The most common category of disability that we see in our classroom is specific learning disabilities, SLD. Approximately 60% of our special education population will be identified as SLD. Many times it is a teacher who identifies a struggling learner, uses RTI (Response to Intervention (Links to an external site.)) to try and intervene. IF the 3 tiers of interventions do not work, then we recommend testing to see what’s up with the brain and the processing of information.
A specific learning disability is defined by IDEA as follows:
The term “specific learning disability” means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which disorder may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations.
Disorders include such conditions as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia and developmental aphasia.
Disorders not included are those primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities, intellectual disability, emotional disturbance, or environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage.
The film, F.A.T. City is the best way I know of to help you understand SLD. We are going to watch the 1:15 min film about various areas of LD and fill in the graphic organizer as we watch it. A hard copy of the graphic organizer is included in this module. You can print it, hand write your notes and scan it onto Canvas. Or you can type out the graphic organizer- what ever works for you.
FYI Dyscalculia (MATH) is also a learning disability. “A Day in the Life of a Teen with Dyscalculia”Links to an external site. can help you understand what it is like to live with a disability that impacts mathematical process in the brain.
