Blair Bucci SPED 405 Mondo-Amaya 6 December 2012 Assignment C Disabilities & Key Areas of Focus Case 1 As defined

by IDEA, Micha would be identified as having Emotional Behavioral Disability because of his inability to build or maintain satisfactory relationships with peers andinappropriate types of behaviors or feelings under normal circumstances, (U.S. Department of Education, 2005). This disability would fall under the category of anxiety due to the post traumatic stress disorder trigger of witnessing the horrific event of his grandmothers violent death and also possibly depression as seen from the most likely self-inflicted scars on his arms, which would then constitute as co-morbidity (Rosenberg 177). It is important to keep in mind with this student that the dropout rate for students with EBD is 58.6% and also that between 38-75% of children with EBD also have some form of learning disability (Rosenberg 177). It may be difficulties with learning the material that causes the aggressive and disruptive behavior displayed by Micha. The most important thing will be to make sure that Micha is staying on pace to complete his work so that he does not fall behind even more. I would have continuous mini-conferences with his to check his level of understanding and comprehension on material and his progress on assignments to gain feedback on whether more needs to be done for him; such things might include spending more time in groups, one-on-one, peer tutoring, or other accommodations. Overall, the long-term goal for Micha would be to teach self-control. I will also want to get him more involved with the other students once I see that he will be able to limit his aggressive behavior and work cooperatively with others so as to promote positive interactions with peers. An area of support which would definitely need to be implemented for Micha is regular meetings with the school counselor. The counselors purpose and goals would be to alleviate any added stress that Micha is experiencing due to school, such as his inability to make friends. He/She could also talk to Micha about his self-mutilation and any possible depression he is going through. Because of the nature of his disability, it is going to be very important to make school a safe environment for him to feel welcome in, so forming as many positive relationships within the school would be very helpful for Micha in order to reduce his chances of continuing to fall behind and/or drop out. Case 2 For Lizzy, it is imperative to keep in mind that learning disabilities are merely processing disabilities, not intelligence disabilities (Rosenberg 140). The biggest thing to focus on would be for her to be able to absorb the reading material. Because she is an avid photographer I would utilize pictures as a way for Lizzy to be able to retain information about the chronology and other details of the book being read in class. I would start off by providing her with the pictures so that she would be able to follow along more easily and be able to remember the readings, but then work up to having her create, or even photograph, her own pictures to help her. I would also focus on having Lizzy work in small groups so that she can listen to her peers read and also get her back into being involved with class discussions. During all reading activities I will

provide a guide of the reading, such as a graphic organizer, to help her follow along. After regaining some of her confidence back I would then focus on her social and leadership skills, as shown by her position as captain of the swim team. I would assist Lizzy with her difficulties finding important material in the books we read since the assessment is not being able to find such materials, but rather on the comprehension of such material. By saving the time it may take her to find or remember the material, she can spend more time on understanding the information. This could be done by placing book markers in the books to signify important pieces that may be repeated so that she can easily go back to these points. Additionally, we could make a journal together in which she would be able to compile all of the important information into one place so that she would not have to look all over the place to find different materials. This journal would also allow for the use of pictures to assist her with comprehension and memory. Another thing I would focus on in terms of alleviating her difficulties with memory is making new material relevant to other aspects of her life so that she will have an easier time connecting ideas. I would continue utilizing the special education and reading support in order to give her the extra support she needs, but a long-term goal I would set for this case would be to reduce the amounts of supports gradually. Perhaps she is in separate classes a few times a day, what I would rather see is her be in the general education classroom as much as possible with a coteacher or aide present; if that is already the case then I would probably try to increase her independence by having more guided reading activities to help her. Case 3 The most crucial thing about Susans case is that under IDEA, legal blindness only grants certain eligibility for various legal benefits, not for educational services (Rosenberg 349). Because of this, Susan is not guaranteed permanent aides or other services, so accommodations must be provided by the teacher from what is available at the school. Although IDEA states that a visual impairment adversely affects a childs educational performance, (IDEA), there is no mention that Susans disability is greatly harming for performance. Because of this, I would mostly focus on using a wide variety of accommodations for her and involving her in the knowledge of these accommodations so that she will be able to decide what is most effective for her to learn from. From this, the goal is that she will be knowledgeable enough on the topic of accommodations so that when she does go off to college she will know what the best methods to use are. I would like to have her work more in small groups and have her peers assist her in more natural ways; for example, having all the members of the group read aloud instead of her only listening to recordings or reading Braille. I would always make sure that the materials she needs are accessible to her by having an established routine for her to pick them up. In fact, for all of my classes I will have all materials that are need that day for class available near the door so students can get that as soon as they walk into the room. Because Susans materials would have to be modified, I would place hers on the same desk but in a separate pile in its own folder to keep everything together so that she could get her materials with a greater amount of ease. If Susan was still not able to get the materials, I would either have them at her desk already, or have another student who sits next to her bring her the materials each day. This way, Susan would not need to use valuable time to figure out how to obtain materials needed for class.

