Parry,+Samantha

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When I took the **Learning Style Survey**, the results said I am a Tactile/Kinesthetic learner; this came as no surprise to me. When I study I have to say everything out loud or write it all down. I liked the results page because it gave tips on how to study according to each learning style. I have never had much success with using notecards, but the suggestion to use them when trying to learn the order of things will probably help me in the future. I am definitely going to use this when studying for my next exam. I explored the **CAST** website and thought it was phenomenal. My first question was, "what does CAST stand for?" and thankfully there was its own link on what the letters stood for and what it does. I like how the entire website is designated to Universal Design for Learning and it gives tools to teachers to integrate different learning styles into their classroom. I think CAST is a great organization that is very informative and supportive about their topic of interest. The website is clear and concise and helpful to teachers. I would like to know if people incorporated with CAST do seminars at all. I think it would be very interesting to listen to someone who is passionate about what they believe to be the best way to teach.
 * //Teaching Every Student In The Digital Age//** is a very informative textbook explaining in explicit details what UDL is and how to implement it in the classroom or even have it for personal use. I liked how the author introduced scientists beliefs about different learning styles, but then Rose and Meyer went in depth with their own ideas about the topic.

I think **Virtual Field Trips** are very unique and intriguing. Field trips in schools are rare, especially now since so many schools' budgets have been cut. I think children getting hands on experience with walking through an online exhibit is just as good as walking a museum itself. There is no museum cost and there is no worry about rushing along because other people want to know about an exhibit. It is also a benefit because people can click on things they are interested in, rather than listening to a boring tour guide. They are good for teachers to assign students homework because you know where the information is coming from and that it is accurate. There are different links to click through about the topic so students will have to go through the entire exhibit to answer all of the assigned questions.


 * Assistive Technology**

1. Before viewing the pages for assistive technology for disabled individuals, I did not realize how many things are available to help with people's day to day life. Www.assistivetech.com has a whole website targeted for products made especially for people with disabilities. I did not know that a whole world of technology for them existed. I also did not realize how high tech everything has become. The girl who used an assistive device to speak, become mobile and function in life amazed me. 2. The site that impressed me most that I could use in my classroom was Wiggle Works. This website was designed for Pre-K to young elementary school level children and assists in reading and writing. The site has great tools for teachers to design their own lesson plan through the site and implement in their classroom. The site has stories to choose from where children can read along with the computer or even read by themselves. I thought it was a great idea for the children to have the ability to click on words they do not know and to put them in a list so they can use it later. 3. Technology holds a lot of potential and promises for children with disabilities because now there are more ways to fulfill their learning style needs in the classroom. Computers are one way in which technology has helped children in schools. There are many children that do not have the patience or the skills to write out two to three sentences about a field trip they had recently gone on. Since technology is so prevalent in children's lives now, if a student can type out answers on the computer, their grades will become higher and they just might be able to excel in school. 4. I used to babysit a child with Cerebral Palsy and would meet her when she got off the bus up until about 8 pm every week. When she was a baby she had shunts put into her brain so it could drain properly. Because she had undergone so many surgeries and had many other problems with her brain's function she was not able to understand school as well as a "normal" child. She had an aide for all of her classes; these classes were for other children with special needs as well. The classes went at a slower pace and was mostly one on one or two on one with a teacher or aide. Walking down the hall way she used a helmet in case she fell. If she fell, she could cause permanent brain damage to her already sensitive brain. When she would ride the bus to and from school she used a car seat up until she was about ten years old. 5. From this assignment I have learned that there are so many resources to help children with disabilities that it is almost a crime for them to not get the same quality of education as "normal" students. I now have some tools to use when I get a child with disabilities in my classroom and know that I have support.



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