Internet Links Pertaining to Preschool Special Education

A lot of care has been taken to make sure that these sites are relevant to preschool special education. These links will take you to articles that you can read, not pages with other links. If you know of a good article that relates to preschool special education, please let me know by sending an email to Linda Bastiani (Linda_Bastiani@mcps.k12.md.us).

[Links to Useful Links] [The Law] [Multicultural Education] [Home Visits] [Specific Disabilities] [Literature Resources] [Cognition] [Technology] [Health] [Parenting] [Language] [Assessment] [Inclusion] [Augmentative Communication] [Activites to do with your Child] [Visual Strategies]

Indicates a new resource added since November 15, 2001

Sites with lists of useful links

Live and Learn: Live and Learn has lots of great articles and information for parents as well as an internet toy store.Links that lead you to a Live and Learn article have this symbol after them.
Kidsource Online: Kidsource Online has a wonderful collection of good quality and easy to read articles that are divided into major headings like "infant, toddler, preschool" The articles are rated based on how general or specific a topic they deal with. I have collected some of the articles most pertinent to early childhood special education and separated them by category. Links that lead you to a Kidsource article have this symbol after them. It is well worth your time to examine the Kidsource Online website on your own. They are great introductory articles, but typically don't go into much depth.
Graphics sites - use these sites to find graphics to use for your communication boards or other resources created by you for the computer or classroom.

This picture dictionary from Enchanted Learning has lots of pictures sorted alphabetically
Doing a unit on animals? Look on Zoonet for a photo of any animal you can imagine
Making communication boards for home? Look on Disney's web site for photos representing your child's toys or favorite tapes and videos.

The Law

SpeciaLaw: Edlaw posts the full texts of statutes, regulations, and administrative interpretations.
NECTAS IDEA Page: The National Early Childhood Technical Assistance System has extensive information about the law on their web page.
NECTAS Early Intervention Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities Page: NECTAS also has extensive information about Part C of IDEA which pertains to infants and toddlers and information about the Preschool Grants program which is section 619 of IDEA

Multicultural Preschool Education

Hispanic Preschool Education: An Important Opportunity: An ERIC digest article that talks about programs and strategies successful in bringing in Hispanic children to preschool. Not directly related to special eductation, this article does talk about factors that make Hispanic parents more receptive to programs.
Children and Bilingualism: If you are considering teaching your child a second language at a young age, then this is a good reference article for you to read. In addition, it covers questions you may have regarding speech-language problems and bilingualism.

Home Visits

Perpetual Preschool's home visit page: Share ideas with other preschool teachers about successful home visits. You can read posted ideas or submit your own.

Specific Disabilities

Attention Deficity Hyperactivity Disorder

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder This is an excellent three part booklet from the National Institute of Mental Health that provides an in depth summary of ADD - including diagnosis, treatments, coping strategies, medication options, myths about other treatments and more. It is a very thorough article and has an extensive resource list of books and organizations.
Attention Deficit Disorder This is an article from the ERIC Clearinghouse on Handicapped and Gifted Children with general information about Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). It talks about the definition, characteristics, problems, causes of ADD and teaching methods that can help.

Autism

Information about Austism and Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) Due to the similarity of behaviors associated with autism and PDD, use of the term pervasive developmental disorder has caused some confusion among parents and professionals. This article reveals that the treatment and educational needs are often similar for both diagnoses.
National Institutes of Health News Releases on Autism NIH conducts research on autism treatments and genetic predisposition and summarizes the results here.
References from Barry Prizant Barry Prizant has 25 years experience in autism research. He provides a comprehensive list of references on his website.

Cerebral Palsy

A long overview of the symptoms and causes of CP by the Pharmaceutical Information Network
General Information about Cerebral Palsy General Information about Cerebral Palsy This article from the National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY) describes the characteristics and educational and employment implications of cerebral palsy.

Down Syndrome

Down Syndrome: Health Issues. This is an excellent compliation of resources. In the words of a parent, "This is a very good general DS info website created by a pediatrician who has a son with DS. He is amazing in his commitment to the site and several listservs on DS. He is conservative in that he insists on the traditional proof of efficacy on the newer theories, yet he is also balanced in pointing out areas of promising new research and interesting-but-still-un-proven theories."
General Information about Down Syndrome This article from the National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY) describes the characteristics and educational and employment implications of Down syndrome. It includes a list of additional resources.

Epilepsy

General Information about Epilepsy This article from the National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY) describes the characteristics and educational implications of epilepsy.

Speech and Hearing

NICHCY: General Information about Deafness And Hearing Loss This article from National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY) gives general information about about deafness and hearing loss including definition, incidence, characteristics, educational implications, and a list of resources and organizations.
General Information about Speech and Language Disorders Speech and language disorders refer to problems in communication and related areas such as oral motor function. These delays and disorders range from simple sound substitutions to the inability to understand or use language or use the oral-motor mechanism for functional speech and feeding. This article gives a general overview of speech and language disorders.

Visual Impairments

General Information about Visual Impairments This article from the National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY) describes the characteristics and educational implications of visual impairments, including partially sighted, low vision, legally blind, and totally blind impairments. A good list of additional resources is also included.

Williams Syndrome

The Williams Syndrome Association gives a good overview about the condition.

Literature Resources

Book Reviews from Live and Learn: This is a list of book reviews by Lottie Hersch. It includes an introduction that talks about the importance of books and features you should look for. You can email them to add your own reviews to the list.

