5/12/2020
Topic:
Students With Disabilities
Shelby Knight
|
I currently have a student with Down Syndrome in my dance class. She is in 2nd grade and has been with me since Kindergarten. Her attention span is very short, but she is a delightful student. During the warm-up, I have her sit beside me up at the front of the class, and usually tell her that she is my "warm-up assistant". The other students are extremely accepting of her and are always encouraging her and giving her positive feedback (which I find very heart-warming). I will generally lose her attention mid-class, but luckily I have an aid who will give her a few minutes of a "break" and then will assist her back into class once she is ready. I usually pair her with another student who I can trust and will be patient with her as we work in groups. During movements across the floor, I usually assist her and I am sure to give her positive reinforcement as this is what the responds to best. She has come such a long way in just 3 years and it's amazing to me what all she has accomplished. It of course takes a little more work/patience on my end as her teacher, but she encourages me to be better and reminds me that with patience and hard work comes an amazing outcome.
edited by Shelby Knight on 5/12/2020 |
5/18/2020
Topic:
Tools And Strategies
Shelby Knight
|
Option 1: Peer partnering is one strategy that I implement daily in my dance classes. I have a student with Down Syndrome that I will pair with an advanced student. The advanced student loves that she can act as an assistant to my D.S. student. It teaches her patience and she is refining her own technique by breaking down the movements with her partner. The D.S. student is much more engaged when she is paired with her friends. She remains more focused and is excited about what she is learning when working together with a partner. A second strategy I implement is mnemonic instruction. This may seem silly, but one example is when I teach echappes to my little ones. I always introduce this movement which means "to escape" by referencing the movie Finding Nemo and the scene with Dory reading the word "escape" as es-cah-pay. The students generally always remember what the term echappe means since I can relate it to something that's familiar to them. They also get a good laugh when I reference this scene in the movie. |
5/18/2020
Topic:
Assessment Of Learning
Shelby Knight
|
I use exit slips frequently, especially when we are learning new material/movements. Most of the time these exit tickets either check their understanding of the vocabulary used in the lesson or provides a prompt for them to self- critique and explain their own understanding of what was taught during the lesson. My students with disabilities, have the option of verbally answering the prompts if needed. This allows them to be included in the assessment, but gives them alternative way to present their information to me. |