Students in all West Chicago Elementary District 33 schools will be introduced to the basic skills of golf along with character and health education in their physical education program.
Physical education teachers will teach the program using safe, fun lesson plans provided in The First Tee National School Program curriculum. The health activities were recently added for students to learn about physical, social and emotional wellness.
Contact information ( * required )
Funding for the program, which is $3,200 per school, was provided by a donation from the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. Nationwide, more than 2.5 million students at 5,000 schools in 700 districts are participating in The First Tee National School Program. All District 33 schools are offering it.
The First Tee National School Program helps students develop an appreciation for the positive personal and social values associated with golf. Students engage in safe, fun activities that lead to motor skill development while gaining an introduction to a lifelong recreation and health-enhancing activity.
The curriculum was developed by The First Tee along with leading experts in physical education and positive youth development. It is aligned with and meets national standards developed by the National Association for Sport and Physical Education. Physical educators delivering the program are trained and certified by The First Tee and use safe, developmentally appropriate lesson plans and equipment in their classes.


Since the implementation of the New York State Common Core Standards, two primary problems have arisen for elementary instrumental music teachers. First, instrumental music teachers' time to work with students is diminishing. The demands of the rigorous curriculums developed to teach the Common Core Standards create a climate where English Language Arts and Math have precedence over all other subject areas. Music is a core subject in New York State but how it appears in the school day can vary from school district to school district. Second, students are assigned so much more homework causing parents to have reservations about engaging them in other activities but many still involve their children in music. These parents have a set of acquired dispositions of thought, behavior, and taste regarding music or a musical habitus (Bourdieu & Wacquant, 1992; Rimmer, 2006).
This study identifies and explores the musical habitus of parents of students at a K-5 elementary school within a large economically diverse suburban school district in upstate New York. General music classes are part of each elementary school's master schedule and families have the option to participate in an elementary band or orchestra program. Specifically, the author seeks to understand the musical habitus of parents whose children are participating in the elementary orchestra.
The analytical and theoretical framework used by the author for this research is grounded in Bourdieu's (1986, 1992) theory of capital, with a focus on his notion of habitus and Epstein's (2010) theory of overlapping spheres of influence. Bourdieu's concept of habitus has been extended into the arts in general and to music in particular to examine the way in which people's individual histories, class origins, family backgrounds and educational opportunities interact to compose their ongoing relationship with the arts. Rimmer (2006) describes a musical habitus as an active, adaptive and generative action in sustaining musical meanings, and the structures in which they are embedded. Epstein's work focuses on one part of Bourdieu's concept of field by uniting home and school for the families involved. Understanding the level at which these three areas must interact will be a focus in the analysis of data. Together, they served as a lens to understand the musical habitus of the parents and why music is valued. This study challenges orchestra directors and administrators to understand why parents encourage and perpetuate their child's participation in instrumental music when balancing the daily schedules of their students.
|School:||University of Rochester|
|School Location:||United States -- New York|
|Source:||DAI-A 78/12(E), Dissertation Abstracts International|
|Subjects:||Music education, Elementary education|
|Keywords:||Elementary Orchestra, Musical Habitus, Parent Influence|
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Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) play a central role in the screening, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of persons with ASD. The professional roles and activities in speech-language pathology include clinical/educational services (diagnosis, assessment, planning, and treatment); prevention and advocacy; and education, administration, and research. See ASHA's Scope of Practice in Speech-Language Pathology (2007).
Appropriate roles for SLPs include
- providing information to individuals and groups known to be at risk for ASD, to their family members, and to individuals working with those at risk;
- educating other professionals on the needs of persons with ASD and the role of SLPs in diagnosing and managing ASD;
- screening individuals who present with language and communication difficulties and determining the need for further assessment and/or referral for other services;
- conducting a culturally and linguistically relevant comprehensive assessment of language and communication, including social communication skills;
- assessing for the need for and requirements for using augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices as a mode of communication;
- diagnosing the presence or absence of ASD ( typically as part of a diagnostic team or in other multidisciplinary collaborations);
- referring to other professionals to rule out other conditions, determine etiology, and facilitate access to comprehensive services;
- making decisions about the management of ASD;
- participating as a member of the school planning team (e.g., whose members include teachers, special educators, counselors, psychologists) to determine appropriate educational services;
- developing treatment plans for speech and language services, including social language goals and goals for literacy development and for assisting the student with self-regulatory and social interactive functions to allow him/her to participate in the mainstream curriculum to as great an extent as possible;
- providing treatment, documenting progress, and determining appropriate dismissal criteria;
- providing training in the use of AAC devices to persons with ASD, their families and caregivers, and educators;
- counseling persons with ASD and their families regarding communication-related issues and providing education aimed at preventing further complications related to ASD;
- consulting and collaborating with other professionals, family members, caregivers, and others to facilitate program development and to provide supervision, evaluation, and/or expert testimony, as appropriate;
- partnering with families in assessment and intervention with individuals with ASD;
- remaining informed of research in the area of ASD and helping advance the knowledge base related to the nature and treatment of ASD;
- advocating for individuals with ASD and their families at the local, state, and national levels;
- serving as an integral member of an interdisciplinary team working with individuals with ASD and their families/caregivers and, when appropriate, considering transition planning;
- providing quality control and risk management.
There is great heterogeneity in the ASD population, evidenced by the broad range of cognitive, social, communication, motor, and adaptive abilities. Some individuals with ASD have intellectual disabilities, while others have intellectual functioning within the normal range. Individuals with ASD, regardless of intellectual functioning, have a developmental disability that affects social communication skills and can limit independence in home, school, work, and community environments and participation in social networks.
As indicated in the Code of Ethics (ASHA, 2010), SLPs who serve this population should be specifically educated and appropriately trained to do so.
Interdisciplinary collaboration in assessing and diagnosing ASD is important due to the complexity of the disorders, the varied aspects of functioning affected, and the need to distinguish ASD from other disorders or medical conditions. Ideally, the role of the SLP is as a key member of an interdisciplinary team whose members possess expertise in diagnosing ASD. In cases when there is no appropriate team available, an SLP, who has been trained in the clinical criteria for ASD and who is experienced in the diagnosis of developmental disorders, may be qualified to diagnose these disorders as an independent professional (Filipek et al., 1999).
Some state laws or regulations may restrict the scope of practice of licensees, however, and prohibit the SLP from providing such diagnoses. SLPs should check with their state licensure boards and/or departments of education for specific requirements.


Home > Health & Wellness > Health Library > Down Syndrome: Helping Your Child Learn to Walk and Use Other Motor Skills
Down syndrome have reduced muscle tone, which can delay
development of their motor skills. Children with delays may roll over, sit up, pull
up, stand, and walk later than other children their age.
motor skill development through active play.
Guide your baby in playful exercises, which helps him or her
learn to walk.
July 1, 2013
John Pope, MD - Pediatrics & Louis Pellegrino, MD - Developmental Pediatrics
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Parents’ have very little knowledge of their children’s day-to-day activities in daycare, a new study finds.
Nearly 1.5 million children in Canada grow up with daycare workers taking care of many of their daily needs. While parents hope that daycare providers will let them know what goes on while their children are in care, a new study finds that the majority of parents “ought to be more involved in the daycare experience, a major component of their child’s development.”
Nina Howe, a professor in Concordia’s Department of Education and a lead author in the study, investigated what parents really know about their children’s care. Howe explains:
“We suspected that most parents know very little about the education, training, and background experiences of their children’s educators or what goes on during the child’s day. No one buys a car without doing some homework, so why don’t parents do some homework when selecting childcare?”
More and more women are leaving their children in daycare, and Howe believes that families are choosing childcare centers based on proximity to home or office locations rather than the center’s philosophy or teacher’s abilities.
The study will be published in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Early Childhood Research. Howe was mainly interested in whether parents noticed a difference in the quality of their children’s education after changes in curriculum had been implemented.
The researchers singled out several aspects of the daycare experience, from the activities provided for the children to the education of the center’s teacher. They based their research on over 40 not-for-profit daycare centers in Halifax, Montreal, and Winnipeg. Researchers interviewed 261 parents. While 75 per cent of parents reported some knowledge of the center’s philosophy, this information was largely from written statements issued by educators, not collected by conversation or a parent’s initiative.
Only 40 per cent of parents knew how much education their child’s teacher had.
Howe maintains that this is a vital aspect of a child’s success in daycare. Research indicates that teachers with more formal training “provide more developmentally appropriate activities for the children and have stronger relations with parents.” During formal education, teachers generally take courses and practicum’s that teach them to “establish a good rapport with parents and keep the lines of communication open.”
“Parents are often unaware of the role that teacher education plays in providing high quality care for children; they think that an attractive center with a warm and nurturing teacher is sufficient,” Howe explains. “While these factors are important, parents need to know what the center philosophy is, what kind of activities are offered to the children, how the day is organized, and so on. Considering that many children spend eight to nine hours a day, five days per week in childcare, this is a critical question.”
Apparently, Canadian parents aren’t the only ones who are largely unaware of the goings on at their child’s daycare facility. Statistics show that nearly 11 million children under the age of 5 are in some type of child care. Children of working mothers spend an average of 35 per week in a formal childcare setting. Ashley Schoolcraft, who works with children ages one to two at a child development center near Sacramento, CA, suggests that it is “important for parents to be involved so children make connections with home and daycare.” When children’s routines and environments at daycare differ greatly than those in their home, it can be very difficult for children to adjust. Parents are the only ones who can ensure that children are adapting well to an integration of both environments.
Schoolcraft explains that teachers fill out “daily sheets” for each child, detailing their activities throughout the day. The daily sheets even specify children’s daily development in five arenas: cognitive, social, physical, emotional, and language skills.
“Parents do like that part,” Schoolcraft told The Inquisitr, but then admits that while “about half actually read the paper,” only one or two parents “really ask about the activities.”
Schoolcraft has a BA in Elementary Education, and a Child Development Associates Certificate. Recently, she notes, the center she works for sent out information on all the teachers and staff at the center, to better inform parents. “But,” Schoolcraft notes, “I think people just trust the [center].”
Do you think that parents are interested enough in their children’s activities while in day care?


