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Zeke Michel
ENGL 2010
Camille Pack
04/19/2015
Inclusion Preschools
The other day I took my niece along with me on my service learning outing so that she
could learn something in the field. My service that day had been to watch over/entertain a
younger boy with Downs syndrome. At first my niece was extremely excited because she knew
she was going to get to play with another kid and she doesnt often get to play with other kids
outside of school due to the lack of kids in our neighborhood. She was elated, so ready to play
with another kid. When we arrived at the location, which was a ballpark where the kids older
sister was playing softball, she ran over to meet him and instantly her tune had changed. I was
surprised by this and decided to wait it out and see what would happen. After a while of playing I
could tell that my niece was having a dilemma and couldnt understand why he was acting
strange (in her point of view.) So I stopped her and asked her what was wrong.
Alazae whats wrong? Why arent you playing with Koda? I asked.
Koda is weird and I dont know why but he keeps trying to scare me and while Im
looking right at him and he keeps trying to hug me and touch me and I dont know why and he
wont stop, she responded.
So I said, Well Alazae he doesnt know any better. He just wants to be friends and thats
how he plays. I can talk to him and ask him to stop touching you so much and hugging you as

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much, but you have to be patient with him if he does it again and ask him nicely to stop because
he is just trying to be friends. So they went back to playing and having fun but after a while she
comes over and hides behind me and Koda tells me:
Shes hiding from me and doesnt want to play anymore, and I dont know why.
When I asked her why she tells me, I dont want to play with him because I watched him
give another girl a hug and he kissed her on the cheek, then he came over to me and tried to give
me a hug and I dont want him to kiss me on the cheek!
Right as she is telling me this, he snuck up behind me and snuck a kiss right on my
cheek. Then he bursts out laughing and starts jumping all over me. So I calmed him down and
said, OK buddy thats enough of that! Now I dont have a problem with the occasional hug, but
you cant kiss me at all ok. That isnt ok. Also remember how we talked about how you should
not hug Alazae so much because she doesnt like it? He nodded his head and I continued. Well
the same goes for kissing. She is too young to be kissing boys and she doesnt want to either so
lets keep our distance or her Uncle is gonna get ya!
He laughed a bit and then hesitantly he and Alazae returned to playing. Later that night
after the service learning was over, I was talking to my niece Alazae, and I asked her if she had
fun playing with Koda all day long. She said, Yeah I had a little fun but the whole time I was
just worried about it.
So I asked, Why Alazae? Was Koda ever trying to hurt you today?
She said, No, I was just worried that he would try to hug me or kiss me and that I would
catch Downs syndrome.

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In that moment I realized that she really had no idea about Downs syndrome or any other
form of disability or that you couldnt just catch something like that. I also thought that this must
be why all the kids are mean to kids with disabilities. They dont know how to treat them
because they never really understand them when they are young and learn that they can be
friends with them and not catch whatever disorder or disability that they have. Alazae and I had a
long discussion, and I told her why he acted the way he did and explained that he was born with
Downs syndrome and that you cant actually catch it. You are just born with it.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.highhopesforkids.org/siteimages/Preschool
%252520Page%252520Adeline%252520and%252520Bennett
This is a picture of a girl who is playing with another child who doesnt seem to care that
he is in a wheelchair and physically disabled. She likes him anyway. The picture was taken at
High Hopes for Kids, an organization that pushes for all kids to play together. Just like I had tried
to bring my niece and Koda together.
Bullying has always been a problem and we have always had the need for it to be
eradicated. Many times the victims of bullies are those in the special education programs. Kids
with special needs often have a lower social standing which leads to them getting bullied.
According to Nancy Murphy chair of the AAP council special needs kids are often more

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vulnerable to bullying because they already have self-esteem issues and with their heavy desire
to fit in they are less likely to stand up for themselves (Stevens and Villano.) Since all children,
under FAPE, are entitled to a Free and Appropriate Public Education; kids with learning
disabilities should have their teachers and parents clearly define bullying to them so that they can
notify someone if it is taking place towards them or another. This is because they can often find it
difficult to know when bullying is taking place because they may not know what it is (HRSA).
After my day with Koda and Alazae, I contemplated ways that all children could learn
about other kids that have disabilities and know that they can be friends with them and not
exclude them because they are scared of them. I believe that there should be more inclusion
preschool programs that introduce regular education kids to special education kids at a younger
age so that both sets of kids can benefit from being in a safe environment where they can learn
together and realize that they are all just kids and nothing more. The Take Part organization
published an article saying, Children with disabilities are often ostracized from their peers.
Inclusion in the classroom helps prevent this from happening (Romo.) Vanessa Romo goes on in
her article to talk about how including special education kids in the general education classroom
helps educate both sets of kids because it challenges both sides to work as one. Just as depicted
in the picture below.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.spannj.org/njiccp_resourceguide/

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There is an inclusive preschool program at Jordan Valley School that just this year went
from two classes of about 8 kids to 3 classes of about 10 kids. That is almost double the amount
of students. The thing that makes inclusive preschools so successful is that they all have one
special education teacher and one general education teacher that work together with the help of
paraprofessionals to meet the goals and expectations of all the kids learning potential (Parker.)
Inclusion preschools are issued for kids when all three needs of a three part rationale are met
which include: regular education curriculum and access to a typically developing peer group that
will provide learning opportunities that do not exist in special education classes containing only
children with disabilities, children with disabilities receive a free, appropriate education in
settings that are typical and that include same-aged peers in the Least Restrictive Environment,
and finally many individuals see the inclusion of a child in a center or class in his or her
community or neighborhood as the most appropriate and ethical placement, given that it meets
the child's and family's needs (Odom). Below is a picture of neighborhood kids all playing
together, disabled and non-disabled.

http://www.google.com/imgresimgurl=http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/nwitimes.c
om/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/e2/6e205bb9

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There arent very many inclusionary preschools in America. The number is increasing
and I believe that this is wonderful because then more and more kids can learn that all kids are
equal and that no kid is unworthy of friendship. The kids may not see it this way, but kids that
young dont have to. All they need to know is that there is no reason to be scared of someone
who is in a wheelchair, or looks different from them, or even acts different from them. At such a
young age they can be friends with anyone and if they are introduced to each other at this age
then they will be more willing to befriend people of that nature later in life as well because they
will understand them and want to be friends with them. We should push for equality of
disabilities just as we do gender and race. The best way to do this is to do it while they are young
and if we do this then future generations will have lower rates of segregation and more tolerance
towards disabled people and children.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://includemepa.org/

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Works Cited:
"Bullying Among Children and Youth with Disabilities and Special Needs." Bullying Among
Children and Youth with Disabilities and Special Needs. Ed. HRSA. HRSA, n.d. Web. 20
Apr. 2015.
Odom, Samuel. "Johns Hopkins University School of Education Inclusion at the Preschool
Level: An Ecological Systems Analysis." Johns Hopkins University School of Education
Inclusion at the Preschool Level: An Ecological Systems Analysis. N.P., n.d. Web. 20
Apr. 2015.
Parker, Alice. "What Is Inclusive Preschool Education?" What Is Inclusive Preschool Education?
N.P., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.
Romo, Vanessa. "Why Mixing Students With and Without Special Needs Is a Good Idea."
TakePart. n.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.
Stevens, Deborah, and Matt Villano. "The Targets: Why Children with Special Needs Are
Frequent Targets." The Targets: Why Children with Special Needs Are Frequent Targets.
N.P., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.

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