What were parents of children with special needs most interested in over the past year? 504 plans, behavior plans, and credit-card-free iTunes accounts. The ten articles below represent the most visited articles on the About Parenting Special Needs site for 2010. Use this list to remind yourself of topics you meant to check out, see what other parents have found useful, and find information your family needs for the year ahead.
The "504" in "504 plan" refers to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, which specifies that no one with a disability can be excluded from participating in federally funded programs or activities, including elementary, secondary or postsecondary schooling. Learn more from about 504 plans by reading through the answers to these common questions.More »
A good Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) can make a big difference in how a student with special needs acts and reacts in a school setting. However, getting the appropriate school personnel to do the necessary behavior analysis and put a plan together can be a frustratingly lengthy process. You may want to try proposing a behavior plan of your own -- particularly if you have a good relationship with your child study team, and your child's teachers are as frustrated by the delays as you are.More »
Though iTunes is mostly a store for purchasing music, TV shows, and movies, there are many free resources available that may be fun for your child to download and view, from educational programs on iTunes University to Sesame Street podcasts to weekly song picks. With a free, no-money-attached account, you can download these to your computer or your child's and enjoy them without having to pay for a gift card or share credit-card information.More »
A periodic homework assignment for schoolchildren is to put covers on textbooks. Many schools make it easy by allowing stretchy BookSox, but others insist on these old-fashioned brown paper bag numbers. While most kids will learn to do this on their own, children with special needs may always depend on Mom or Dad to handle this particular assignment. Can't quite remember how? Here's your cheat sheet.More »
Wondering what a 504 Plan should look like? These templates and accommodation lists, put on the Web by school districts and disability organizations, can give you an idea of what to look at and look for when working with the school to put together a plan for your child.More »
Need more help than you got from the how-to at #4? This popular step-by-step offers an illustrated tutorial in cutting, folding, fitting, slipping on, and finishing a paper-bag book cover.More »
"Special Needs" is an umbrella underneath which a staggering array of diagnoses can be wedged. Children with special needs may have mild learning disabilities or profound mental retardation; food allergies or terminal illness; developmental delays that catch up quickly or remain entrenched; occasional panic attacks or serious psychiatric problems. The designation is useful for getting needed services, setting appropriate goals, and gaining understanding for a child and stressed family.More »
Previously an index for my weekly Fun Things to Do round-ups, this article expanded in 2010 to include a broader selection of family activities, children's websites, special-needs shopping sites, inspirational and humorous content, and random fun. You can still access the indexes to those Saturday blog posts, but there's lots more fun to be had.More »
Forgot to toss toys in your purse? Carry-on consigned to the cargo hold? Long waiting-room stay used up all your distractions? No matter how organized the parent, there will always come a time when your child will rely on you for distraction, just you and you alone. What do you do when you're stuck without props? Here are 101 informal activities that use nothing more than your clothing, your accessories, and whatever wits you have about you.More »
A Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) takes the observations made in a Functional Behavioral Assessment and turns them into a concrete plan of action for managing a student's behavior. Learn more about BIPs from this definition page.More »
1. 504 FAQ
The "504" in "504 plan" refers to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, which specifies that no one with a disability can be excluded from participating in federally funded programs or activities, including elementary, secondary or postsecondary schooling. Learn more from about 504 plans by reading through the answers to these common questions.More »
2. Write Your Own Behavior Plan
A good Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) can make a big difference in how a student with special needs acts and reacts in a school setting. However, getting the appropriate school personnel to do the necessary behavior analysis and put a plan together can be a frustratingly lengthy process. You may want to try proposing a behavior plan of your own -- particularly if you have a good relationship with your child study team, and your child's teachers are as frustrated by the delays as you are.More »
3. Set Up a Free iTunes Account Without Credit Card, Gift Card or Allowance
Though iTunes is mostly a store for purchasing music, TV shows, and movies, there are many free resources available that may be fun for your child to download and view, from educational programs on iTunes University to Sesame Street podcasts to weekly song picks. With a free, no-money-attached account, you can download these to your computer or your child's and enjoy them without having to pay for a gift card or share credit-card information.More »
4. How to Make a Paper-Bag Book Cover
A periodic homework assignment for schoolchildren is to put covers on textbooks. Many schools make it easy by allowing stretchy BookSox, but others insist on these old-fashioned brown paper bag numbers. While most kids will learn to do this on their own, children with special needs may always depend on Mom or Dad to handle this particular assignment. Can't quite remember how? Here's your cheat sheet.More »
5. Sample 504 Plans
Wondering what a 504 Plan should look like? These templates and accommodation lists, put on the Web by school districts and disability organizations, can give you an idea of what to look at and look for when working with the school to put together a plan for your child.More »
6. Make a Paper-Bag Book Cover
Need more help than you got from the how-to at #4? This popular step-by-step offers an illustrated tutorial in cutting, folding, fitting, slipping on, and finishing a paper-bag book cover.More »
7. What Are Special Needs?
"Special Needs" is an umbrella underneath which a staggering array of diagnoses can be wedged. Children with special needs may have mild learning disabilities or profound mental retardation; food allergies or terminal illness; developmental delays that catch up quickly or remain entrenched; occasional panic attacks or serious psychiatric problems. The designation is useful for getting needed services, setting appropriate goals, and gaining understanding for a child and stressed family.More »
8. Fun Things to Do Today
Previously an index for my weekly Fun Things to Do round-ups, this article expanded in 2010 to include a broader selection of family activities, children's websites, special-needs shopping sites, inspirational and humorous content, and random fun. You can still access the indexes to those Saturday blog posts, but there's lots more fun to be had.More »
9. 101 Things to Do When There's Nothing to Do
Forgot to toss toys in your purse? Carry-on consigned to the cargo hold? Long waiting-room stay used up all your distractions? No matter how organized the parent, there will always come a time when your child will rely on you for distraction, just you and you alone. What do you do when you're stuck without props? Here are 101 informal activities that use nothing more than your clothing, your accessories, and whatever wits you have about you.More »
10. What Is a BIP?
A Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) takes the observations made in a Functional Behavioral Assessment and turns them into a concrete plan of action for managing a student's behavior. Learn more about BIPs from this definition page.More »
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