Students+with+Cognitive+Disabilities

**Cognitive Disabilities**
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 * 1) ===Mental Retardation - the third most prevalent disability category (11% of special education population)===
 * Definition: fundamental limitations in learning & performing important skills of daily living. Not a medical condition or mental disorder. According to the [|American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities](AAIDD), mental retardation is "a state of functioning that begins in childhood and is characterized by limitations in both intellectual functioning and adaptive skills."
 * Limitations are evident in conceptual, social, and practical adaptive skills.
 * Characterized by an IQ score of below 70-75 and at least two adaptive behavior limitations (communication, self-care, home living, social skills, community use, self-direction, healthy and safety, functional academics, and work).
 * Adaptive skills can be categorized as //conceptual skills// (receptive and expressive language, reading and writing, money concepts, self-directions), //social skills (//interpersonal, responsibility, self-esteem, gullibility), and //practical skills// (eating, dressing, mobility, managing money).
 * Causes: Genetic Factors, Brain Factors, Environmental Factors
 * Genetic or chromosomal abnormalities
 * Various syndromes such as Down, Fragile X, Phenylketonuria (PKU), Rett, Williams, Prader - Willi
 * Prenatal exposure to drugs or alcohol, rubella, syphilis
 * Anoxia (lack of oxygen to brain) at any time pre/peri/post birth
 * Head injury
 * Poor prenatal health care
 * Poor nutrition during prenatal/early development
 * [|The Arc] - the largest national community-based organization advocating for and serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families, encompassing all ages and all spectrums from autism, Down syndrome, Fragile X and various other developmental disabilities.
 * [|The Arc Video Clip]
 * 1) ===Learning Disabilities (LD) - the most prevalent disability category (50% of special education population)===
 * Definition: An extreme difficulty in the performance of a specific mental skill, in the categories of reading, writing, or arithmetic, which is inconsistent with the person's overall intelligence; sometimes linked to perceptual or memory problems.[[image:http://theworkofhishands.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/read-books-that-you-enjoy.jpg width="177" height="144" align="right"]]
 * Mild to severe in intensity
 * Visual-spatial-motor deficits
 * Dyslexia Heros Video Clip
 * Causes: Central Nervous System dysfunction
 * Cause of dysfunction is unknown
 * Strong connections between family history and learning disabilities in children
 * Environmental factors, such as exposure to chemicals during critical periods of brain development, may cause neurological dysfunction.
 * [|Learning Disability Association of America]
 * 1) ===Williams Syndrome - affects 1 in 10,000 people worldwide, an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 people in the United States===
 * Definition and Cause: a genetic condition that is present at birth and can affect anyone
 * Characterized by medical problems, including cardiovascular disease, developmental delays, and learning disabilities.
 * Striking verbal abilities, highly social personalities, and an affinity for music.
 * Often demonstrate intellectual strengths and weaknesses.
 * It is known to occur equally in both males and females and in every culture.
 * [|Williams Syndrome Association]
 * 1) ===Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) - less than 1% of special education population===
 * Definition: "usually the result of a sudden, violent blow to the head — which launches the brain on a collision course with the inside of the skull. This collision can bruise the brain, tear nerve fibers and cause bleeding." [|Mayo Clinic]
 * Causes:
 * 50 % of of all traumatic brain injuries are caused by collisions involving cars, motorcycles and bicycles.
 * About 20 percent are caused by violence, such as gunshot wounds or incidents of child abuse.
 * Can occur in infants and small children who have been shaken violently.
 * Among older people, falls are the leading cause of traumatic brain injuries.
 * [|Brain Injury Association of America]
 * [|Glenn Johnson TBI Guide]

__//Educational Approaches/ Strategies for Effective Teaching (Ademek 170-172)//__

 * 1) Participation - Vary the level of participation that is expected of the student.
 * 2) Input - Adapt the way that instruction is delivered to the students.
 * 3) Output - Adapt how students can respond to instruction.
 * 4) Difficulty - Adapt the skill level, type of problem, or the rules on how a student may approach a task.
 * 5) Time - Adapt the amount of time allotted for completing a task, taking a test, or learning a new skill.
 * 6) Alternate goals - While using the same materials for all students, adapt the outcome expectations or goals.
 * 7) Managing the physical space - Adapt the classroom arrangement to best suit the needs of the students.
 * 8) Adaptive instruments - Provide instruments that students can play successfully.
 * 9) Level of support - Increase amount of support from others.

Reference: Adamek, Mary S., and Alice-Ann Darrow. //Music in Special Education//. Silver Spring, MD: American Music Therapy Association, 2005. Print.

