Hawaii
I spent most of my childhood and youth days growing up in Hawaii. I went to Laie Elementary and Kahuku High School. When I was in the fifth grade, my friend Pono was assigned to help a mentally retarded child named Heno. It was then that I first encountered someone with visible mental disabilities. Pono hung out with Heno all the time and gave me the opportunity to socialize with someone who had a disability. Growing up here with experiences such as this, I learned to be very accepting of people who are different.
Experience
While I was attending Laie Elementary there was a boy a grade younger than I in a wheel chair. I used to see him every morning and sometimes I would push him up the ramp to get to his class room because there was a ditch right before the side walk. I always smiled and waved though and still to this day I talk to him.
The next time I saw Heno was at a stake dance. I slow danced with him and talked with his parents. In school, Heno was learning to dance and I got to see the results first hand. He was a pretty good dancer and kept on tempo. It was a neat experience to see first hand how great of a dancer a person with a mental handicap could be.
As an educator
There are several things that an educator can do to enhance the experience of a student with special needs.
1. look at Hawaii's Department of Educations web page
2. Find the General Learner Outcomes
3. When you have a student in your class talk with them and look up resources to help their particular needs and share the results with their parents.
4. Be aware of cultural differences and word your suggestions and comments accordingly.
5. Using an IEP Set standards and uphold them.
