Don't forget to check the subdivision
pages for links for specific exceptionalities.
Disclaimer
Links to other Internet addresses can be accessed from this
page and from other areas of the Pennsylvania Federation Council for Exceptional
Children's web site. The Pennsylvania Federation Council for Exceptional
Children does not endorse, approve, certify, or control these external Internet
addresses and does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, efficacy, or
timeliness of information located at such addresses. Reference to any specific
commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, service mark,
manufacturer, or otherwise does not constitute or imply endorsement,
recommendation, or favoring by the Pennsylvania Federation Council for
Exceptional Children or its executive board.
CEC
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Resources for Teachers -
Norman Brown, Multicultural Advisor, recommends the following sites. They are
all links from different parts of the same website.
Lesson Planning
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Resources for Teachers - Materials
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Resources for Teachers - Professional Exploration & Inquiry
Pennsylvania Instructional Support Centers
As of August 1, 2000, The Instructional Support System of Pennsylvania
underwent a name change. The Department of Education Instructional Support
Centers-Eastern, Central, and Western are no more. The new name is the
Pennsylvania Training & Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) with offices
in Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, and King of Prussia. This name change was designed
to more accurately describe its services and to emphasize the statewide nature
of its services and supports. Please visit the PaTTAN website at: www.pattan.k12.pa.us
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Resources for Kids & Classrooms
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Resources for Families
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Mobility & Assistive Technology Solutions
Mobility Oriented Sites
Assistive Technology Sites
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Libraries
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Selected Pennsylvania Colleges and Universities
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Legislative and Government
Resources
Regulations
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Grants
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E-mail Forums & Newsletters
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Publishers of Professional Journals & Books
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On-line Providers who have helped PACEC
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Important Addresses
PA Department of Education
Bureau of Special Education
333 Market Street
Harrisburg, PA 17126-033
Voice: 717-783-2311 FAX: 717-772-2415 TDD: 717-787-7367
U.S. Department of Education
Office of Special Education Programs
600 Independence Avenue SW
MES Building, Room 3086
Washington, DC 20202-2570
Voice: 202-205-5507 FAX: 202-205-9070 TDD: 202-205-9454
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PACEC Family Resource Center
Welcome
Welcome to the Pennsylvania Council for Exceptional Children's
Family Resource Center. It is our hope that through this vehicle we will be
able to offer information and resources of interest to the families of children
and youth with exceptionalities.
Everyone is welcome to submit news and other interesting items for inclusion
here. All you need to do is e-mail it to the
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
for consideration. Or, you
can even use good-old snail-mail if you prefer. When ground-mailing items, we
ask you to do so on disk along with a paper copy. Don't forget to note the
program, version, and filename under which your file has been saved (IBM
compatible only, please).
After viewing the resources on this page we invite you to take some time and
explore the entire system. You never know, you might find something great where
you least expect it. You especially will want to visit the subdivision pages
for information specific to each exceptionality, the Legislative Update page to
keep up on what's happening in Washington and Harrisburg, and the Connections
page where you'll find hundreds of links to other websites of interest. Come
often as our goal is to update frequently. We hope your visit is helpful and
informative. Enjoy!
Procedural Safeguards
A Step-by-Step Explanation in Non-Legalese
Carol Eisenbise, former PACEC Treasurer and Supervisor of Special Education in
Colonial IU #20 has compiled an explanation of the Procedural Safeguards you
have received so often - in plain language. She has received numerous positive
comments from parents of her students, so we've asked her to share it here.
A Parent's Creed
Shared at the 2003 PACEC convention, an important view from a
parent who has a child with a disability, "A PARENT'S CREED" could
easily apply to all parents, family members, caregivers and teachers of
children, young adults and adults with disabilities.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
How Does it Affect You?
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA) was first enacted by
Congress in 1975 as a way of guaranteeing the rights of children and youth with
exceptionalities in the educational arena. Subsequently modified twice more
before the current version was signed by President Clinton on June 4, 1997, IDEA
covers a range of issues, the most important of which is the guarantee to a free
and appropriate education in the least restrictive environment appropriate for
the student. It sets forth the procedures to be followed in identifying which
children would qualify for services, how those services are to be implemented,
and who is to be involved in the provision of such services.
PL 105-17, the current version of IDEA commonly called IDEA-97 is quite
lengthy. Revisions are expected to be voted on by the end of November '04. The full text of IDEA-97 is available here, as is a summary of the changes in
the law in '97. Visit our political action section for more information.
For more information on IDEA-97 and your rights, contact your local school
district's Superintendent, or the Supervisor of Special Education. Request a
copy of the Notice of Parents Rights.
