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It Was One of Those Weird Things.
Filed Under Special Education
It was one of those weird things. What can I say! During the summer, I like to go for a walk early in the morning before it gets too hot. Although come to think of it, this late in August it doesn’t get too hot. Today’s high was going to be 24 degrees. Not bad at all. Anyway, I was walking along enjoying the late summer sunshine and admiring the gardens in the front yards of the homes I passed (I’m not a fast walker) and was thinking about next week. School starts next week, and I would be back working with my special needs students.
For the last few days, I had been thinking about what I could do to help teachers better understand the learning disabled kids that would be sitting in front of them. I don’t want the teachers to think that these kids are stupid and/or lazy. Sometimes the kids come across this way if you don’t understand the nature of this special group of students. Learning disabled kids aren’t stupid or lazy- well, maybe sometimes they’re unmotivated, but then who isn’t unmotivated sometimes. As I was saying, these kids aren’t stupid. In fact they have average or above average intelligence. The thing is, these kids’ brains are “wired” differently causing them to learn differently. It’s my job as a special education teacher to support these students and their teachers by making their teachers aware of the students’ specific learning disabilities and the accommodations the teachers need to make so that the kids can perform to their potential.
Back to my walk. I was walking along thinking, wondering and admiring when suddenly this elderly woman crossed the street and came towards me. As she got next to me, she stopped and said, “Hello, how are you?” I, of course, said, “Hello, I fine.” I was wondering what was going on. What did she want? Suddenly she thrust a magazine in my direction and asked me if I had seen last Saturday’s Toronto Star. I had. That’s when I realized she was a Jehovah’s Witness and wanted to give me a copy of their magazine, Awake! So, for a few minutes we had a pleasant conversation about swindlers and the unfortunate state of the world. She was a very charming lady. When I moved to resume my walk, she offered me the magazine. I took it and continued my walk.
When I got home, I noticed that she had given two magazines, not just one. I had just noticed the one magazine, the one about the swindlers. But, there was another one tucked into the first one. I pulled it out, and much to my amazement it was about children with learning disabilities. I am a special education teacher who works with learning disabled kids. The nice lady wouldn’t have known this, and yet… Go figure.
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What synchronocity! A nice coincidence
Wow.