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IDEA Disability Definition:  means concomitant [simultaneous] hearing and visual impairments, the combination of which causes such severe communication and other developmental and educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for children with deafness or children with blindness.
Prevalence: .03% of students who receive services
Characteristics: Lack of Hearing and Vision, often accompanied by other disabilities
Educating Students: Limited reach of environment,  exploring should be done in non-direct manner (student must have full control) Symbolic Communication such as touch-cues
Resources: National Center on Deaf-Blind, National Family Association for Deaf Blind

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IDEA Disability Definition: concomitant impairments (such as mental retardation-blindness or mental retardation-orthopedic impairment), the combination of which causes such severe educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the impairments. Multiple disabilities does not include deaf-blindness
Prevalence:  2.2% of students who receive services have multiple disabilities
Characteristics:  Vary on age and severity of disability, may include: limited speech or communication, difficulty in basic physical mobility,  tendency to forget skills through disuse,  trouble generalizing skills, a need for support in major life activities.
Educating Students:  Consideration in classroom environment, give extra space for aides or equipment, assistive technology,  special diet and medication, team collaboration, teach new skills in general education classroom,  promote friendship and facilitate postive outcomes for classmates without disabilities
Resources: Center for Parent Information Resource, My Child Without Limits

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IDEA Disability Definition: “an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.”
Prevalence: .04% of students who recieve services have a traumatic brain injury
Characteristics: Physical, cognitive, emotional and behavioral and social changes
Educating Students: Team- teaching with other educators to meet students's goals,  Cooperative Learning groups to ensure inclusion,  Problem-Solving and Decision-making skills
Resources: National Resource Center for Traumatic Brain Injury, Brain Injury Association of America, Brainline.org

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IDEA Disability Definition: A severe orthopedic impairment that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. The term includes impairments due to the effects of congenital anomaly, impairments due to the effects of disease, and impairments from other causes.
Prevalence:  About 1.1% of children recieve services for physical disabilities
Characteristics: Trouble with motor coordination and balance, problems with vision, speaking, hearing, stamina, paralysis, seizures, emotional and cognitive abilities
Educating Students:  General curriculum made accessible through universal design,  content to address specific needs, life skills, social skills, self-determination skills, transition to adult living,  use of assist technology and healthcare skills.
Resources: American Association on Health and Disability

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IDEA Disability Defintion:  “having limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment, that— (a) is due to chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis [a kidney disorder], rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, and Tourette syndrome; and (b) adversely affects a child’s educational performance.”
Prevalence: Less than 1% of children who receive services
Characteristics: Vary depending on condition, medical personnel will assist with concerns
Educating Students:  General Curriculum taught through universal design model, Content to address specific needs such as life skills or health care needs, Individualized Health Plan, Social and Behavioral support, support for parents, and proper positioning, Environment needs to be considered so materials are accessible and portable.
Resources: Sickle Cell Society , American Association of Diabetes Educators, American Epilepsy Society

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IDEA Disability Definition:  “an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child’s educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness.”
Prevalence: .04% of all students who receive services are diagnosed with blindness or a visual impairment
Characteristics: Lack of vision, limited ability to learn in present environment and must be directly taught what they need to know, Limited experiences in both learning and social interactions, Limited ability to get around
Educating Students: In early childhood, parents teach hands-on real life skills such as preparing food and getting dressed,  Taught Compensatory skills in elementary school such as Braille in order for students to be included in general curriculum , Need transition plan as they age into adulthood
Resources: National Federation of the Blind, Saint Louis Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Blind Children Resource Center

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IDEA Disability Definition:
"Autism means a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, generally evident before age three, that adversely affects a child's educational performance."
Prevalence: One in 110 children who recieve services are diagnosed with autism, this diagnosis is on the rise.
Characteristics: Broad range of language development from non- verbal to complex, delays in interaction and social skills, repetitive behavior, problem behavior occasionally self-injurious or aggressive, sensory and movement disorders, and broad range of intellectual functioning.
Educating Students:  Positive Behavior systems, social stories to teach social skills and interactions, Mnemonic devices to help with academics.
Resources: National Autism Center, The ARC: Autism Now , Sesame Street and Autism

