Parent Education Network (PEN) is a statewide coalition in Pennsylvania of parents of children representing a range of disabilities and ages. PEN believes strongly that knowledgeable, skillful parents impact effectively on early intervention, special education, and adult services for their child with disabilities.
The National Center for Learning Disabilities, Inc. (NCLD) offers this $10,000 scholarship annually to one high school senior with an identified learning disability (LD) who plans to pursue an undergraduate degree. Check the website for applicant qualifications and deadlines. Some qualifications include financial need and a grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
This website by the LDAA includes information and resources on many learning disabilities, including learning disabilities involoving a significant social component, such as autism and Asperger syndrome.
LDA is dedicated to a world in which
* All individuals with learning disabilities are empowered to thrive and participate fully in society;
* The incidence of learning disabilities is reduced; and
* Learning disabilities are universally understood and effectively addressed.
Members receive the national newsletter, Newsbriefs, six times a year, along with state and local chapter newsletters. Parents learn how to advocate for their child and have access to support groups and educational meetings. Parents learn about federal and state laws that affect their child. They meet and share a common bond with other parents and professionals who have similar concerns. Professionals have access to the latest information relating to learning disabilities. Individuals with learning disabilities learn how to understand the disability and advocate for themselves through support groups and conferences.
The mission of the National Coalition on Auditory Processing Disorders, Inc., is to assist families and individuals affected by auditory processing disorders through education, support, and public awareness as well as promoting auditory access of information for those affected by auditory processing disorders.
The directory provides free referral for a liscenced eye doctor who provides vision therapy. This directory also offers advice for people who have questions about ADHD/ADD and how it relates to vision problems.
This organization provides information about disabilities in children and youth; programs and services for infants, children, and youth with disabilities; IDEA, the nation's special education law; and research-based information on effective practices for children with disabilities with a special focus is children and youth (birth to age 22).
Assessment is at the center of all good teaching, and this book is designed to provide a clear, comprehensive guide to the assessment of students with mild disabilities. This book will give you both an understanding of the assessment process and the concrete, practical skills necessary to assess special students successfully so that you can teach them well.
This book serves as a great primer for a mostly unheard of, frequently misunderstood learning condition. Many consider these bright, academically underachieving kids a conundrum. Many are labeled unmotivated, lazy, or troublemakers. The children are bored, confused, or unable to organize themselves enough to succeed in today's classrooms.
Starr Cline and Diane Schwartz focus on how teachers can help their students reach their full potential. The authors discuss reasons for the failure to integrate gifted education into the fabric of the school and the relationships between multiple intelligences philosophy and the curriculum.
Find strategies for handling various learning difficulties and get a more complete understanding of why your child acts the way he/she does. This book presents a way of thinking about many of the common forms of learning disorders, their recognition, their implications, and their treatment. Specifically, chapters 2-7 describe the areas in which neurodevelopmental dysfunction may hinder learning and performance in school. There are also sections on "demystification," which provides a process that adults can use when talking to their children about the nature of their learning disorders as well as their strengths.
This text's research is included in every book and research paper concerning "Twice-Exceptional," "Gifted/Learning Disabled," or underserved gifted populations that has followed. It is a must have for all researchers, parents, and or teachers who are concerned about or deal with highly able students that have mitigating problems.
A comprehensive resource for selecting the right college for students with learning disabilities.
Janet W. Lerner and Frank Kline provide a comprehensive overview of this complex subject by covering theoretical approaches within the field, procedures for assessing and evaluating students, skills in the art of clinical teaching, teaching methods and strategies, and requirements of special education laws.
An award-winning book by the author of the acclaimed child-care guide 'The Difficult Child' shows parents how to deal with their child's or adolescent's emotional problems, from aggression to inattention to lack of friends. Topics covered include: lack of friends; poor self-image; sibling rivalry; hyperactivity; sadness and fearfulness; eating problems; nervous habits; aggressive behavior; defiance; sleep problems; lying; and learning disabilities.
This book is a great educational resource for parents, educators or counselors of intelligent children who face learning difficulties. The authors, Weinfield, Barnes-Robinson, Jeweler and Shevitz, provide useful, practical advice for helping smart kids with learning challenges succeed in school.
Parents and teachers of gifted students with learning disabilities should be grateful for this definitive work on "conundrum kids" - the superb writer who can't add, the talented speech maker who can't write legibly. Chapters on young children provide practical suggestions and ideas for parents trying to decide when the child should start school and teachers trying to cope. The work also covers students up through college and deals with the topics of visual learning, motor functioning, auditory learning, language and learning, and psychological problems. Strategies for dealing with standardized tests and conquering the world of college are also included. Click here to read a review of this book.