Literacy in Kerala
A 'Literate' is any person who is able to read and write on his own and 'Literacy' is the ability to read and write or is the quality of being literate.
Kerala with a literacy rate of 90.90%, stands first among other Indian states. Recognizing the need for a literate population and provision of elementary education as a crucial input for nation building, the state government with the backing of the central government, launched a number of plans and programmes over the past years to facilitate the provision of free and compulsory education with satisfactory quality to all children at least up to the age of 14 years. 'Akshara Keralam' Project introduced in the early 1990s was one such project initiated with the aim of bringing the the maximum number of illiterates to schools and other study centres. This project was implemented in different phases throughout the state. Apart from this, a number ofgovernment organizations and voluntary associations under various schemes and services, conduct classes ( mainly evening classes ) for the illiterate adults. Such classes are held throughout the rural and backward areas of the state where educational institutions were absent in the yesteryears or for those who were unable attain elementary education in their childhood or later. The literacy rate in the urban areas is slightly greater than in the rural areas. As per the norms of National Literacy Mission, a literacy rate above 90 % shall be treated as complete literacy. On this basis, Kerala was declared a, 'Fully Literate State', on April 18th, 1991.
|Kerala- Literacy Rate*|
|* As per census 2001|
Like men, women in Kerala also hold a high literacy rate -87.7 %, which is higher than any other state in India. As a result women in Kerala enjoy a social status which is unattainable by the women folks in other parts of the country. Of the total working class (Main and Marginal) of Kerala, which is 32 % of the total population, 15.3 % are women.
The literacy rate of the three communities shows that Christians are more literate than Hindus and Muslims. The literacy percentage of these communities are: Hindus (male - 90.2 and female - 86.7 per cent), Muslims (male - 89.4 and female - 85.5 per cent) and Christians (male - 94.8 and female - 93.5 per cent).
Compared to other states in India, living standard of Keralites is high. Obviously, this is attributed to the high literacy rate and the educational standard of the people. Kerala, once home to many social evils is now absolutely relieved of them.
Apart from providing general education, Govt. of Kerala has taken initiatives to provide computer education to all students. This programme is being implemented at all schools and colleges throughout the state.
Important Dates and Events in Kerala's Literacy Mission
- June 1989 - Kottayam Municipal Town is the first Fully Literate municipal town in India
- February 1990- Ernakulam District is the first Fully Literate district in India
- 1991 - Launch of 'Akshara Keralam' project
- 1991 - Kerala's Literacy rate reaches 93.64 %
- 1991, April 18 - Kerala declared a Fully Literate State.


K: Sounds & Letters Alphabet - Poster Set
Sounds & Letters Alphabet: Do you have a colorful, student-friendly, comprehensive system for sounds and letters? This engaging Sounds and Letters Alphabet Chart provides verbal and visual cues for students to learn to navigate and master one-on-one sound-spelling correspondences in the whole class setting,in small groupings, and directly at their independent work space. Use these tools to support explicit instruction, guided practice, and independent reading and writing. This invaluable set equips students with foundational skills for phonemes, phonics, and word recognition in order to demonstrate increasing awareness and competence. Bring sounds and letters to life in your classroom!
- Sounds & Letters Alphabet Chart (Color, 22" x 17")
Sounds & Letters Alphabet Action Guide: How can we bring the sounds and letters to life? Do you need a tool at your fingertips to keep sound and spelling kinesthetic cues consistent? This teacher-friendly reference provides movement descriptions to model, practice, and act out with students. This is a Teacher Demonstration must-have!
- Sounds & Letters Alphabet Action Guide (Color, 11" x 8.5")
Sounds & Letters Alphabet Cards: Can your students access sounds and letters tools from anywhere around the room? This student-friendly class set of Sounds and Letters Alphabet Cards provides verbal and visual cues for students to learn to navigate and master one-on-one, sound-spelling correspondences in the whole class setting, in small groupings, and directly at their independent work space. Refer to this large set of wall cards when delivering Teacher Demonstration. Students will be clear on the phonemes they hear and the graphemes that represent each sound!
- Sounds & Letters Alphabet Cards (Color, 5.5" x 11")


Expose children to good books to encourage reading, says visiting mentorBy Nancy T. Lu |Philippine Daily Inquirer
Award-winning books found in bookstores are choices that cannot go wrong.
So says visiting educator Dr. Daisy Lu as she shares her insights on how to teach reading effectively with teachers of Immaculate Conception Academy and graduating education majors of the University of Santo Tomas.
Cultivate good reading by exposing children to good books with multicultural backgrounds. The test of a good book lies firstly in the written language, according to Lu. In addition, the character develops. So does the plot. The author shows his/her message as the story unfolds and does not tell it, she says.
“When it comes to reading, motivation of children should be to the point of making the children reach the highest level of efficacy,” says the education specialist with at least four decades of teaching experience in the United States.
“Work at his/her highest potential. Try to raise the bar. Do not just have children emerge as simply good at repeating after you. Bring in the arts: Music, drama, poetry and storytelling.”
Gone are the days of just requiring children as readers to write book reports afterwards, she says, citing the American experience. Other activities requiring children to think creatively and even design, like producing a small play, have taken over. Teaching reading today is just like the Dalcroze method of teaching music, calling for improvisation all the time, she adds.
Nurture curiosity, Lu says. Letting growth prevail over security has to be encouraged. Having the courage to take risks takes the learner farther.
“Autonomy helps push children,” Dr. Lu tells her audience. “Give them freedom in putting together a play inspired by a storybook and they will achieve their goal with amazing results. Everyone wants to feel he or she is making a choice.”
Also important is openness toward what the kids can come up with. Their imaginative power goes to work. Wonderful ideas do surface.
“Charlotte’s Web,” a best-selling children’s book about friendship, was once turned into an entertaining play complete with music by her grade school class. The art teacher helped create the costumes for the spider and the pig, for example. Lu, who has music training, handled the music for the small production.
Critical thinking involving strategies has to be kept in mind when teaching. Teaching pedagogy by scaffolding means knowing how to zoom in by asking questions to keep stimulating more questions, according to the visiting lecturer from Seattle, Washington.
Lu describes a good reader as a person who shows selective attention. He does not read everything. He has self-regulation and demonstrates discipline. Metacognition is another indication of a good reader. This is “knowledge about when and how to use particular strategies for learning or for problem solving.”
Content knowledge when teaching has to be advanced, she tells local teachers. Language and reading teachers should work with other teachers like those in science to improve a child’s learning, according to her. She says she herself has never stopped learning, enrolling in diverse courses in the university and traveling extensively to enrich her own knowledge.
Lu has a doctorate degree in Cognitive Psychology, Socio-Psycholinguistics, Literacy Development and Bilingual-Multicultural Education from the University of Washington.
She was a K-12 teacher and principal in Seattle before deciding to focus on teaching at the university level.
E-mail Dr. Lu at email@example.com.


