How do you teach your other children in your classroom to be kind to another child with special needs?

Answer 1

with young children tell them that the child has a special need and can't help it so it is our job to help the child...then be a good example and also give specific instructions to the children about how to help then praise the appropriate response and assistance.

Answer 2

It's sad that children can be cruel to other children. What is even sadder that they should learn to be kind at home but, this is nit always the case. Maybe you could have the children play a game of ,Good answers. They wouldn't be able to even come up w/a bad answer if the question was , In what ways could I be kind to others. ALL OTHERS! nobody looses and hopefully they think about what they say and others say. Happy teaching. It's nice to see there are teachers that pay attention to this sort of thing.

Answer 3

Well when I was in school, I had a "special need" because I'm hearing impaired and wore hearing aids. I was really self conscious because all the kids stared at me. So the teacher had the audiologist come in and explain my problem to everyone and then she even let the kids try on my hearing aid and see what it sounded like. Most of them that it was cool; I have no idea why lol. But nonetheless, it helped. Ever since then, the kids no longer stared and they would speak up when they talked to me. Try having a specialist come in and talk to the children. Usually once they understand, they start being nicer.

Answer 4

I grew up with Tourette Syndrome,And had a pretty hard way to go in school.Now my six year old has a classmate with TS,a few weeks ago on HBO was a special called "I have Tourette's but Tourette's dosn't have me!" We (wife & I) recorded it and sent it to my childs' school, now the whole school has seen the tape and it has helped with everyone's understanding of TS.Maybe you can find a informational video made in a similar fashion-By kids who have the same problems.

Answer 5

Are you sure you are helping you special needs child by doing that. Doesn't really get them ready for the real world. Sometimes people are mean, they are going to need to get use to it and learn to overcome.

Answer 6

If possible, you could try putting the other kids in the student's shoes. For example, if the person is blind, they could spend some time with blindfolds. I had a kindergarten teacher who used that on our class, and I think it worked.

Answer 7

I would recommend the article, "Disability Awareness vs. Similarity Awareness" at http://www.bridges4kids.org/pdf/DisSim.pdf (if that link does not work, please try this one: http://library.adoption.com/Other-special-needs/Disability-Awareness-vs-Similarity-Awareness/article/2749/1.html ). It shares some great ideas to help kids celebrate the different abilities of all children, and realize that we are, at the same time, more alike than different.

I also would recommend the following children's books that you could read to the class.

Friends at School by Rochelle Burnett (preschool - Kinder. age range featuring students with various disabilities and typically-developing students in an inclusion school setting)

Russ and the Firehouse by Janet Elizabth Rickert (preschool - Kinder. age range. This is one book in a series about a young boy with Down Syndrome.)

Where's Chimpy? by Berniece Rabe (preschool age range. Story about the daily routines of a young girl with Down Syndrome, including locating her missing stuffed monkey).

Susan Laughs by Jeanne Willis (preschool - Kinder. age range. Story about a young girl who does many things: plays outside, paints pictures, swims with her family, and uses a wheelchair for mobility).

See the Ocean by Estelle Condra (Kinder. - second grade age range. Story about a young girl who is blind who loves her family's trips to the beach. It ends with a lovely description of how she can "see" the ocean.

Moses Goes to a Concert by Isaac Millman (Kinder. - second grade age range. Story about a young boy who is deaf who takes a field trip with his class to an orchestral concert, where they meet a percussionist who is also deaf.)

Trevor Trevor by Diane Twachtman-Cullen (first - third grade age range. Story about a second grader with autism who helps his class win a "Puzzlemania" contest).

Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco (third grade age range. Story about a girl with learning disabilities who feels that she is "dumb" until a caring teacher changes her life. Based on the author's childhood).

Brian's Bird by Patricia Anne Davis (third grade age range. Story about a young man who is blind and his pet bird who escapes from the house).

It's Your Turn at Bat by Barbara Aiello and Jeffrey Schulman (fourth - sixth grade age range. Story about a fifth grade boy, who is an aspiring sports writer, who has cerebral palsy).


The bottom line though, I believe, is that the best thing that you can do is model a loving, patient, and caring attitude for all of your students. They'll come around. Best of luck to you!

Answer 8

well,all you have to do is say now kids quit piking on him/her and what would you you do if you were deaf or blind.

Answer 9

disabilities... on site...... freebie may help