Answer Children's Questions

• Answer honestly and straightforwardly
• Contribute to understanding about the child with a disability
• Answer in a manner a young child would understand
• Convey respect for the child with a disability

Add Meaningful Content on Behalf of the Child

• Address ongoing conversation or activity
• Emphasize the similarities among the children
• Relate information as well as experiences, thoughts, and feelings of the child

Teach Children to Interact Directly with Their Classmate with a Disability

• Teach children to recognize and interpret the nonverbal response of their classmate
• Teach children to direct their comments and questions directly to their classmate

Allow Spontaneous Interactions Among the Children to Occur

• Provide assistance without directly participating in the children's interactions
• Step back and fade physically from the children's interactions

Invite and Encourage Participation

• Use warm and accepting manner
• Encourage frequent brief interactions when initially introducing a child
• Invite another child to become involved in an ongoing activity
• Suggest child select new activity to include a child with a disability
• Prompt meaningful participation in a natural manner

Thompson, B., Wickham, D., Wegner, J., Ault, M. M., Shanks, P., & Reinertson, B. A circle of inclusion: Facilitating the inclusion of young children with severe disabilities in mainstream early childhood education programs. Manual to the video. (1993). Lawrence, KS: Learner Managed Design.