Adult education in India is the process to provide education to the adult and aged people who, somehow, had failed to receive the elementary education during their childhood. The effort of providing adult education in India has been in existence for the past several years, as it is one of the most important things in building an educated nation. Unless the adults realize the importance of education they would never understand the need to educate their progeny. Education is one of the stepping stones for building a strong nation. Hence adult education is promoted on a large scale in the Indian sub continent.
Adult education in India is mainly provided at night schools. These are situated in almost all the Indian cities
and villages. The provision for imparting education has been made at night because most of the people are engaged during the day. Apart from the night schools, the Government of India
had also set up some libraries so that the adults can study more to become educated, not just literate. Adult education is included among the most important responsibilities of the Government, as the eradication of illiteracy has been one of the major national concerns of the Government of India since independence. The government launched the programme of Social Education, under the Community Development Programme in 1952, as part of the first Five Year Plan. In the recent times, the government has launched the programme called National Literacy Mission (NLM) for spreading adult education in India.
A large number of initiatives have been taken so far for providing adult education in India. Machinery comprising male and female Social Education Organisers at grass-roots level and a Chief Social Education organiser has been created, apart from the Social Education Organizers` Training Centres (SEOTCs). The government has also established model community centres, rural libraries, Janata Colleges, youth clubs, mahila mandals and folk schools, for spreading adult education. The Council for Rural Higher Education was established and a Standing Committee of the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) on Social Education was also constituted in 1956. The government also started a National Fundamental Education Centre for providing high-level training facilities to the adults.
: The main objects of this programme are literacy, extension, general education and social consciousness. It was in the period 1951-1956.
Gram Shikshan Mohim
: This movement was started in the year 1959 in Maharashtra
. This programme was launched on an experimental basis into 25 districts of the state. The duration of the movement was very short as there was not any systematic setting due to which there was large scale relapse of neo-literates into illiterate.
Farmer`s functional literacy project
: This project was accelerated as part of the Green Revolution with the objective of making farmers functionally literate in high yielding cultivation areas.
: This programme is initiated through the Central Board of Workers` Education and its institutes. However, the steps under this scheme could not be linked to the literacy schemes/projects being funded under the departments of Education of the states or by the Govt. of India.
Non formal education for youth
: In the starting of the fifth plan an educational system for the age group of 15-25 was launched. It was a significant even in the history of Indian education.
Besides these, several other programmes were also introduced by Indian Government
Education commission was a significant event which highly prioritised the step to remove illiteracy. The functional literacy of adult women project was started in the year 1975-1976. This scheme targeted at illiterate adult women to acquire functional skills along with literacy, to promote better awareness of health, hygiene, child-care practices and to bring about attitudinal changes.
A massive programme of Adult Education called the National Adult Education Programme (NAEP) for removal of illiteracy in the 15-35 age group was introduced by the Government of India on 2nd October, 1978. The aim of this programme was to educate 100 million adults within a time frame of five years.
The states in India also took up centre based projects under the state plan funds on the lines of RFLPs.
However, apart from the Indian government, a large number of NGOs have also been working to spread adult education in India and they have indeed done a great job so far.


I am an Elementary Education Major at Kutztown University. The purpose of this blog is to share my finding of Children's Literature. Pictures and summaries of my favorite Children's books, along with other things I may find interesting. Hope you enjoy!
“Good children's literature appeals not only to the child in the adult, but to the adult in the child”
- Author: Patricia Polacco
- Illustrator: Patricia Polacco
- Genre: Realistic Fiction
- Summary: Mr. Lincoln is an African American Principal who takes a special interest in all the students in his school. Of course, there is the school bully, Eugene who is known as “Mean Gene”, who picks on everybody. Mr. Lincoln helps out Eugene and after school one day the two of them fix up the atrium with new trees and birdhouses. The principal taught Eugene a lesson in tolerence and respect for others through their atrium project, which brought a bunch of different birds to the atrium. This helped stop his bullying.


Center for Literacy Around the World (CLAW)
The Literacy Center houses children's books, media and teaching materials in elementary education. These resources expand the pre-service teachers' opportunities for research and familiarization with innovative teaching materials. The literacy center can be contacted at 724-738-2944. The literacy center coordinator is Dr. Heilman-Houser.
The elementary and secondary education science facilities support classroom instruction. One classroom is equipped with a sink and laboratory tables to provide hands on lessons. Additional hardware, software and curriculum material provide highly developed interactive components for the methods courses.
The math laboratory serves as a valuable resource for students enrolled in mathematics methods classes, field experiences, graduate classes and student teaching. It includes computers and instructional software, instructional videotapes of class demonstrations and calculators for elementary and secondary methods courses.
SOCIAL STUDIES LABORATORY
The social studies laboratory was recently expanded to assist in the instruction of social studies methods courses. The mini lab and social studies classroom have numerous hands-on materials such as maps, software programs, and video equipment to conduct micro-teaching lessons
MULTICULTURAL HERITAGE CENTER (CLAW)
The Multicultural Heritage Center provides a large range of resources including books, magazines, kits, games, puppets and posters. The book collection consists of child, juvenile and adult literature. The Multicultural Heritage Center is located in 122A McKay, extension x2892, inside the Literacy Center. The multicultural heritage center coordinator is Dr. Soeder.
Student Resource Room
HICKORY CORNERS SCHOOLHOUSE
The Hickory Corners Schoolhouse is an original one-room schoolhouse. Furnished and donated to the University, it is now used to teach lessons in a historically accurate context. To view the informational movie.
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS CENTER
The Instructional Materials Center provides resources and materials to support the education and training of students enrolled in the College of Education. Over 12,000 audiovisual materials and approximately 30,000 children's books can be used for curriculum planning, the preparation and presentation of lessons, and the assessment of pupils. Education databases, including ERIC, Education Full-Text, the Professional Development Collection, and the Curriculum Resource Center are available on the Library's Journal Articles and Databases page.
Instruction and tours are available upon request. Open during all regular Library service hours, the Instructional Materials Center is located on the second floor of Bailey Library. The IMC Desk can be reached at 724-738-6048.
REGIONAL LEARNING ALLIANCE
Slippery Rock University offers a number of classes at the Regional Learning Alliance (RLA) each semester. The RLA is western Pennsylvania's premier site for adult education and career development, located on Route 228, just off Interstate 79 in Marshall Township, Allegheny County. Slippery Rock University led development of the center.
The partnership includes The Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Butler County Community College, Carlow University, DeVry University, Geneva College, La Roche College, Penn State University, Pittsburgh Technical Institute, Robert Morris University, SRU and Triangle Tech.
The RLA includes many amenities for working adults, including the Carlow Early Learning Center, the Wellness Center, computer labs, lounge area and a cafe. Its primary purpose is meeting the training and educational needs of employees and businesses within a two-hour radius of northern Allegheny County. For more information, call the RLA at 724-741-1000.


- CD playable in DVD/VCD player and computer
- Lively animations
- 7 nursery songs, 5 rhymes, riddles (English)
- Interactive activities
- Electronic flashcards to enrich children’s vocabulary
Musical Playground - Mathematics is designed to teach basic numeracy skills using rhymes and songs.
Presented through lively animations and colourful graphics, it encourages children to read the rhymes with expression and sing the songs happily together.
The CD comes complete with rhymes, songs, flash cards and interactive activities. It is hoped that Musical Playground series will help children strengthen their basic numeracy skills in an enjoyable way.
List of songs and rhymes:
What is in the package: 1 VCD-Rom
Age range: 4-9 years
Weight: 100 g
Pakej size: 18.0 cm x 13.5 cm x 1.0 cm


Special Education Resources
A Place of Our Own
KCET’s A Place of Our Own (Los Niños en Su Casa in Spanish) is a daily television series, a website, and an extensive outreach program devoted to the unique needs of people who care for children.
Family, friends and neighbors – everyone who takes care of young children – are child care providers. Every interaction and every activity of these adults with their charges provide valuable opportunities to help children learn and grow.
A Place of Our Own shares ways for us all to help children acquire cognitive, social, emotional and physical skills, as well as nurture language and literacy development.
The Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey
The Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey publishes a variety of booklets, brochures, fact sheets, and posters on brain injury topics. Our publications are available free to persons with a brain injury, family members, professionals and organizations.
Education World – Special Education
Welcome to the Education World Special Education Subject Center. Here, you will find information and tools, from Education World and other valuable sources, chosen specifically for the special education community.
Internet Special Education Resources
ISER is a nationwide directory of professionals, organizations, and schools that serve the learning disabilities and special education communities. We help parents and caregivers find local special education professionals to help with learning disabilities and attention deficit disorder assessment, therapy, advocacy, critical teen issues, and other special needs.
Marc Sheehan's Special Education/Exceptionality Page
Welcome to my special education and exceptionality page. This page provides a wealth of resources for exceptional students.
ParentPals Special Education Resources
Additional resources about special education for parents and teachers alike.
PBS Parents - Inclusive Communities
Information from the PBS Parents web site regarding special education, inclusive communities, and the evaluation process.
U.S. Department of Education – Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) is dedicated to improving results for infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities ages birth through 21 by providing
AUTISM AWARENESS RESOURCES
Autism Society Tips for the Holidays
Twelve Tips for Helping People with Autism and Their Families Have a Happy Holiday.
While many happily anticipate the coming holiday season, families of people on the autism spectrum also understand the special challenges that may occur when schedules are disrupted and routines broken. Our hope is that by following these few helpful tips, families may lessen the stress of the holiday season and make it a more enjoyable experience for everyone involved. The following tips were developed with input from the Autism Society, the Indiana Resource Center for Autism, Easter Seals Crossroads, the Sonya Ansari Center for Autism at Logan and the Indiana Autism Leadership Network.
NBN Autism Program
The NBN AUTISM program is designed for children diagnosed on the autism spectrum. Our mission is to provide evidenced-based, best practice strategies to maximize the personal potential of each child. Compassion and sensitivity are combined with clinical competence and expertise. While our program is based on Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) principles and practices, our team of professionals are eclectic in their approach, recognizing the importance of individualized treatment.
- Sesame Street Autism Resources for Parents
- Reduce the Noise: Help Loved Ones with Sensory Overload Enjoy Shopping
- Resources for Military Families
- Moving with Special Needs Kids
- Home Modifications for Special Needs Kids
- Academic Accommodation Resources
- Estate Planning for Parents of Special Needs Kids
Below is a list of community-based resources for families.


