Anne, from Raintree replied:
I remember when "L," who has cerebral palsy, was invited to her first birthday party by a friend at Raintree. Her mother cried...

Carolyn, from St. Ben's Infant/Toddler replied:
I have observed the silence of a special needs child turn to laughter, signing and beginning language.

Connie, from Raintree replied:
When my second son (now 15) was in preschool he announced at supper one night that we had to build a ramp up to our front porch so that his friend, who has spine bifida and uses a walker, could "walk" into his birthday party and not have to be carried up the steps. "I really don't think he likes that very much," he told us. Such friendships are crucial to both my able son and his physically challenged friend.

Darla, from Bright Futures replied:
We do a group with the physical therapist once a week. One week we did a "Humpty Dumpty" activity. One of our typically developing kids told their parents about it and they came back to school the next day asking about it. The parent was very interested in what was done and liked the idea of the therapist seeing all the children.

Jennifer, from White replied:
We were working on a class project with partners and I had paired a child with a special education label and another child. They were looking for words on a topic, and before I could show them how I wanted them to work together they had found a solution on their own. The child in special education was orally spelling the words while the other student was writing them down. It is this example and many other daily events that demonstrate the benefits of inclusion. Events such as, watching children learn to stay in line, use polite words, and learn to play a game that have been the rewards of the inclusion program.

Michelle, from St. Ben's Infant/Toddler replied:
The more the staff work together to reach the child's needs, the more beneficial the inclusion program will be to the child.

Missy, from St. Ben's Preschool replied:
One day a peer model in my classroom asked why another child in the class was fed with a feeding tube. At circle time we talked about why the tube was used instead of a spoon. It was a great experience for the whole class to learn about a "different way to eat," and why that child is fed that way.

Shannon, from Barkley replied:
One of the first years Nancy and I worked together, we had a little guy who came to us in a wheel chair. He was taking some beginning steps at home but the children at school had not seen him walk. One day, after a lengthy break from school, this child took his first (wobbly) step into our classroom. The other children were already seated for snack and as Dillon walked in, one child said, "Dillon is walking!" The other children spontaneously broke into applause.

Previous Question     List All Questions