Whom you
observed and interacted with in your setting during these two weeks
I
had the opportunity to observe in a kindergarten class at Edison school. I had
the opportunity to observe a parent who was walking with her son into the
classroom. I noticed the parent trying to hold her son’s hand and he kept
pulling away. The little boy (I will call Darren) however, ran into the
classroom straight for a toy in which he grabbed and began playing with. I was able to observe this parent with her
child on two other observation and everyday it is pretty much the same, him
pulling away from his mother and running into the classroom grabbing the same
toy.
Any special
learning experiences, insights, challenges, etc., related to your topics/focus questions
and/or advocacy efforts in this setting, the community, and/or the field
I
had the chance to continue my observation of Darren throughout my time in the
class. I noticed that Daren had to be asked several times to do certain
activities. Even if asked several times it seemed as though he picked the
activities in which he wanted to participate in. During the play time Darren
played alone. However, if he saw a toy or an item that other classmates have he
would run over and take the toy. The teacher would talk to Darren and he would
try to pull away and go to another area that caught his attention. She would
encourage him to apologize for taking the toys away from his friends. Although
he could not speak clearly he did attempt to apologize.
I
had the opportunity to speak with the teacher when the children went to lunch.
She stated that Darren has been diagnosed with Autism. She also stated that his
parents were having a difficult time accepting that their son has Autism. She
also stated that she have noticed some improvement in the way Darren is
communicating. She also stated that Darren is taking out for speech. She also
stated that Darren will withdraw and have behavioral issues if the routine is
broken. I asked her how she felt about inclusion and she stated she is all for
it if the children who have special needs is going to benefit from it. It can
be a bit challenging at times but the overall experience of inclusion is was a
positive one. The teacher also believes that an inclusive was good for the
children as well as her because everyone had the opportunity to learn and grow.
She also stated that it is important that the school district provide the
service necessary to accommodate the students and their families. She also
stated that inclusion will have a long lasting benefit for children with
special needs. I learned that teachers must have full knowledge of the
strengths as well as the limitation of the child with special needs. Another insight
that I gained from speaking with the teacher of this kindergarten class is how
important it is to have support of administration staff, therapist, parents and
children, and that all are perfect ingredients for positive inclusive
experience. “Every
student can learn, just not on the same day, or the same way.”– George Evans.
While reading your post I could not help but think of how the child reminded me so much of a child in my class. The child is also diagnosed with autism and is the same way in the classroom. I find it very challenging to support him in the environment that I work. The daycare that I work does not have the man power to have a one on one assistant and with 19 others in a pre-K class I find that it is very stressful. When I try to do circle time with the children he NEVER wants to sit down. Instead he will venture around the classroom and play and the other children just do not understand why he can play. If I try to ask him to sit down he throws a big fit. My solution is to try to get quiet things to tweak his interest at a table. This is not always successful. I would love to hear more advice on how to work with this child whose actions seem very similar to Darren.
ReplyDeleteAs an educator, I think one of the hardest things for me to realize is the difference between fair and equal. Fair isn’t everybody getting the same thing, fair is each student getting what they need to be successful. I have a student in my class that rarely comes and participates at circle causing some of the other children to wonder why he gets special treatment. I have continuously tried to get him to rejoin the group with limited success until I had a talk with the special education teacher. She suggested that I make him a flipbook so he could make a safe choice on where he was going to sit during circle time. Lately, he has been bringing his beanbag to join us at circle and he is even beginning to participate. It is not an easy concept to explain to preschoolers, but my students are beginning to realize that fair is not always equal.
DeleteI have had experience working with a few children with autism in class as well as having 2 nephews that both have autism, one high functioning and the other very low. Inclusion for this type of disability is difficult because of the stimulation of a large group, the noise level,and constant transitions. I would recommend reading books and articles about autism. Each case is different but you can find ways to hold his attention and the how and whys of dealing with his outbursts.
ReplyDeleteInclusion at the early childhood setting is good however how do you feel if that child were in a self-contained special ed. setting receiving services in his specific areas of weakness? Sometimes because the children must be included - then specific developmental skills are not worked on in the special ed. setting. I feel sometimes it's good and other times the child would be better in a special ed. classroom receiving those specific skills needed to be better prepared for life.
ReplyDelete