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I would like to teach a Special Education one day. I know that they love things that are sensory but how can teachers accommodate children with special needs when it comes to science? Will they still be able to grasp concepts, such as life cycles, with altering the material?

You never know exactly what a special education student will comprehend. It depends totally on each student, just like students in a regular classroom. You just need to modify each activity for the special needs of each student you have in special ed. I did a search for "special education" (be sure to include the quotes) in the Learning Center and found numerous articles that should be of a great help to you. Here is a link to a special needs collection that a teacher has posted in the Learning Center. I think it has a lot of resources you can use. http://learningcenter.nsta.org/my_learning_center/my_library.aspx?cid=VD03gdhyQmI_E Good luck.

At times it can be difficult assessing whether a student with disabilities (SWD) comprehends the concepts being taught in the classroom. SWD like students in a general education setting, vary when it comes to academic capabilities. I think it is important that you expose your SWD to hands on activities and make the modifications and accommodations necessary. I agree with what Betty posted above, and the link she provided you with has a lot of helpful resources.

I teach some SPED students in a regular education science class. The school has provided me with an aide who works specifically with these three students. The aide and I discuss the lesson before hand and she follows along with me as she works with the students. We do lots of hands on activities and test the students understanding by questioning and asking them to explain what they have done. Of course, they will have to take paper/pencil tests with STAAR and we do give them paper/pencil assessments to see what they can do. So far the scores have not been passing, but are improving. They enjoy learning with the other students.

I teach some SPED students in a regular education science class. The school has provided me with an aide who works specifically with these three students. The aide and I discuss the lesson before hand and she follows along with me as she works with the students. We do lots of hands on activities and test the students understanding by questioning and asking them to explain what they have done. Of course, they will have to take paper/pencil tests with STAAR and we do give them paper/pencil assessments to see what they can do. So far the scores have not been passing, but are improving. They enjoy learning with the other students.

You are right. They will enjoy science. I have had throughout the years students with different types of disabilities and when I am teaching science you couldn't say which students were the ones with disabilities because all of the students are engaged in the activity. How much they retain? That is more difficult to assess, but while it is happening they are learning and interacting. I believe that the more opportunities they have to be engaged in active learning, the more they will learn and be able to retain.

I am receiving my Bachelors of Science in Exceptional Students Education. I've always wanted to be a ESE teacher and I believe they love Science. I am doing my Senior block at Ruth Owens Kruse Educational Center, I am honored to teach the students Science. I can honestly say the students love to participate in Science. Science is about exploring and experimenting. I am in a self-contained classroom with 10 students and whenever I teach I make sure I add some type of hands on experiment. I think it is important for them to actually see what's going on. This upcoming week we will be doing an experiment on why the Earth seasons and we will construct a Earth model and the tilt of the axis.

I am receiving my Bachelors of Science in Exceptional Students Education. I've always wanted to be a ESE teacher and I believe they love Science. I am doing my Senior block at Ruth Owens Kruse Educational Center, I am honored to teach the students Science. I can honestly say the students love to participate in Science. Science is about exploring and experimenting. I am in a self-contained classroom with 10 students and whenever I teach I make sure I add some type of hands on experiment. I think it is important for them to actually see what's going on. This upcoming week we will be doing an experiment on why the Earth seasons and we will construct a Earth model and the tilt of the axis.

Every special needs student is different so you need to accommodate to each student differently. Some ways that I have been taught to helps them is to simplify instructions for the student as not to overwhelm them. Also, you repetition and visual stimuli is also very accommodating for most special needs student. Hands-on experience, such as experiments, is probably one of the best way for special needs student to learn.

Special Education is a tough group. I would think that they would be able to grasp a good amount of the main concepts but you are going to have to accommodate a lot depending on their different cases. You are also going to have to be very flexible with the lesson and know when to change the lesson to keep their attention.

I was one wondering how you are defining "special education" students? Depending on that definiton, my response to you would change. Most students with learning disabilities are perfectly able to do science. One of the important conceptual shifts of the Next generation Science Standards is that science is for ALL students. Kathy