Hey guys! I am a subsitute teacher and over Spring Break I was able to work in 3rd grade and Kindergarten. The school I sub at is a Charter school has a lot of children with different disabilities. I have had to learn how to deal with the children in a manner that they understand and will comprehend. For instance, this week I had to help a child that forgot what he read 1 minute after he read it. It was hard to get him to do his work because he didn't remember what he was supposed to do. I had to sit right beside him and tell him over and over again what to do, and had to write down what he was supposed to write so that he could copy it. It seemed to work well, because he got his work for the week accomplished. I was just curious if any one else in the class does any substituting and if you have experienced some of the same things I have and have any techniques that worked for you.

Yeah I completely agree with you! I feel that even just teaching k, 1, or 2 is soooo different than teaching 3,4, or 5. They children are so young and learning so many different things that they have to have the teachers undivided attention for them to be able to do their best... this is why it is soo hard to be a younger graders teacher! k, or 1 are the grades i want to teach and i have just had to tell myself that my juob alothough going to be very rewarding is also going to be very tiring and i will have to have alot of pacients!!

I agree with Katie Gray, teaching the younger of the lower grades is much different than the older grades. I teach K-5 during the summer at summer camp and even with discipline my 3-5 graders give me a run for my money. I thought about kids w/ disabilities and one of my 12 year olds has cerebral palsy and she comes to some of the camps that her parents think she can benefit from. Being that she can't speak, doesn't have control of her arms, and sits in a wheelchair, it's quite a challenge to have my other students not ask questions. I think it's great for a teacher to be able to understand how to work with children with disabilities as well as making their other students aware that they can't "catch" it and they can even try to interact. Once you're around Ellis enough she starts smiling when you go to talk to her and makes noises. Even with that, it is very rewarding.

Casey Gill