Of Choctaw and Mexican-American descent, Marsha Gómez sought to explore her heritage through art and to use her art for social change. She was born in New Orleans and attended school in Arkansas, where she learned Native American pottery techniques. After earning a degree in art education, she moved to Austin in 19821 and immediately plunged into community service. Convinced that creativity lies within every person, she was a popular artist-inresidence in Austin schools and taught art to seniors in community centers. She co-founded the Indigenous Women’s National Network to provide resources and share technical skills. She directed Alma de Mujer Center for Social Change, a 20-acre retreat complete with outdoor stage, meandering creek, herb garden, and sweat lodge.
Marsha created pottery in the monumental style of women artists from Oaxaca and New Mexico. She is best known for her sculpture “Madre del Mundo,” an indigenous woman gazing contemplatively at a globe cradled in her lap. The work was commissioned for a Mother’s Day peace protest at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site. Federal agents confiscated the statue but later returned it, and Marsha placed it atop a knoll at Alma de Mujer. More commissions followed. She produced a second Madre del Mundo for the Peace Farm in the Texas Panhandle, across the road from the Pantex nuclear weapons plant. She made a third for Casa de Colores, an indigenous resource center and cooperative farm in Brownsville.
In 1992 Marsha’s friend Genevieve Vaughn purchased land outside the Nevada Test Site and donated it to the Western Shoshone, who had originally inhabited it. Women gathered on the site to construct a straw-bale temple to Sekhmet, ancient Egyptian lion-headed goddess of birth, fertility, and rage. Marsha created a life-sized Sekhmet statue for the temple as well as a fourth Madre del Mundo.
For many years Marsha struggled to provide adequate services for her son, who was diagnosed as schizophrenic and shuffled between home, psychiatric institutions, and the penal system. At age 24, days after his release from jail, Mekaya murdered his mother.
The energy and spirit that go into my work result in a unique expression of respect and reverence for women, the Earth, and indigenous way of life.
Working with clay as my dear companion for the past fifteen years, I have come closer each year to a deeper union with the Earth and closer to an appreciation of how all the elements in the universe work together. In turn, I myself have become a vessel to the vessels that are created through my heart and hands.


Liechtenstein, or Principality of Liechtenstein, a country in central Europe. It lies between Switzerland and Austria where the Rhine River emerges from the Alps. Liechtenstein is about 15 miles (24 km) long and up to 6 miles (10 km) wide. It has an area of nearly 61 square miles (160 km 2 ). There are two sections: the Rhine Valley and an Alpine part, with mountain peaks rising to about 8,400 feet (2,560 m) above sea level. Summers are warm to cool, depending on elevation; winters are rather cold and snowy.
The economy of Liechtenstein is linked with that of Switzerland and is based mainly on light manufacturing, trade, tourism, the issuing of finely engraved postage stamps (largely for collectors), and farming. Farmers produce grain, fruits, vegetables, and dairy and beef cattle. Also important are revenues from foreign firms that have nominal headquarters here to take advantage of banking and tax laws advantageous to business. Roads link all the cities and towns and form the chief arteries of transportation.
A prince and a parliament, called the Landtag, of 25 elected members rule the country. Their Prime minister heads a five-member collegial board that operates the government.
German is the official language; the local dialect is Alemannic. Elementary education is free and compulsory. There is no university in Liechtenstein.
Liechtenstein became an independent principality within the Holy Roman Empire in 1719. It became a member of the Confederation of the Rhine in 1806 during the Napoleonic era and later a part of the German confederation, which was dissolved in 1866. Close ties with Austria were maintained from 1852 until 1918; a much closer affiliation with Switzerland began with a customs union treaty in 1923. Liechtenstein remained neutral during both World Wars. During the 1990's, conflict between the monarchy and the legislature arose over several issues, one of which (Prince Hans-Adam's refusal to reappoint a judge as directed by the legislature) resulted in the filing of a formal complaint against the reigning prince with the European Commission of Human Rights.
|Facts in brief about Liechtenstein|
|Official language: German.|
|Area: 62 mi2 (160 km2). Greatest length—17.4 mi (28 km). Greatest width—7 mi. (11 km).|
|Elevation: Highest—8,527 ft (2,599 m). Lowest—1,411 ft (430 m).|
|Population: Current estimate—36,000; density, 581 persons per mi2 (225 per km2); distribution, 79 percent rural, 21 percent urban. 2004 official government estimate—34,600.|
|Chief products: Agriculture—beef and dairy cattle, fruits and vegetables, wheat. Manufacturing—ceramics, electronic equipment, fabricated metal products, food products, pharmaceutical products.|
|Flag: Liechtenstein's flag has two horizontal stripes, the upper one blue (for the sky), and the lower one red (for the glow of evening fires). A crown representing the prince appears in the upper-left corner.|
|Money: Basic unit—Swiss franc. One hundred centimes equal one franc.|


Cette formation n'est pas disponible en français pour l'instant.
Would you like to strengthen your child’s reading skills? This new course is for parents and caregivers of children aged 4 to 6 who want to learn the core strategies for supporting their child in becoming a reader.
Parents and caregivers are a child’s first teachers. They build the foundation for language and literacy skills from the moment a child is born. Parents and caregivers can enable their child to become a confident reader when they know the best sequence for teaching foundational skills and have a repertoire of fun and engaging activities they can use to teach their child.
The first stage of ‘becoming a reader’ usually begins in kindergarten or grade 1. This is when children begin to learn the relationships between letters and sounds, how sounds are put together to form words, and how words can be used to form sentences.
This course equips parents and caregivers with the knowledge and sequence of foundational reading skills and provides fun and engaging activities for teaching children at home.


Most of the time, you see cirrus clouds very high up in the sky, looking thin and wispy, like someone pulled a bigger cloud apart into little bits of cloud. Cirrus (SIR-russ) clouds look thin because they are made of ice crystals, not water drops. They form where it is high enough to be cold and freeze the water drops into ice.
Sometimes you might think you see cirrus clouds when it's really only the trail of an airplane, half blown away and spreading across the sky. But either way, if the sky is blue with only these thin cirrus clouds high up in it, you can be pretty sure it's going to be a nice day.
To find out more about the atmosphere, check out these books from Amazon.com or from your library:
Learn by Doing - Clouds
More about clouds
More about Thunderstorms
More about Weather
Science for Kids home page
History for Kids home page


QTS skills tests
The tests cover the core skills that teachers need to fulfil their wider professional role in schools, rather than the subject knowledge required for teaching. This is to ensure all teachers are competent in numeracy, literacy and information and communication technology (ICT), regardless of their specialism.
Following the Department for Education (DfE) publication, Training our next generation of outstanding teachers: Implementation plan (November 2011), trainees starting an initial teacher training (ITT) course from September 2013 will be required to pass the skills tests before starting their course. The pass mark for these tests will be raised and the number of resits allowed will be limited to two.
The requirements for candidates starting courses in the 2012 academic year remain unchanged; candidates are required to pass the skills tests in their final year of study (with the current exceptions for those on flexible routes into teaching). However, subject to parliamentary approval of changes to the relevant regulations, the ICT test will no longer be a requirement for achieving qualified teacher status (QTS) from April 2012.
Please refer to the skills tests popular questions for more information.
If you are undertaking ITT in Wales, you are not required to complete the skills tests in order to be awarded QTS.
A range of interactive and paper-based practice materials is available in literacy, numeracy and ICT that will enable you to practise tests at home. Practice materials for those requiring special arrangements are also provided.
All trainee teachers are required to pass the QTS skills tests; find out more.
Find out about booking and registration for the tests, which is done exclusively online.
If you previously required special arrangements in a test or public exam you can request the same for the QTS skills tests.
Find first-hand information and further resources to help you prepare for and pass the literacy skills test.
Access information and practice materials to help you prepare for and pass the numeracy skills test.
Find first-hand information and resources to help you prepare for and pass the ICT skills test.
Find out all you need to know about the process of taking the tests.
These questions and answers came from trainee teachers like you.


programs acquire field experience in both public and parochial school settings. Student teaching occurs during the senior year.
Nebraska is exploring different methods to assess the strength of its teacher education programs and was awarded a Title II grant by the U.S. Department of Education to support this endeavor. The grant will be used to pilot the use of teacher tests as a possible accountability measure of teacher education programs. The state will pay the testing costs for students who will be student teaching in elementary, middle, and high schools during the 2000–2001 and 2001–2002 academic years. All students will take the Principles of Teaching and Learning test, an Educational Testing Service product. Students seeking an endorsement in elementary education will also be required to take the ETS’s Elementary Education: Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment. There is no plan to incorporate the use of these tests as additional requirements for an initial teaching license. The state intends to explore the use of student’s scores on these tests as one measure of the strength of its teacher education programs.
The state of California is currently experiencing a significant shortage of teachers, with a predicted need for an additional 250,000 to 300,000 teachers in the next decade. The demand for new teachers is fueled by changes in state policy regarding class size reduction, a high number of teachers seeking retirement, and significant growth in the student population. The state anticipates that 1 million more students will be attending California schools by 2005 than did in 1998–1999. The greatest need for teachers is, and will be in the near future, in elementary education, special education, language acquisition and development, mathematics, and science. Urban and rural areas are experiencing the most significant teacher shortages. To address the demand for new teachers, a variety of teacher preparation programs have been developed in the state to provide multiple opportunities for individuals to seek teacher licensure and accelerate the time line for certification.
There are three general pathways to gaining preliminary teacher licensure in California: traditional teacher preparation programs, district internship programs, and university internship programs. California has also established a preinternship program that assists emergency teachers in meeting prerequisites for entry into one of the three formal teacher preparation programs. Each program is highlighted below.