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IDEA Disability Definition:“a hearing impairment that is so severe that the child is impaired in processing linguistic information through hearing, with or without amplification.”
Prevalence: 1.2% of students who recieve services are diagnosed with hearing loss
Characteristics: Lack of hearing ability, often causes Speech Impairments, achievement levels in reading and writing are closely monitored
Educating Students:  Access to language-rich environment, shared reading (connecting text in books to ASL), Real world experiences to connect what they read to the what they experience, learning about the deaf community within the general curriculum.
Resources: American Society for Deaf Children,  National Association of the Deaf  American Speech-Language Hearing Association

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IDEA Disability Defintion:  listed under "other health impairments" in IDEA because not all students with ADD are eligible for services. "Under the IDEA definition, a student with other health impairments has limited strength, vitality or alertness, including a heightened alertness w and
ith respect to the educational environment, that
(A) is due to chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, and Tourette's syndrome;
(B) Adversely affects a child's educational performance. (IDEA Regulations, 2006)"
Prevalence:  3% to 8% of the general population is diagnosed with ADD or ADHD. Boys are four times as likely to be diagnosed as girls.
Characteristics: Inattentive, intellectual functioning within the average range, impaired academic achievement, and challenges associated with behavioral, social and emotional functioning.
Educating Students: Multi-modal treatments across disciplines (behavior plan as well as medication), Errorless learning (arranging prompts and stimuli so students obtain new skills without the usual trial and error), Computer assisted instruction and video modeling.
Resources: CHADD: The National Resource on ADHD,  Attention Deficit Disorder Association, ADDtitude Magazine

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IDEA Disability Definition: “…a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance:

(A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors.

(B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers.

(C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances.

(D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression.

(E) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems.”
Prevalence: .7% of children in special education are classified to have an emotional disturbance.
Characteristics: Anxiety,  Feeling depressed and worthless, mood swings are common for people with bipolar disorders, defiant sometimes impulsive behavior, antisocial behavior
Educating Students:  Classroom centered interventions or behavior plans, Service Learning, teach conflict-resolution skills and compromising, problem solving and decision making skills.
Resources:  American Psychological Association, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Mental Health America

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IDEA Disability Definition: “significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently [at the same time] with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.”
Prevalence: Difficult to obtain accurate prevalence rate but in 2006 it was reported that .08 of all students who receive services have an intellectual disability
Characteristics:  impaired intellectual functioning affects memory, generalization (ability to transfer knowledge) and externally motivated. Limited adaptive behavior such as impaired social, conceptual and practical skills.
Educating Students: Person center planning, functional curriculum and academics, life skills, community-based instruction and transition planning.Direct instruction tied to clear objectives, task analysis, focus on sequencing task for recognition recall and reconstruction
Resources: National Parent Center on Transition and Employment, Parent Center Hub Intellectual Disability fact sheet,American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

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IDEA Disability Definition: "A speech or language impairment is a communication disorders, such as stuttering, impaired articulation, a language impairment, or a voice impairment, which adversely affects a child’s educational performance."
Prevalence:  In 2002 almost 22% of students who recieved special education services recieved services for a Speech/Language Disability.
Characteristics: Speech and Language development is delayed.Students have difficulty expressing words or ideas. Speech and Language disorders are often associated with other disabilities, for example hearing loss or a cleft palate.
Educating Students: Language Facilitation strategies like indirect correction and open ended questions are done in early childhood.  Graphic organizers and story webs for older students to visually represent and communicate directions and ideas. Learning to use  assistive technology as they transition to the classroom. Another strategy is using the system for augmenting language (SAL) frequently in daily interactions. Students work with speech pathologist as well as general and special education teacher.
Resources: Parent Center Hub Speech and Language impairment fact sheet, National Association of Special Education Teachers , American Speech, Language, Hearing Association

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IDEA Disability Definition: ". . . a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations, including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia."
Prevalence: 45% of Students eligible for Special Ed have a learning disability. It is the most common disability in public schools
Characteristics: Students with a LD often had difficulty processing, organizing and applying information. Often feel overwhelmed and frustrated with learning.
Educating Students: Teach students a variety of learning strategies and how to choose an appropriate one for individual tasks. Differentiated instruction and embedded learning opportunities (including instruction in daily routines)
Resources: Learning Disability Association of America (LDA), All Kinds of Minds, Association on Higher Education and Disabilty