Creating An Inclusive Social Studies Classroom For Exceptional Learners

Creating an Inclusive Social Studies Classroom for Exceptional Learners serves as a comprehensive reference guide for K-12 educators and university-based social studies methods instructors and special education instructors wanting to create more inclusive opportunities for students with disabilities in the general education curriculum. Numerous research-based methods and instructional strategies are shared that enable teachers to effectively engage all learners in the social studies classroom. Social studies educators are encouraged to become a leading voice in support for the inclusion of students with disabilities in K-12 general education classrooms. Written by scholars with extensive backgrounds in social studies and special education, this book enhances and extends the small but growing body of literature addressing the needs of students with disabilities in social studies classrooms. Divided into three sections, the chapters explore how social studies provides an opportunity to create more inclusion for students with disabilities, how to create an inclusive learning environment through best practices in collaborating and planning, and how to help students with disabilities gain access to social studies content and achieve higher levels of understanding. Each chapter provides a brief theoretical underpinning and the latest research within the chapter topic, and practical and engaging strategies that readers can easily implement within their own classrooms. Educators receive guidance on how to get started with implementing the strategies along with suggestions for future research topics.

In this comprehensive resource on inclusive schooling, administrators, general and special educators, and parents explore how inclusive education can support a diverse student body at all grade levels. They show how schools can meet standards and provide a "least restrictive environment" for students with disabilities by using cooperative learning, teaming, multi-age grouping, multicultural education, social skills training, and educational technology applications. And they explain how to facilitate change by using universal design principles and other curricular, instructional, assessment, and organizational practices. The authors examine the prevailing myths and the most frequently asked questions about inclusive education, and they provide an extensive list of resources. Woven through the book are the personal stories of people with disabilities and the educators and parents who work with them. As their voices make clear, inclusion is more than an educational buzzword; inclusion is a way of life, based on the belief that each individual is valued and belongs.

With the national push towards inclusion, more students with disabilities are being placed in general education settings. Furthermore, when placed, more students with disabilities are entering social studies classrooms than any other content area. Classroom teachers are being asked to “reach and teach” all students, often with little support. There are numerous texts on the teaching of social studies, an equal number on teaching students with disabilities. Blending best practice in social studies and special education instruction, this book provides both pre – and in-service educators simple, practical strategies that support the creation of engaging, relevant, and appropriate social studies opportunities for all students. Though the strategies presented are useful for all students, they are particularly beneficial for students with disabilities. From Universal Design for Learning, mnemonics, graphic organizers, and big ideas, to co-teaching, screen readers and the Virtual History Museum, this book offers hands-on, practical ideas general educators can use when teaching K-12 social studies in inclusive classrooms.

Strategies for Teaching Content Effectively in the Inclusive Secondary Classroom provides classroom applications, school-wide recommendations and content-specific strategies to support students with disabilities in secondary general education settings. By focusing on the planning pyramid, multiple intelligence, Universal Design for Learning and instructional time, the book shows how to create an inclusive climate across the school and in the classroom. Specific content-area chapters feature proven techniques for teaching all learners reading, writing, listening, speaking, science, math and social studies. Tips for co-teaching, behavior management, and assessment help teachers learn how to improve their instruction and make it more effective for secondary students with disabilities.

This book is a compilation of approximately 40 strategies that serve as blueprints for instructional design. The first chapter describes in depth the research and foundations that support these strategies. Chapter Two provides information for the reader in terms of how to use this book, and how to choose and use strategies to fit both the content and the needs of the learners. Chapter Three presents and describes several strategies. The book is designed as a user-friendly resource that is directly applicable to practice. All of the book's strategies support teachers in their efforts to engage and motivate diverse learners as they meet academic and social objectives. Each strategy is presented with an explanation, directions for use, sample applications and classroom vignettes. Applications for different ages, abilities, and learning needs of the students, and for a variety of content areas, are suggested. The book is focused on the elementary school age level.

This book is designed to teach preservice and advanced education professionals how to work with others to develop successful inclusive education programs for students with unique learning needs. The content, examples, and related skill-building activities enable readers to develop the essential knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to serve as leaders in this effort. In addition to successful collaboration, careful consideration has been given to other important issues related to program development such as staffing, instructional planning, ongoing classroom support, and IEP development. Issues addressed at the district, school, and classroom levels. KEY FEATURES: An emphasis on essential program features required for lasting success in inclusive education. Careful consideration of the change process as schools attempt to modify their traditional support service delivery options. Strategies to facilitate school-home teamwork in the development student IEPs based on collaborative service delivery structures. This book is appropriate for educators with a wide variety of professional roles and leadership responsibilities including general educators, special educators, education specialists, administrators, and related services providers such as school psychologists, counselors, speech and language pathologists, occupational and physical therapists, and English-as-Second-Language (ESL), reading, and gifted education specialists. In addition, it is designed for use in staff development efforts and as a personal reference for practicing professionals.