Learning-by-doing centers, an approach based on theories by J. Piaget and The High Scope program's cognitively oriented curriculum, strengthens the problem-solving skills of learning disabled students. (CL)

An exploratory study involving three learning disabled students suggested that semantic maps, a visuospatial strategy in which concepts are linked, promoted reading comprehension. (CL)

The paper describes the keyword method for vocabulary instruction with learning disabled, mentally retarded, gifted, and typical students. The keyword method, a mnemonic technique using visual imagery, involves recoding, relating, and retrieving. Building fluency, using scientific word parts to understand complex words, and generalizing to…

Severe cerebral palsied children require adapted physical education activities, and teachers' consultation with physical therapists can help in planning appropriate activities for them. Gross motor activities (such as sitting T-ball and wheelchair knockdown) that have been successfully used with elementary and middle school students are suggested.…

Instructional games can be used effectively when they require active student participation and high rates of student responding. The article describes principles of such games and suggests ways to turn typical games (such as "Bingo,""War,""Scrabble,""Boggle," paper/pencil games, and question/answer games) into active, high-response games. (JDD)

Hearing-impaired children in mainstreamed classes require assistive listening devices beyond hearing aids, lipreading, and preferential seating. Frequency modulation auditory training devices can improve speech intelligibility and provide an adequate signal-to-noise ratio, and should be incorporated into regular classes containing hearing-impaired…

The Social Observation for Mainstreamed Environments (SOME) checklist evaluates handicapped preschool children's social skills and readiness for mainstreamed environments. Checklist items represent social behaviors important to successful preschool integration, such as initiating interactions appropriately, obeying class rules, and respecting…

A program designed to teach cognitive strategies through logical problem-solving and developed for elementary learning disabled students is presented. For each problem set, the instructional procedure involves a discovery activity, discussion, conclusion, follow-up activities, and integration. Five samples of the program's problem sets (e.g.,…

The article outlines a strategy called repeated reading which aids educable mentally handicapped and learning-disabled students in gaining mastery of reading skills. Repeated reading focuses on reading passages rather than single words and emphasizes reading rate. The article discusses the method's theoretical basis, empirical evidence, contextual…

Principles for effectively teaching writing skills to mildly handicapped and learning-disabled students are outlined, and then three varying approaches are presented: (1) Direct Reading and Writing program, integrating regular class content with writing instruction; (2) self-instructional control strategies to reduce the complexity of writing…

To establish meaningful links between preservice and inservice teachers' background experiences and abstract concepts, relevant research studies are simulated in teacher training sessions. A simulated research activity is described, using the example of helping teachers understand models of memory to better teach mnemonic strategies to handicapped…

A coat was adapted for a 20-year-old severely handicapped woman to control her practice of "mouthing" her hands and clothing. Velcro strips attached to the coat held the student's arms down long enough to allow for differential reinforcement of appropriate behavior, which successfully reduced the rate of mouthing. (JDD)

The article presents guidelines for teaching self-management strategies to improve mildly handicapped elementary students' independent work habits. Applying the skills of self-recording, self-evaluation, and self-reinforcement to math seatwork involves providing a rationale, modeling the strategy, and providing practice with feedback. Field test…

Preparing disabled students for transition to productive adult lives involves careful planning between sending and receiving agencies. The article describes state and school district transition programs, emphasizing interagency planning teams (Oregon), cross-agency coordination and ninth grade vocational assessments (Minnesota), and field-testing…

Kinesthetic learning experiences for reinforcing mildly handicapped preschool and elementary students' spelling vocabulary are described. Students make letters of the alphabet with their bodies and then spell words from vocabulary lists. Follow-up spelling activities include scrambled letters; spelling baseball; word families; rhyming; consonant…