“Ms. Hopkins, you know Doctor Who?” Samuel asks me at the end of class about once per week. He always follows this question up with a conversation about a highly specific topic…
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A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about Unified Theater, the program that provided me with my first inclusive experience. In February, Unified Theater hosted #LOVEinclusion month to build excitement around inclusion…
I’m going to be really honest about my feelings about inclusion in reading class this school year… I was really nervous. I wasn’t really sure how to give kids the supports…
I’ve written before about my love for inclusion, and how it all began with a little program in Connecticut called Unified Theater. Since I began my inclusion journey in 2004,…
Last year, my first year teaching, I had a student in my co-taught math class (whom I will call Jack) who was so painfully shy that I felt guilty for…
As a special education teacher who teaches in a primarily inclusive setting, I have had the pleasure of seeing inclusion in its many forms. I have seen students embrace various…
With the holidays coming, everyone at school as been squirrelly, students and teachers alike. With the restlessness has come some behavioral challenges, and I have felt myself beginning to lose…
Little Italy Restaurante in Anchorage, Alaska recently demonstrated solidarity by refusing service. The restaurant stood behind its staff member with a disability, demonstrating that discrimination and disrespect would not be tolerated–…
This Thanksgiving, I’ve spent time reflecting on the experiences that have made me who I am today and shaped the values I have. I have been thinking about the path…
Growing up, the only exposure I had to disabilities was through face-to-face conversations and interactions through school- and community-based programs. It felt as though disability culture was shunned from the…