How is the body involved in learning from infancy right through adulthood? Physical activity is crucial. A neuroscientist explains why and gives simple physical exercises that can increase anyone's learning power immediately. It explores brain development, neurological effects of TV, nutrition, stress, and causes of the growing plague of learning disabilities. Author Carla Hannaford.
The original Son-Rise (1976) described the family trauma of the author, his wife Samahria and their son Raun, who had been diagnosed as autistic, mentally retarded and untreatable. Rather than relegating Raun to permanent institutionalization, the Kaufmans designed a program of their own, which provided intensive therapy on a rigorous schedule that changed all of their lives. Did Raun continue to progress? In this book, that question is answered not only by the parents and extended family but also by Raun himself, now a college student and a participant in the family's educational foundation, The Option Institute and Fellowship.
Mary McHugh writes about her experience growing up with a sibling with a disability, and interviews many other people in the same situation. This is a book for those with disabled siblings. However, it also looks at the attention and time parents spend on a child who is "different", as gifted children can be considered, and how siblings of that child can come to terms with that and build a healthy, special relationship with the sibling.
In this book, Kevin D. Besnoy, Ph.D takes an in-depth look at the various learning disabilities and difficulties some gifted students face, provides practical tips for accommodating and planning instruction for these students, and gives an overview of federal law related to this population.
This Gifted Child Today reader by Susan Johnson and James Kendrick is filled with practical classroom ideas, discussions of identification and classroom management. Both authors are professors at Baylor University in the fields Educational Psychology and Communications.
This book from husband and wife team Brock Eide, M.D. and Fernette Eide, M.D., ofers this informative, clinical aid to labeling and dealing with various "brain-based learning challenges." Each of the 11 chapters focuses on a single type of learning system and the challenges that affect it.
This is one of two workbooks by authors DeFina and Feifer which discuss both language-based and non-language-based disorders from a brain-based education model of learning. They are intended for school psychologists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, special educators and school administrators. They use cutting-edge research from the neurosciences to understand the various brain mechanisms involved in written disorders and reading disorders in children.
"The Pretenders tells the stories of eight people who never stopped trying. From humiliation in school and the anxiety of coping with everyday life unable to read street signs and menus, to shopping, driving, and working, these people lived in a world of dashed hopes and dreams--regardless of outward appearances--until, with help from Dr. Barbara Guyer, they discovered their learning disability and unlocked their true gifts."
The authors provide help for students to learn how to organize time, set goals, stand up for one's self, cope with testing and more. This book gives many practical suggestions that may help a student who feels like a loser feel more like a winner!
NEA and NAGC team up to assist educators, school districts and parents in this guidebook developed for classroom teachers, school districts and parents who are working to meet the needs of children who are both gifted and have special needs or learning disabilities. Developed by a workgroup of experts in gifted education and special education, this compilation illustrates the importance of awareness, knowledge and proper identification guidelines
In their book, Susan Baum and Steven Owen offer valuable information on identifying and meeting the needs of gifted and learning disabled (GLD) young people. They also stress the fact that these students require special attention, and it is vital that schools pay attention to the gifts as well as the learning difficulties.
This book by editors Susan Baum and Sally M. Reis, is from the Essential Readings in Gifted Education Series and addresses how special learning needs, cultural expectations and issues of poverty greatly complicate the identification of gifts and talents among at-risk students. Key topics include strategies for identifying giftedness masked by gender, cultural, economic, and/or behavioral issues
This book brings together perspectives from educators, parents, researchers, and students about what works and what doesn't for twice exceptional students. Many asynchronous learners exist in the profoundly gifted population, and in addition to chapters by well-known researchers, the book contains heartfelt essays by parents and teens.
This multi-sensory grammar teaching program provides full instruction in the fundamentals of English grammar for the elementary and early middle school grade levels. Particularly recommended for twice-exceptional gifted children, especially those with dyslexia and other language learning disabilities. Advanced Winston Grammar kit is available for the junior high and high school grades.
This website is home to a bi-monthly publication about twice-exceptional children -- those who are gifted and have learning or attention difficulties. Readers will find book reviews, products and profiles of experts, service providers, websites, and email discussion lists. Additional features include news from the 2e field, such as conference coverage, new research findings, information on new medications and a survey that 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter conducted about the needs of gifted kids who also have learning difficulties such as AD/HD, Asperger’s, dyslexia, etc.
