Being a teacher can be challenging, and teachers who work with special education students often have added hurdles to overcome. They must maintain close and open communication with parents and have quite a bit of patience and flexibility. Students with special needs require a different level of support than their peers. The blogs below provide extra inspiration and direction for those in the special education field.
Reality 101
The Council for Exceptional Children, an organization for professionals who work in gifted and special education, maintains this blog to provide advice and support for others in the field. In the blog, special education professionals share their stories in categories such as individualized education programs, or IEPs, managing behavior, mentoring, professional development and networking.
Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities
This blog focuses on strategies for teaching special education students who are at least 16 years old. The blog covers issues such as maintaining a diet that can help improve behavior, tips and strategies for helping special needs students with academics and dealing with emergencies. You will find a variety of tools and resources that can help you as a special education professional.
On Special Education
Education Week, a publication that provides print and online resources for education professionals, maintains several blogs, including On Special Education. In this blog, reporter Christina Samuels highlights information that is important to educators, parents and special education professionals. Most of the articles focus on news and trends that affect special education professionals and students, such as legislation and medical findings. People who work in the field can get current information about the rights of special needs students as well as resources for providing the best environment.
Breezy Special Ed
Special education professionals often need to find different ways to approach teaching. Breezy Special Ed is a comprehensive source of tools that gives teachers various options for instruction in different subjects. The blog offers printable materials and ideas for activities, worksheets and projects to add value to teaching in categories such as language arts, math and life skills. Although many resources are available for free on the blog, professionals can also purchase more resources through the author’s online shop.
Special Education Guide
The mission of Special Education Guide is to help parents and educators unleash the full potential of children with special needs. The online resource clarifies the terminology associated with special education and brings to light best practices and procedures to set up and maintain a successful learning and social environment. The blog features articles about the different special education career paths, tips for running a successful classroom and news and reports related to special education.
Special education involves not only teaching, but also preparing students to function in society. Special education teachers face different obstacles than other teachers and have different requirements when preparing a curriculum. Professionals in the field must be aware of current laws and requirements related to their work. It also helps to understand current medical research that can assist educators with developing more effective teaching strategies. The blogs described above can help special education professionals gain up-to-date knowledge of developments in their field.
See also: 5 Inspirational Movies About Teachers
