I wasn't sure where else to submit these, so here they are:

Simulations Journals

Vision Impairment

-          It’s incredible how much you rely on your vision without ever really noticing it. I never realized how different the world could look until I wore those masks. It made it so much harder to find my way around, to see those around me, and to even see what my teacher was writing on the board. I must admit, it made me so incredibly grateful for my sight. When I was wearing those masks on occasion I ran into things, bumped a chair, and even tripped down the stairs (though sometimes I do that without wearing a mask). They were all just little things, I mean, none of those accidents actually caused me any harm but it was a little frustrating to keep bumping things, and tripping. After a little while I became frustrated with wearing the mask. I can only imagine that if every day you little accidents, or you have to move your head completely sideways just to look at the board it would get a little frustrating. I understand that as a teacher we might encounter multiple students that suffer from a form of visual impairment. I think that this simulation will help me to relate to those students better and also help me to think of creative ways to help those students when or if they do start to feel that same frustrate that I felt doing this simulation.  

Wheelchair

-          This by far was the hardest simulation to do. It was hard to remember that I had to stay in the wheelchair at all times. I almost just got up a few times from the chair. It was a really rewarding experience because it taught me just how hard it really is to be in a wheelchair all day. It was nothing something that I would wish upon anyone, but it really can be quite the eye opener. The few hours in the wheelchair really had its up and downs. Sometimes people offered to push me and other times the door was almost shut on me. Every task was difficult. Going through the door without the door opener took so much time. I felt like I really needed to go to the gym after trying to open the door. Going to the bathroom was interesting needless to say. Transferring to and from the toilet was hard because I naturally just wanted to stand up. I couldn’t figure out where to position the wheelchair to best get to the toilet. It was kind of funny, I’m not going to lie. All these different tasks just showed me that we are all so blessed to be able to walk and that if we really want children to feel comfortable then they need those accommodations to help them. When I couldn’t open the door, without a rail in the bathroom, and the other accommodations around the campus then it would be so difficult and in my opinion uncomfortable for those students. When I didn’t have the accommodations available I felt like I was in the way. It was discouraging to me. I can’t imagine how it would feel every day.

Learning Disability

-          Ask for help at a store....and then ask the clerk/sales person 1-2 questions about the item you are shopping for.

-          Ask for directions to a location. Repeat back part of the directions for clarification.

These were the two activities I did to represent a learning disability. First thing, I must say that these activities are so hard. It required so much thinking and processing.  I struggled to make the sentence/questions flow naturally. Both people that I was talking to looked at me with almost a look of impatience. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to explain to them that this was just for a class but I also didn’t want them to look at me that way. I was trying so hard to find the words to use. It made me realize how important it is that we treat the students with a learning disability with respect and patience. Patience is the key to helping students with this disability in my opinion. The part that made me so uncomfortable was the look of impatience. As a teacher, I can imagine that it would be hard not to be impatience, but I also think it’s important that we develop that trait so that we can help them succeed. They are going to need that encouragement and love to push through that trial of having a learning disability. I can only now imagine how frustrating that must have been for them.

Fluency Impairment

-          Go to a restaurant, order at least one item and then ask 1-2 questions to the waiter/ress about the item.

-          While stuttering ask for directions to a location. Repeat back part of the directions for clarification.

This experiment was really hard to do for me. It was embarrassing at first to talk to people with a little stutter. I felt like she was going to look at me with such a pathetic look but she actually was really patience with me. It was hard to form the words. At one point, I even felt like it would be an impossible task to accomplish. It was hard to be patience enough with myself to get all the words out. As I continued to ask questions, the waitress just looked at me with the most patience look. It really helped me to continue to ask questions with a stutter. The second challenge I had was to ask for directions and then repeat them back. Oh my, complicated! Enough said. Between the two activities was that it really is so challenging to have a fluency impairment. I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult it would be to have that impairment every day. I think that this activity really opened my eyes to see just how difficult it can be and helped me to see that as a future teacher there are so many things that I could do to help students with this kind of impairment.

I am very grateful for the opportunity I have had to learn so much about students with special needs this semester. I feel much more confident now about my abilities to differentiate and make accommodations for students struggling with disabilities.  I'm glad to know that we can collaborate with fellow teachers and staff to find solutions to help individuals students, rather than trying to figure it out on my own, just like we doing with the case study final.  I feel like I learned a lot just from completing it.  I like that we had time to really put a lot of effort into it and create something good.  Seeing what we were able to do helped boost my confidence in what we had learned.  I look forward to the time that I can adequately apply all that I have learned in class.

