Last Update 6-5-04

PACEC Family Resource Center

Welcome

Welcome to the Pennsylvania Federation Council for Exceptional Children's Family Resource Center. It is our hope that through this vehicle we will be able to offer information and resources of interest to the families of children and youth with exceptionalities.

Everyone is welcome to submit news and other interesting items for inclusion here. All you need to do is e-mail it to the Webmaster for consideration. Or, you can even use good-old snail-mail if you prefer. When ground-mailing items, we ask you to do so on disk along with a paper copy. Don't forget to note the program, version, and filename under which your file has been saved (IBM compatible only, please).

After viewing the resources on this page we invite you to take some time and explore the entire system. You never know, you might find something great where you least expect it. You especially will want to visit the subdivision pages for information specific to each exceptionality, the Legislative Update page to keep up on what's happening in Washington and Harrisburg, and the Connections page where you'll find hundreds of links to other websites of interst. Come often as our goal is to update frequently. We hope your visit is helpful and informative. Enjoy!

Procedural Safeguards

A Step-by-Step Explanation in Non-Legalese

Carol Eisenbise, PACEC Treasurer and Supervisor of Special Education in Colonial IU #20 has compiled an explanation of the Procedural Safeguards you have received so often - in plain language. She has received numerous positive comments from parents of her students, so we've asked her to share it here. Click here to read it.

A Parent's Creed

Shared at the recent PACEC convention in November, an important view from a parent who has a child with a disability, "A PARENT'S CREED" could easily apply to all parents, family members, caregivers and teachers of children, young adults and adults with disabilities. Please read and share!

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

How Does it Affect You?

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was first enacted by Congress in 1975 as a way of guaranteeing the rights of children and youth with exceptionalities in the educational arena. Subsequently modified twice more before the current version was signed by President Clinton on June 4, 1997, IDEA covers a range of issues, the most important of which is the guarantee to a free and appropriate education in the least restrictive environment appropriate for the student. It sets forth the procedures to be followed in identifying which children would qualify for services, how those services are to be implemented, and who is to be involved in the provision of such services.

PL 105-17, the current version of IDEA commonly called IDEA-97 is quite lengthy, and at this time the US Department of Education is still rewriting the regulations which states use to enforce the provisions of IDEA. Final regulations are expected sometime this fall, however schools are responsible for meeting the law, regardless of whether regulations have been approved, so children are still protected. The full text of IDEA-97 is available here, as is a summary of the changes in the law.

For more information on IDEA-97 and your rights, contact your local school district's Superintendent, or the Supervisor of Special Education. Request a copy of the Notice of Parents Rights.

Special Education Programs for Children
with Special Needs

Pennsylvania has long been at the forefront of educating children with special needs. State regulations guarding the educational rights of children with exceptionalities have long exceeded the minimums set by the federal government. As far back as the early 1960's Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Learning Colleges had departments specifically tailored to training special education teachers. Following this tradition, in 1991 the state made a radical departure from the types of programs offered to children and youth with exceptionalities. Gone were Learning Disabled, Mentally Retarded, and Behavior Disorded classrooms. Instead the system changed to one in which the exceptionality was deemphasized and the supports needed were stressed. We now have support classes in which a child gets the support he or she need to learn, regardless of his or her label.

To learn more about the state system of Support Classes, click here.

Support Classes
School districts in Pennsylvania, either directly or through various other education agencies including the states 29 Intermediate Units, provide special education services which may be required by children with special needs.

Difficult Teens - Suggestions for Parents

Teen Crisis Foundation is offering Parents the following FREE Booklets -

"DIFFICULT TEENS- SUGGESTIONS FOR PARENTS" http://www.summit-systems.net/teencrisis/

"TEEN DRUG USE- 34 WARNING SIGNS" http://www.summit-systems.net/teencrisis/warningsigns.html

Or Contact Us At: Teen Crisis Foundation Phone # 242-394-6668 extension 3041 P.O. Box N-1836, Suite # A-175 Nassau, Bahamas

Kids Pick Best of the Web

The American Library Association has issued the results of their "Kids Pick Best of the Web" project. The ALA asked kids to nominate their favorite Web sites for fun and learning. Not surprisingly Nickelodeon, Disney, and GeoCities ranks at the top of their list. To see more, visit the American Library Association news release.

Related Sites of Interest

We've searched the Web to come up with interesting and informative sites of interest to families of children with special needs. You can visit hundreds of other sites from our Related Sites pages.

Go to the Main Related Sites page.
Go to the Family Resources Related Sites.

DISABILITIES BIBLIOGRAPHY LIST OF CHILDREN’S BOOKS

Lisa Dennis, Coordinator of Juvenile Collections for the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, provided Norman Brown the following list of children’s books that deal with the people with disabilities.  This can be used as a resource for parents and teachers.  

Visual Impairments 

Fraustino, Lisa Rowe. The Hickory Chair. Illustrated by Benny Andrews. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2001.

Hermann, Spring. Seeing Lessons: The Story of Abigail Carter and America’s First School for Blind People. Illustrated by Ib Ohlsson. New York: Henry Holt, 1998.

Karim, Roberta. Mandy Sue Day. Illustrated by Karen Ritz.  New York: Clarion Books, c1994.

Litchfield, Ada Bassett. Words in Our Hands. Illustrations by Helen Cogancherry. Chicago: Albert Whitman, 1980.

MacLachlan, Patricia. Through Grandpa’s Eyes. Illustrated by Deborah Ray. New York: Harper & Row, c1980.

Martin, Bill. Knots On a Counting Rope. Illustrated by Ted Rand. New York: Henry Holt, c1987.

Hearing Impairments

Lakin, Pat. Dad and Me in the Morning. Illustrated by Robert G. Steele. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman, 1994.

Millman, Isaac. Moses Goes to a Concert. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998.

Millman, Isaac. Moses Goes to School. New York: Frances Foster Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000.

Learning Disabilities

Daly, Niki. Once Upon a Time. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2003.

Paterson, Katherine. Marvin One Too Many. Illustrated by Jane Clark  Brown. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2001.

Polacco, Patricia. Thank You, Mr. Falker. New York: Philomel Books, c1998.

Senisi, Ellen B.  Just Kids: Visiting a Class for Children with Special Needs. New York: Dutton Children’s Books, c1998.

Mental Challenges

Carter, Alden R. Big Brother Dustin. Photographs by Dan Young and Carol Carter. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman & Co., 1997.

Fleming, Virginia M. Be Good to Eddie Lee. Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. New York: Philomel Books, c1993.

Gifaldi, David. Ben, King of the River. Illustrated by Layne Johnson. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman & Co., 2001.

Rickert, Janet Elizabeth. Russ and the Almost Perfect Day. Photographs by Pete McGahan.  Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, c2000.

Shriver, Maria. What’s Wrong with Timmy? Illustrated by Sandra Speidel. Boston: Warner Books/Little, Brown, 2001.

Stuve-Bodeen, Stephanie. We’ll Paint the Octopus Red. Illustrated by Pam DeVito.  Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, 1998.

Physical Challenges

Avi. Prairie School. Illustrated by Bill Farnsworth. New York:  HarperCollins, c2001.

Caseley, Judith. Harry and Willy and Carrothead. New York: Greenwillow Books, c1991.

Harshman, Marc. The Storm. Illustrated by Mark Mohr. New York: Cobblehill Books/Dutton, c1995.

Osofsky, Audrey. My Buddy. Illustrated by Ted Rand. New York: Henry Holt, c1992.