The Lesson Plan The lesson plan I will be using for this assignment involves using a book entitled Not my Turn to Die, which the class will have just completed reading, to stage a mock trial for one of the characters. There are many different roles with different social objectives, so I think this will be an effective lesson for allowing each of the three students at hand to achieve their own goals in terms of their disability and abilities, and it will also allow for me to alter what I am expecting out of each student in a way that is more specific to their needs. (The actual lesson plan, along with other materials that will be used, and What I need to know chart are attached in full at the end of this assignment.) While the content of the book may require a mature audience, the reading level is not very demanding, so it should not be too difficult for any of the students. Adaptations & Accommodations Case 1 For Micha, first off, I would assign him as one of the characters that will be acting as witnesses during the mock trial. He would be part of a group and interact with others, but all interactions would be pre-planned; the attorneys will have to provide him the list of questions they will be asking him so that he can be ready and have prepared answers before the presentation began. This would allow for him to have social interactions with his peers in a safe and comfortable setting which would minimize any frustration that may lead to aggressive or defiant behavior which has shown to diminish any positive relationships he has with his classmates. Because the attorneys are only required to give their witnesses the questions which they will be asking by the end of the period, I would tell them to do Michas questions first so that he could have as much time to prepare answers for them during class. The entire first day of this lesson will be spent on explaining and preparing for the mock trials, so I would immediately after giving directions to the whole class work with Micha privately to create an organizer with him to help guide him through everything that needs to be completed. It may look like a timeline so that he would know how much time should be spent on each step before needing to move on so he could stay on pace. I would check in with him halfway through class to check on his progress and edit the organizer or the amount of work required of him if absolutely necessary. I would still expect him to complete anything that is necessary for him to participate in the trial, but I may shorten the length of what he needs to write so that he can still be assessed. Something to keep in mind not just during this lesson, but the entire unit, is the amount of sensitivity that Micha needs because of his disability. The book being used is about the genocide in Bosnia and mentions violence and the main characters family often being threatened, which may trigger painful memories and/or feelings for Micha. Throughout the duration of the book I would warn Micha a day or two ahead of time when a section of the book that was to be read may make him uncomfortable so that I could arrange for him to be out of the room at the time, and ideally during this time I would have him speak to a social worker about his anxiety. An alternative could also be for him to come into class before or after school and I would read these portions of the book with him one-on-one. I think this would be a good idea since Micha and I have a positive relationship. I think this would provide a more comfortable environment for him to read material that may have harmful effects on him. If this were the case, after this routine became more and more comfortable for Micha I would even ask a few other students to attend these sessions to involve peer relationships in Michas experience so that