__**//Appropriate Technology Tools//**__
//**A Teacher, Parent, or Aide can...**//

__//The Amazing Slow Downer//__ - Create drills and loop troublesome practicing spots. - Use a prepared track in lessons to play at slower speeds. - To avoid sensory overload in rehearsal, especially for students with mental retardation and traumatic brain injury, have these students practice with a full band CD at slow speeds to acclimate them to the entire group dynamic and experience.

__//Audacity//__ //-// Slows down the tempo of entered excerpts of music //-// Create a CD with band exercises or pieces at a reduced tempo to assist students with special needs with effective practicing. - Create and insert a brief musical excerpt to place on the class Wiki a unit music history (for example) or in a PowerPoint. - Create a practice CD with a ripped track and can alter the speed of the music for her choir students to practice syllables, text, or language. - Create accompaniment tracks and karaoke tracks using the vocal remover. - Transpose the key of the piece to cater to the vocal abilities of the student's range. - Create an instructional podcast for her students and parents to watch.

//__Band-in-a-Box__// - Enter blues chords and it plays them - Simple resource for teacher to teach entire class about jazz - Teach about chord changes - Use a limited bank of chords (C F G) to assist special needs students in

//__Dynavox__// - Assist students with unclear speech to express their thoughts clearly

__//GarageBand//__ - Teach arranging principles by using loops - Teach students to arrange texture, layer, build events, stagger entrances, mix sounds, orchestrate, and learn form - Teach students about timbre and texture - Encourage personal creativity but not necessarily with daunting task of "composition" - Create an accompaniment track and change the key. - Use video and still picture scoring software to display artwork, composer pictures, and photos to scroll as the music plays simultaneously - Take a few free piano and guitar lessons (and can download additional lessons for minimal cost) to teach instrumental proficiency - Literary Focus: Set a poem or short story to music that the student compiled/created from loops and original creations

//__inudge__// - Write students' names (a very simple task) and set it to music - Gain familiarity with loops - Pattern sequencer appropriate for 3rd grade and up

//__Jeopardy Labs__// //-// Create a study game for entire class or individual students to play in class or at home as a study tool - Questions of varying difficulty levels - Use interactive whiteboard or projector for entire class involvement - less intimidating to students with learning disabilities if they can "phone a friend" - call on a classmate for a clue- during the game

//__Korg Kaossilator__// - Useful hand-held synthesizer/music creation device - Use finger movements to create sound and loops - Simple introduction to loops which can lead to an advanced understanding - Enter students' loops to GarageBand to save them

__//Music Ace Maestro//__ - Fun graphic and visual instructional software - Obtain this software for in-home use to sharpen students' skills using K-12 lessons - Contains a Doodlepad

//__My Studio__// - Create quizzes as study tools to modify at level of content needed for student's cognitive level - Use as a review tool for aides and parents

__//Notation Software//__ - Easily create a music theory worksheet with various levels of difficulty from simplified to advanced. - Using Finale, a teacher can add note names into the note heads of the music (Alphanotes) to assist in musical literacy and speed of learning especially those students with dyslexia. - Construct additional learning materials (which can be later reproduced or edited) to cater to the specific needs of each student. - Increase the font size of music and text to enhance the ability to read and comprehend easily of a student with learning disabilities. - Easily write a simplified instrumental part, provided permission is given from the publisher. This should boost the confidence of a student who is not learning his part as quickly as the rest of his band members. - Create flashcards by enlarging the font on Finale to 500% to assist with learning note names and musical terms.

__//Noteflight//__ - Students can have a free account and learn the program both at school and at home. He may feel intimidated to ask questions while at school, so a parent or tutor may be able to assist him at home in gaining familiarity with the program. - Compose music quickly and easily in a non-threatening manner. - Upload his composition to the class Wiki (or personal Wiki page) for feedback from teacher and/or classmates. - Create a pre-test to assess the student's musical familiarity and know how to best assist him in progressive learning. - Gain a sense of accomplishment from composing or notating a piece. The program requires no additional software or accessories, and beauty can be created from a computer keyboard, which provides a healthy outlet for expression.

__//Smart Music//__ - Use the tuner for students who may not be able to discern their intonation without a visual representation. - Use the band music assessments and alter the prepared assessments with more ease than creating their own from scratch. - Use the band accompaniment to assist in effective practicing, especially if the student is not able to participate in every practice due to missing classes for special education classes.

//__Soundbeam__// - Convert movement into music - Boost student's self-esteem and appreciation for their ability to "compose" music by using simple movement actions - Use for dance, general music classroom instruction, and therapy - Provide a means of control and motivation

//__Staff Wars__// - Free Star Wars inspired game to assist students in note identification - Interactive music game

//__Wiki__// -Provide updates and communication with parents of students with cognitive disabilities - Each student could be given a personal Wiki link to display their comprehension of the subject material. It is an accessible avenue for creativity, posting interesting links, videos, and compositions, and expressing knowledge and questions in non-intimidating manner. Students can complete their homework assignments at home and upload them at their convenience to the site, without having to keep track of loose-leaf papers, and the teacher can give immediate feedback. The other students may be able to provide answers to questions in a forum of learning and respect for one's another's learning styles. - Post surveys on learning styles, opinions about assignments, and favorite interests to interact more intentionally with the students and/or parents.


