IEP Meetings with Less Drama!

On this episode, we talk with Charmaine Thaner about strategies for keeping IEP meetings positive and successful. In other words, we are talking about having IEP meetings with less drama!

Charmaine Thaner retired after 30 years of teaching to become a parent advocate. Her diverse experiences provide a unique perspective when collaborating with families and educators.In addition, she is the parent of a young adult who received special education services. 

Charmaine has supported students, parents, and educators as a special educator, classroom teacher, parent advocate, and adjunct university instructor.  She continues to support parents as an advocate and public speaker. To learn more about Charmaine's work, go to Collaborative Special Education Advocacy. 

Please join us on Friday, March 6 at 9 AM EST to listen to the live show! It will also be recorded and accessed at this link for later listening:

Differentiated Instruction to Include ALL Students

This week on The Inclusive Class Podcast, we talk with Christi Kasa, Ph.D., about differentiating lessons to reach all the learners in a classroom.

Christi Kasa is the owner of Inclusion University, a consulting company that helps parents and educators create successful inclusive schools. Christi is also a professor and Department Chair in the College of Education at the University of Colorado. 

Christi began her career teaching in the public schools of California as a general education teacher, special education teacher, and an inclusion facilitator. Christi conducts research on inclusive schooling, collaboration and co-teaching, and communication for people with autism and other movement differences.

Join us on Friday, February 28 at 9 AM EST to listen to our interview with Christi! Use the link below to listen to the live and recorded version of the show.

10 Items That Can Make Your Classroom More Inclusive

Here is a guest post I did for the Friendship Circle of Michigan recently: 10 Items That Can Make Your Classroom More Inclusive

Including Students with Asperger's Syndrome

Tune in to The Inclusive Class Podcast on 02/21 and listen to Mari Nosal talk about ways to include students with Asperger's Syndrome.  

Mari Nosal from Plymouth, Massachusetts, has used her own experiences of raising a child with Asperger’s Syndrome, now a young man, and her years of professional experience working with both children and parents within the autism community to help and inform others. She has recently written a book called, Ten Commandments of Interacting with Kids on the Autism Spectrum and Related Commandments.

Mari is a published autism author and blogger with over 25 years’ experience of working with children and adults in the field of special needs. She has a Masters degree in Educational Foundations and a B.A. in psychology and has worked with children, parents, and educators within the classroom and the wider community. Mari also presents autism workshops where she shares her knowledge, experience and insights. She offers tips on curriculum development and behaviour modification within the classroom and through in-services. In addition, she has had special needs articles published in several magazines, Mari is certified by the Department of Early Childhood Education as a lead preschool teacher, an infant and toddler teacher, and site coordinator qualified to manage school age programs. Finally, Mari has been married for 28 years and has two adult sons aged 26 and 27, one of whom has Asperger’s Syndrome. 

Listen to our live podcast on Friday, February 21 @ 9 AM EST by clicking on the button below. You can also use this link to listen to the recorded program at a later date.

Including Students with Dyslexia in the Classroom

What is dyslexia and how can teachers support students with dyslexia in the classroom? These are some of the questions that our guests, Dr. Joanne Pierson and Dr. Lauren Katz, will answer for us on this episode of The Inclusive Class Podcast.

Both Dr. Pierson and Dr. Katz have an extensive background working with students who have dyslexia. They most recently established a practice in Ann Arbor, Michigan where they provide diagnostic assessments and treatment for children and adults with literacy, language, and learning disorders. 

Dr. Katz is currently an Adjunct Associate Professor at Bowling Green State University. In addition to working at 3LI (Literacy, Language and Learning Institute), Dr. Pierson manages DyselxiaHelp.umich.edu, a free web-based curriculum and resource center at the University of Michigan.  She is also Vice President of the Michigan Branch of the International Dyslexia Association.

Be sure not to miss this very informative podcast and learn how to support students with dyslexia!

You can listen to our live interview with Dr. Katz and Dr. Pierson on Friday, February 14, 2014 at 9 AM Eastern Standard Time.  Click on the link below to listen to the show either live or at a later date!