https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi Made with love en-us 2017-09-15 22:36:06 UTC 2026-01-21 04:27:02 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/190953293 Hello all! As Ben's occupational therapist, I'd like to facilitate helping Ben with access to the resources in his classroom, focusing on, for example, improving his fine motor skills--- through promoting activities that would help strengthen his ability to use scissors, to button his shirt, etc. As described in the article Occupational Therapy in Full-Inclusion Classrooms: A Case Study From the Moorpark Model, perhaps we could discuss giving Ben a role in the classroom that might strengthen his fine motor skills. An example, as described in the article, might include giving him the role of hanging student artwork (I.e using clothes pins) in the classroom. 
I’d also like to highlight Ben’s social skills as described in his IEP. We should acknowledge Ben’s strengths to carry a conversation when he is challenged to spell a difficult word or find a missing letter of a word. Perhaps, activities along these lines (i.e. solving puzzles) could be incorporated into his daily routine ? When engaged in sensory activity like swinging or jumping on a trampoline, Ben is most verbal and playful so perhaps incorporating swinging/jumping on a trampoline into a class activity or lesson would be appropriate.

]]> 2017-09-25 17:41:54 UTC https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/190953293 cindyhe1996 https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191402532 As a parent, I believe that Ben has been improving both academically and socially. Looking at his academic achievements, he has made measureable improvements in various fields. His biggest concern is that he constantly needs an assistant to help him in order to stay in attention and complete some tasks. However, with a little help, I believe Ben can achieve as much as any other students can. My biggest concern for Ben right now is not his academics, but his social life. I hope that Ben could be placed in a regular classroom where he can comfortably engage with any other children at his age. Looking at the reports, Ben is able to cooperate and get along very well with his peers. I hope that Ben can enjoy his childhood by going to parties, and making life-long friends in school. His teacher had mentioned that Ben tends to be in his own world and refuse to interact with others. I believe Ben, just like any other student, wants his own downtime sometimes. He may not always be energetic and talkative all the time. I hope that the teacher would look at Ben as a “normal” student and not a student with special needs. The teacher seems to be showing a negative attitude towards Ben judging from her comments that she " never had a child so withdrawn, so disabled”. It seems as if the teacher has already given up on my child. Ben may sense that he’s “special” from his classmates. I just want him to feel that he is not any different from any children at his age.

]]> 2017-09-26 18:11:34 UTC https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191402532 https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191501927  After reading about Benny's strengths, I think it's important that we play to his strengths. He seems to work fairly well in small groups and I think that it is important that we set up a group environment that works well for him in the classroom. I think it is also important that Benny's parents and teachers set up an effective means of communication because it seems like there is a lot of miscommunication between them. They all have different expectations for Benny in the classroom and together we should all establish a goal for Benny. His medication seems to make him very withdrawn. Maybe there is some other medication that we can switch him to that will work better for him? He works very well with visual clues maybe we can incorporate more visual learning into his classroom. Either way it is important that we work together to find something that works best for Benny. ]]> 2017-09-27 01:33:06 UTC https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191501927 https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191503028 After reading about Benny's strengths and current behavior from the perspectives of his teacher and parents, I believe it is important that we work together to drill down into Benny's current experiences, and understand what challenges may be affecting his school performance at this time.

The road to true inclusion for Benny, as with any child, has to begin with honest and open collaboration between the families and a variety of stakeholders within the schools (Van Hove, 2008). Right now, based on the accounts of Benny's teacher and family, it seems like there are several different potential causes for Benny's perceived lack of motivation and interest in his classroom setting. Neither party is 100% sure of what exact challenges may be laying the biggest role in the current situation. Possible problems include medication, teaching methods, and many other possible challenges. I am thankful to all for gathering, so we can discuss the issues that have already been raised as a group, and discuss some next steps- whether observational or diagnostic, that we can take as a group in order to address Benny's needs.]]> 2017-09-27 01:40:06 UTC https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191503028 molliiee_ross https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191895817 After reading both the parent and teachers' concerns about Benny and his participation and success in the classroom I can sense that the teacher does not have a full understanding of working with children with disabilities, and this is not the fault of anyone but the school. It is apparent that a Special Educator is not working between the teacher and the parent and this unfortunate. According to a study done in South Wales, Special Educators in the school and classroom setting "have a positive impact on improving the educational outcomes for students with disabilities and, through this, lead to overall improvements in school performance".  We as professional adults who have the best intentions for all of our students must remember that "...students in special education continue to experience a separate existence in schools, despite being ensured a free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment" (Lipsky & Gartner, 1996), and in this case, it does seem that Benny is being denied his right to be fully accepted as an appreciated member of the classroom simply because his disability might make his work performance not as "typical" as the other students. This is something that the Special Educator is important for in classrooms and in schools. To remind the teacher that Benny and other students with disabilities are doing the best they can, and that is all that matters! The worst we can do to inhibit their growth  is make them feel removed and alienated from the group. ]]> 2017-09-27 23:15:44 UTC https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191895817 https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191910065 The input from the team as a whole has been really great. I think that Mary's concerns about activities, Jessica's recommendations about the classroom environment, and Mollie's concerns about inclusion are really valid. I would like to set up a meeting with Cindy and the teacher as a next step. Now that we have heard so many wonderful expert opinions, I think that Team Benny needs to come together to discuss what we have observed, and how much of an effect we see these influences have on Benny. I would also like to set up some time to discuss these concerns with Benny directly, and discover his feelings about class as well. I want to make sure that the teacher and parents are both receiving whatever support they need to make Benny's learning environment work for him.]]> 2017-09-28 01:31:11 UTC https://padlet.com/dberm/w2buzw76vimi/wish/191910065