Summary

Preparation is essential when working with students with special needs, especially in an
inclusive setting. One way to anticipate student behavior is to participate in teacher interventions. These
interventions include close supervision and monitoring, classroom rules, opportunities to respond, and
contingent praise. Classroom supervision and monitoring can be made possible by keeping the student
proximity to the teacher close, enabling the music teacher to visually monitor all students, actively
engaging the students, allowing students access to teacher, and keeping the ratio of adults to students
conducive to close supervision. When formulating classroom rules, students, school-wide standards of
conduct, and the behavior goals of the IEP should all be consulted for maximum effectiveness. It is not
enough to just have rules for the classroom; the instructor must also consistently enforce them. Visual
cues such as drawings/pictures and special hand signs help the student remember the rules. Students
with special needs should be given opportunities to demonstrate their knowledge in a way that is most
comfortable to them. When they behave well, students should be praised.
Music instructors should convene with paraprofessionals for additional knowledge of the
student and forewarn the paraprofessional of their lessons. Students with special needs should be
placed in a specific seat next to either a model student or paraprofessional. Never should they sit alone;
these students especially need the social interaction and assistance their peers and paraprofessional can
provide. The instructor should also keep in mind to sit the student in a place where their senses will not
be overloaded, as it can cause lack of attention
Teachers need parent support in the classroom to make sure the childs needs are being met as
well as the expectations of the parents themselves. Many students deal with anxiety and
communication delays that hinder their ability to function well in class. When dealing a difficult situation
that a solution cannot be provided by oneself, data must be collected to present to a team so that a
behavior plan can be formulated.
Reaction
This chapter is very relevant for me. I am taking the writing proficiency class and have chosen an
article about a child that was misdiagnosed by his school and then accused of being a sexualized child
although he was just exhibiting signs of apraxia, a movement disorder. The author of the article Michael
Graziano is the father of the child and provides the narrative of this boys issue with his school district.
Graziano stated that he thought the school viewed his child in a stigmatizing way. When reading the
article for the first time, I was unaware of the meaning of the word stigmatizing but when I understood
its meaning, I began to evaluate myself. Being that I have not dealt with many special needs individuals
in my life, I have always viewed these people in a stigmatizing way. It is due to the fact that the special
needs students were not included in my classes. Therefore I had this limited and far-off view of people
with special needs. This chapter mentions social interactions to benefit both the student with special
needs and the student without. I believe that is greatly needed in the schools. I believe we have become
desensitized to the fact that a person with special needs is not their disability; that is just a part of them.
They are a human being with feelings like me. A quote that really stuck out to me in this chapter was,

Everyone seeks to be of value, and students with special needs may feel they are of lesser value than
their peers. I admit I have never considered people with special needs in this way. I hope to never
impose the thought that a person with a disability has less value than someone that doesnt. Having
dealt with self-esteem issues myself, it hurts me to think that people with special needs feel this way
about something they cannot control. This chapter has enlightened my view of people with special
needs.