he may more easily trust other students and be able to form positive relationships with them. Of course, I would not do this until I felt and Micha agreed that he was comfortable enough to do so. During the presentation portion of the lesson, if I noticed any behavior problems happening or about to happen I would also allow Micha to leave the classroom briefly by allowing him to get a drink of water or deliver a note somewhere to give him a moment to relax and calm down. I would also provide him with a stress ball to hold onto in case he felt anxious during his speaking parts. This would be a way for him to relieve any stress he would feel in a way that is not very noticeable to others and would not attract any unwanted attention to him. Case 2 I would assign Lizzy the role of the judge so that she could capitalize on her abilities as a leader. This role would allow her to facilitate the sequence of events throughout the entire mock trial. Before the actual mock trial takes place everyone is required to have their lines prepared, so by already knowing what she is supposed to say and when, it will make Lizzy feel comfortable with speaking with the whole class which will be a good confidence builder for her to participate in other class discussions. I would stress the relation between this role and her role as the swim team captain as a way to make this relevant to her life and be able to activate her working memory, which she is having difficulties with. I will have a graphic organizer for her to have available during the mock trial which tells her the sequence of events for the trial along with a picture signifying each step, and a time so she can tell how long to let each step take place for. To keep track of this, I will also give her a stop watch, which again is similar to experience with the swim team. There is a significant amount of reading and re-reading for this lesson, so condense the amount needed to be done for Lizzy by pointing out specific portions for her to look at. On the handout which provides instructions for the role of judge it says to explore the numerous links provided which each explain the procedures in a courtroom since the students are not being assessed on their knowledge of the courtroom, rather this information is meant to provide a better understanding of what will be taking place during the mock trial, I would have Lizzy just focus on the sequence of events provided on the main activity handout. I may also have her watch a video clip which briefly explains the courtroom process so that she can get a visual of what will be taking place. She also will be required to make a prediction about what she think each side will make as their case; this will require her to either recall information from memory or look back in the book to find information to base her prediction of off. Since I would know before reading the book that we would be doing this lesson, I would tell her ahead of time to mark information while reading that will help her later on. This is where marking information in the book or creating a journal to compile important information altogether using visuals would come in handy. As mentioned previously, it is not the students ability to find this information that is being assessed so it would not be placing Lizzy at an advantage over anyone else by making the information easier for her to find. By doing this, she can spend more time completing the tasks required for the assignment and can better prepare herself for her performance so that she can be more confident.

Case 3 Giving Susan the role of one of the attorneys, I think, would be the most appropriate in terms of practicing her goal of becoming an advocate for herself. The requirements of this role are similar to the actions of an attorney; they must work with a partner to create an argument and use evidence from the book and witnesses to support their argument to convince the jury in their favor. Susan will have to go back into the book to obtain most of this information, so I will have recordings, Braille, and oral reading (by her partner). Similar to Lizzys accommodations, I will also have portions from the book which I feel may be useful already prepared so that she does not have to waste time searching for the information she wants. This would not be putting her at an unfair advantage because the material is already there either way, and she will still have to analyze the material herself. Susan could utilize her partner in this activity as a useful resource; for example if Susan knows which part of the book she would like to go back to, she could simply tell her partner who could then find the part in his/her book, making it easier to correlate where it would be in Susans recorded or Braille versions. I would also provide a recording device for her to use instead of writing down her notes. The handout designed for attorneys, both defense and prosecution, states that they are required to compose opening and closing statements, and also a list of questions which they will be asking each witness. Part of the reason for having the opening and closing statements prepared is so that the students may use them during the performance so that it does not have to be memorized. For this, I would have Susan use the recording device she used to tape her own words, and instead of having her just play it aloud for everyone to hear, I would have her use an earpiece so that she could hear her own words and then speak for the audience to hear what she has to say. This would be similar to what a reporter (or journalist!) might do, so I think it would be really exciting for Susan to be able to use. For having to provide her witnesses with her questions ahead of time, she could either allow them to hear her recordings or just tell them the questions face-to-face. During the mock trial I would have Susan also record what the other students say as a way of taking notes to use for an extension activities that may be assigned. Assessment Case 1 Like the rest of the students, I will be assessing Michas writing based on what is asked of his role on its corresponding handout. As a witness, his primary task is to be able to use the information he knows about his particular characters in order to answer several questions about them, and he will also have to answer questions given to him by the attorneys. Each students level of familiarity with the personalities and traits of the characters will provide feedback as to whether or not the student had kept up with the readings and assignments, which I would already have knowledge of. If Michas previous performances during the unit signified he was not doing the readings and/or assignments I would give him selected passages to read to gain sufficient information from the text to be able to complete his writing. If he had been keeping up with the material, then I would attribute and insufficiencies displayed in this assignment as being caused by misunderstanding, poor time management, or behavior. I will be assessing Michas performance during day one of the activity on his time management and his ability to work with others. Since I have planned to check in with him frequently throughout the period I will expect that he will stay on pace, and if something comes up I will be able to adapt his assignment at that time. I may require him to write less on his handout since he will have to perform in front of the class and I do not want him to feel anxious

