Hello fellow teachers,

Well, it is that time of year again when we welcome all of the students into our class. Some of the children may be returning and some may be new. How ever they came, we are faced with their smiling faces each morning,

I am the author of the book A Child's View Curriculum and I am also preschool teacher in a special needs class in a public school. The children in my classes are between the ages of three years and five years and their disabilities range in severity from speech and language delays to profound mental retardation.

This year I have doubled the number of children from last year which is challanging from the start. However, many of the children are returning and already know the routine. So far, I know I have one student who displays behavior issues. In fact, during the screening process the child bit me. My plan to deal with him is to look at the environment and make sure he has what he needs to be successful. I will use the information found in A Child's View Curriculum to design the classroom and to develop lesson plans to address his unique needs as well as meeting the needs of the other children. My main responsibility is to keep everyone safe. This year I have many children who have speech and langauge delays as well as the task of learning English since their native language is Spanish.

I continue to use the idea of centers to re-enforce the cognitive concepts that I have planned throughout the year. This year I have the challange of meeting the needs of two children who use wheelchairs for mobility. This means that I must ensure the materials are accessible to them as the materials are to the other children in the class.

Due to the various needs of the children, I continue to use sign language for songs and non-verbal communication. The classroom can become quite loud and the non-verbal ques helps me connect with the children and not add to the noise. Most of the children in the program have IEP goals that involve recognizing their name in a variety of settings. I have added the use of their names when choosing songs to sing each day. The children have responded positively and are learning each other's name. It is exciting to see them learning new things each day.

As a teacher, I am constantly looking for ways to improve the environment to enchance the learning that takes place. The best method I have found is to evaluate what I offer to them to meet their goals. To meet this challange, each week I write progress notes for each child. The IEP goals are listed so I can verify that I have worked on each child's individual plan. This activity also tells me where the children have become successful and where they are still having difficulty. This is great information for me to use to change the lesson plans I have developed for the month.

I would very much like to hear about your situations. Please feel free to email me with your story.

--Leslie LeVan M.A., M.S.