Skip to main content

Literally Awesome

In 2009, Ben participated in a pilot literacy program developed at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. The program went so well, that Attainment Company is now marketing it as a teaching tool for schools. Last week, Ben's teacher sent a link of Ben in the training video for this product. It is a commitment to watch the longer video, so I asked the Attainment Company to edit it to a shorter version for this posting.

You will not regret the time you use to view either of the videos.



The Big Commitment:
18 minute version - Ben is in the Level 4 Video

From Nydia Hoard, Ben's special education teacher, and the facilitator in the video:
In this video clip Ben is featured in a training video for a literacy program called Pathways to Literacy, published by Attainment Company.  This literacy program is designed for students with more moderate to severe cognitive disabilities.  Its goal is to have students increase their literacy skills by interacting with a story through objects, answering comprehension questions with objects and pictures, and become actively involved in the story by joining in on a repeated story line.  My students and myself have been fortunate to participate in this literacy program, through collaboration with many professionals at UNCC who wrote the program that was published by Attainment Co. 


Barbara Agnello, Ph.D., BCBA-D, is a behavior therapist who has worked extensively with Ben and was involved with the grant process for this literacy program. She got to see first hand the amazing results:
Approximately 17 years ago, Anne Donnellan wrote a book, Movement Differences and Diversity in Autism-Mental Retardation: Appreciations and Accommodations People with Communications and Behavior Challenges. In this book, Anne Donnellan identified a beautiful and inspiring concept that individuals with disabilities are capable of learning. The concept is known as the “Least Dangerous Assumption.” The “least dangerous assumption” explains that it is least dangerous to an individual to make the assumption of capability rather than incapability. Beyond the least dangerous to an individual, this assumption encourages dignity and respect for individuals with disabilities.

Individuals with disabilities are very capable of communicating and learning. When an individual has a disability that challenges the ability to communicate and learn, it is both an honor and a responsibility to think outside the box to identify ways that an individual can successfully communicate and learn. Very often, I observe individuals with disabilities communicating in nontraditional ways that are often ignored. Can you even begin to imagine how frustrating that would be? Honestly, I cannot.

This video is a beautiful example of the “least dangerous assumption” and thinking outside the box! In my opinion, both the communication and learning taking place speaks for itself.



And finally, this is an email my mom sent to the Attainment Company, after seeing the video:
My grandson is in one of your videos. I cannot tell you how wonderful it was to see him respond to questions about a book the teacher was reading. My daughter told me about this program and I was skeptical. I am amazed by the power of your program. I wish everyone could use it. Thank you, thank you for giving my sweet grandchild this power.



* This is an unpaid and unsolicited post for this literacy program, Pathways to Literacy.

Comments

  1. that is amazing! Thanks for posting it...when my boys go to bed tonight, I plan on watching the longer video. Thanks for chatting with me yesterday!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thank you for reading my post. I appreciate you taking the time to comment. If you wish to contact me directly, please let me know and I will email you.

Popular posts from this blog

Parenting an Adult Child with Disabilities

  "Parenting an Adult Child with Disabilities" is a series on eSpeciallyBen. As Ben approached 18, it was clear our role changed as parents. We needed to help Ben transition into adulthood. These stories are meant to assist other families who face, or will face, some of the same challenges. Talking About the Future Guest Post - Matt Wilson Legal Guardianship, Medicaid and SSI Researching Group Homes Questions to Ask at a Group Home Visit Referral Packet for Group Homes Getting Assistance from a Care Manager From Group Home Placement to Discharge Reaching for Independence

He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother

After my post, Brotherly Love , I received an email from a reader who reminded me of this song. I knew the song, but had never really thought about the words and the meaning behind them. I looked it up and thought others might see the lyrics in a new light.   He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother The road is long With many a winding turn That leads us to who knows where Who knows when But I'm strong Strong enough to carry him He ain't heavy, he's my brother. So on we go His welfare is of my concern No burden is he to bear We'll get there For I know He would not encumber me If I'm laden at all I'm laden with sadness That everyone's heart Isn't filled with the gladness Of love for one another. It's a long, long road From which there is no return While we're on the way to there Why not share And the load Doesn't weigh me down at all He ain't heavy, he's my brother. He's my brother He ain't h

ABC's of ABA

A few weeks ago I attended a workshop presented by a behavior therapist. As it turned out, I went to a conference on the same topic over a year ago. I will describe what I have taken away from these methods in my own words - but please take a look at the links I have provided below. After I learned about this, life with children made a lot more sense to me. Not that this is earth shattering material, but it helped me to better understand the hows, whats and whys of behavior in children, and occasionally husbands. I am in no way an expert in this - just a parent who wants to share a behavior strategy that has worked in our home. I hope to inspire others to explore it further.  Any errors in information comes from me and cannot be blamed on the presenters. Also, you may have seen ABA - Applied Behavior Analysis - connected most often with Autism - please do not let this deter you if your child is not autistic. I use these methods with all my children, none of which are labeled au