NEW YORK, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- As more students with Down syndrome and other cognitive disabilities become part of typical classrooms, teachers need to know how to better foster the values of diversity, acceptance and inclusion.
That is the driving force behind Everyone Counts: Teaching Acceptance & Inclusion, a new curriculum for grades K-6 developed by the National Down Syndrome Society.
“It is increasingly important to teach students what it means to have a disability, while encouraging positive relationships between students with and without disabilities,” says NDSS President Alan P. Brownstein. “Schools and educators can create the foundation for a future in which all people are seen as valuable, contributing members of our communities.”
The Everyone Counts program kit includes lesson plans and activities for grades K-1, 2-3, and 4-6, handouts, two videos, a poster and booklet about inclusion, teacher guidelines, and a resource list. The flexible materials were developed by a committee of educators and parents to be used during October, which is Down Syndrome Awareness Month and Disability Awareness Month, or any time throughout the year.
The program was piloted earlier this year in 21 classrooms in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Colorado with great success. A teacher who participated in the pilot commented, “This program is an excellent tool to provide sensitivity training for educators, students and the general public.”
A third-grade student who participated in the pilot wrote in a subsequent assignment, “Having a disability means that you can have friends just like other people. It means that someone with a disability can be your best friend. You may not sound the same as some people. But you are just as important as all the other people in the world.”
Everyone Counts: Teaching Acceptance & Inclusion was funded and supported by Patricia and Daniel Flatley and Children, Nickelodeon, The Pequot Capital Foundation, Inc., and Woodbine House, Inc.
For additional information about Everyone Counts and/or to purchase the program kit for $35, please call (800) 221-4602 or visit http://www.ndss.org.
About NDSS
The National Down Syndrome Society is a nonprofit organization with more than 195 affiliates nationwide representing the more than 350,000 Americans who have this genetic condition. NDSS is committed to being the national leader in supporting and enhancing the quality of life, and realizing the potential of all people with Down syndrome. We demonstrate this commitment through our education, research and advocacy initiatives that benefit people with Down syndrome and their families. To learn more about NDSS, visit http://www.ndss.org or call (800) 221-4602.
The National Down Syndrome Society
CONTACT: Suzanne Elliott Armstrong of NDSS, +1-212-763-4370,selliott@ndss.org
Web site: http://www.ndss.org/
