Special Education Resources for Teachers & Parents

Webinar Presentations

• PSEA webinar on Service Animals  
  Presented by Bernie Miller, Director for Education Services, on October 22, 2012.

Educator Resources

• http://www.pattan.k12.pa.us/
  Website for the PA Training & Technical Assistance Network
• http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/
  National Institutes of Health information on rare diseases including symptoms that students may present
• www.interventioncentral.org
  Free tools and resources to help school staff promote positive classroom behaviors and foster effective learning for all children
• www.nichcy.org
  Carries free informational material respected by educators and the disability community
• www.nsttac.org
  Assists states to build capacity to support and improve transition planning, services, and outcomes for youth with disabilities.
• http://idea.ed.gov
  Federal government's website that focuses on IDEA, federal legislation on special education and related material
• www.ed.gov
  Official U.S. Department of Education website which has a section related to special education
• http://ruralinstitute.umt.edu/
  The Montana University Affiliated Rural Institute on Disabilities received funding from the federal government to deal with the issues of supporting individuals with disabilities in rural settings
• www.teaching.state.pa.us
  Information regarding NCLB's Highly Qualified Teacher requirements is available on this PA Department of Education website. Site features the following:
       - HQT Guidelines for Administrators
       - HOUSSE HQT Requirements and Rubric
       - PowerPoint Presentation for Teachers
  The site also offers access to the Teacher Certification System, On-Line Application Submission and HOUSSE HQT Designation Application.

Hands-On Tools

• Graphic Organizer - "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" 

Instructional Strategies

• http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/resources.html
  Free case study packets in PDF format on Algebra, Reading, Room Set-up, Fluency and Word identification.

Laws and Regulations

• www.ed.gov/IDEA
  Part B Final Regulations implementing the 2004 reauthorization of the IDEA
• http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/
  The Nation's Report Card - includes reports on special education and education related issues

Post-Secondary Education

• www.heath.gwu.edu
  The George Washington University Health Resource Center is the national clearinghouse on post-secondary education for individuals with disabilities.
• www.netac.rit.edu
  Serving post-secondary institutions to improve educational access and enhance post-secondary education opportunities for students who are deaf or hard of hearing.
• www.washington.edu/doit
  DO-IT serves to increase the participation of individuals with disabilities in challenging academic programs and careers.

Reading

• www.kidsreads.com
  Shares information on books and links to author sites
• www.readinga-z.com
  Subscription-based online reading resource with books, lesson plans, worksheets and flashcards.

Response to Intervention (RTI)

• www.nasponline.org/advocacy/rtifactsheets.aspx 
• www.studentprogress.org
  National Center on Student Progress Monitoring
• http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu
  IRIS Center
• http://www.pbis.org
  National Center on Positive Behavior Supports
• www.cast.org
  CAST of Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
• http://www.k8accesscenter.org/index.php
  The Access Center

Transition

• A Systematic Approach to Arming Students and Job Seekers with Disabilities and Their Advocates in Securing Meaningful Employment, by Olegario D. Cantos VII, Esq., Office of the Assistant Attorney General - Civil Rights Division; U.S. Department of Justice
• www.ssa.gov/work
  Information on ticket to Work Program incentives from the Social Security Administration.
• www.papsa.org
  Guide to career education opportunities in Pennsylvania
• www.jan.wvu.edu/job/
  Free service of the Office of Disability Employment Policy, U.S. Department of Labor. JAN has two main focuses - identifying job accommodations and providing technical assistance on the employment provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
• www.hireds.com
  Brings together top companies and job seekers with disabilities by making Monster job search tools, career content and resumes posting capabilities more readily available to individuals with disabilities
• http://www.ncwd-youth.info/resources_&_Publications/411.html
  A 99-page downloadable booklet to help students and adults understand disclosure, its impact and how to accomplish disclosure.
• http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/products/employmentguide/index.html
  This guide is a comprehensive analysis of hiring employees with disabilities that includes information about how to find qualified workers with disabilities, how to put disability and employment research into practice and how to model what other businesses have done to successfully integrate individuals with disabilities into the workforce.
• http://www.pacareerstandards.com/resources.php
  PA Department of Education Career & Work Standards website resource page.
• www.gcflearnfree.org
  Explore Career Develolpment and Workforce Development lessons.
• www.careerclusters.org
  Provides career cluster plans of study and knowledge & skills chart.
• http://www.careerxplorer.com/
  Explore pathways to career success, teacher resources.

