Play for children with special needs and circumstances

Introduction We believe that play is not only important for typically developing children,infants to age eight,but also critical for children with a variety of disabilities.certainly,the role of supporting,enhancing, and extending play in children with disabilities requires exsta effort, knowledge,and commitment on the part of caregivers, teachers,and parents. Unfortunately, children with disabilities often do not have lots of play opportunities in the classroom and the playground or even at home .this has a variety of causes, including lack of adequate teacher training and equipment that does not make accommodations for these childrens special circumstances.even procedures that are specified in special education laws can work against the optimum inclusion of play for children with disabilities. Play theory and research infrom spcial education, even as there are serious obstacles to overcome in translating our knouledge into policies and practices. ln this chapter we begin by examining some of these berriers to play in special education programs. Next, we note the value of play for children ith disabilities and discuss the effects of disabilities on play, the importance of inclusive education, adaptive equipment and environments, play as context for instruction, family involvement, and play-based assessement. Play therapy is then discussed, a number of different approaches being noted and one approach, sandplay therapy, being discussed in some detail, along with implications for early childhood education. Finally, we turn to child life programs, which are designed to help support and maintain childrens development and will-being while the children are in hospital settings. Again, implications for early childhood teachers are noted. PLAY AND SPECIAL EDUCATION The contemporary approach to working with children with disabilities in our early childhood programs reflects changing views of children, families, and education. At the end of the nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth century there was an increased interest in young chindren in Europe and this country, illustrated by the popularity of the German kindergarten program, the international Montessori and Waldorf approaches, the creation of the Bank Street Collage Child Study Institute, and the inception of various early childhood professional associations and journals (Wolery & Wilbers, 1994). Additionally, educators such as John Dewey stressed the importance of individual childrens unique experiences in structuring curricula, as opposed the traditional view that curricula must be imposed by society. The 1960s saw the culmination of the civil rights movement, educational results of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, and increased advocacy for the rights of disenfranchised groups, including people with disabilities. Multicultural education developed as an effort to reform schools to be responsive to each of these groups (Banks & Banks, 1997). Also in the 1960s the counterculture challenged the way we had always done things in this country, including the way we educated our children. The federal Head Start program, created in 1965, furthered our belief in the importance of young children and the need to address specific needsbof certain populations-in this case, low-income and monitory children. Leter Head Start was mandated to sever children with disabilities, and in 2002, 13 percent of Head Start.children served throughout

the nation were children who had disabilities (u.s. department of health and human services, 2003). Theoretical views of ability and education also changed ,from a reliance on maturation and biology to a view that environmental impact was increasing powerful.bronfenbrenners ecological theory gained importance, stressing both thesystems in which children function homes,communities,and programs-and how these systems interact to support each other and the lives of childen (wolery & wilbers, 1994). Starting in 1968 with the handicapped childrens early education program,avariety of federal laws were passed to address the role of education in the lives of children with disabilities. Theser laws developed both out of the civil rights legislation,and also as the result of an increasing belief in education as the great equalizer of American democracy- the belief that through education, anyone can succeed. These laws culminated in the 1990 individuals with disabilities education act (idea) that provides free education to children with disabilities,infants to age twenty-one . the IDEA law stipulates very specific activities that must occur to meet the needs of children with disabilities. Goals of IDEA are as follows(wolery & wilbers, 1994,p. 20): To support families in achieving their goals To promote childrens engagement,independence and mastery To promote childrens development in key domains To build and support childrens social competence To promote childrens generalized use of skills To provide and prepare children for normalized life experiences To prevent the emergence of future problems and disabilities

For every child who is diagnosed with a specific disability or multiple disabilities an in dividual family service plan (IFSP) or an individual education plan (IEP) must be developed.these are formal, written documents that specify the responsibility of the early childhood program in serving the child. The type of plan is based on the childs age.IFSPs are developed for children under age three, IPEs are written for children aged three year old an older. Box 10,0 lists information that should be included in an IEP.IFSPs developed for infants and toddlers are broader and less specific that IEPs. Box 10.1 What should be included in an iep The childrens present level of educational performance in every area Goals of educational performance to be achieved by the end of the school year Short-term objectives that lead to achieving the annual goals The specific educational services needed, including the kind of program needed and any adaptations required The length of time services will be required The extent to which the child will be involved in regular education programs A justification for the type of education placement the child will receive The individuals who are responsible for implementing the program

