How to Teach Students to Accept Special Needs Students

The trend in today's classroom is to mainstream special needs students. Whether a student is disabled, hearing or visually impaired or has a learning or behavioral disorder, each student is a human being and deserves to be treated with respect. They should be educated just like everyone else. However, some students have difficulty adapting to this new environment. Some will have difficulty accepting special needs students. This article will demonstrate ways to get pass individual differences and teach students to accept their peers for who they are, regardless of their abilities.

Instructions

1

Understand of each child's needs. Make sure privacy is respected, but try to explain what issues need to address with each student.

2

Exhibit respect and kindness at all times when dealing with each student. Teachers need to be role models and set the example for the class. If the teaching staff does not respect or show compassion for the special needs students, it is hard to expect the rest of the students to act accordingly.

3

Establish a sense of unity and inclusion in the classroom. At the beginning of the school year, it is important to let all of the students know that, as individuals, everyone is unique. You can say something like, "Although there may be differences in abilities in the classroom, everyone is to be treated as an equal and will be required to participate in all activities to the best of their ability."

4

Have "All About Me" days. Allow students the opportunity to show and tell about their lives and interests outside of the classroom. This will help all the students learn about each other and further the acceptance process.

5

Create a buddy system. Pairing students up with special needs students for various activities during the day will help build positive social interaction with the students. Also, the buddy system is a great way for students to learn respect and compassion.

6

Implement a sense of community. Having classroom jobs creates a responsible atmosphere where everyone has a given task on any given week or day, regardless of ability. This works extremely well with younger students.

7

Reward and discipline equally. Knowing that special needs students are held to the same standards as the other students in the classroom will help gain acceptance and will not display any inequalities in treatment.