Shares a wealth of practical resources and ideas to help teachers develop a whole-school commitment to, and enthusiasm for, improving numeracy.
In Forty Pence Each or Two for a Pound: Making Maths Memorable, Accessible and Relevant, Danielle Bartram shares a wealth of practical resources and ideas to help teachers develop a whole-school commitment to, and enthusiasm for, improving numeracy. How many times have you heard someone say they ‘can’t do maths’? This attitude and acceptance of it appears to be endemic, but being bad at maths – or excusing innumeracy as maths-phobia – can no longer be tolerated. Danielle Bartram, of Miss B’s Resources fame, has made it her mission to remedy this issue and believes that learners should have a basic concept of number and problem solving in order to stop them being ripped off by companies when purchasing items, insurance or moving energy suppliers later on in life. For this reason, she has specifically designed Forty Pence Each or Two for a Pound to give the teaching and learning of numeracy a firm foundation in everyday contextual settings so that students can transfer the logical and functioning skills inherent in mathematical understanding to real-world contexts.
With the new Ofsted criteria focus on numeracy, all teachers will want to develop their maths teaching practice. Forty Pence Each or Two for a Pound contains plenty of ideas to help teachers of all subject specialisms to do just that, and tackles students’ maths-phobia head on by providing an invaluable collection of 31 ready-to-use activities and resources to improve their enthusiasm for, and confidence in, the applied use of maths. Danielle has achieved this by shifting away from a prescribed list of maths-teaching techniques and instead presents a treasure trove of exciting, lesson-ready ideas held together by six numeracy links – number, functional skills, graphs and statistics, problem solving, shapes and measures, and formulae and equations – that can be embedded across the full curriculum.
The 31 resources are tagged with their relevant numeracy links to indicate the mathematical territory covered (e.g. graphs and statistics), and are also divided into six categories – literacy, exploration, engagement, classroom management, marking and reflection, and organisation and presentation – for ease of identification while flicking through the book. Danielle complements each activity with useful mathematical pointers, such as the language to be used and the numerical concepts that students often struggle with or have misconceptions about, and has made all of the resources available as PDF downloads from her Miss B’s Resources website via a specific link provided in the book. Beyond the more practical provision of strategies and resources, Forty Pence Each or Two for a Pound also offers expert guidance on the shaping of numeracy coordination across the school and presents example audit grids to serve as an outline of how students’ progress with each numeracy link can be monitored.
Suitable for numeracy coordinators and teachers of all subjects, in both primary and secondary settings, who want to embed into their lessons the numeracy skills that their students will need in everyday life.
Chapter 1. What is Numeracy?
Chapter 2. Numeracy4All Chain
Chapter 3. Breaking Up the Journey
Chapter 4. Numeracy Links
Chapter 5. Subject Knowledge
Chapter 6. The 31 Prime Resources and Ideas
Chapter 7. Enthusiasm


Music. It Does a Body Good!
July 10, 2014
Music is not only enjoyable for young children (well, really “children” of any age), but it offers a variety of learning opportunities, as well.
Several studies now show that when a young child is engaged with music from a young age, he/she is building connections in the brain that can lead to enhanced reading readiness and language development. A recent study of 165 toddlers conducted by the University of Buffalo demonstrated that early and frequent exposure to music improved vocabulary and language processing. According to the Children’s Music Workshop, “the effect of music education on language development can be seen in the
brain. Recent studies have clearly indicated that musical training physically develops the part of the left side of the brain known to be involved with processing language, and can actually wire the brain’s circuits in specific ways. Linking familiar songs to new information can also help imprint information on young minds,” the group claims.
In addition, the relationship that exists between music and language development is advantageous from a social-emotional standpoint, as well. “The development of language over time tends to enhance parts of the brain that help process music,” says Dr. Kyle Pruett, clinical professor of child psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine and a practicing musician. “Language competence is at the root of social competence. Musical experience strengthens the capacity to be verbally competent.”
While the act of just listening to music is beneficial, the best types of experience for young children are those where they can actively participate in the music, by marching or clapping along with the beat. When children listen to, repeat, and create rhymes, they learn to match the sounds of language. And what could better inspire rhyming than playful children’s songs? As you listen together, repeat the rhyming words and encourage your child to do the same. Introduce and talk about new words like rhythm and note. Listen for new words in song lyrics and talk about what they mean. You can also encourage the children to enjoy music and build their vocabulary by teaching them the words to your favorite songs or making up songs together.
So, for all the Ready Readers volunteers taking in this very important information, here’s my message to you: SING! It doesn’t matter if you can’t carry a tune in a bucket (as my husband would say), or if you’re tone deaf, or whatever the excuse. MUSIC = LANGUAGE.


Interventions across primary and secondary education are urgently needed to address declining literacy levels and persistent inequity, according to a new report.
The evidence summary, titled ‘The literacy landscape in Aotearoa New Zealand’, is authored by Professor Stuart McNaughton, chief science advisor to the Ministry of Education. It is released today through the Office of the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor, Professor Juliet Gerrard.
Literacy, mathematics and science levels – as measured in standard international assessments at 15 years old – have been declining in Aotearoa New Zealand over many years. In addition, disparities between students from low socioeconomic status communities, Māori and Pasifika students, and other students, remain unchanged.
“We see disparities in Years 4-8 – for example, Māori students in English medium schooling typically have reading comprehension one to two years lower than Pākehā students,” says Stuart. “But the differences don’t start there. They emerge before school.”
The report identifies several evidence-backed actions and interventions across a child’s school life that can make a difference to literacy development.
These include simple everyday activities, such as reading and telling stories to preschool-aged children, alongside systems-level processes, such as implementing literacy progress measures in early learning services.
“There are strengths in our system to build upon,” says Stuart. “For example, fostering strong Māori identity, culture and language, as well as attending Māori medium schools or simply having Māori teachers, can increase achievement at secondary school for Māori students.”
“Given the importance of language, culture and identity to achievement, it is concerning that about one quarter of Year 8 students say they have never had the opportunity to read books that reflect their identities,” he adds.
Other recommendations include:
- Well-designed digital innovations in low-decile schools;
- Formal and informal assessment tools at the point of starting primary school to provide detailed profiles of new entrants’ strengths and learning needs;
- Strengthening the three-tiered ‘Response to Intervention’ (RTI) model, especially interventions following ‘Reading Recovery’;
- Incorporating critical literacy in Years 4-8, especially for digital and social media contexts; and
- Policies and teaching to promote wellbeing during the transition from primary to secondary school.
The effectiveness of these recommendations can be enhanced by better teacher preparation and further research in educational science, according to Stuart.
“Structural inequalities and discrimination also contribute to our challenges in equity and excellence,” he says. “The recommendations of the report would be more powerful if these encompassing conditions were addressed too.”
Professor Stuart McNaughton ONZM
Stuart is Professor of Education and Founding Director of the Woolf Fisher Research Centre – Te Pūtahi Whakatairanga Hapori Ako Angitu at the University of Auckland. His areas of expertise include children’s learning and development; literacy and language; the design of effective education for culturally and linguistically diverse populations; and cultural processes in development.
Stuart is the Chief Education Scientific Advisor for the Ministry of Education – Te Tāhuhu o Te Mātauranga. He is part of the Forum of Chief Science Advisors convened by the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor.


Common Household Chemical Can Increase Child’s Risk for Eczema
(Ivanhoe Newswire) — A new study exposes the danger of the chemical butylbenzyl phthalate (BBzP), a chemical found in the households of nearly 100 percent of the mothers studied. BBzP is often used in vinyl flooring and artificial leather, and it´s slowly released into home air. It can also increase a child’s risk for developing eczema.
Eczema is characterized by dry, itchy red skin on the face, scalp, or extremities and is common in early childhood. “While hereditary factors, allergens, and exposure to tobacco smoke are known to contribute to the condition, our study is the first to show that prenatal exposure to BBzP is a risk factor,” Allan C. Just, PhD, first author on the Mailman School study and currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Harvard School of Public Health, was quoted as saying.
The study examined 407 nonsmoking African-American and Dominican women and their children in New York City. Exposure to BBzP was measured using a urine test during the third trimester of pregnancy. Following birth, researchers asked the mothers if their child had been diagnosed with eczema. They found that onset of eczema by age 2 was 52 percent more likely in children whose mothers had been exposed to higher concentrations of BBzP, compared with those whose mothers had been exposed to lower concentrations. All but one of the women in the study showed some level of exposure to the chemical.
It is unclear how BBzP can induce eczema. To find out, researchers looked at allergies as a possible cause. Children were tested for three common indoor allergens: cockroaches, dust mites, and mice, as well as for total IgE, a biomarker for an immune response to all allergens. However, they found no evidence of a link between BBzP exposure and allergy.
“We know allergies are a factor with some childhood eczema, but our data suggest that is not the case when BBzP is involved,” senior author Rachel Miller, MD, Director of the Allergy and Immunology fellowship program and Associate Professor of Medicine (in Pediatrics) and Environmental Health Sciences, New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center; and a Co-Deputy Director of the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health, was quoted as saying. “However, these are important findings, given that eczema is a common and uncomfortable disease of early childhood.”
Additionally, the researchers found that African-American mothers in the study were twice as likely as their Dominican-American counterparts to report their child´s diagnosis with eczema, but both groups had a similar association between BBzP exposure and the disease.
Study co-author Robin M. Whyatt, DrPH, Professor of Clinical Environmental Health Sciences and Co-Deputy Director of the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health, conducted previous research which found that exposure to BBzP and other phthalates was shown to delay motor skill development in young children and to increase risk for behavioral problems. Phthalates are also known to disrupt the body’s endocrine system.
Source: Environmental Health Perspectives, June 2012