A way to determine whetmine whether short-term objectives are being achieved

Soure : wolery and wilbers (1994) As a result or the laws and amendements regarding the education of children with disabilities these children and their families have certain rights, including the following (wolery & wilbers, 1994): 1. Each preschool child with a disability must have an IEP or IFSP. 2. Children must be placed in the least restrictive, appropriate environment. To the extent possible, and making sure the child benefits,services must be provided with nondisabled children. 3. Parents control the process; they must be consulted during every part of the process, including evaluating the child ,developing the IEP or IFSP,and placing their child in a program. More and more early childhood programs are enrolling children with disabilities and/or keeping children once they have been identified. In a study reported by wolery et al. (1993),58 percent of programs that enrolled children with disabilities enrolled children with speech/language impairments ; 31 percent enrolled children with developmental delays ; 24 percent enrolled children with behavior disorders ,21 percent enrolled children with physical handicaps,and fewer than 15 percent enrolled children withmild, moderate,or severe mental retardation ;visual impairments ; hearing impairments;or autism. Thus while more and more programs are enrolling children with disabilities, they tend to enroll children with less severe conditions. Inclusion assume that all children should be served in the same programs they would have attended if they did not have disabilities(wolery & wilbers, 1994, p. 8) and is based on the belief that all children belong together. Clearly, play has a central role in an early childhood or school environment that includes children with disabilities. However, because some children with disabilities often have difficulty playing at the same level as their peers (discussed later in this chapter), teachers and providers must take specific steps to make sure that children with disabilities can benefit fully from play with nondisabled peers. For children with disabilities to fully benefit from classroom play in inclusive settings, they need help in the form of adaptations, modeling,and direct intervention.

Valu of play for children with disabilities

Clearly ,play provides a variety of beneficial opportunities for children with a range of disabilities. The extent to which a disabled child can play and the level and kind of play physical,social, cognitive, simple,complex-depend on both the childs disabilities and the amount and quality of their previous play experiences.with the in mind , here are some of the specific benefits of indoor and outdoor play for children with disabilities. Play provides a low-risk environment in which children with disabilities can develop and improve social skills. Children with disabilities have a vast array of emotional, psychological, social, cognitive, and physical needs that are identical to those of normally developing children. Play allows children with disabilities to meet these diverse needs.

Play ancourages both the social and physical integration of children with special needs within the program (Chandler, 1994). Physical integration of special needs children of simply a result of their being included in programs with typically developing children; social integration occurs as they learn to interact with other children and as the other children learn to accept them as coplayers. Play provides a sense of success. Whereas much of a special education students daily program focuses on specific goals and outcomes developed by experts to target their weaknesses and teach neeaded basic skills (Carta, Schwartz, Atwater, & McConnell, 1991), play allows these children to be successful on their own terms. Because playing children determine their own goals and outcomes, their success is largely assused,and their sense of accomplishment has been guaranteed. Play encourages independence. A common tendency with special needs children is to help them too much, and in some cases these children have event learned to act helpless and dependent (Chandler, 1994). Children with disabilities need to be encouraged to do things for themselves. This requires risk-talking, challenging themselves, and result that are not measured, criticized, or punished-an ideal recipe for play (Wardle, 1998). Play emphasizes childrens strengths. All children with special needs also heve special strengths. Because of its flexible, child-centered nature, play is an ideal context for these strengths to come to the fore. Performance is high when evaluation anxiety is low or nonexistent, as is the case when the child is at play.

Barriers to providing play opportunities in special education Unfortunately, several barriers exist that make it difficult for play to have a key role in early childhood education programs. We deal with these issues up front in this chapter because play will not gain its rightful place in early childhood special education curricula unless these barriers are adequately removed or circumvented. Bias toward direct instruction. In 1987 the national association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) published Developmentally Appropriate Practice (Bredekamp, 1987). This document was an attempt to articulate the current knowledge about developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) for working with young children in our early childhood programs. A decade later, the DAP document was revised by Bredekamp and Copple (1997). The concept of DAP is based on many of the theories discussed throughout this book, including those of Piaget, Bruner, Vygotsky, and Erikson. Therefore it is not surprising that play has a key role in DAP. In fact, one play is an important vehicle for childrens social, emotional and cognitive.