http://www.ldonline.org/ en-us LD OnLine Administrator hourly 1 http://backend.userland.com/rss http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27Serving_All_Kids%2C_No_Exceptions%27 Thu, 04 Aug 2011 14:13:03 GMT More than 30 years after passage of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, schools are still working on including students with disabilities in all facets of public school. And in many places, they remain segregated for at least part of the day, says Wayne Sailor. For many years now, Mr. Sailor has been working with public schools around the country on changing the fundamental culture of how students with disabilities — and all students — are taught. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27Serving_All_Kids%2C_No_Exceptions%27 http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27Square_Peg%27_Students_More_Often_Targets_Of_Bullies Wed, 25 Mar 2009 14:46:08 GMT Studies show students with learning disorders or attention problems are especially vulnerable to bullying. Author and educator Richard Lavoie says that's because these students may have a hard time negotiating the maze of social interactions and "hidden curriculum" in the schools. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27Square_Peg%27_Students_More_Often_Targets_Of_Bullies http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27The_Gift_of_Adult_ADD%27_by_Lara_Honos-Webb Tue, 09 Dec 2008 15:40:49 GMT The Gift of Adult, challenges those with attention-deficit disorder (ADD) to cast off the stigma of the disability and harness the strengths of the affliction. Those with ADD are ideally suited for specific roles, she contends, and each of the affliction's drawbacks is really an advantage that needs to be reframed. ]]> Lara Honos-Webb, author of The Gift of Adult, challenges those with attention-deficit disorder (ADD) to cast off the stigma of the disability and harness the strengths of the affliction. Those with ADD are ideally suited for specific roles, she contends, and each of the affliction's drawbacks is really an advantage that needs to be reframed. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27The_Gift_of_Adult_ADD%27_by_Lara_Honos-Webb http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27The_Short_Bus%27_Author_to_Visit_Housatonic Thu, 13 Nov 2008 05:51:41 GMT Jonathan Mooney, author and advocate for alternative education will talk about the needs of children with behaviorial disorders Thursday at Housatonic Community College. Mooney recommends modifying traditional learning environments to better teach children who have disorders like ADD, ADHD and dyslexia. He maintains that children with disabilities require different learning strategies than traditional students. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27The_Short_Bus%27_Author_to_Visit_Housatonic http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27The_Sky%27s_the_Limit%27_for_Smart_Kids_with_Learning_Disabilities Fri, 19 Feb 2010 15:01:11 GMT Westport, CT resident Jane Ross, for a decade now, has been helping parents who have children with learning disabilities and ADHD through her nonprofit organization, Smart Kids with Learning Disabilities, Inc. Ten years is cause for a celebration, and so, Smart Kids' "The Sky's The Limit" benefit will be taking place at the Westport Country Playhouse on March 12. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27The_Sky%27s_the_Limit%27_for_Smart_Kids_with_Learning_Disabilities http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27Weighing%27_Students_a_Heavy_Cost_for_Schools Thu, 04 Feb 2010 23:21:19 GMT There are 10,482 students enrolled in the schools of Warwick, Rhode Island. Or are there 11,582 students? Actually both figures are correct depending on how students are counted. In terms of bodies the 10,482 total is correct. But in terms of the contract with the Warwick Teachers Union some students actually count for 1.5 or even 2 students. That's because the contract weights those students with an IEP, or individual educational program. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27Weighing%27_Students_a_Heavy_Cost_for_Schools http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27What_Works%27_Guide_Weighs_In_on_RTI Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:43:13 GMT The federal Institute of Education Sciences has released a practice guide on reading instruction and "response to intervention," lending its stamp of approval to a process that has already been widely adopted by schools and districts. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%27What_Works%27_Guide_Weighs_In_on_RTI http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_A_Fair_Way_to_Test_Special_Ed_Students Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:42:21 GMT As a high school special education teacher, I have a deep concern for my students who take the California high school exit examination. I am not sure that another government study or piece of legislation is needed to address this issue and open wider doors for our special-needs students to complete high school. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_A_Fair_Way_to_Test_Special_Ed_Students http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_A_Rough_Year_in_First_Grade Fri, 08 May 2009 14:53:37 GMT This parent advice column looks at what to do to help a first grader who has had a rough first year of school: There are so many reasons why parents need to get all the help possible, as soon as possible. I apologize if I didn't really answer your question, but with so many variables, I think the best advice I can give you is to seek professional help. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_A_Rough_Year_in_First_Grade http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_A_Special_Plan_for_Palin%3A_Vouchers Thu, 11 Sep 2008 15:32:52 GMT Sarah Palin says, if elected, she would be "a friend and advocate in the White House" to children with special needs. It would be great to have an advocate for special-needs kids in the White House. It would be even better if that advocate endorsed the most promising reform for improving special education — vouchers for disabled students. