This summer I worked at Canton Local School Districts summer camp. During this summer camp I worked with Cason and Laken who are eight-year-old identical twin brothers. Cason and Laken both have down-syndrome. I have met Cason and Laken before as I observed in their classroom a few years ago but did not realize until working directly with them this summer how limited their expressive language was. During my field experience I really got to know Cason and Laken and realized how sweet, affectionate, and compassionate they are. I also realized that they were very stubborn, loved using the word “no”, and were very competitive with each other. For this reflection I felt that it would be interesting to compare what I saw in Cason and Laken
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When Cason and Laken received work that was not appropriate for them you could see that they began to unravel. The boys would be really engaged and work well in an inclusive environment when there were stories being read to the class. They would sit on the floor without additional aide support with all of their peers and participate in the lesson. It was evident they wanted to be apart of the group and participate with their typical peers. Even during games, they were able to follow rules that were simple and interact without significant additional support. When worksheets were given to them with two step addition they were clearly not able to remain engaged in the work. They became disruptive and would become easily frustrated. To me the behaviors that they were exhibiting when they didn’t know how to participate in the classroom were expected. If someone gave me work today that I had no idea how to do, I would begin to disengage as well. If we are not providing appropriate work for students whether it is in a self-contained classroom or an inclusive environment we are doing them a disservice as educators. We are in part to blame for the disengagement in their learning. I believe that students with disabilities enjoy being in the classroom with typical peers and giving them appropriate work by using accommodations and modifications is one of the first steps to setting them up for
When Cason and Laken received work that was not appropriate for them you could see that they began to unravel. The boys would be really engaged and work well in an inclusive environment when there were stories being read to the class. They would sit on the floor without additional aide support with all of their peers and participate in the lesson. It was evident they wanted to be apart of the group and participate with their typical peers. Even during games, they were able to follow rules that were simple and interact without significant additional support. When worksheets were given to them with two step addition they were clearly not able to remain engaged in the work. They became disruptive and would become easily frustrated. To me the behaviors that they were exhibiting when they didn’t know how to participate in the classroom were expected. If someone gave me work today that I had no idea how to do, I would begin to disengage as well. If we are not providing appropriate work for students whether it is in a self-contained classroom or an inclusive environment we are doing them a disservice as educators. We are in part to blame for the disengagement in their learning. I believe that students with disabilities enjoy being in the classroom with typical peers and giving them appropriate work by using accommodations and modifications is one of the first steps to setting them up for