Oppositional Defiance Disorder

A child with ODD can be very difficult for parents. These parents need support and understanding. Parents can help their child with ODD in the following ways:
• Always build on the positives, give the child praise and positive reinforcement when he shows flexibility or cooperation.
• Take a time-out or break if you are about to make the conflict with your child worse, not better. This is good modeling for your child. Support your child if he decides to take a time-out to prevent overreacting.
• Pick your battles. Since the child with ODD has trouble avoiding power struggles, prioritize the things you want your child to do. If you give your child a time-out in his room for misbehavior, don’t add time for arguing. Say “your time will start when you go to your room.”
• Set up reasonable, age appropriate limits with consequences that can be enforced consistently.
• Maintain interests other than your child with ODD, so that managing your child doesn’t take all your time and energy. Try to work with and obtain support from the other adults (teachers, coaches, and spouse) dealing with your child.
• Manage your own stress with healthy life choices such as exercise and relaxation. Use respite care and other breaks as needed
http://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/Facts_for_Families_Pages/Children_With_Oppositional_Defiant_Disorder_72.aspx (retrieved on 10/29/13)

Writing Support for College and High School

The Writing Center – Understanding Assignments
This information is taken from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill site and may be helpful for students in college as well as those in high school. http://writingcenter.unc.edu/resources/handouts-demos/writing-the-paper/understanding-assignments

Reading Strategies

Eureka AGORA http://literacy.kent.edu/eureka/strategies/read_with_understanding.html This site offers pdf downloadable files on many different reading strategies such as Think-Pair-Share, Reader’s Theatre, and many more.

Learning to Read

Reading Eggs http://readingeggs.com/home This site offers a 14 day free trial period. The testimonials I read recommended this program for special needs children who were struggling with reading. The graphics and voice are appealing. The program begins in pre-school and continues through age thirteen.

Tips for Teaching Times Tables

Skip Counting – Students count up by the number. Example 4 times table – Students count 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36, 40, 44, 48

Stories – Use Learn Times Tables the Fun Way by CityCreek.Com. There are many stories to help students remember their times tables. The colorful pictures aid in the students’ learning. For example, 6 x 8 – It is Eight’s birthday. Chef Six bakes a cake for Eight (forty-eight). See their website to purchase story book, work book, music and story disks and more. The illustrations are fabulous and students with a photographic mind and artistic intelligence will enjoy this way of learning the times tables.

Clock – Use the clock for learning the 5 times table.

Fingers – Use all ten fingers for learning the nine times table. For example, 6 x 9 – with hands on the table count from left to right up to finger 6, bend that finger down. Then count in tens from left to the bent finger 10, 20, 30, 40, 50. Lastly, count in single digits after the bent finger – 51, 52, 53, 54. So 6 x 9 = 54

White Board – various times tables put on small and large white boards for students to answer

Apps – Use Nook App Math Timed Pro

Online – CoolMath4Kids.com

Flashcards – Use the story prompt flashcards connected with Learn Times Tables the Fun Way.

Other – 4 times table is doubling the 2 times table

Understanding Students with Learning Difficulties

Writing Issues
Here is a list of terms related to writing problems encountered by some students, including: Orthographic coding, written expression, and fine motor skills. http://www.ncld.org/types-learning-disabilities/dysgraphia/terms-to-know-child-struggles-writing-issues?utm_source=standalone_january_25_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_content=text&utm_campaign=execfuneml

Executive Function Issues
Here is a list of terms and their definitions related to executive functioning problems with which students may struggle, including: Emotional control, cognition, flexible thinking, working memory, and task intuition. http://www.ncld.org/types-learning-disabilities/executive-function-disorders/terms-to-know-child-struggles-with-executive-functioning-issues?utm_source=standalone_january_25_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_content=text&utm_campaign=execfuneml

Reading

Learning to Read

Reading Eggs http://readingeggs.com/home This site offers a 14 day free trial period.  The testimonials I read recommended this program for special needs children who were struggling with reading.  The graphics and voice are appealing.  The program begins in pre-school and continues through age thirteen.                                            

Reading Strategies  

Eureka AGORA http://literacy.kent.edu/eureka/strategies/read_with_understanding.html This site offers pdf downloadable files on many different reading strategies such as Think-Pair-Share, Reader’s Theatre, and many more. 

Common Core State Standards

Common Core State Standards here is a video describing the USA Education Standards http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5ktLyHDjL4

National Center for Learning Disabilities and Common Core Standards: Here is a short note about this topic and there is a link to the above video. http://www.ncld.org/students-disabilities/common-core-standards?utm_source=newsletter__17_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_content=text&utm_campaign=ldaction

On the same NCLD site there is an article on Common Core Standards and Tests http://www.ncld.org/students-disabilities/common-core-standards/common-core-state-standards-assessment-test

Study Skills

Study Guides and Strategies http://www.studygs.net/index.htm This is a very useful site for many reasons. For example, if you are a student with ADHD, this site offers helpful hints on how to study with ADHD. This site had over 10 million visitors in 39 languages in 2011! That’s right this site has a translation component into languages such as Spanish, Afrikaans, and others. Another category is called “Thinking” part of Thinking and Memorizing; test preparation and taking – fabulous ideas. Enjoy!

Digital Library and Reading Development Site

 

Starfall.com   Starfall.com opened in September of 2002 as a free public service to teach children to read with phonics. Our systematic phonics approach, in conjunction with phonemic awareness practice, is perfect for preschool, kindergarten, first grade, second grade, special education, homeschool, and English language development (ELD, ELL, ESL). Starfall is an educational alternative to other entertainment choices for children. (from site)

The graphics are delightful – sparkly letters, colorful pictures and letters. I enjoyed the ABC’s, the matching games, creating stories (children learn parts of speech by putting in action words – verbs).   Be sure to read the “About Us” section.  This is a fun way to learn phonics, spelling and reading.  Enjoy this site.

 

The International Children’s Digital Library (ICDL) brings a worldwide collection of free children’s books to the iPad, iPhone and computer.  Click on the book, use the tool bar on screen to increase size or turn pages.  Enjoy reading!