Resources for Parents of Children with Disabilities

• Brain Injury Resources
  • When A Child's Head Has Been Hurt...
    This publication lists some of the common signs that your child may have a mild brain injury.
  • Brain STEPS
    The Brain Injury School Re-Entry Program 
  • www.brainline.org
    Resources for preventing, treating, and living with traumatic brain injuries (TBI)
  • ABIN-PA Brain Injury InfoLine
    1-800-516-8052
  • BIAPA Brain Injury Resource Line
    1-866-635-7097
  • Department of Health (DOH) Brain Injury Help Line
    1-866-412-4755
  • Department of Health (DOH) Head Injury Program
    1-866-412-4755
  • Pittsburgh Brain Injury Alliance
    1-412-761-9870
• General Resources
  • Department of Defense (DOD) Special Needs Parent Toolkit
    This Toolkit is designed for parents who work in the military that have a child with special education needs.
  • Emergency Information Form for Children with Special Health NeedsThis form, developed and recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, is for families to take with them when they travel to help health care professionals in case of emergencies.
  • http://disabilities.temple.edu/atlend
    Pennsylvania's Assistive Technology Lending Library - free service which enables Pennsylvanians with disabilities of all ages to try a variety of assistive technology devices, in order to decide what device is best suited to their needs.
  • www.dcmp.org
    Described and Captioned Media Program - free loan of open-captioned videos for deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Available for both parents and teachers. Funding from the US Department of Education and administered by the National Association of the Deaf.
  • www.fetaweb.com/help/states.htm
    Information by state on advocacy groups, attorneys, and organizations that focus on specific disabilities.
  • www.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=ntl_with_open_arms
    Financial guide for parents of children with disabilities; done in collaboration between Easter Seals and the National Endowment for Financial Education
  • www.nami.org
    National Alliance on Mental Illness
  • www.ldonline.org
    Website on learning disabilities and ADHD
  • Department of Public Welfare (DPW) CommCare Waiver
    1-800-757-5042
  • Disability Rights Network
    1-800-692-7443
  • PA Health Law Project
    Provides free legal services and advocacy to Pennsylvanians having trouble accessing publicly funded health care coverage or services.1-800-274-3258 or 1-866-236-6310 TTY
  • PDE Special Education ConsultLine
    1-800-879-2301

Statewide and Regional Organizations:

• Bureau of Special Education
  ConsultLine
  800-879-2301
• The ARC of Pennsylvania
  (Advocacy & Resources for Citizens with cognitive, intellectual and developmental disabilities)
  800-692-7258     
• Disability Rights Network of PA (DRN)
  800-692-7443 
• Disability Voting Coalition of Pennsylvania
  717-364-1299
  TTY 717-236-5733
  1-800-796-9163
• The Medical Assistance Transportation Program (MATP)Offers free transportation to non-emergency medical appointments for Medical Assistance (MA) consumers who do not have other transportation available to them.
• Pennsylvania Training & Techinical Assistance Network (PaTTAN)
  800-441-3215       
• Central & Eastern PA:
  Parent Education Network (PEN)
  717-800-0100 (Voice/TTY)
  800-522-5827 (Voice/TTY)
  800-441-5028 (Spanish in PA)
• Central & Western PA:
  Parent Education Advocacy Leadership Center (PEAL)412-281-4404
  866-950-1040 Toll Free
  412-281-4409 TTY
• The Special Kids Network System of Care
  A free service dedicated to helping children and youth with special health care needs and their families get the services they need through Community Systems Development and Family Service Coordination. Family Service Coordination supports and promotes the independence of individuals with developmental disabilities by providing advocacy services in their home environment.