The CEC just announced that Senators Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Pat Roberts, R-Kan., introduced the IDEA Full Funding Act. After 30 years, someone is finally moving to fully fund the special education services mandated by federal law.  Sure, IDEA has had a significant positive impact on the lives of children, but often at the perceived expense of regular education, since states have had to cough up money from general funds to cover federally mandated services.

We special education teachers know that we often take the brunt of the under-funding.  We are expected to handle big caseloads, take grief from general education teachers who resent inclusion, and stand by as we watch parents get browbeaten out of services that they really need.  (Okay, Terri, (at specialchildren.about.com) I'm not blaming you guys, really.  I hurts us too, we just need the jobs.  We kind of like them, too.)

Of course, there's always the danger that the Republican right hand taketh away at the state level, what the Democratic left hand giveth.  In the meantime, if you are excited about the idea that inclusion will mean special ed teachers in one or two rooms instead of five, or that students will actually get the occupational therapy services they need, well, hey--write your senator now.  CEC has even provided you with a resource to do it.

Wow!  A new model for Learning Disabled students with reading difficulties.On Sunday, December 13, 2009, National Public Radio Reporter Joe Palca attended the Nobel Prize ceremony with his friend, Carol W. Greider, who won the Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine.  During the report, Carol was asked about how she chose her graduate school.  She said, "Actually I applied to a number of different graduate schools, but as I've said various places, I was dyslexic, so I didn't do very well on standardized tests."

Congratulations, Dr. Greider!  And I hope you will let us, as special education teachers, hold you up as a model for how hard work and the right strategies can help our dyslexic students achieve and go beyond a bachelor's degree!

To help your students achieve, check out some of our resources at the left.

My ADHD for the Holidays got a nice response from Shirley, one of my readers, who suggested that parents could also use some suggestions for how to be proactive when their special ed students or ADHD children head out to school.  I'll give you a few, and then recommend that you send your parents to the sites of a couple of my colleagues and fellow guides at About.com, who write specifically for parents.

1. Prepare the night before.  Have you child choose their clothing for school, especially the program, the night before.  If the night before the program is a busy one with dance or karate classes, gather the program clothes ahead of time, and put a bag over the top of the hanger with a big festive "Christmas Program Clothing" tag taped to the front.
2. Put the present for the gift exchange in a bag and hang it by the book bags with a paper tag that labels what it is and the day it is to go to school.  Be sure it goes in the book bag the night before:  (John's School Gift.  December 22.)
3. Check in with the teacher to find if there is a way you can volunteer on one of the days before Christmas.  Instead of tears being the lasting memory of the day, maybe it would be worthwhile to take that vacation day from work.
4. Rehearse.  With children on the Autistic Spectrum, we might make a book with pictures, (a "Social Narrative") telling what will happen.  It might be as simple as telling Johnny a story at bed time: "It was Tuesday, December 22, and Johnny was excited about going to school.  Why was Johnny excited?" Johnny: "It's the day of the Christmas Party in Mrs. Jones' third grade!!"  "Johnny came down for breakfast, two steps at a time, he was so excited!  He ate his cereal and drank his juice, and after he brushed his teeth, he put on his jacket.  Wait!! What is hanging by the back door?  It is a Clifford Book bag, and what's inside?"  Johnny: "It's the gift for the gift exchange!."  You get the drift.

For sure, send parents to see some of the articles by  Terri Mauro, at  Special Needs Children, and Lisa Jo Rudy at Autism, for some great suggestions for success over the holidays.  Hey, it might not hurt to read them yourself, so you remember the kinds of challenges our parents face at the holidays!

Wahoo!  I just made it onto the top 50 special ed blogs at  Onlineuniversities.com,  a site that reviews online university programs for accreditation.  It's quite an honor, but I hope all 50 continue to live up to your expectations as our readers!