HDFS 228 Young Children with Special Needs

The development, needs, and behavior of preschool aged children with special needs. General and practical strategies to help integrate children with special needs into childcare programs. An overview of inclusion, along with a focus on specific disabilities is covered, including autism spectrum disorder, speech and language, and attention deficit disorder.

Credits

3

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1. Explain the values and current research on the practice of inclusion and describe what an inclusive program for preschool children looks like
2. Identify the characteristics of major disabilities
3. Discuss the ways in which disabilities affect the cognitive, language, social, and motor development of preschool age children
4. Discuss the federal and state laws affecting young children with disabilities, and the early intervention system in Oregon
5. Describe teaching techniques for facilitating language and social development in young children in inclusive programs
6. Be familiar with assessment and screening techniques and ways to identify children with possible special needs in the preschool years
7. Describe techniques to meet the needs of children with special needs in inclusive preschools including how to teach a variety of developmental levels, and how to adapt environments and curriculums
8. Discuss teaching techniques for children with challenging behaviors
9. Understand some of the needs and concerns of parents whose children have special needs and identify ways to form parent - teacher partnerships