Teachers can be great allies in keeping your child with learning disabilities safe and successful in school, but you'll need to make sure they have all the knowledge they need to help. Use these suggestions to create an information packet to bring educators up to speed.
Five Things Teachers Need to Know
1. My child sometimes misbehaves, becomes distracted, or shuts down to hide his difficulty with schoolwork. Academic strategies will solve the problem better than disciplinary ones.
2. My child may be embarrassed to ask for help. Please help her get it in a way that is not socially stigmatizing.
3. Teaching strategies intended for children with learning disabilities will help my child learn better and make him easier for you to deal with.
4. Though my child has some areas of weakness, she also has areas of great strength. Please use these to give her experiences of success.
5. Please keep the lines of communication open between our home and the school. My child needs all the adults in his life working together.
Printouts to Share with Teachers
Accommodations, Techniques and Aids for Learning
Source: Learning Disabilities Association of America
Understanding Learning Disabilities
Source: Teaching LD
Accommodations for Students with LD
Source: National Center for Learning Disabilities
Helping Children with Learning Disabilities Understand What They
Read
Source: National Association of School Psychologists
Tips for Teachers
Source: National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities
