What Adults with Disabilities Wish All Teachers Knew

1. What Adults with DisabilitiesWish All Teachers Knew Presented by Lori Leininger and Wendy Sweeney Abe disability services in Minnesota CEA Regional IV Conference Bloomington, MN April 8-9, 2010

2. Session Goals Useful information and video clips of: • Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) • Acquired Brain Injury • Learning Disability (LD) • ADHD • Instructional Strategies • Disability Resources

4. What is a Traumatic Brain Injury? A blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts a function of the brain Causes: • Falls • Motor Vehicles • Assaults • Sports Injuries • Domestic Violence • Child Abuse

5. Brain Spects Normal Brain Brain Spect Top, front down, surface view 15 year old male with a serious head injury

6. H - Have you ever Hit your Head or been Hit on the Head? • E - Were you ever seen in the Emergency room, hospital, or by a doctor because of an injury to your head? • L - Did you Lose consciousness or experience a period of being dazed or confused because of an injury to your head? • P - Do you experience any of these Problems in your daily life since you hit your head? • S - Any significant Sicknesses? HELPSBrain Injury Screening ToolDeveloped by M. Picard,D. Scarisbrick, R. Pauluch. For complete form see, www.mnabedisabilities.org

7. Mary Jimmy

8. What is an Acquired Brain Injury It is NOT caused by trauma but by internal complications. It occurs after birth, is not hereditary, congenital, or generative Causes: • Strokes • Seizures • Toxic Exposure • Lack of Oxygen • Metabolic Disorders • Neurotoxic Poisoning

9. Acquired Brain Injury Spects One year drug and alcohol free 38 year old, 17 years of heavy weekend alcohol use

10. Traumatic/Acquired Brain Injury Symptoms Difficulty with: • Memory • Behavior regulation • Speech and language • Balance, coordination and mobility • Organization • Fatigue • Attention and concentration

11. STROOP TEST Red Blue Yellow Green Pink Black Blue Red Orange Black Red Blue Green Yellow Blue Green Green Blue Yellow Red

12. Aphasia Literacy Group

13. What is a Learning Disability? • At least average intelligence • Significant information processing deficit(s) • Significantly lower than expected academic performance in one or more areas • Life long learning difficulties

14. These are not Learning Disabilities… • Physical or sensory disabilities • Low ability • Severe emotional difficulties • Lack of academic opportunities • Cultural differences

15. Common Learning Disabilities: • Dyslexia • Dyscalculia • Dysgraphia

16. Dyslexia Inbeqenbence is comsidered a civic virtue, for self relaicne means puling you own thgiew, paying your taxes and not deing a durben on your fellow citnzs. The enphasis in almost lla rehabilitation is to retrane the disblaed persn for probuctive work. If siht qroves unfeasdle, they nay de comsidered useless and left to hsiugnal apart from the mainstreen.

17. Learning Disability Symptoms • Strengths along with some weaknesses • Lifelong academic difficulties • Not working up to potential • Frequently needs instructions repeated • Appears distracted or forgetful

18. Mea John

19. What is ADHD?

20. Symptoms of ADHD Difficulty: • Paying attention to detail • Listening • Organizing • Starting and completing tasks • Focusing • Prioritizing

21. “I prefer to distinguish ADD as attention abundance disorder. Everything is just so interesting…remarkably at the same time.” Frank Coppola, MA, ODC, ACG “As I sit here and talk to you in a relatively calm conversation, there’s an amusement park going on in my head.” Robert Tudisco, Attorney Q u o t e s

22. Similarities Differences Brain Injury and Learning Disabilities • May score within normal limits (IQ) but show uneven cognitive skills • Benefits from similar intervention strategies • May regain pre-injury information and skills quickly, but have difficulty learning and retaining new information

23. Traumatic Brain Injury andAttention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Similarities Differences • Impulsive, inattentive behavior • Responds to similar intervention strategies • Reduced energy, memory problems, decreased initiative • Less responsive to cues • Less responsive to insight oriented strategies • More severe and diffuse neurological condition

24. Universal Teaching Strategies • Link material to prior knowledge • Concise, clear, simple and specific • Thinking time • Allow frequent breaks • Use multi-sensory instruction by saying, seeing, hearing, reading, tracing, writing • Break information down into small steps

25. Universal Teaching Strategies continued… • Review information frequently • Give extended time for assignments and tests • Allow alternative learning; such as projects instead of writing papers • Use visual aids whenever possible • Use meaning and contextual materials that relate to the student’s interests • Consider use of assistive technology

26. Minnesota ABE Disability Website • www.mnabedisabilities.org Interested in content of this website for your state? Contact Lori Leininger at 763-504-4093 or lori_leininger@rdale.org

27. Video Summary

28. courage doesn’t always roar. sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow.” maryanne radmacher-hershey ’98 courage

29. Contact Information Lori Leininger Wendy Sweeney PANDA New Hope Learning Center 8301 – 47th Avenue North New Hope, MN 55428 763-504-4093 lori_leininger@rdale.org PANDA New Hope Learning Center 8301 – 47th Avenue North New Hope, MN 55428 763-504-4095 wendy_sweeney@rdale.org