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This year I volunteered to take all of the eighth grade SPED students in my science classes. A good portion of them can do the work but I have a few that were placed in my room just for the exposure. I am looking for some simple activities to do with these students. Any ideas or links would be greatly appreciated.

Here are two more articles, Edith.
Making Science Accessible
and
Tech Trek: Technologies for special needs students
My Best!
Carolyn

I am a sped teacher, just beginning to learn how to teach science. I get many ideas from my regular ed colleagues. I would say that just about any lab activity is a great learning experience that allows sped students to construct and test their ideas. We just completed the egg drop, and amazingly, about 90% or more of their eggs survived first a two story drop and then a 3 story drop (same egg, same container). I also make them measure, calculate volume, record a data table of paddings, predict what will happen, and then write the results. There were some truly ingenious paddings in those little boxes like bread, water, and one was cut so the egg was wedged into the cardboard with no other padding. I think my next lab will be the tragedy of the commons so that we can discuss use of the ocean's resources, fisheries, international water trade agreements. This is a fun activity with cooperative learning, and food. I have to say the math part of science is definitely the hardest for my students.

Aloha Our special education students are also serviced in the mainstream classroom for science. I use the following modifications and accommodations in my class. I find my all of my students are able to participate and learn in science class. Scheduling: • giving the student extra time to complete assignments or tests • breaking up testing over several days Setting: • working in a small group • working one-on-one with the teacher or EA Materials: • providing audio taped lectures or books • giving copies of teacher’s lecture notes • using large print text • using video clips and visual aids Instruction: • reducing the difficulty of assignments • reducing the reading level • using a student/peer tutor Student Response: • allowing answers to be given orally or dictated • using a word processor for written work Other modifications and accommodations in science : • shorter reading and writing assignments. • science textbooks will be based upon the 6th grade curriculum but at a lower independent reading level (2nd grade). • test questions read/explained to him, when he asks. • give answers to essay-type questions by speaking, rather than writing them down. These modification and accommodations are found at: http://nichcy.org/schoolage/ Keep up the great work! Dawn

Dawn, that is a very complete list and great website! Thanks for sharing here, and I am going to link this discussion thread to a couple of other sites that have discussions going on about special needs students. This is such an important component to effective teaching in order to reach and teach all of our students. Carolyn

I'm doing a bunch of tings on the list that Dawn posted already in my classes...even sending them to the learning center once in awhile to get extra help. I really try to avoid sending them there since the point is to keep those kids in the classroom. Any suggestions on how to get those students engaged in the class? This is the first year I've had so many and some have aides that go with them everywhere. What things do you do to help those kids actively involved in science activities? I've tried placing them in groups with other kids they get along with but not too successful sometimes. Thanks for any help!

The Exploratorium's website is very helpful. They provide many cheap-to-make hands-on activity recipes that explore fundamentals across many curriculum areas. http://www.exploratorium.edu/who/educators/ I use many of their activities with my Special Day Class (teens with emotional disturbance), and have to modify some of the activities for safety (my students aren't allowed access to things like metal paper clips, because many of them have long histories of self-harm or assaulting others).

Several years ago I attended a workshop on teaching chemistry to visually impaired students. Before this workshop, I would have assumed this a near impossible task. The workshop was presented by Landmark. This coverage by the ACS is also relevant http://pubs.acs.org/cen/education/85/8530education3.html

Here is a collection I put together on teaching Chemistry to blind and visually impaired students.

Blind Date in Chemistry Class Collection (8 items)

Teaching Chemistry to Blind Students

- User Uploaded Resource

Chemistry for the Visually Impaired

- User Uploaded Resource

Resources Perkins School For the Blind

- User Uploaded Resource

View All 8 Items

I noticed that at the New Orleans conference site there is a workshop on Inclusion. The presenters downloaded several great resources that we can access. To get to them go to:
NSTA Area Conference: New Orleans, LA
Scroll down to the bottom and type in the word 'inclusion'. It will take you to the Saturday, November 12 (9:30-10:30 a.m.) workshop entry where you can download the 12 resources. The pdf entitled, No Confusion_Inclusion is a power point that lists many of the disabilities that teachers address in their classrooms. I wish I could have seen the presentation; it looks like it might have been an excellent one. It is wonderful when the presenters take the time to download their resources and share them with everyone through this venue.

The site 'Teaching Today' has a good page called Supporting Special Education Students in Science. There are a list of tips related to students with attention issues, problems with information processing, issues with transitioning, and social issues. Although many veteran teachers are no doubt familiar with most of the suggestions, there were a couple ideas that surprised me such as color coding materials.

So excited about this topic. I teach 5th & 6th gr SPED and looking for great ideas. Some of you have posted links. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you all for sharing … This year I am co-teaching with a Special Ed teacher in one of my Chemistry classes. My SpEd teacher is really great and most of our special needs students have been working hard. We have tried all the suggestions given by Dawn. We have utilized them with our students except for two students ~ one who have a learning disability and the other a behavior problem. I checked the site that Dawn suggested and found the section for behavior problem. http://nichcy.org/schoolage/behavior/atschool/ This will help me a lot in dealing with this student. I really appreciate you sharing it. But I did not find anything for our LD student. This student displays little interest in learning. Whenever he comes to class and as soon as we give him his assignment, he will walk out on us without even asking for permission. He keeps on insisting that he will not do work. We have tried all the suggestions on the list but he is so defiant. Does anybody have any suggestion on how to deal with this student?

Thanks Amanda, for sharing the following website, http://www.exploratorium.edu/who/educators/. It has a great navigation unit all about the voyages of Polynesia. I have been looking for resources to teach my students about constellations. I was amazed to find extensive amounts of information on the topic, while also having a personal connection because of where I live, in Hawaii. The students will really enjoy looking around the interactive online planetarium. Mahalo!