I was finally able to complete the wheelchair simulation this week.  In my opinion, whoever decided to put the little marble threshold strip under many of the doors in the Hinckley should be shot!  I got hung up on them several times!  It was one of the most challenging parts of the simulation.  Trying to figure out how to use the bathroom without using my legs was the hardest part.   Also, I wasn't very smart when I tried to do the hill because I forgot to figure out where and how the brakes worked BEFORE I started going down the hill.  I burned my hands trying to slow down the chair, and when I finally found the brakes, I didn't know how to use them and I ended up crashing into the grass on the side of the sidewalk.  Rather embarrassing!  It wasn't that big of a hill either!  It was interesting to see how people reacted to me too.  I could tell the people that had taken the class before because you could see the acknowledgement/empathy  in their eyes.  I tried to use the printer at the Ricks building while in the chair and I seriously had someone cut in front of me while I was in line waiting to print.  I couldn't believe it!  I'm hoping that they just didn't realize I was in line, and not that they took advantage of the fact I was wheelchair bound.  I do have a better understanding of what it's like to look at the world from a wheelchair point of view.  I am glad that I had the chance to do it.  

At the beginning of the semester, I didn't think that the speech impairments would be the hardest part of this class, but they have been.  I really struggled to get them done.  I chickened out so many times because I didn't feel comfortable doing it in a public place.  I understand the reasoning behind it, but I struggled with it morally.  In the end, I decided that although it is outside the parameters of the simulations guidelines, I would only be able to do it if I did it in my own home.  I needed the support of my family, so I decided to do it with my family during a meal time, and they all had to do it too.  I can certainly understand why so many students with disabilities act out in frustration over not being able to communicate what is going on in their heads.  It's hard to think one thing, but not be able to fully or clearly say what you are trying to say.  I hope that I can remember to look for the reason why a student may be acting out, rather than just reacting to the misbehavior.  I have a better appreciation for their internal frustrations now.

Last Journal Post :O - April 03rd

Monday in class we discussed a learning environment and being a part of a team and really make an classroom environment that makes them feel important and apart of and I truly agree with the whole idea. The best way to make not only children with special needs but also all children feel included is to create a friendly welcoming environment where they can come and feel welcome, loved, and excited to be there. In class we talked about some ideas about how we can go about doing this and there were so many great ideas! Some of them that I really liked is at the beginning of the school year have the students help you create the rules and once finished have them sign it so it is their own personal contract with you. When I was younger something that my teachers did was "Star" of the week where everyone wrote something nice about you and you get to present some information about yourself during the class (with your poster going on the board for a week). Make sure to post their work or pictures of the class just so they know that they belong. Another thing I believe will help is make your class individual so there are things that stand out that give your class an identity and your students something to tell others that they are happy to be a part of. On Wednesday we mainly discussed part 1 to the final and we were able to meet as a group and really work on the assignment and I do have to say that after all of the information that we have learned throughout the class I feel a lot more confident working on this test compared to the midterm. After the information that we gained and all of the assignments that we were able to experience this semester I feel a lot more confident going on in my education to prepare to teach my own classroom. I really enjoyed this class and all of the learning and insights that we gained and I will truly miss attending this class.

Leson 12 Journal

I wish we had more time to discuss Chapter 12 in class, but I'm also grateful we had time to start our in class group project.I like that we talked about all students and difficulties they might have in the classroom, which can lead to misbehavior or acting out. Although the class is focused on students with disabilities, I like that we were given strategies to try with any student. Even if the student struggling doesn't have a disability, they are still not keeping up which can translate into seeking attention. 
I liked the section that talked about the root or discipline, and that the word means "a follower of a teacher". The students are learning how to act in the classroom, and what is acceptable. I also liked the way the book described what discipline should be, "it's not about having power or control over the students, but preventing and responding to their behavior." As a teacher, it will be our responsibility to do everything possible to prevent behavior problems by being an example and having clear expectations and making clear to all students what is acceptable in the classroom.
The chapter also talked about collecting data to better understand a student's behavior. We have touched on this in a few of my other classes, and discussed the importance of keeping anecdotal records of any inappropriate behavior or comments.  I think by keeping a record it makes it easier to look back and see if there is a pattern to the students misbehavior, or if something triggers it. 
I enjoyed this chapter and look forward to implementing some of the practices and methods in my classroom.

