My cousin recently moved to the City of skyscrapers, aka New York City with her family. Her younger son has special needs, so she did her research and within two weeks she got her son enrolled in her preferred school in NYC. Learning through her experience, I realized how important this process is. Hence, after discussing the process with her, I am going to discuss with you five kinds of trainers and therapists a good special education school must have.
Psychologists
School psychologists play a vital role in special education schools. They need to cater to individual concerns of the students, as some may suffer from developmental delays while others may have other types of special needs. They need to diagnose any kind of mental, emotional and development problems, guide, motivate the students and hold regular consultations with their student’s parents.
Music Therapists
Music therapy has proved to be highly effective within special education. It helps all students with their varied special needs. In NYC special education schools, music therapists are responsible for a lot of tasks. Music therapy programs usually involve singing, listening to music, creating music, playing various musical instruments, etc. It can help students facilitate movements, building up confidence, develop a way of expressing their feelings and communicate better with their peers.
Speech Pathologists
Most special education schools in NYC have speech language pathologists who work alongside the other teachers to facilitate the development of speech in children. They evaluate the students through a series of tests. They prepare IEP, i.e. Individual Education Plans for each student owing to different needs. Once a plan has been put in place, therapy is provided accordingly.
Physical Therapists
licensed therapists who specialize in dealing with the school students play an important role within special needs educational programs. They assist the students to adapt to the school environment and develop their motor skills. All the evaluations and therapies are done only after consent is received from the parents. They also help in developing IEP’s to help provide children with personalized activities.
Adaptive Physical Education Teacher
An adaptive physical education teacher has the responsibility of adapting “regular” physical games and activities in a way that can be useful for children with special needs. Often, they need to create games and activities that are individually catering to the needs of each child. Since the disability differs from child to child, the games have to be accordingly created for them. They help the students to develop cardiovascular strength, motor development, etc.
Special Needs School NYC 