This academy is a one-of-a-kind school for bright children with unique learning differences. Many are gifted in specific intellectual and academic areas, but their giftedness is not perceived by educators because they aren't able to achieve in traditional academic environments with traditional methods, materials and techniques. Churchill Academy is open to any student regardless of national origin, race, sex or religion.
The Children's Annex is a private, not-for-profit program designed for children with special needs.
"Riverside School is a non-sectarian, non-profit, private coeducational day school, approved by the state of Virginia as a proprietary school. Riverside school provides a multi-sensory, structured and rational education for children with specific learning disabilities in grades 1-8."
Advanced Brain Technologies (ABT) is the creator of innovative brain-based products and technologies for therapeutic, educational and self-improvement benefits. It combines extensive clinical experience with the latest neuroscience and music research to create products, programs, and services that enhance health, learning and productivity. Based on more than 30 years of clinical research with thousands of individuals at the National Academy for Child Development and with experts in various fields, ABT's growing family of brain-based programs is created to help people reach their fullest potential.
Dictation software suitable for children. Allows you to "train" the computer to recognize your voice. You can begin using it with just an hour or so of training.
Richard Lavoie shows the audience what children with learning disabilities experience everyday. Strategies for working more effectively with children who struggle are available at the end.
This software can be used by both children and adults and can assist the therapist in habilitation and rehabilitation of a wide variety of speech, communication, and cognitive impairments. Here are some examples: Autism and Related Disorders; Asperger's and PDD; Attention Deficit Disorder-ADD; ADHD; Learning Disabilities; Language Delay; Spelling, Reading, Phonics, Phonology; Language Disorders and Delays; Aphasia, Apraxia, Dysarthria, Anomia; Hard of Hearing, etc.
Lindamood-Bell is an organization dedicated to enhancing human learning. They were founded by the authors of critically acclaimed programs that develop the sensory-cognitive processes that underlie reading, spelling, language comprehension, math, and visual motor skills. Their process-based education programs are for individuals ranging from severely learning disabled to academically gifted–ages 5 years through adult. They are the originators and innovators of Lindamood-Bell® clinical services, professional development workshops, and a school implementation program called Human Learning Management® (HLM®). It is their mission to maximize the potential of every person to reason and communicate; they meet their goals with intelligence, integrity, and humor.
Pro-Ed, Inc. is a leading publisher of nationally standardized tests, resource and reference texts, curricular and therapy materials, and professional journals.
This website offers (for sale) a program of teaching techniques that is claimed to overcome dyslexia. There are two versions of the program, a Senior Version for 10-year-olds through adults, and a Junior Version for youngsters in the second, third and fourth grades. The Reading from Scratch program, enabling a child to work happily at his intellectual level, can literally turn his life around.
This web page offers special education article links about special education laws and advocacy strategies.
Welcome to Stevenson Learning Skills, the company that publishes the Stevenson Reading Program, Semple Math and other materials for teaching essential skills to students. Our methods are unusual and innovative. We use established techniques like mnemonics (memory aids) and multisensory instruction in imaginative new ways. The materials accommodate common learning problems, such as attention deficits, phonological processing difficulties, memory weakness and sequencing confusion. In addition to publishing, we offer training and consult services. The Stevenson Language Skills Program covers reading, spelling and language arts. Semple Math teaches arithmetic operations, place value, word problems and more. Additional materials for teaching grammar, cursive writing and telling time is also available.
The companion website to the book, How Does Your Engine Run? A Leader's Guide to the Alert Program for Self-Regulation (Williams & Shellenberger, 1996), describes an innovative program that supports children, teachers, parents, and therapists to choose appropriate strategies to change or maintain states of alertness. Although this program initially was intended for children with attention and learning difficulties, ages 8-12, it has been adapted for preschool through adult and for a variety of disabilities.
This is a CD based listening program available from the Center for InnerChange, based on The Tomatis Method. The Tomatis Method is a program based on the theory that to be a good learner, you must be a good listener and teaches people to be better listeners through music therapy. It has been effective in the treatment of learning difficulties and behavioral problems.
This blog, maintained by the publishers of the 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter, shares news, events, and resources found by researchers in the area of twice-exceptionality. The 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter is a bi-monthly electronic publication for those who raise, educate, and counsel high-ability children with learning issues such as AD/HD, dyslexia, Asperger's, and so forth.