The Mayor’s Challenge is a major grant program provided by the Bloomberg Philanthropies which grants major urban centers monies for innovative projects. The urban districts are required to submit an idea, and winners are chosen based on which ideas could have the greatest impact on a broader scale.
This year’s main winner of the Mayor’s Challenge was the city of Providence, Rhode Island and the grant was crafted by its mayor, Angel Taveras. The innovative idea that was created centers on early literacy development and the use of technology to drive best practices in education. Other cities including Houston, Chicago, Philadelphia and Santa Monica also were winners of grant money this year.
For winning the ‘idea challenge’ part of the Mayor’s Challenge, the city of Providence will receive $5 million to implement a system to understand what works in verbal communication with children, tracking how many words a child is exposed to, and determining how the different quality of conversations impact literacy development.
This is a significant project, which could yield wide-ranging results applicable everywhere. The children will have voice recognition monitors (digital language processors) taping their conversations with adults. Each conversation will be made into an audio file, and tallied for the number of words per conversation and the number of shifts within the conversation.
The data collected will be analyzed to determine what number of words, and how many concepts are best introduced to young children learning to speak, read and write. The data will also be used to develop training sessions with parents to coach them on best practices in early literacy development. Certainly, the data’s use in widespread parent engagement type seminars will impact a geographical area wider than the location of the grant.
Other project’s that won the ‘idea challenge’ included a citywide recycling initiative, in Houston, that allows mixed recycling and encourages participation in the ‘greening’ movement. In Philadelphia, a project analyzing procurement of supplies across the urban district is being implemented. Its goal is to widen the bidding process and drive down costs of supplies using smarter technologies.
In Chicago, the grant money is being put towards developing technology systems to track crime trends. In Santa Monica, a Wellness Project is getting underway to track the different influences on the overall health and wellness of the community. Each of these projects will generate usable, relevant data. The winning project however, focuses on the needs of young children. It combines the ways that technology can enhance our understanding of effective teaching practices, and brings attention to how we speak to our children. Well worth it!
SchoolTutoring Academy is the premier educational services company for K-12 and college students. We offer tutoring programs for students in K-12, AP classes, and college. To learn more about how we help parents and students in Pensacola, FL visit: Tutoring in Pensacola, FL.


Politics in Great Britain at this time can be summed up as a grand--and unresolved--debate between classical liberalism, represented by William Gladstone, and interventionist conservatism, represented by Benjamin Disraeli. (Note: These political terms have essentially no resemblance to their modern usage, so as we trace the story of England at this time, try to forget the modern definitions of "liberal" and "conservative".)
Though Gladstone began his career as a Tory (the nickname for members of the Conservative Party), he became the leader of the Liberal Party and a champion of classical liberalism, the economic and political philosophy that opposed state intervention in economic affairs, supported free trade, competition, and individual initiative as the key to success. This philosophy was, above all, an attack on privilege--on the aristocrats, on the Anglican Church. Liberals believed that talent alone should dictate a man's advancement in the world. Under Gladstone, Britain abolished tariffs, cut defense spending, lowered taxes, kept budgets balanced, reformed the civil service into a merit-based promotion system, and made elementary education available to and mandatory for everyone.
While Gladstone advanced a liberal version of England's future, Disraeli advocated a different view, known as conservatism. Supported by an odd coalition of great privilege and the agrarian poor, the Conservative Party pushed for state intervention in the economy on behalf of both the disadvantaged and the landed elite. Both supported tariffs because they helped British agriculture and British domestic industries. While Disraeli was prime minister, the government passed through the following changes:
1. Factory Act of 1875, setting a maximum of a fifty-six hour workweek.
2. Public Health Act, establishing a sanitary code.
3. Artisans Dwelling Act, defining minimum housing standards.
4. Trade Union Act, permitting picketing and other peaceful labor tactics.
As power in parliament switched back and forth, depending upon who was able to craft the more effective voter coalition, England remained insulated from the revolutions and popular uprisings that plagued Europe from 1830-1848, and took considerable pride in that fact. Victorian England was on the road to great strength, maintained by its unparalleled peace at home.
The question remains, however: Why was there no revolutionary uprising in Great Britain? After all, Britain was ruled by an aristocratic or bourgeois elite that excluded democrats, radicals, and workers; further, the government was not fully representative, since in 1832, only 20 percent of the population could fulfill the property qualifications to vote. As explained by historian Mark Kishlansky, England experienced no revolution because its ruling elite, of common background and education, was able to change and adapt to the shifting needs and opinions of modern society.
The Liberals represented the economic and political wishes of the British bourgeoisie--industrial (to some extent), merchant, and professional--and the Conservatives represented the conservative elements of society. Granted, everyone else in society was excluded from voting and, thus, direct representation; however, in many cases, both parties responded to the needs of workers and the poor, most notably the Conservatives. The essential difference between the ruling elites in Britain and those on the Continent was their common background and common philosophy. In Prussia and France, nobles were dedicated to the preservation of their privilege by birthright alone; in England, nobles were dedicated to the preservation of the rights of Englishmen. Granted, to them, "Englishmen" meant fellow nobles and the wealthy; however, the different perspective in terms of rights rather than privilege was more conducive to allowing the English aristocrats to understand liberal demands in the 1840s and respond to them with political and gradual change.
The peace that prevailed in Europe throughout most of the nineteenth century has often been called the "Pax Britannia," like the "Pax Romana" that prevailed during the golden age of Rome. Now, Britain did not use her armies to actively enforce peace throughout Europe and the globe; however, her role as a key victor over Napoleon and unquestioned mistress of the seas kept overt aggression in check until the German army and navy could compete effectively at the beginning of the twentieth century. Besides Britain's foreign policy, domestic policy that ensured peace at home also strengthened London's image as an enforcer of fair peace in the world. Professor Kishlansky sums up the great success of Britain in this era by referring to its great compromise: the reconciliation of industrialists' commitment to unimpeded growth and workers' needs for protection from the state. Only Great Britain succeeded in doing this prior to the great explosion of the welfare state and modern, regulated capitalism.


Infant-Toddler language and early literacy activities: Free and Reproducible
These materials include twenty home and community activities for adults and children birth to three that encourage early language and literacy development. They are appropriate for children with disabilities as well as children who are developing typically. The materials are specifically designed to address the three key skills of 1) language development, 2) sounds and rhythms, and 3) general book and print awareness. The materials are available in Burmese, English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog/Philipino, Somali, and Russian.
The materials are made available by Angela Notari-Syverson and colleagues, and may be copied and distributed as long as they are not sold.
To download materials go to http://www.walearning.com and click on the button that says "Free Literacy Materials" on the home page. You will need to create a logon account using your email address and a password.
The links found on the http://www.walearning.com website are provided by an outside organization not formally affiliated with EEC and are provided by EEC as a convenience to users of the EEC website. EEC does not endorse any of these links, nor does EEC attest to the accuracy found in these links.