about not having this portion finished and that to lead him to have behavioral problems during day two of the activity. The goal would be to have him to get everything done that he needs for his presentation so as to diminish the chances for him to act out because of frustration or anxiety. I will be able to tell if checking in with him keeps him on pace or makes him more distracted based on how much he is able to complete during this class period. Since Micha does like to joke around with me, it could be more of a distraction for me to meet with him periodically, so to avoid that I could just walk past him nonchalantly to check how much he has done than actually speak with him. I would expect for him to have enough time to complete this assignment during the period, though, which would be ideal so that he would not have to do any at home, which he proves to be unreliable at doing. Micha will be working around other students who also have roles as witnesses, but he will not necessarily have to be working with them, so there should not be any foreseeable issues with behavior. After Micha has completed his tasks from day ones portion, he will just have to present what he has already written. Because everything he needs to say will already be written, I will focus on assessing his behavior in terms of whether or not he remains calm or has an aggressive burst towards another student. If Micha is still having problems with social interaction I would probably seek out additional counseling for him to discuss with him what he needs to be able to be comfortable with the other students in class. Case 2 As the judge, Lizzys responsibilities for this activity will be to predict what she thinks each side, prosecution and defense, will make as their arguments; this is meant to get her involved and thinking about what has happened and will happen before the mock trial even begins. As the trial does occur this will allow her to compare her own predictions with what actually took place. This task will require her to recall information from the book, which may prove to be problematic due to her reading disability and difficulties with memory. By utilizing the accommodations mentioned previously, hopefully it will diminish any achievement discrepancy due to her disability. What I will be checking for in her predictions is her ability to use information from the text. If she is unable to do this, I will attribute this to her disability; however, if she does use material from the book but it just does not make sense with the assignment or she does not utilize the material effectively, I would probably investigate further as to the cause of this. She also will be in charge of facilitating the mock trial by announcing when the next step should take place. By connecting this portion of her responsibilities to that of her position as swim team captain (e.g. facilitating swim practice), my hopes are that she will be able to participate with the class as a leader and regain her confidence during discussions. I think she will be successful in facilitating the trial since she will have the graphic organizer and stop watch with her; however, her lack of confidence may still affect her performance. I will be checking her verbal and nonverbal cues to assess her feelings of confidence to determine whether or not she feels comfortable to continue participating with her class. If she is successful during this activity I will build off of this activity in future lessons to get her involved with her peers. If not then I will take other approaches to getting her to participate with more ease; I would attribute this lack of confidence to her disability and focus on accommodating that and then hopefully, consequently her confidence with her schoolwork will lead her to have more confidence in discussions

Case 3 Susans role as an attorney requires that she compose opening and closing statements along with a partner. This assignment will be looking for the ability to form and defend an argument by using support from the text and witnesses. Similar to Lizzy, this activity will allow Susan to incorporate her interest in an extra-curricular activity, the school newspaper, into this assignment. She will be able to use her skills of creating and investigating stories in this activity will should keep her engaged and willing to participate. Susan will be required to find a lot of material from the book in order to support her claims as part of her assessment. If she is unable to provide sufficient evidence to support her claims I will conclude that the accommodations provided were not enough to help her through this activity. I will also be checking Susans ability to work with a peer successfully to accomplish assignments and also to cooperate in order to accommodate herself in some way. The way in which I will assess Susans writing is through having her record her opening and closing statements orally so that I could listen to them. I do not expect this recording to sound the same as a written paper, since its purpose is to provide an outline of what she will be saying during the mock trial. Most of the assessment will be based off of this performance, but I will still use the recording to make sure she is on track. I will base my assessment of whether or not these accommodations were successful for Susan if the recording of her statements is aligned with what she says during the mock trial; this is because I want to see if using the recorder as a way for her to take notes she can go back to will be effective when she has to present the material. If her presentation is missing a lot of the things she said in her recording I will assume that using the recorder to play back her own words to her was not a successful accommodation. If she says the things from her recording notes well, but lacks in other speaking skills I will consider the recorder to be successful in terms of its original purpose, but will then conclude that Susan needs additional work on improving her speaking skills.

For all three of these students, I would have a small conference after this assignment to discuss the techniques used to accommodate them. During this, I would ask questions based on the feedback I received to see if it aligns with their thoughts and feelings about the success of the accommodations and their performances. I would also check to see if there were other factors which affected their performances that had previously gone accounted for. Overall, the point of this conference would be to see if they liked the accommodations provided for them and whether or not they would like to continue utilizing these methods or if they feel there are other methods which would be more effective.

Works Cited IDEA Law and Resources. (1999). Law & Regulations: IDEA 97 Law and Regs. U.S. Department of Education. June 11, 2009. http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/Policy/IDEA/index.html Rosenberg, Michael S., Westling, L., and McLeskey James. Special Education for Todays Teachers: An Introduction. 2nd Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. 2011. Print.