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Curricula and Learning Links - Special Needs

Starting Points for Working with Your Special Needs Child

When you are dealing with a child who has handicaps, remediate as necessary. That, in my mind, means teach them the foundations again and again until they get them. Keep trying with different styles, materials and methods. That said, at some point, a child may never "get" the skill. When you have tried different ways of teaching it, it may be time to begin teaching compensation, working around the skill.
Make a list of things for your child to know or be able to do before he can graduate. For example, the REAL nuts and bolts of daily adult life: laundry, brushing teeth, etc.
Videotaping. Videotaping skills such as reading will help you pick up on little changes you might not otherwise catch. (Example: We videotaped our son as a baseline when we began a special program. We videotaped him 10 days later. Before watching the tape, I saw no difference. But, when watching the tape, we saw that he had NOTICEABLY relaxed his facial muscles!)
Try Joyce Herzog's snapshot of progress. [Editor's note: See Learning in Spite of Labels by Joyce Herzog.] She has a child do a certain number of things (write the alphabet, write a sentence, etc). You would do this periodically and compare them. Again, you will catch little improvements you might not have caught.