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_A_Special_Plan_for_Palin%3A_Vouchers http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_ADD/ADHD_Pills_Can%27t_Teach_Difference_in_Reading_for_Content_Versus_Pleasure Thu, 05 Mar 2009 15:57:48 GMT Education expert Yvonne Fournier answers a parents' question about the appropriateness of a school recommending ADHD medication: While true ADD/ADHD behavior is usually treated with medication, it is more important, however, to diagnose and treat your child's underlying learning problem, not its behavioral manifestations. No pill can teach a child the difference in reading a textbook for content and reading a novel for a book report or help a child discover his or her working capacity, which leads to personal time-management techniques. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_ADD/ADHD_Pills_Can%27t_Teach_Difference_in_Reading_for_Content_Versus_Pleasure http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_ADHD_Awareness_Week_is_Sept._14-20 Tue, 16 Sep 2008 15:14:54 GMT On the fifth anniversary of national ADHD Awareness Day, Congress has now designated a whole week to raise awareness about this pervasive and impairing neurobiological disorder. When we as a society understand that all brains are different and children need different supports based on actual differences in brain development, we will go far in the support of self-esteem and safety of these affected children. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_ADHD_Awareness_Week_is_Sept._14-20 http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_ADHD_Is_Not_Autism Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:00:55 GMT While many children with autism also have ADHD and/or Sensory Integration Disorder, that doesn't mean children with these disorders also have autism. If the definition of autism keeps getting broader, confusion will cause these misdiagnoses to increase. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_ADHD_Is_Not_Autism http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Campaigns_Need_to_Address_Disability_Issues Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:32:36 GMT While both sides say they care about children with disabilities, neither campaign is addressing the issues — from health care to education to employment to access to technology — that are of vital concern to people with disabilities, like myself. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Campaigns_Need_to_Address_Disability_Issues http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Champion_of_Change%3A_Leroy_McClure Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:54:48 GMT A Dallas man's vision promises fresh start for children — and a vacant building. He's renovating an old grocery store to open Focus charter school. For children with dyslexia, ADHD or other impediments to traditional learning, Focus will create personalized evaluations and learning paths designed to reach the potential of otherwise bright kids. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Champion_of_Change%3A_Leroy_McClure http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Courses%2C_Workshops%2C_Websites%2C_Organizations_Help_Teacher_Hone_Advocacy_Skills Thu, 22 Jan 2009 15:32:52 GMT The key for a teacher who wants to become an effective parent advocate lies in understanding special education laws, rules, and procedures. A good, informal training approach to learning special education laws and procedures is to attend workshops hosted by local school districts, advocacy organizations, and professional special education organizations. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Courses%2C_Workshops%2C_Websites%2C_Organizations_Help_Teacher_Hone_Advocacy_Skills http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Dear_Abby_ Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:35:16 GMT A reader tells advice columnist Abigail Van Buren that her answer to "Frustrated Mom in Virginia" was correct: I can say from personal experience that it is never too late to get her son diagnosed. I am an ADHD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) adult, whose mother mistakenly believed that being "on my case" would lessen my frequent errors. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Dear_Abby_ http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Disabilities_Not_All_the_Same Fri, 07 Nov 2008 05:37:16 GMT Intellectual disabilities and learning disabilities are not interchangeable terms. "Learning disabilities" refers to a variety of disorders that affect the acquisition, retention, understanding, organization or use of verbal and/or non-verbal information. Learning disabilities are specific, not global impairments. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Disabilities_Not_All_the_Same http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_District_Enhances_Reading_Instruction_by_Acting_Early Tue, 05 May 2009 14:33:12 GMT Failing Our Students: Unfortunately, a decade ago, Ridge was in a school system where specialized instruction was offered only after children failed. Today, the "waiting to fail" model is a thing of the past. When it comes to specialized instruction, CCSD is proactive, not reactive. ]]> The Superintendent of Charleston Schools responds to yesterday's story Failing Our Students: Unfortunately, a decade ago, Ridge was in a school system where specialized instruction was offered only after children failed. Today, the "waiting to fail" model is a thing of the past. When it comes to specialized instruction, CCSD is proactive, not reactive. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_District_Enhances_Reading_Instruction_by_Acting_Early http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Don%27t_Disregard_Dyslexia_%26%23151%3B_It%27s_All_Around_You Tue, 08 Jul 2008 15:03:22 GMT A local teacher looks at the myths and realities of dyslexia. Recognizing the signs of dyslexia is the critical first step. The second is diagnostic testing, she says. http://www.ldonline.org/ldnews/%28Opinion%29_Don%27t_Disregard_Dyslexia_%26%23151%3B_It%27s_All_Around_You