Academic Mentoring Program of Henry Clay High School in Lexington, Kentucky, is an honors-level independent study program that allows students to pursue an idea beyond regular classroom opportunities. Students pursue their independent projects with the help of mentors from appropriate fields of study, and they are also taught critical and…

This case study chronicles the use of two educational planning tools, COACH (Choosing Outcomes and Accommodations for Children) and VISTA (Vermont Interdependent Services Team Approach) for a 4-year-old with Down syndrome who attends a general education preschool. The decision-making process and follow-up interviews are described, illustrating the…

Researchers and practitioners have emphasized the importance of teaching self-determination skills to students with disabilities for more than a decade. One major barrier to teaching self-determination in recent years has been teachers' not knowing how to focus on reading, writing, and mathematics and simultaneously teach self-determination…

Academic accommodations are intended to increase access to education for students with disabilities. Although the concept seems simple, implementation is challenging because of the ambiguous wording of some accommodations. This article reviews confusing aspects of frequently encountered accommodations. Research-based guidelines for writing…

"Bloom where you are planted" is sage advice that parents have passed down through the ages to their children. It is especially wise counsel for the military child who faces new environments on a regular basis. But in today's complicated, fast-moving world, filled with choices, opportunities, and myriad pathways from which students with…

Although high school students cannot control every aspect of their school education, they do have the power to make changes in their education program. As they influence major parts of their IEP, they gain more freedom and more control over what happens to them. This action sheet describes three steps for high school students to consider in taking…

More stakeholders are turning to technology to advance the professional learning required to support new standards and evaluation systems. Yet how technology is used will determine its potential to influence educator practice and results for students. This brief outlines how technology can enhance professional learning, offers examples of how…

A child's third birthday is an important day. Aside from being a time to celebrate, it also marks the transition from Help Me Grow Infant and Toddler Intervention services to a preschool option. This transition changes the services available to a parent and how they are provided, as the focus moves from a child with a disability or developmental…

When a baby is born with Down syndrome, his or her parents should know that there's a lot of help available--and immediately. Shortly after the diagnosis of Down syndrome is confirmed, parents will want to get in touch with the early intervention system in their community. Early intervention is a system of services designed to help infants and…

The Common Core of Data (CCD) nonfiscal surveys consist of data submitted annually to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) by state education agencies (SEAs) in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the four U.S. Island Areas (American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin…

Teachers at all levels of education today struggle in their efforts to assign fair, accurate, and meaningful grades to students with disabilities, especially those placed in general education classrooms. Lacking specific policies or recommendations, most teachers apply informal, individual grading adaptations for such students. Although these…

This document presents a summary of a larger report that reviews teaching standards in six states (California, Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, and Texas) focuses on the structure, target audience, and selected content of the standards to inform California's revision of its teaching standards. The report was developed at the request of key…

When administrators, teachers, and other professionals join parents in developing meaningful goals for deaf and hard of hearing students, it is exciting, rewarding, and fun; it is also considerable work. However, the result is critical. These goals can be the key to success for deaf and hard of hearing students, especially when delineated in each…