 * __//Text to Speech//__** //–// Text-to-speech offers a way for students whose reading abilities are below grade level to access print. As long as the text is in a digital format, i.e., Word document, Internet web page, PowerPoint presentation, students can listen to access the information in the text. The programs below are available at no cost. Music teachers may collaborate with English and Literature teachers to integrate literature into their music lesson plans and units. Students who struggle with reading because of learning disabilities or dyslexia may be greatly helped by using the following resources.

__//Free Text to Speech Programs//__ __//ReadPlease//__ - A simple to use text-to-speech program. Text must be copied into the program’s window to be read aloud. - ReadPlease 2003 is the free version. Windows only. - [|www.readplease.com]

__//Free NaturalReader Version 7//__ - Reads any digital text on the computer screen. Place cursor where you want it to start reading. Limited voices and no highlighting of the spoken word. Windows only - [|www.naturalreaders.com]

__//Accessibar//__ - Places a toolbar of accessibility features in the Firefox web browser. Reads web pages aloud. For Mac or Windows - []

__//WordTalk//__ - A plug-in for Word for Windows. It places a toolbar inside your Word document that provides speech feedback with highlighting as well as a talking dictionary and spell checker. Can be set-up to read tests to students and have them type answers. Windows only - []

__//PowerTalk//__ - A plug-in for PowerPoint for Windows. It provides speech output of any text that is on a PowerPoint slide. - []

__//PDFaloud//__ - A tool available in Adobe Acrobat Reader to read PDF documents provided the author of the document enabled speech function. Windows or Mac. - http://get.adobe.com/reader/?promoid=BUIGO - Document “Listen to Your PDF” describes how to set the Read Out Loud options: - []

- Once you have a text-to-speech reader on your computer you then need digital text for it to read aloud. Many sites have books that are in the public domain and free for download. Books under copyright can be downloaded free for use with”persons with print disabilities”. - []
 * __//Digital Text Resources//__**

__//Bookshare.org//__ - Provides access to books for print disabled individuals by taking advantage of a special exemption in the U.S. copyright law that permits the reproduction of publications into specialized formats for the disabled. Free for students with disabilities who qualify. - []

__//Using Technology To Support Diverse Learners//__ - Annotated listing of a variety of print materials available online. Click on “FindingText1006.pdf” to download PDF document with active links. [|-http://www.wested.org/cs/tdl/view/lib/2527]

__//Sites Linking or Containing Digital Books//__ -A huge master-site of digital libraries -[]

__**//Differentiating Text for Diverse Learners//**__ - There are many ways that text can be modified to make it more accessible to different learners. Many of these are built into MS Word. - Features in Microsoft Word that Support Diverse Learners - Descriptions for changing the visual display, using bullets and lists, adding comments and writing prompts, using embedded dictionary and thesaurus, translate foreign words, auto-summarizing and more - []

//SymbolWorld// - Created by Widgit Software, SymbolWorld has reading material with picture supports for all ages and includes personal contributions, stories and learning materials. eLive is an on-line magazine within SymbolWorld especially for older readers. - []

//CAST UDL Editions// - UDL Editions by CAST are classic texts from world literature presented in a flexible online interface that provides individualized supports for struggling readers, and added-value features that engage novice and expert readers alike. Designed for students ages 10+. - []

__**Audio Books**__ //Audio Books for Free// - Site for downloading MP3 versions of books, both fiction and non-fiction - [|www.audiobooksforfree.com/home]

//LibriVox// - A non-commercial, non-profit and ad-free project that donates its recordings to the public domain. - Volunteers record books in the public domain available and makes them available for free in MP3 or OGG format on the Internet. - []

//Free Classic Audio Books// - Titles of classic literature with human voice. Downloadable as MP3 files. - []

//Literal Systems// - Free audio books in MP3 format, read by actors. Limited number of titles, but has literature classics such as Huckleberry Finn and The Heart of Darkness - []

//**__Readability Resources__**// : The level of reading required for participation in the regular classroom often poses a challenge to including students who read below grade level. Below are resources to identify the readability level of printed material and adapt it to student’s needs.

