What is your educational background?

I have a BA in Elementary Music. I have completed graduate hours from the University of Kansas and Wichita State University and many, in the field of preschool/inclusion.

What other experiences, or staff development has prepared you for inclusion?

Experiences include teaching elementary music, elementary church choir director, preschool music teacher, preschool classroom teacher, elementary para professional, preschool special education paraprofessional, part of the LIM grant, many inservices and staff development opportunities on various needs, handicaps, and medical conditions, hands on training in curriculum adaptations, supportive equipment, OT, PT, and Speech Language therapies team development and collaboration, years of classroom experience, and being a parent.

What is your job role?

I work with special needs preschool students, in an inclusive setting, who have IEP's and are attending a community setting. I work in many capacities as a teacher, therapist, planner, janitor, etc. I help train the teachers to work with and adapt things for the student. I attend team meetings and carry out the goals and objectives on the child's IEP.

What is your role regarding the inclusive component of the program?

I support the existing staff, communicate to staff, special services and parents, work with all students, adapt curriculum for all and wear many hats.

How has your role changed or have you adapted your role as it relates to the inclusive program?

The fun and enjoyable change is I get to work with all children, normal models as well. Continued communication with parents but in somewhat different ways. We use notebooks that go back and forth between school and home. This is largely due to the students being bused instead of being brought in by their parents.

Being in an inclusive "normal" setting I've had to adapt more plans as well as make plans for typically developing preschoolers. I've had to be more flexible because each site I'm at has a different philosophy and rules. I've had more opportunity to teach and involve normal models with the special needs.

What were you biggest concerns about participating in an inclusive program?

Fear of being out there on my own without the support of therapists close at hand. But that's been OK. I feared that the other children would get less attention because of the time spent with the special needs child. Fear that it might not be the answer for everyone, some students may need more intensive, one-on- one help.

What were your experiences related to these concerns once inclusive services were implemented?

My training helped me a great deal as far as being at a site without special services. I also discovered several ways to ask them questions or get their ideas/suggestions. Communication is the key - find a way and it can work! As far as less attention given to typical peers: I realize that is a fact and a valid concern. At times, I simply must attend to the students with special needs and others are not receiving the attention I'd like to give them but I've also seen that it happens the other way, too. I find myself needing to help a peer and have to leave the child with special needs to work on his or her own. When I realized this, I saw how inclusive it really is! It's not the answer for everyone (there is no perfect solution for all.) but it's a wonderful thing to have a choice.

What do you see as the benefits of moving toward inclusive services?

I have found that many special needs students, no matter how severe, tend to try harder and work for a friend (a typical peer) much more than for a teacher/therapist. Many students I have been with over the years have made good friendships and gone to their first birthday party. It's also been nice to see the benefits that the typical peers receive. What a wonderful and natural way to learn about handicaps and being sensitive, caring, and helpful.

Also being around normal models is the perfect teacher for toilet training, eating, riding a bike - you name it. It helps to watch a friend and want to keep up.

It's great to see the parents make friends and get a larger, more diversified support group with other parents.

Can you offer one or more anecdotes that you feel illustrate the benefits of inclusion?

1. When you look across the classroom searching for the student with special needs and can't find him because he fits in so well with the other students. 2. When parents and students have statements or behaviors that show no idea there is a student with special needs in the class. And even better yet is when they are aware of the differences, ask questions, and the student with special needs or teacher answers and then all is well. It's no big deal - they just want to understand why they can't walk, see, talk, or whatever, and then they move on, usually playing together. 3. After time together and training, all the classroom teachers/staff and support staff work together and compliment each other like a real team! Meaning they all take some responsibility for the student with special needs, all other students, the classroom, planning and preparation. Each offering their help in areas of individual talents.