Teachers should implement health and safety awareness to students at a very young age so they can apply it to their daily lives. Health and safety lessons should be applied in the classroom to raise awareness on possible dangers they are likely to encounter in and outside of school. Health and Safety is very important because it merges into employment, post-secondary education, vocational/training, and independent living. Below are links that are useful for teachers to show or inform students about in the classroom.
CDC
The link above is a great website that teachers can use to share with students on emergency preparedness. Emergencies and disasters can arise at any time and without notice teachers can inform students on what they can do to alleviate travesties that can happen such as fires, floods and acts of terrorism. The site provides information on how to prepare and develop plans, use assistive technologies, and understanding your rights.
Video
The link above is a video that teachers can share with their students about safety in the workplace. Being informed of safety precautions in the workplace can avoid preventable accidents from happening and harming students. It is vital that individuals with disabilities receive training or information on safety measures that can be applied when they begin to work.
Dallas Police
The link above is the Dallas police website that can be used to inform students with disabilities information on crime maps, sex offender awareness, daily crime reports and more. The information on the website can help teachers inform students so that they can decide the best location to live if they are planning to live on their own. Furthermore, teachers can use the information and create a lesson on safety procedures that can be taken if a situation might occur.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Social Relationships
Humans are social animals. Social relationships are an important aspect of our lives. It brings a sense of fulfillment and belonging. People with disabilities may find it difficult to interact with others and find friends. The following resources are provided to help students with disabilities develop social skills, help them find people they share things in common with, and ways to remain in contact with friends and family.
This article from UCLA discusses the power of social relationships. This study brings an interesting point, “the next time you are going through a stressful or painful experience, if you cannot bring a loved one with you, a photo may do.” Students can read this article to help them realize the importance of remaining in contact with loved ones, if not in person, through other media such as electronic mail, Facebook, and cell phones.
Facebook is a social network. Students may sign up for this free website. The information needed to sign up is first name, last name, birthday, gender, a password, and an e-mail. Setting up an email is also free through various sources such as yahoo or gmail. Students may request friends, be requested, and find new friends using Facebook. This is an easy way students with disabilities can stay connected to friends and family. People post greetings, invitations, pictures, and activities so others can see how they are doing. This is a valuable resource because it is easy to use and is very popular throughout the world among all age groups.
This video describes different steps to take in order to make new friends and how you can stay in contact with friends. First, talk to several people. This gives you a better chance of finding people that have things in common with you. Joining a group is another step you can make. This allows you to meet people you already have something in common with. Spending time with people you have met is also important. Once you have made friends, make sure to make time for them. You can invite them to a movie, game, or to go shopping. It also emphasizes the importance of knowing not all people you meet will become your friend and that is okay. This video is helpful for students because it provides a visual of the different settings you can look for friends. Students can use this video as a guide to find friends and to practice the different steps at home and out in public.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Recreation and Leisure
Recreation can be defined as activities that an individual chooses to do based upon their value as being enjoyable, satisfying, and interesting. Recreation can encourage personal growth and self-expression and provide increased learning opportunities. Leisure can be defined as free time where individuals are free from work or duties.
Recreation and leisure play an important role in social well-being by providing people with a sense of identity and personal self-sufficiency. Recreation and leisure can build social relationships, adds meaning to individual and community life, improves physical and mental health, and contributes to people’s overall quality of life. All parents want what is best for their child and by increasing parent knowledge of the benefits and the accessibility of recreation and leisure facilities for students with disabilities; we help build the foundation for an active and social future for our students.
The Cure Our Children Foundation website has a special section of valuable information about sports and recreational activities for children with physical disabilities. This site provides research articles that are full of information on laws, rights of children with disabilities, important exercises for different conditions, modifications for some sports, and a comparison chart that lists popular sport activities on one side and alternative sports for students with disabilities on the other side. Also, on this website you can find the web links and phone numbers for places that provide modified sporting activities for students with disabilities, organizations and associations, articles, magazines, books, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. This site would be very valuable to a parent who is looking for a sport their child can play.
TOTA
Texas Occupational Therapy Association provides a list of camps that are full of recreation and leisure activities called “Camps for Special Kids”. This list contains the names, websites, phone numbers, and the general area of many camps located here in Texas, for children with disabilities. In these, camps provide day camp activities to year round services for children with disabilities. This would be a great website for parents who are looking for a place where their child can experience camp activities, meet new friends, and receive the accommodations they need all at the same time.
Sports for Exceptional Athletes Video
Sports for Exceptional Athletes Website
Sports for Exceptional Athletes is a sports program who serves athletes with developmental disabilities ages 5 through adult. This program exists to create opportunities for people with and without disabilities to interact and form lasting bonds of friendship through shared sports and recreational activities. This program offers 24 different sports in four different seasons. They also invite athletes with developmental disabilities, families, friends, and others to play and compete together. The video for this website shows clips of students playing multiple sports and interviews from students about what they like to play, their thoughts about the program, and their views on making friends. This website and video can be used by parents who may be uncertain of the benefits recreation can bring to their children or who are looking for a facility for their student to participate in recreational activities.
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