//Lexile Framework for Reading// - This site helps determine the readability of text for a student. -The Lexile map is a quick look at books, grade levels and lexile levels - [|http://www.lexile.com/uploads/PDF's/LexileMapColor_4-4-07_11x17.pdf] - Search books by title and find its lexile readability at; - [] -Enter your own text and have it analyzed for lexile readability. Text needs to be in .txt format (Notepad does this) and be less than 1000 words long. - []

//EBSCO Host// - []

//Beaverton Leveled Books Database// - This interactive database allows you to search for books that have been leveled using either the Reading Recovery or Guided Reading methodologies - []

//ESL Reading// - Provides free graded reading materials for English language learners. - Some texts are original while others are adaptations of classic texts. They are graded by vocabulary, grammar and readability. - []

//Checking Readability in Microsoft Word// - After Word does a spell check on a document, it can also tell you the reading grade level. Directions at: - []

__**//Internet Search Tools for Students//**__ //CAST Strategy Tutor// - A free online tool to support students and teachers doing reading and research on the Internet, ages 10 and up. Strategy Tutor helps students read, research, collect and understand information better and more efficiently. For teachers, Strategy Tutor provides a way to easily create web-based lessons embedded with research-based, highly effective learning strategy and vocabulary supports. -[| http://cst.cast.org/cst/auth-login]

//TrackStar// - Collect Web sites, enter them into TrackStar, add annotations for your students, and you have an interactive, online lesson called a Track. Create your own Track or use one of the hundreds of thousands already made by other educators. - []

//KidsClick!// - Websearch for kids by librarians for valuable and appropriate websites. Click on “Advanced Search” to set reading level at: K-2; 3-6, or 7+ -[| http://www.kidsclick.org]

//TekMom’s Search Tools for Students// - A variety of kid-friendly web search tools. Just type into keyword into search box. -[| www.tekmom.com]

//AwesomeStories// - A site of primary-source information. Its purpose is to help find original sources, located at national archives, libraries, universities, and government web sites. Reads text aloud - []

//Google Kids// - Type in topic followed by “kids” to find content in a kid-friendly format - [|www.google.com]

__//**Multimedia Authoring Tools**//__ //Photo Story 3// - A free Windows-based program that lets you quickly create a slideshow using PowerPoint with narration, music and special effects. - []

//PowerPoint in the Classroom// - A kid-friendly tutorial on using PowerPoint for education projects - []

//CAST Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Book Builder// - Use this site to create digital books that build reading skills for children, ages 3–10. Universally designed books will engage and support diverse learners according to their individual needs, interests, and skills. - []

//StoryTools: 50 Web 2/0 Ways to Tell a Story// - Wiki site with links to sites that have free tools to create a web-based story. In categories such as Slideshow Tools, Timeline Tools, Comic Tools, etc.. Author has created a sample of each using same theme/materials. - http://cogdogroo.wikispaces.com/StoryTools

//Animoto// - Animoto is a web application that produces videos using images and music that a user selects and uploads for auto-editing. The resulting video has the appearance of a movie trailer and music video. Free for teachers at the website below. Note: sign-up from home page has limited usage; teacher sign-up below is unlimited. - []

__**Resources for Learning about Differentiated Instruction**__ - not directly related to music instruction, but music teachers can benefit from these valuable informational resources //Using Technology to Support Diverse Learners// - Contains links to materials for professional development staff to adapt and use when helping teachers integrate technology into the curriculum to support all students - []

//Differentiation Toolbox// - Resources to help teachers create differentiated lessons for students. Quizz to assess knowledge of D.I. - [|http://people.virginia.edu/~mws6u/diff/index.htm]

//Bloom’s Taxonomy Blooms Digitally// - A fresh look at Bloom’s Taxonomy of cognitive skills which categorizes and orders thinking skills and objectives relative to information and communication technology. - []

//Differentiated Instruction// - Methods to reach all students in a mixed-ability classroom - []

//Differentiating Instruction using Technology: CITEd Online Course// - Provides a toolkit of tools, strategies, and resources to differentiate planning, instruction, management, and student assessment. - []

//Online, Video, and Print Resources for Differentiated Instruction// - []

//Providing Authentic Multi-leveled Instruction// - []

//Fulfilling the Promise of Differentiation – Carol Tomlinson// - Website of the leading authority in differentiated instruction. - []

//Better Living Through Technology// - A non-commercial web site designed to promote the use of technology to help people with a range of disabilities. -[| http://www.betterlivingthroughtechnology.com/index.htm]

//Internet4Classrooms// - Helping teachers use the Internet effectively - []

//TechMatrix// - A tool for finding educational and assistive technology products for students with special needs. Create a customized matrix by subject and/or learning support. - []

media type="youtube" key="PnNk4zpsqew?fs=1" height="330" width="539" A modern day success story of a woman with a learning disability. Susan Boyle was deprived of oxygen at birth and struggled with learning difficulties her entire life. She shocked the world with her rendition of //"I Dreamed a Dream"// on __Britain's Got Talent__ in April of 2009.