| I am currently a special education teacher in the Capistrano Unified School District. I have worked as a special ed. teacher for the past 7 years at the 4/5 grade level and this year at the k-2 level. Prior to that I was an istructional assistant in special education schools for 4 years.
I have worked with students with the following qualifying conditions: autism, specific learning disabilities, speech and language imapairments, OHI ( other health impairments) ADD, hearing impaired,cognitive impairments, and emotiona disturbances.
My first goal is to develop a trusting relationship with my student/students, find out what internal framework they possess, and identify motivational triggers. I am a Howard Gardner proponent, the developer of the multiple intelligences theory. He states, "The quesion is not if the student is smart but how are they smart." I believe in a whole child approach. Children are not just vessels we are able to pour information into. They are unique and dynamic beings that are affected by their emotions,genetics, and prior experiences. I seek to help them develop the skills that will give them a life of the greatest choice. |