Canvas of War
Masterpieces from the Canadian War Museum
October 12, 2001 - January 6, 2002
oil on canvas
©Canadian War Museum (C.W.M.)
Often forgotten in conflict is the war artist. During the First and Second World Wars, Canadian war artists were courageous journalists who lived the lives of soldiers, with only pen and ink for protection. Their provocative expressions of life in wartime will be on display at the Art Gallery of Ontario from October 12, 2001 to January 6, 2002, in an interactive exhibition encouraging understanding and remembrance. The war artists, including A.Y. Jackson and Arthur Lismer in World War I, and Alex Colville, Molly Lamb Boback and Jack Shadbolt in World War II, sent home a stunning visual record of Canada's war experiences. Canvas of War: Masterpieces from the Canadian War Museum is the first major exhibition of Canadian war art of both world wars.
"The war art commissions brought intense focus to the observation of Canada's role in international conflict," says Anna Hudson, assistant curator of Canadian Art at the AGO. "A driving need for a strong national identity urged First and Second World War artists toward symbolism. While these vivid images are of a now distant past, they continue to communicate their messages to us, and so never lose their relevance."
Matthew Teitelbaum, director of the AGO, agrees that all art is contemporary. "While a work may have been painted 50, 100 or 500 years previously, it still speaks to us in our setting. We at the AGO recognize this voice that art has, and strive to display works, both in our collection and in borrowed exhibitions, in a way that promotes dialogue and gives pause for reflection."
The First World War images of battle, hospital corps, heroic portraits and gathering soldiers take the visitor through the confused emotions of life in wartime. For Fred Varley and Arthur Lismer, founding members of the Group of Seven, the ravaged landscape of Europe spoke volumes of the war's spiritual toll.
During World War II, art - painting, sculpture, architecture and design - rose to the forefront of Allied and Axis countries' demonstrations of cultural strength on the international stage. Canadian artists embraced the role of "cultural soldier," but rejected the aggressive message of political propaganda.
The AGO presentation of Canvas of War will feature a debriefing area, designed as a meeting place for visitors and veterans to share stories and to reflect on diverse experiences of war and conflict. Paintings of the Canadian War Memorials of the First World War and Canadian War Records of the Second World War are represented in the selection of 68 works from the 13,000 pieces in Canada's war art collection.
Student/Senior $ 8.00
Children under 3 free
Generously sponsored by Caldwell Securities Ltd.
Generous support for the AGO education programs provided by the Donner Canadian Foundation
The travelling exhibition is produced by the Canadian War Museum and the Canadian Museum of Civilization.
History Television is proud to be a promotional partner for this exhibition.
For more information on History of War Thursdays visit http://www.HistoryTelevision.ca
The AGO is proud to celebrate its centennial year, beginning September, 2001. The Art Gallery of Ontario's collection comprises more than 25,000 works representing 1,000 years of extraordinary European, Canadian, modern, Inuit and contemporary art. This important collection, along with the Gallery's preeminence in art education programs, makes the AGO one of Canada's most significant public resources for the advancement of the visual arts in Canada.


Art Education Overview
The Art and Design Education program will enable you to be certified to teach art in the public schools, grades K-12. Students entering this program will become confident in teaching and gain competence as a practicing artist or designer. This is an opportunity to excel as an art educator and become proficient within a studio concentration.
The program is a comprehensive experience, with a focus on the most current concepts for using art to develop knowledge and skills in young students. You will become acquainted with a wide range of media, as well as a concentration in the studio area of your choice. We include full use of technology to develop effective lesson planning strategies, with integration of laptop computers, digital video cameras and projectors, and access to a large on line library of world art. You will expand your knowledge of contemporary artists, explore how they create meaning in their work, and create engaging lessons that address concerns of young people in our current society. Your lessons will develop exciting and authentic experiences in art making. The skills you will teach will be important to your students’ success as creative problem solvers of the future.
Classes focus on discussion of topics in art education, studio projects that develop and demonstrate your learning in art education, and readings in this discipline and world art forms relevant to teaching. Importance is placed on postmodern concepts and processes in art, and in multicultural art. Emphasis will be on the understanding of meaningful themes for student art, and in research to find examples of relevant art works. You will learn to develop multi-media computer-based presentations, and to create lessons focused on meaningful themes.
Field experiences are included in classes at all levels, observing and teaching in local schools. You will have many chances to experience teaching in K-12 classrooms, before your final student teaching experience. Additionally, you will discover the excitement of creating and exhibiting your own body of artwork as an undergraduate art and design student. We believe a successful art teacher should be an active artist or designer. You will have the same studio experiences and exhibitions as any other art and design student. You will find this to be a unique aspect of the Art Education program here at NMU.
Art Education offers an artist the opportunity to make a living and make an important contribution to society and the lives of young people. Graduates of the NMU teacher education programs are highly regarded, both in Michigan and nationwide, and we have an accomplished record of successful employment of our new teachers in public schools. Art Education graduates can also go on to become museum education directors, community art directors, art therapists, art administrators, and more.


Music Education Liaison
NEUROMUSCULOSKELTAL HEALTH REPORT
I. Music educators-to-be and in-service music educators need to have a clear, accurate, and current understanding of:
A. the types of neuromusculoskeletal injuries for which they are at risk—for example, musculo-tendinous pain syndrome, tendonitis, nerve entrapments, and focal dystonias. They need to know what factors affect risk—such as increase in performance time, stress, and naturally-occurring conditions such as hypermobility.
B. (a) how the instruments they play and/or teach are constructed and how they function, (b) the basics of how whole bodies are made and function (including auditory systems), AND (c) how the whole body functions efficiently and inefficiently when coupled with each instrument while playing it [with special attention to the extra stress-demands placed on crucial anatomy-physiology when playing each instrument (e.g., the auditory system, or neuromusculoskeletal and soft tissue demands in the face-neck area in wind instrument players versus neuromusculoskeletal and soft tissue demands in the neck-jaw area in string players)].
C. musical acoustics and the acoustics related to each instrument they play-teach, and to human voices, and how the acoustics of instrument playing, speaking, and singing can interact with physiology to evoke unnecessary neuromusculoskeletal and soft tissue “cost” (including acoustic trauma to auditory systems and acoustic overloading of the vocal folds).
D. what sound qualities and visible effort-signs are associated with inefficient and with efficient instrument playing, speaking, and singing.
E. how neuromusculoskeletal, soft tissue, and auditory system injuries can occur in people who play musical instruments, speak, and sing.
F. how various diseases and medications can affect neuromusculoskeletal, soft tissue, and auditory system anatomy and function that are necessarily involved when playing instruments, speaking, and singing
G. what symptoms and syndromes indicate potential, oncoming, or full-blown neuromusculoskeletal and soft tissue injury in instrument players, singers, and teachers (including the vocal sound qualities that indicate injured or diseased voices), and acoustic trauma to auditory systems.
H. what to do to prevent injuries and diseases that detrimentally affect instrument playing, speaking, and singing abilities.
I. what to do (and what not do) when such injuries/diseases occur (appropriate and effective self-treatments, when to see a physician/therapist team, how to select a qualified team, how to follow through on a treatment-recovery plan, how to recondition neuromusculoskeletal and soft tissue anatomy/physiology after recovery). They also need to be educated to practical self-care strategies, such as rest, ice, and so on.
J. how the verbal and nonverbal communications of music educators can: (1) contribute to “mental-emotional” distress in learners that can enhance a protective self-identity and induce inefficient instrument playing, singing, and speaking, OR (2) contribute to “mental-emotional” engagement in learners that can enhance a constructive self-identity and elicit optimally efficient instrument playing, singing, and speaking in learners [based in the neuropsychobiological sciences].


The decline of art education in our school systems is potentially robbing today’s youth of the opportunity for creative expression. Without this outlet for personal expression, the student population stands to lose an educational experience that is no less important than academics, such as mathematics and science. The Union Wadding Artist Complex seeks to provide an environment for students in and around Pawtucket, Rhode Island to create and hone their artistic skills in a peer-driven and uninhibited setting. Art classrooms, designated for both two-dimensional and three-dimensional mediums, would foster a creative spirit that would only grow and prosper as the student population further developed their skills and techniques, while they worked collaboratively to generate pieces of art. Housing units of various sizes are also included in the program to augment the artist facilities. Along with art classrooms, combining highly public services, such as shopping and dining amenities, with more artist-based spaces, such as studios and workshops, would bring together a wide demographic of individuals and unite the artist community with the local, more general public. It is important to provide a space for students and artists to work together, while inviting the city’s inhabitants and visitors to be part of the space, as well. It serves to benefit and promote the artist’s (both student and adult) works and talents. The joining of the public, students and artists would occur most notably in a gallery that highlights the work being created on-site and inspire those that observe the displayed pieces. Public involvement and interaction with the artist community would further expand and promote the notion that art is an important part of development, regardless of age or artistic ability. Ultimately, the Union Wadding Artist Complex seeks to provide the opportunity for art-based educational programs and classes in order to generate a creative and vibrant communal spirit.
Turcotte, Jennifer, "Union Wadding Artist Complex: Pawtucket, Rhode Island" (2012). Architecture Theses. Paper 78.