Center for the Study of Books in Spanish: This site allows you to search an extensive database of books in Spanish. You can search by category or title and it allows you to specify books for very young children. You will find that lots of your favorite classroom titles are also available in Spanish. What a great way to extend a literature teaching unit home to Spanish speaking families.
Carol Hurst's Children's Literature Site: This page offers reviews of books useful in preschool as well as interesting teaching ideas for some of the best books.

READ*WRITE*NOW! Activities for Reading and Writing Fun: Offers suggestions for summer reading activities for all ages, birth to
grade 6. Activities are available in both English and SPANISH!!!!

The Sibling Support Project: "The Sibling Support Project" includes assistance and educational resources for brothers and sisters of those with special health and developmental needs. The site includes a summary of characteristics & needs of such siblings, advice for their parents and a directory of support programs.

Cognition

The Six Levels of Thinking: This is an article from Early Childhood Today that talks about the different levels of thinking that a child as young as three is capable of. It helps you to think about what the word "cognition" really means.

Technology

AAC Intervention: This website is a great resource for all things related to augmentative and alternative communication.

Six Steps to Improved Assistive Technology Services in Schools by Penny Reed - this article is for service providers and especially helpful to those who are responsible for assistive technology training within their school or district.
Software Recommendations for Very Young Children

Health

The Chronic Runny Nose: An excellent article about the different types of runny noses and possible actions.

Parenting

Toy Safety

Holiday Toy Adaptation Opens Up a World of Play for Kids With Disabilities: Occupational therapists and technicians from Allied Services rehabilitation hospitals have developed a way to make playtime fun and rewarding for children with disabilities. Through Allied's Annual Holiday Toy Adaptation Program, children with special needs can have their toys custom-modified so that they can use and enjoy them. Read what they have done, and contact them to see how you can set up a similar program in your area.
Tis the Season to Choose Toys Wisely: This article from Special Education News is a great overview of the importance of play and resources for finding developmentally appropriate toys.
Top 10 Things to Consider When Buying Toys for Children With Disabilities: The National Lekotek Center offers tips on how to shop for holiday gifts for children with disabilities.
Tips for Chosing Daycare
NICHCY: A Parent's Guide: Accessing Parent Groups: This Parent's Guide will help you identify the parent groups that exist nationally and in your state and community. It will also help you decide which group or groups would be useful to you in meeting your family's needs and concerns. If no such group exists in your community, this Guide provides many suggestions on how to start your own group.
NICHCY: Children W/ Disabilities: Understanding Sibling Issues: For many families, raising a child with a disability or chronic illness poses many challenges. Some of these challenges focus on the relationship between the siblings in the family which influences the social, psychological, and emotional development of each child. The relationship between brothers and sisters in families that have a child with a disability or chronic illness is examined in this issue of NEWS DIGEST.
A Parent's Guide To Doctors, Disabilities, And The Family: How do families with a child who may have a disability and/or special health care need choose a doctor? This paper will explore questions like this and discuss some possible answers.

Language

Questions and Answers about Child Language: This is a good overview of general topics about language development and potential language problems, and it has been provided by the American-Speech-Language Hearing Association.
Questions and Answers about Stuttering: This article from the American-Speech-Language Hearing Association, answers the main questions that parents will ask if their child stutters.
Questions and Answers about Articulation Problems: Written by the American-Speech-Language Hearing Association, this is a thorough set of questions and answers about articulation problems. These problems may result from physical handicaps, such as cerebral palsy, cleft palate or hearing loss, or may be related to other problems in the mouth, such as dental problems. However, most articulation problems occur in the absence of any obvious physical disability. The cause of these so-called functional articulation problems may be faulty learning of speech sounds.
Early Identification of Speech-Language Delays and Disorders: Early identification includes the evaluation and treatment provided to families and their children under 3 years old who have, or are at risk for having, a disability, or delay in speech, language or hearing. This article from the American-Speech-Language Hearing Association provides specific information about early identification and outlines specific questions parents should ask about this process.
Questions and Answers about Otitis Media, Hearing and Language Development: American Speech-Language Hearing Association describes how Otitis Media (an inflammation in the middle ear) affects hearing and how it can cause language and speech problems.

Assessment

First Words Project: The First Words Project is directed by Amy Weatherby, a prominent researcher in the field of early communication and autism. This website provides valuable resources on the assessment of very early communication skills and indicators for developmental delays.
New Visions: A Parent's Guide to Understanding Developmental Assessment: Zero to Three publishes this excellent article to help prepare parents when their child is about to undergo an assessment.

Inclusion

Inclusion: Your's Mine Ours: There used to be an inclusion section on the Preschool Zone web page, but it has been deleted. Most of the information that was there (and more) is now at this site.

Augmentative Communication

Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Connecting Young Kids (YAACK): Everything you need to know about Augmentative Communication and links to research articles about it.
American Sign Language Browser by Michigan State University: This site provides a little video illustrating how to make each sign.
Overcoming Barriers to Excellence in Augmentative Communication Services - by Penny Reed and Paula Wasler - this article is for service providers. It gives an overview of the research on this topic.

Activities to do with your Child

Developmental Activities for Children from age 2 to 3 from Live and Learn

Developmental Activities for Children from age 3 to 4 from Live and Learn

Visual Strategies

Use Visual Strategies.com: Everything you ever wanted to know about visual strategies. You can save many different pictures to your hard drive so that you can use them later.
Do2Learn: This page has great picture resources and templates for various visual tools including schedules and communication boards

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