This guide tells students: what an IEP is; why you need to be part of your IEP team; how to help write your IEP; and much, much more.
The ADHDSupportCompany.com site is "the site filled with timely, relevant information for everyone whose life is touched by attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: parents, patients, teachers, doctors, nurses, family and friends."
Founded in 1995, by pediatrician Dr. Mel Levine and financier Charles R. Schwab, All Kinds of Minds is a non-profit Institute that helps students who struggle with learning measurably improve their success in school and life by providing programs that integrate educational, scientific, and clinical expertise.
This web site is intended for the parents whose child has been diagnosed with Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) or suspect their child may have the disorder.
This is a list of key characteristics of gifted students are: visually impaired; hearing impaired; and physical disabilities.
This article looks at the different learning disabilities and things to consider when having a highly gifted children diagnosed as well as providing some suggestions for accommodating these children.
This article, hosted by a leading website on learning disabilities and ADHD, discusses the common symptoms of dysgraphia and offers a variety of accommodations and modifications that can be implemented to help students with the disability achieve.
"Facts-on-Hand" is an easy to read series on special education and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA is the nation's special education law. Under IDEA, if a child is found to be a child with a disability, he or she is eligible for special education and related services. Read this article for more information.
This website provides users with access to a global community that integrates information, resources, and communication opportunities on the Internet for persons with cognitive and other disabilities, for their families, and for those that provide them services and support.
This article discusses three subgroups of twice-exceptional students whose dual exceptionality remains unacknowledged. The article also discusses the characteristics, identification, and curricular needs of these students.
This email discussion list is for families homeschooling gifted/special needs children.
The goals and objectives or benchmarks are the core of the IEP. As a parent, you play an important role in deciding what will be written. Read this article for more information.
Wrightslaw has provided a web page for your questions about IEPs Find articles, law and regulations, tactics and strategies, tips, books, and free publications about IEPs on this page.
Founded in 1967, the Integra Foundation Integra is a Children's Mental Health Center leading in the treatment of vulnerable children and youth with learning disabilities. The health center is dedicated to improving social, emotional and behavioral outcomes through a range of specialized therapeutic, family-centered services, community education and research.
This website through the Internet Resource for Special Children (IRSC) lists links to various resources for advocacy and legal issues. Links include “self-help” law centers, National School Boards Association, Supreme Court decisions, EDLAW (educational law), Consortium for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE), as well as many more.
This online article by Tracy Landon and Linda Oggel discusses how seemingly lazy students may indeed not be lazy, but suffer from executive dysfunction. Executive dysfunction is a problem in the frontal lobes of the brain. Students suffering from this dysfunction can have trouble in areas such as planning, organization and self-monitoring. Tips for teachers are offered to help these students get themselves organized.
LD OnLine provides parents and teachers of children with a learning disability with accurate, authoritative information so they can obtain the help they need. Sometimes, learning disabilities are experienced by extremely gifted people who have above average abilities in academic areas. Find articles, book recommendations, a Q&A section, and discussion forums.
This website is a valuable resource for those who either parent or teach children with learning difficulties. In addition to the blog support and podcasts, is an extensive page of ADHD information, resources and links.
This website is devoted to advocating for gifted children with learning disabilities. Jimmy Kilpatrick and his team are experienced in the field of education and are able to provide advocacy, research, and organizational support . LDadvocates does not provide legal advice.
This website contains information about learning styles and Multiple Intelligence (MI). Although useful to everyone, it is especially helpful for people with learning disabilities and Attention Deficit Disorder.
This is a brief article on the LD Online website about the problems some dyslexics may encounter with mathematics. The article touches on the fact that those teaching math to dyslexic students need to have an understanding of "the nature of dyslexia and how it affects learning, not only in written language, but also in mathematics."
"Many gifted and talented children (and adults) are being mis-diagnosed by psychologists, psychiatrists, pediatricians, and other health care professionals. These common mis-diagnoses stem from an ignorance among professionals about specific social and emotional characteristics of gifted children which are then mistakenly assumed by these professionals to be signs of pathology. In some situations where gifted children have received a correct diagnosis, giftedness is still a factor that must be considered in treatment, and should really generate a dual diagnosis."
This article link by Meredith Warshaw discusses how some disabilities (mostly learning disabilities) can mimic motivation problems. Warshaw has extensive experience working with "twice-exceptional" students. This is not a complete discussion of the subject, but offers a glimpse at how a handful of disabilities can be misinterpreted.
