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According to Delaney (2016), when we talk about a SEN student, we refer to a student that has significant difficulties in learning than the rest of the class, and, therefore, special educational needs must be provided. SEN students may present:
cognition and learning needs
communication and interaction difficulties
social, emotional and behavioural difficulties
sensory impairments
medical conditions
In this section, you will find some digital tools to make the classroom more inclusive and address not only SEN students, but also students with different learning styles.
Storyline Online
Storyline Online
This is an online platform that fosters children's literacy. Its main purpose is to expose children to storytelling videos. Storyline Online is available 24 hours a day for children, parents, caregivers and educators worldwide. Each book includes supplemental curriculum developed by a credentialed elementary educator, aiming to strengthen comprehension and verbal and written skills for English-language learners.
The stories available are intended for kindergarten to primary school students. It is an excellent resource for children with learning disabilities like dyslexia. Students develop their literacy skills by following along with text as the literature comes alive. According to Delaney (2016), multisensory teaching encompasess the use of multiple senses to reinforce comprehension. This site offers a full experience: students listen and watch the videos, and with subtitles on, they can also read throughout the story.
"Storyline Online is a program of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation. The Foundation is a nonprofit organization that relies entirely on gifts, grants and donations to fund Storyline Online and produce all of its videos"
Task example
Task example
Story: 'Halloween Hustle'. The plot is about a Skeleton that dances his way to a Halloween party but as he grooves across town, he keeps stumbling, tumbling, and falling apart. Each time, he brings his bones together and rebuilds his skeleton, as a reflection of perseverance.
After watching the story, the studentss will follow this sequence of activities:
1. The teacher will create a problem/solution Chart. (see the tasksheet provided by the platform)
2. The class will discuss the problems Skeleton had throughout the story and what he did to fix the problems. The teacher will add ideas on the problem/ solution chart.
3. The teacher will give an example of their own real-life problem and solution and add it to the T-Chart.
4. Students will each complete a Problem/Solution graphic organizer to explain a time they had to work through a problem. Students may draw a picture to represent or write words, depending on their level or ability.
5. After they are finished, the students may share with a partner, the class, or conference with the teacher.
PETA Kids
PETA Kids
PETA Kids is a youth program of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). They reach 12 y-o kids and younger to teach them all about animal rights, let them know what they can do to help speak up for animals, and empower them to make a difference.
Delaney (2016) states that "some students are visual learners, so the use of visual aids would be appropriate to support their learning. Using games can work for many students with SEN as well as for those with no special needs. Many benefit from a multisensory approach". This site is appealing to all students: there are videos, articles, songs and quizzes. There are printable worksheets to colour or complete, too. It is an excellent site to work on awareness-raising campaigns about animal care and respect.
However, some content may be sensitive, so teachers should consider which section of this website can be appropiate according to the age of the students.
Task example
Task example
If you are working with kids, you can download from this link a colouring sheet. The students are free to choose the colours they like, and then as a whole class interaction, they will tell their peers why they have chosen those colours to paint and what the final picture represents to them.
https://www.petakids.com/activities/wild-animals-coloring-sheet/
Do2Learn
Do2Learn
Do2learn provides thousands of free pages with social skills and behavioral regulation activities and guidance, learning songs and games, communication cards, academic material, and transition guides for employment and life skills. Do2learn is primarily targeted at students with special needs but can be useful to anyone who wants to work on social skills and behavioral regulation.
Learning disabled youth access thousands of free elementary-level worksheets for literacy, math, visual discrimination, behavior management, and more. There are also printable picture cards available to promote functional communication in children with Autism.
Delaney (2016) explains "Students with SEBD find it difficult to recognize emotions, and have a limited vocabulary for feelings in their L1." What this platform offers is a wide variety of printable worksheets about feelings and emotions in which students can write and draw, aimed at helping students learn about themselves and how to express what they feel.
Task example
Task example
This platform suits great for the reflection time in a lesson. There are several worksheets the teacher can print where students express how they felt today. This is an example in which the students write 'the emotion of the day' and they describe it. Also, to address SEN students, the worksheet provides a space for them to draw a representation of that emotion.
References
References
Delaney, M. (2016) Special Educational Needs. Chapter 1: Introduction to SEN teaching. Oxford: OUP
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