This checklist from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute helps parents evaluate the safety of children with asthma within their child-care setting. Useful resources are included for promoting a safe environment.

These fact sheets are available on the web site of the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). All of the fact sheets provide guidance and explore issues related to disclosing one's disability.
"The Why, When, What, and How of Disclosure in an Academic Setting, After High School"

"Youth, Disclosure, and the Workplace: Why, When, What, and How"

The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) has released three fact sheets in a new and easy to read format that provide constructive disability employment information for parents, youth and employers.
 
Creating a Path to Employment
Tips for Parents with Children with Disabilities Work in the 21st century is more team-based than ever. Start by exploring the work world together. 
Essential Skills to Getting a Job
What Young People with Disabilities Need to Know Often referred to as soft skills, work ethic, communication, teamwork and critical thinking are all must have's for youth in today's job market.
Shaping Tomorrow's Workforce
Including Talents of Young People with Disabilities Youth with disabilities bring fresh, new perspectives that enrich strategies for meeting business challenges and achieving success.

Project Forum at the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) has published a new proceedings document entitled Homeless and Special Education Administrative Collaboration: Recommendations, by Kim M. Sopko. The document highlights challenges faced by administrators who support homeless education under the McKinney-Vento Act and those who provide early intervention and special education services for children with disabilities who are homeless. It includes recommendations on developing policies and practices for: (1) expediting enrollment and provision of services; and (2) coordinating programs and services. 

Co-teaching is the practice of pairing two teachers together to take responsibility for meeting the educational needs of children in the classroom. There are several types of co-teaching. Five have been identified:
·     One teacher guides instruction and the other aids children individually throughout the

      instruction period.
·     Setting up the classroom by creating stations, whereby each teacher attends

      individually to students at the stations.
·     Parallel teaching occurs when each teacher teaches the same material to different

      groups within the classroom.
·     Alternative teaching is when a small subset of students is taken aside for more

      specialized instruction.
·     Team teaching describes classrooms where each teacher shares the responsibilities of

      instruction and role as lead teacher.
The practice of shared instruction allows special educators to teach beside the general education teacher, enhancing instruction. Students benefit from this type of teaching because it creates inclusive classrooms where children with disabilities are learning the same material as those without disabilities, albeit with extra support.
To find out more about co-teaching, visit the following websites: Access My Library, TAcommunities

NCWD/Youth Releases Guide on the Needs of Youth involved, or at risk of being involved in the Juvenile Corrections System: Making the Right Turn: A Guide About Improving Transition Outcomes for Youth Involved in the Juvenile Corrections System
 
Youth with emotional disturbances comprise over 47.4 percent of students with disabilities in secure care, while within public schools they account for only about eight percent of students with disabilities. Students with Learning Disabilities are also overrepresented in the juvenile justice system and account for 38.6 percent of students with disabilities in these settings. This Guide provides professionals with well-researched and documented facts, offers evidence-based research, highlights promising practices, and provides the Guideposts for Success for Youth Involved in the Juvenile Corrections System, in addition to pointing out areas requiring further attention by policymakers and identifying promising practices.

This Guide adds to the overall work that can be found on NCWD/Youth's website which includes the National Association of State Directors of Special Education's publication, Education of Children and Youth Who Are Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk toolkit Meeting the Educational Needs of Youth Exposed to the Juvenile Justice System. For more information click here.

This Project Forum @ NASDSE In-Brief Policy Analysis is based on a survey sent to all special education units of state education agencies. The survey requested information on states' efforts to support local education agencies to address the provisions for parentally placed private school students with disabilities. Findings are synthesized for state policy and procedures, guidance and technical assistance, and special circumstances. Conclusions are drawn based on the survey results. Pertinent federal regulations, the survey instrument and state reference information are included in appendices. To access the document click here.

What is simSchool? simSchool is an online simulated classroom experience with students from a variety of backgrounds and with a variety of characteristics. The participant plays the role of teacher by making a series of instructional decisions and responding to student comments and questions. The teacher can witness how students respond verbally and behaviorally, can review students' academic and personal backgrounds, and view their academic and affective responses to the instructional choices the teacher makes. simSchool was designed to provide pre-service teachers with a safe environment for experimenting and practicing new techniques, especially methods of addressing different learning styles, and wide variations in academic and behavioral performance of students. The objective of a simSchool user is to align their instructional tasks and conversations with the capabilities and learning styles of the simSchool students in order to learn how to reduce barriers to learning and engender positive academic outcomes.

Section 504 Requirements
Section 504 re the legal obligations of schools to provide health-related services and therapies? Accommodations needed for equal access).  This link discusses "How to Assemble a Teacher Information Packet" as a means of collaborating with the school regarding the care of your child.  Be sure to click the embedded link entitled "Preparing the School" for diagnosis specific information.
 
Section 504/ADA in College Settings
This information from Rutgers University provides a brief introduction regarding how the protections provided under IDEA, 504 plans, and the ADA apply (or don't apply) in the college setting. Click here for more information.

  For many students, difficulty with reading nonverbal cues and engaging in social interactions can turn everyday situations into challenging obstacles. Multiple technologies can help address these issues. Read CITEd's Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)-related Info Briefs, prepared for LD Online, and explore the uses of technology in building an inclusive and safe environment.

 

   -Ghandi