So often we are told "your child's so smart - she could do that if only she'd try" or "he has a motivation problem." The children in question may get sullen or angry or depressed; they may cry or insist that "I can't" or "it's too boring." As parents, it hurts us to hear these things about our children, to question our parenting skills, and wonder why our children are not cooperating in school. But there's often more here than meets the eyes.
Neurolearning is about using knowledge about a child's unique brain-related strengths and learning differences to develop strategies for successful learning. Neurolearning is for all learners - including gifted, visual, and auditory learners, children with dyslexia, attention deficit disorders, and those with special challenges like extreme prematurity, autism spectrum disorders, or difficulties related to impaired visual, auditory, or sensory processing.
Hosted on Wrightslaw.com, this is a policy letter about special ed eligibility that was published by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) in 1995. This letter clarifies several key points: eligibility teams may consider support provided by parents; children with high IQs are not excluded from special education eligibility; evaluations must include testing of the seven areas mentioned in the special ed regulations.
This MAAP Services website article was written in response to the growing concern about, and interest in, Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD). Author Luke Y. Tsai, M.D. answers some of the most frequently asked questions regarding this disorder and provides resources for information and support. The history of PDD, the five types of PDD and a wealth of other information on the subject are all included.
For people with attention problems, paying attention in a high stimuli environment, such as watching a 3-ring circus or playing a video game, is not an issue. However, focusing and concentrating on tasks as simple as reading and comprehending a book or memo, listening to a teacher or in a meeting, and writing with little effort can seem impossible. Play Attention is a patented, dynamic integrated learning system built on NASA-proven technology that allows you to train your brain to gain focus, improve concentration, pay attention, and help overcome the challenges associated with lack of focus and inattentiveness.
"Schwab Learning is a non-profit organization, dedicated to providing reliable, parent-friendly information from experts and parents. Schwab Learning aspires to help kids with learning and attention problems such as learning disabilities (LD) and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) lead satisfying and productive lives in an environment that recognizes, values and supports the unique attributes of every child."
Hosted on the Internet Special Education Resources website, this extensive directory includes special education advocacy services offering help on everything from legal issues to Estate Planning for Special Needs families.
There are a series of detailed tips for teachers on how to deal with the challenge that many gifted students face with learning or with social disorders. There is also a list of methods on how to facilitate the gifted abilities of students - not focusing solely on their disabilities.
The Children of the Code project (www.childrenofthecode.org) is pleased to announce the release of our interview with Dr. Sally Shaywitz. Dr. Shaywitz is a professor of Pediatric Neurology at Yale University and the author of "Overcoming Dyslexia". She is a dedicated and passionate neuroscientist focused on helping children and families overcome the pain and strain of reading difficulties
The purpose of this site is to bring to light some of the unique and phenomenal talents of those who are nothing short of extraordinary and unfortunately, many times overlooked in regards to their talents. This site also provides information on mental and emotional issues unique to gifted individuals and provides an overview of gifted characteristics in general.
This is such a great resource to help parents understand tests and measurements. It talks about evidence and law of testing, the process of educational decision-making, statistics and general principles. It also discusses the bell curve and understanding the test data. This is a very in-depth article.
This website, created by a mother of a uniquely gifted child Meredith G. Warshaw, M.S.S., M.A., has a large collection resources of information for and about twice exceptional children. Find stories and personal accounts, parent support, and information for professionals. Addionally, Warshaw is a special needs educational advisor for families with twice-exceptional children and Contributing Editor to the publication 2e: Twice-Exceptional Newsletter.
This is an article from the Inland Empire Dyslexia Branch that discusses, in detail, what dysgraphia is, specific symptoms, misunderstandings of dysgraphia, and more. "Dysgraphia is defined as a difficulty in automatically remembering and mastering the sequence of muscle motor movements needed in writing letters or numbers. This difficulty is out of harmony with the person's intelligence, regular teaching instruction, and (in most cases) the use of the pencil in non-learning tasks. It is neurologically based and exists in varying degrees, ranging from mild to moderate. It can be diagnosed, and it can be overcome if appropriate remedial strategies are taught well and conscientiously carried out.
This website for parents, educators, and advocates, provides accurate, reliable information about special education law, education law and advocacy for children with disabilities. Wrightslaw has thousands of articles, cases, and free resources about dozens of topics: IDEA 2004, Special Education, Law, Advocacy and Training & Seminars.