Simulations - Fluency Disorder & Learning Disability 

Fluency Disorder

For my first “exercise” I chose to ask someone on campus how to get the Kimball building. I do have to say that it was really embarrassing and I was actually kind of afraid to talk to him and ask my question. During asking I had a hard time keeping eye contact. I know that it is nothing compared to what others may feel that actually have a stuttering problem but from doing this simulation once I can understand a little bit why students with this difficulty don’t want to talk or are afraid to ask questions in class. The second thing that I did was depositing some money in the bank. The entire time I was driving to the bank I was trying to figure out how to stutter and how to make it convincing. Once I got there I had the hardest time actually doing it and I didn’t stutter as much as I wanted to, I actually ran into somebody that went to the same high school as me and I was embarrassed to talk the way that I did. Actually a year or two ago I had an FHE brother that had a really bad stutter, actually the worst that I have ever heard it took solid minutes to hear what he was going to say but during that time I really learned patience and not to judge others or their difficulties. I guess I never completely realized during that time how he felt because of his stutter but now I can understand a little more clearly what he was going through and a small portion of the hardships that he faced.

 Learning Disability

For my first choice I decided to ask someone in Wal-Mart where to find something and the entire time while I was driving to Wal-Mart and also looking for someone to help me I was trying to come up with things to say and I came to realize how hard it is to use a sentence without the letters /l/ or /n/. For the first minute I was okay and then after that I had to take some pauses to figure out how to respond, how to verify what they had just said and how to carry on a conversation. I understand in a sense what we were suppose to do, to really understand how students may have a hard time processing things or even to figure out how to respond, it makes me realize as a teacher that I need to understand my students, their difficulties, and if I do decide to call on them make sure that it is in the right time so they are not too overwhelmed with the task presented or don’t get too embarrassed about what they have to do. For my final simulation I went on campus to the library and I asked about the book Harry Potter. This time I tried not to think too far ahead so there would be some long pauses. It took me a minute to think of what Harry Potter didn't have a "n" or a "l" in it's title or it's number. Then it took me a minute to repeat what I said but overall I did once again come to the same conclusion as the first time that I did this particular simulation: that it is a struggle to speak this way, it makes me want to talk and contribute less and it allows me to better understand the students I may get in my classroom. I do want to make sure to allow any students with a problem like this enough time to respond and in situation that I know that they can succeed.

I was able to use the masks this past week, and I didn't realize how frustrating it would be to not have the use of both eyes.  I felt like it took twice as long to get anything done!  I was surprised that I kept running into things because I couldn't see it in my peripheral vision.  By the time I was done with my four hours, I was so cranky!  I can understand now why some students with disabilities and other struggles tend to act out in the classroom.  Overall, it was a good experience.

I am struggling with the speech impairments, though.  I went to Walmart over the weekend with the intent to do the stuttering simulation, but I ended up not doing it.  Right behind me was someone that I haven't seen in 20 years, who happens to have a sister that struggles with stuttering.  I felt like I would be extremely disrespectful and mocking if I did it then.  I'll have to try again.

Although I enjoyed making the evaluation/assessment continuum on the board, my favorite part of the week was watching the video,"The Best I Can Be-IEP." I loved seeing how the students blossomed after getting more involved in their IEP process.  Their self-awareness really helped them to stand up for what they needed and gave them great confidence.  I would like to help all of my students to recognize their own strengths and weaknesses so that they could also know what works well for them and what they need to be the most successful.  I had never thought about self-awareness and self-advocacy as a skill that should be taught in the classroom, but I can see the importance of it now.

Journal #10-12

So a lot has happened, and I don't know how I am going to get it down all on paper. I am so excited to be almost done with the chapter of the book. It was a good resource, but glad to be done reading so many pages. I loved learning in class on Monday about iris and how to better involve myself with the things it has to offer. Iris is a good program to listen about a subject and to watch videos and even recording from people. It is very important because iris can teach can teach me so much about anything that I want to know. I loved learning about informal and formal assessments because in my other class we are learning all about this as well and how there is a right time and place for certain testing to happen. This last few weeks I was able to complete the last disability applications and thought it was pretty interesting. Here is both of them. I hope you find them amusing as I did when doing them.

