Characteristics of and Strategies for Teaching Students with Mild Disabilities

Describes thecharacteristics of students with mild disabilities, and clearly explainsthe best teaching practices for inclusive education, behavior management, social skill instruction, and modifying classroom instruction for students with mild disabilities, including learning disabilities, mild intellectual disabilities and emotional disturbance.

This new edition includes an elaboration of Response to Intervention (RTI), which since the last edition has become a focal point of research and literature among general and special educators. This is a dynamic progression of cooperation between general and special education - primarily due to changes in the federal law regarding how students with learning disabilities are identified.

Highlights of the New Edition:

• Re-organized to present the overview of mild disabilities earlier in the sequence of chapters(now chapter 2). This chapter includes new information on Asperger’s Syndrome, pervasive developmental delay and non-verbal learning disabilities, as well as expanded information on ADHD.
• Response To Intervention (RTI). New information on RTI and how it creates opportunities for general education reading specialists to establish preventive reading programs for at-risk students. Included is specific scientifically based reading strategies identified by the National Institute for Literacy (Chapter 5).
• Contains updated information on IDEA ’04 and No Child Left Behind with an emphasis on how these laws affect teaching, assessing and managing the behavior of students with mild disabilities.
• New information on using technology with students with mild disabilities.

This book describes the characteristics of students with mild disabilities while clearly explaining the best teaching practices for inclusive education, behavior management and social skill instruction. In this completely up-to-date resource the authors provide strategies for of modifying classroom instruction for students with mild disabilities, including learning disabilities, mild intellectual disabilities, and emotional disturbance.

Highlights of the New Edition:

• Book has been re-organized to present the overview of mild disabilities earlier in the book (now chapter 2).  This chapter includes new information on Asperger’s Syndrome, pervasive developmental delay and non-verbal learning disabilities, as well as expanded information on ADHD.
• Response To Intervention (RTI).  New information on RTI and how it creates opportunities for general education reading specialists to establish preventive reading programs for at-risk students.  Included is specific scientifically based reading strategies identified by the National Institute for Literacy (Chapter 5).
• New information on using technology with students with mild disabilities.
• A new feature occurs in every chapter called “Speedbumps.” Speedbumps break up lengthy sections of text with concise comments, humor or questions to keep reader interest.  There are approximately 10 speedbumps interspersed throughout each chapter.
• Includes discussion of new guidelines established by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities for identification of students with mild intellectual disabilities.  Throughout the text new terminology--"students with mild intellectual disabilities"--is used insted of the term "mild mental retardation."