https://padlet.com/wallace070800/u08eblrmod61 Made with a quick smile en-us 2018-11-12 18:17:36 UTC 2026-01-03 17:13:41 UTC hello@padlet.com wallace070800 https://padlet.com/wallace070800/u08eblrmod61/wish/303071379 My name is Sam. I'm in First Grade. My mom helped me write this story, because I'm blind and can't type or write like other kids. I've been blind since I was born. so I've never even learned what letters look like. While my classmates in Kindergarten were learning to sing the alphabet and write the letters, I could only sit and listen and sing along. What does an A look like? I have no idea. I'm learning to read and write a special alphabet for blind people called Braille. I can't tell you what it looks like, I can only tell you that I "feel" the letters.
Now that I'm in First grade, we are learning lots of new stuff. I like to learn new things, but some subjects are so hard for me. Like Science. I love hearing Mrs. Jones talk about interesting creatures like butterflies and crickets and spiders. We are learning about something called the lifecycle of insects and spiders. It sounds interesting, but I have only my imagination to help me picture the different stages of a creature's life.  
Last week I felt so frustrated. Our class got some live caterpillars. The other kids were so excited to watch them move around in the cage. Then after awhile, Sarah got very excited because she noticed that there was a cocoon at the top of the cage! All the other kids ran over to see the cocoon. But I couldn't see it. I had no idea what the kids were seeing. But Mrs. Jones is so kind. She told Sarah to bring me over to the cage and tell me what she was seeing. Sarah seems so smart. She always knows the answer when Mrs. Jones asks questions. She knows so many big words, too! I think that's why Mrs. Jones picked her to "show" me what the cocoons looked like. 
But Sarah's not the only friend I have. Lots of the kids in my class are kind to me and help me like when we go out to recess. Usually someone will hang out with me and talk to me during recess. Mrs. Jones is always telling our class that we have to look out for each other, cuz we are all friends, and friends look out for each other. 

Reflection: I think that diversity in a classroom creates learning opportunities for all students, regardless of whether they have disabilities. For a child who is blind, learning from both the teacher as well as the other students helps him or her develop social connections and helps him or her learn that there are many perspectives when learning new things.  For the other students in a class with a blind child or a child with other disabilities, they have a chance to learn to value differences and to be kind to everyone, even those who may look or act differently. At the school where I work, there is a kindergartner who has a disability (I don't know what specifically it is) that reflects in her face being slightly disfigured. Yet when I bring my first graders by her room and they see her, one particular first grader always goes out of her way to say hi to her. She often tells her she likes her dress. It's as if she doesn't even notice that the child's face looks different from hers. As a teacher, I will have the opportunity to model how to treat others and how to show kindness for children with disabilities. In cases where my modeling isn't enough to ensure my students are kind, I will need to make sure to talk to my students about how they treat others and hopefully they will carry my words with them as they get older. ]]> 2018-11-12 00:33:35 UTC https://padlet.com/wallace070800/u08eblrmod61/wish/303071379 wallace070800 https://padlet.com/wallace070800/u08eblrmod61/wish/303405194 2018-11-12 18:18:56 UTC https://padlet.com/wallace070800/u08eblrmod61/wish/303405194