Special Education Programs for Children
with Special Needs
Pennsylvania has long been at the forefront of educating children with
special needs. State regulations guarding the educational rights of children
with exceptionalities have long exceeded the minimums set by the federal
government. As far back as the early 1960's Pennsylvania's State System of
Higher Learning Colleges had departments specifically tailored to training
special education teachers. Following this tradition, in 1991 the state made a
radical departure from the types of programs offered to children and youth with
exceptionalities. Gone were Learning Disabled, Mentally Retarded, and Behavior
Disordered classrooms. Instead the system changed to one in which the
exceptionality was deemphasized and the supports needed were stressed. We now
have support classes in which a child gets the support he or she need
to learn, regardless of his or her label.
To learn more about the state system of Support
Classes, click here.
Support Classes
School districts in Pennsylvania,
either directly or through various other education agencies including the state's
29 Intermediate Units, provide special education services which may be required
by children with special needs.
Difficult Teens - Suggestions for Parents
Teen Crisis Foundation is offering Parents the following FREE Booklets -
"DIFFICULT TEENS- SUGGESTIONS FOR PARENTS" http://www.summit-systems.net/teencrisis/
"TEEN DRUG USE- 34 WARNING SIGNS" http://www.summit-systems.net/teencrisis/warningsigns.html
Or Contact Us At: Teen Crisis Foundation Phone # 242-394-6668 extension
3041 P.O. Box N-1836, Suite # A-175 Nassau, Bahamas
Kids Pick Best of the Web
The American Library Association has issued the results of their "Kids
Pick Best of the Web" project. The ALA asked kids to nominate their
favorite Web sites for fun and learning. Not surprisingly Nickelodeon, Disney,
and GeoCities ranks at the top of their list. To see more, visit the American Library Association
news release.
Related Sites of Interest
We've searched the Web to come up with interesting and informative sites of
interest to families of children with special needs. You can visit hundreds of
other sites from our Related Sites pages.
Go to the Main Related Sites page.
Go to the Family Resources Related Sites.
DISABILITIES BIBLIOGRAPHY
LIST OF CHILDREN’S BOOKS
Lisa
Dennis,
Coordinator of Juvenile Collections for the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh,
provided Norman Brown the following list of children’s books that deal
with the people with disabilities. This can be used as a resource for parents
and teachers.
Visual Impairments
Fraustino, Lisa Rowe. The Hickory Chair.
Illustrated by Benny Andrews. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2001.
Hermann, Spring. Seeing Lessons: The Story of Abigail
Carter and America’s First School for Blind People. Illustrated by Ib
Ohlsson. New York: Henry Holt, 1998.
Karim, Roberta. Mandy Sue Day. Illustrated by
Karen Ritz. New York: Clarion Books, c1994.
Litchfield, Ada Bassett. Words in Our Hands.
Illustrations by Helen Cogancherry. Chicago: Albert Whitman, 1980.
MacLachlan, Patricia. Through Grandpa’s Eyes.
Illustrated by Deborah Ray. New York: Harper & Row, c1980.
Martin, Bill. Knots On a Counting Rope.
Illustrated by Ted Rand. New York: Henry Holt, c1987.
Hearing Impairments
Lakin, Pat. Dad and Me in the Morning.
Illustrated by Robert G. Steele. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman, 1994.
Millman, Isaac. Moses Goes to a Concert. New
York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998.
Millman, Isaac. Moses Goes to School. New York:
Frances Foster Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000.
Learning Disabilities
Daly, Niki. Once Upon a Time. New York: Farrar,
Straus and Giroux, 2003.
Paterson, Katherine. Marvin One Too Many.
Illustrated by Jane Clark Brown. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2001.
Polacco, Patricia. Thank You, Mr. Falker. New
York: Philomel Books, c1998.
Senisi, Ellen B. Just Kids: Visiting a Class for
Children with Special Needs. New York: Dutton Children’s Books, c1998.
Mental Challenges
Carter, Alden R. Big Brother Dustin. Photographs
by Dan Young and Carol Carter. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman & Co., 1997.
Fleming, Virginia M. Be Good to Eddie Lee.
Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. New York: Philomel Books, c1993.
Gifaldi, David. Ben, King of the River.
Illustrated by Layne Johnson. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman & Co., 2001.
Rickert, Janet Elizabeth. Russ and the Almost Perfect
Day. Photographs by Pete McGahan. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, c2000.
Shriver, Maria. What’s Wrong with Timmy? Illustrated by Sandra Speidel. Boston: Warner Books/Little, Brown, 2001.
Stuve-Bodeen, Stephanie. We’ll Paint the Octopus Red.
Illustrated by Pam DeVito. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, 1998.
Physical Challenges
Avi. Prairie School. Illustrated by Bill
Farnsworth. New York: HarperCollins, c2001.
Caseley, Judith. Harry and Willy and Carrothead.
New York: Greenwillow Books, c1991.
Harshman, Marc. The Storm. Illustrated by Mark
Mohr. New York: Cobblehill Books/Dutton, c1995.
Osofsky,
Audrey. My Buddy. Illustrated by Ted Rand. New York: Henry Holt, c1992.
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