This challenge was one that I have been putting off for quite some time now but finally did it. Overall it was embarrassing and hard. The two challenges I face was going to the library and asking someone at the service counter where a book was and while at Broulim’s.

Asking for help at the service counter:

I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. I walked into the library going through what to say and not to say when I got to the counter. The girl was sitting at the computer and looked up at me. The nerves hit and forgot everything I planned. Instead of walking away, I continued forward. She asked me how my day was going. I wanted to say fine, but instead I searched around for a word with no L or N and said “good.” She asked me what she could help me with and that’s when the challenge began. I searched around my head for words to say, I began to turn red. I couldn’t say need, I couldn’t say help. I began to say, “I’m request a book about the boy peter, it’s a movie, with a….character who has arrows. The girl replied, “The hunger games?” I replied “yes, that.” She was kind enough to tell me it was upstairs and wrote down the aisle it was in. I looked at her and said, “I appreciate the aid, so I go upstairs…..it is at this…..part of the card?” She was so kind and assured me that is was where she directed me at the beginning. As I walked away, I said, “Thank……uh…….I appreciate it.” I was doing so well until I knew I was at the end and almost said thank you.

Broulim’s:

Broulim’s was a bit more frustrating for me because I knew I could get many opportunities to talk and ask questions. When I first walked in, I was shaking and went over to the produce. I went up to one of the workers and said, “Hi, where are some of your fruits that……are better for you.” I wanted to say healthy, and organic. I challenged myself when I could’ve just asked for a specific fruit that didn’t have an N or L in it. Instead of pointing to where it was, he took me to the organic section and said, “Is this what you are looking for?” I said “yes, I appreciate it.” I grabbed a few apples and continued through the store. As I went to check out, I thought I could have gotten away with not saying anything, but the cashier looked at me and asked, “Do you have a Broulim’s card.” It was my luck that I left it at home. Once again I searched for words to say since I couldn’t say no. I looked up and said, “I forgot it.” She then moved on and told me the total. I then ran my card and asked for 20 dollars back. She asked how I would like my change. I could not say a twenty or ten, so I said “four, fives.” It was a good experience to go through as well. When I walked out of the store I took and deep breath and was relieved to be done.

Going through this challenge was hard but an eye opener for me. It showed me just what some children go through each day and how if we are not patient enough, that child will be pushed aside and left behind. I am grateful for the people who had patience with me and willing to help me through this experiment.

Disability Application Day – Fluency Disorder (stuttering)

Asking for Directions:

Since I already went into the library without N or L, I decided to go to the Kimball and ask someone at the front desk for directions. I pretended as if I was a new student and looking for a map of campus and how to get to the Hart building. I went up to counter and asked the lady, “Can you uh, help me uh find out how to get to uh, the Hart building?” The lady was kind and looked right past my stuttering. She explained to me the easiest way was to go in between the I-center and the mc and it was going to be the second building on my left. I repeated back to her to make sure I understand what she was saying. “So uh….I go out these back doors and go down the hill…uh in between the uh I-center on my left and uh the mc is on uh my right?” she nodded and gave me a map. I then thanked her and walked out the door.

Testing Center:

I decided to go to the testing center and use my stutter because it would have given me an opportunity to ask a few questions while receiving my test. They took my I-card and said, “Tiana?” I said, “Yyyyyyyyes.” They then asked me what test I was taking, I then continued to say, “I-I-I am tttttaking the Mmmmath 205 ttttest.” They were so kind and said alright. I then asked, “I do do do not hhhhave a cccalculator, cccan I ppplease borrow one?” They gave me one and said my bubble sheet would come out by the printer. When I got to the printer, the guy standing there gave me my test. I asked, “Does iiiiit mmmater what rrrroom I ggggo to?” He said, “No it doesn’t, good luck on your test.” I said thank you and walked into the testing room.

I found this so hard to do both tests because not only did I have to say uh a lot but I also had to hold out letters longer to try and put together a word. I am so amazed by how children work through these disabilities daily. By trying to maintain a steady flow of pretending to have a disability, it was hard. I need to remember to reach out to those that struggle and always be there for them when they are in need of help, just like I was.