Online Artist Archive
Heisser, Margareth E. (a.k.a. Margarethe)
b. March 31, 1871; d. June 24, 1908
Discipline: Drawing/Illustration, Painting
Margareth Heisser was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 1897, she exhibited her drawing “Thunder Cloud” at the annual exhibition of the Minneapolis Art League. Thunder Cloud was a Sioux and by drawing him, Heisser was displaying early a talent in American Indian portraiture that would one day be her best known contribution to painting.
Classically trained, Heisser’s art education began at the Minneapolis School of Fine Arts (where she studied under Bart Harwood, a renowned painter of American Indians) and the Art Students League in New York City. In 1896, she returned to her hometown to teach art at her alma mater, Central High School. She opened a studio with her colleague Elizabeth Chant, which they maintained until 1901, when Heisser took a teaching position at Moorhead Normal School (now Minnesota State University Moorhead). She held that position until 1903, when she continued her studies at various schools and studios in Rome, Madrid, and Paris. In 1906, she returned to Minneapolis, where she lived while making frequent trips to Fargo and Grand Forks.
She maintained a studio in Fargo and made portraits of some the region’s most notable people including North Dakota Governor John Burke and North Dakota State University President Webster Merrifield.
Although a resident of Minnesota, she was eager to contribute to North Dakota’s artistic history. She decided to produce a series of fifteen portraits of notable American Indians in the state. (She was inspired, in part, by the plans for the Sakakawea statue on the State Capitol grounds in Bismarck.) She had finished work on only three, however, when she died suddenly on June 24, 1908. (The three subjects were all Gros Ventes Indians from the Fort Berthold Reservation: Bear’s Necklace, Bad Brave, and Mink Woman, who was the said to be a granddaughter of Sakakawea and served as the model for the Bismarck statue.)
Heisser had never paid much attention to her physical health. Instead, she focused on developing her artistic abilities and her mental state through the study of Theosophy, a type of mysticism from the Far East that believes in reincarnation. (She always wore a scarab – a symbol of eternity and resurrection – and signed her paintings with a painted scarab.) To what degree this affected her health is unknown, but it in all likelihood contributed to her early death.
Whether or not she was resurrected is, of course, unknowable. What is known is that her three portraits lived on in the form of limited edition prints that were sold to raise completion funds for the Sakakawea statue.
In 1911, the North Dakota State Legislature appropriated $700 to purchase the Heisser portraits. The State Federation of Women’s Clubs, who had managed the statue project, raised an additional $300. The portraits were sold to the state on April 14, 1911 for the purchase price of $1,000. Today, they are housed in the permanent collection of the State Historical Society.
- Ben Nemenoff
Barr, Paul E. North Dakota Artists. Grand Forks: University of North Dakota Library, 1954.
Palmer, Bertha Rachael. Beauty Spots in North Dakota. Boston: Bruce Humphries, Inc., 1939.
Obituary. The Sterling Star, July 10, 1908.
State Historical Society of North Dakota
*Image courtesy of the State Historical Society of North Dakota (#E0064).


Getting in the Groove
Drumming in the Classroom
By Christine Sipes
General Music and Classroom Publications
Book & CD
Getting in the Groove is the easy, up-to-date, multicultural, non-threatening, timely, and fun way to teach creating and improvising through drumming. This exciting curriculum covers drumming across the globe, from West African to Taiko styles. You do not have to be a drummer to teach this book. All rhythms and examples are on the CD for easy teaching and use in the classroom. Getting in the Groove addresses all types of learning styles and aligns with current teaching methodologies, as well as the National Standards for Music Education. Reproducible worksheets, quizzes, and assessments are included. Intended for late elementary to middle school.
"Sipes reminds readers that music is for everyone, and Getting in the Groove supports this claim with a step-by-step drumming curriculum to teach students easily grasped rhythms in group settings."


But I believe we can up the practice of music education a notch with project-based learning (PBL). PBL can further champion music education and continue to legitimize it as critical content, even as it is under attack by naysayers and budget cuts. In addition, music educators deal with the same concerns as core teachers, including student engagement, assessment and standards. Utilize PBL to address these concerns and embrace new possibilities for the music classroom.
PBL and Standards
It is important to know what you are assessing, as it drives what the assessment and project will look like. Music standards are quite targeted and quite rich. From music theory notation to understanding cultural connections of music, there is much that can be targeted in the music classroom. Unpack the standards by starting to look at the skills as well as the concepts that are contained within them. You might be surprised that the standards ask for more than you thought. Consider Standard 6 from MENC's National Standards for Music Education: "Listening to, analyzing and describing music." How are you teaching students all the skills embedded in this standard? In addition, you may have specific state standards that break these power standards in to smaller, unpacked standards. Regardless, examining the standards can make sure you create a PBL project that is targeted with in-depth inquiry.
PBL projects create the need to know critical content through an authentic purpose. After examining your standards, consider creating an engaging context to learn a power standard or multiple smaller standards. Let's be honest. Not every kid you get in your class may want to be there initially. Therefore, you must create engaging contexts for learning -- which is the essence of PBL. Perhaps to learn Standard 8, "Understanding relationships between music, the other arts and disciplines outside the arts," students will engage in a project where they advocate for music education to their local school board by showcasing it as crucial to the curriculum in all disciplines.
Performance is the essence of the music classroom. However, these performances can have a variety of focuses, depending on what is being targeted. In addition, not every assessment for a PBL project in the music classroom needs to be a performance. In fact, if you were assessing Standard 6 above, you might create a project where students write music recommendations to people with heart problems. This fulfills an innovative and authentic purpose, and creates a relevance for learning the skills of listening, analyzing and describing music.
Music educators, please continue to do what you do, but consider taking it up a notch from time to time with a PBL project. There is much more to PBL than I have highlighted here. I recommend watching the Buck Institute for Education's webinar on the Essential Elements of PBL to learn more. PBL can help focus your instruction, build authenticity and create purpose and relevance for reluctant students in your classroom. Look at their learning targets and consider new possibilities for assessing those needs and creating a PBL project that will engage them.


Despite the record number of Latino high school graduates enrolling in college, literacy rates among Latinos continues to be dismally low. How can that be? It’s certainly not because Latino parents don’t want their children to succeed. But frequently they don’t realize the important role they themselves play in their children’s literacy development. Here are tips from birth through elementary school.
Literacy is a skill that is developed from birth. Those infant coos and babbles are a child’s first attempt at communicating. To speak, babies must learn phonemic awareness, which is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words. This process is developed within the first eight to 10 months of life. A baby who is frequently spoken to and read to will develop this skill better than one who receives little interaction. And the ability to identify individual sounds is one of the basic skills necessary for reading and writing.
Read. Your child is never too young to be read to – in fact, reading to a child increases their vocabulary, which makes learning to read easier. Read with expression, not in a dull, monotonous voice. Colorful books with animals or other babies are especially attractive. But it doesn’t matter what you read, just pick something up and start reading.
Talk to your child and encourage him to respond. Interacting one-on-one with your child promotes healthy brain development, so make sure they can see you speaking, not just hear you.
During the toddler years, children continue to develop their preliteracy skills by learning to speak, increasing their vocabulary, and developing the fine-motor skills that are necessary for writing. Letter recognition is a must and should begin at home before they even enter preschool.
Sing. Singing the alphabet song, rhymes, poems, and fingerplays are a great way to develop all of your child’s preliteracy skills.
Color. Give your child plenty of coloring books, paper, pencils, crayons, and other art supplies. All that creativity helps them learn how to hold and control a pencil, and lets them practice “writing.”
Write. Teach your child to write her name. This is easier for those with shorter names, but it is important for a child to recognize his or her own name. This activity also helps them begin to learn that sounds are associated with specific letters.
Hang it up. Look for wall art and other decorations that include words. A print-rich environment supports literacy instruction and helps children get a jump on reading. You might hang a sign that says “Ana’s Bed” or “Juan’s Room.” Or you could write the word “Books” or “Read!” above their bookshelves. There are many possibilities.
In elementary school, your child actually begins learning to read and write. Supplement their schoolwork by helping your child read at home. Look for emergent readers at your local library or bookstore, then take time each day to read together.
Ask questions. Read books together with your child and take the time to pause and ask your child questions about the story to measure their comprehension. Why do you think that happened? What do you think will happen next? What would you have done differently? All these questions and more require your child to think about the story.
Retell it. After reading a story, ask your child to retell what the story was about in his own words. Variations of this include having your child draw the story out on a sheet of paper, or even act it out.
By fourth grade your child should be reading fluently. They should be able to decipher long, complicated words and understand the main idea of a story. This is not an impossible task, and can be achieved relatively easily with parental involvement and steady practice.
Monica Olivera Hazelton, NBC Latino contributor and the founder and publisher of MommyMaestra.com, a site for Latino families that homeschool, as well as families with children in a traditional school setting who want to take a more active role in their children’s education. She is the 2011 winner of the “Best Latina Education Blogger” award by LATISM.


Technology is helping sixth-graders at Tempe’s Gililland Middle School become better readers while teaching them skills they can one day use in the workplace.
Teacher Sara Bartling won a $5,000 Champions of Active Learning Grant from the Chase Foundation to buy five computers for her classroom. The computers will be used for lessons in reading.
"It will get them used to doing more than one thing," Bartling said. "In the real world, they have to do that, and they have to use a computer."
Bartling’s students already use the Gililland computer lab for their reading assignments. Last week on the computer they read "A Writer’s Story" about Lucy Maud Montgomery, author of "Anne of Green Gables." They then took a quiz that the computer program immediately graded.
The grant will allow these students to do the same thing without leaving their classroom. They also will use the computers to develop PowerPoint presentations on books they read.
Bartling said research shows that students’ reading comprehension improves when they discuss what they have read with others.
"Once you take ownership like that, it helps them to be able to remember and comprehend," Bartling said.
"And, they need to get used to doing PowerPoint presentations because those are used widely in the business sector."
Bartling should know. She worked in banking and finance for 20 years before becoming a teacher. Her students not only get an elementary education — but some workplace skills as well.
"When I got into teaching, I was like, ‘Why did I waste all those years?’ It’s like I came home," she said. "This is where I belong."
Hundra Enriquez, 11, is one of the Gililland students benefiting from her teacher’s workplace experience. Hundra said she likes using the computer, but sometimes finds it to be challenging.
"I did good on the quiz, but it was hard," she said of her assignment last week. "When you take the quiz, you get nervous."
But she’s not nervous when pursuing her favorite computer activity: "I love to go on the Internet," she said.
Most kids do, her teacher said. For their generation, a book on screen is often preferable to a book in print.
"They are very focused on the screen," Bartling said.