Updated, January 2011
Looking for information, resources, and technical assistance (TA) to help you and others support children with disabilities in their least restrictive environment in school? Here’s a starter list of places to look online. These will surely lead you to more.
The resources below are excepted from:
Building the Capacity of Educators to Provide High Quality Services to Students with Disabilities in General Education Settings [1], with additional resources included by NICHCY.
________________________
Quick-jump links
- Reflecting on the meaning of LRE
- Availability of accessible materials
- Building instructional capacity and skill of educators
- Federally funded TA centers
- LRE materials from individual states
________________________
Reflecting on the Meaning of LRE
Questions and Answers on the LRE Requirements of the IDEA —
U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS)
http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/lre.osers.memo.idea.htm
Inclusion, Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), Mainstreaming —
http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/lre.index.htm
Availability of Accessible Materials
National Center on Accessible Instructional Materials —
http://aim.cast.org/
Bookshare.
http://www.bookshare.org/
Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic —
http://www.rfbd.org/
How to develop state guidelines for access assistants: Scribes, readers, and sign language interpreters —
http://education.umn.edu/nceo/OnlinePubs/AccessAssistantsManual.html
Universal design of assessments (Online manual)—
http://education.umn.edu/nceo/UDmanual/default.html
Academic enhancements and differentiated instruction—
www.ideapartnership.org/rkr2.cfm?rkrpageid=9
Building Instructional Capacity and Skill of Educators
OESE Center on Instruction—
www.centeroninstruction.org/
National Center on Universal Design for Learning—
http://www.udlcenter.org/
IRIS Center for Training Enhancements—
Online professional development modules on a wide range of “how-to” practices that support inclusion of students with disabilities, such as accommodations, assessment, progress monitoring, behavior, differentiated instruction, and much more—
http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/resources.html
Creating an inclusive school environment: A model for school leaders—
http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/inc/chalcycle.htm
Supports, Modifications, and Accommodations for Students —
http://www.nichcy.org/schoolage/accommodations/
Accommodations and strategies for different disbilities —
Info on what types of accommodations are appropriate for specific disabilities, namely: Autism | Mental Retardation | Learning Disability | Other Health Impaired | Emotionally Disturbed | Visually Impaired | Hearing Impaired | Orthopedically Impaired
http://akuehnel3.tripod.com/index.html
Teaching students with disabilities—
This was the Special Focus for two months running of NICHCY’s eNewsletter. Check out the issues for August and September 2010.
http://www.nichcy.org/newsletters
Progress Monitoring Tools Chart.
http://www.rti4success.org/tools_charts/progress.php
FAQs: Curriculum-based measurement in math—
http://www.studentprogress.org/progressmonitoring_math_faq.asp
FAQs: Curriculum-based measurement in reading—
http://www.studentprogress.org/faq.asp
Preparing educators to teach students with disabilities in an era of standards-based reform and accountability—
http://www.cehd.umn.edu/NCEO/OnlinePubs/eprri/EPRRITR5.pdf
Inclusive schooling (Professional Learning Module)—
http://www.urbanschools.org/professional/mod_3.html
Federally funded TA Centers
OSEP’s TA&D Network —
TA&D focuses on improving outcomes for students with disabilities by building capacity in the educational system
http://www.tadnet.org
OESE’s Comprehensive Center Network —
http://www.macc.ceee.gwu.edu/TAproviders/RCC
LRE Part B Community of Practice —
http://www.tacommunities.org/community/view/id/1027
Reading Rockets—
www.readingrockets.org
National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center—
http://www.nectac.org
Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)—
http://www.pbis.org
Family Center on Technology and Disability
http://www.fctd.info
Center for Implementing Technology in Education (CITEd)—
http://www.cited.org
LRE Materials from Individual States
Even if you don’t live in the States making these resources available, you’ll find good guidance about LRE decision making in all of the materials below.
Technical Assistance Matrix— A database of TA activities, with descriptions of TA activities across States —
http://matrix2.rrfcnetwork.org/
AK | Alaska | Adapting Teaching Techniques to Meet Individual Needs
http://www.eed.state.ak.us/ELearning/Adapting.html
AZ | Arizona | 100 General Accommodations
http://www.azed.gov/wp-content/uploads/PDF/SE20.pdf
CA | California | LRE Resources Project —
http://www.wested.org/cs/we/view/pj/204
CA | California | Information on LRE —
http://www.disabilityrightsca.org/pubs/504001Ch07.pdf
CA | California | Implementation of programs and services for students with disabilities in the LRE —
http://www.calstat.org/lremessages.html
CT | Connecticut | Least Restrictive Environment Initiative
http://www.ctserc.org/s/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=45:lre&Itemid=110
DE | Delaware | Guidelines for Inclusion
http://www.doe.k12.de.us/aab/Report_and_documents/Special_Populations.shtml
DE | Delaware | Accessible Instructional Materials
http://www.doe.k12.de.us/infosuites/students_family/specialed/aim.shtml
FL | Florida | Least Restrictive Environment Considerations Related to Individual Educational Plans
http://www.fldoe.org/ese/pdf/y2000-5.pdf
GA | Georgia | FAQs regarding LRE —
http://public.doe.k12.ga.us/ci_exceptional.aspx?PageReq=CIEXLREFAQ
GA | Georgia | An administrators’ guide to the instruction of students with disabilities in the LRE —
http://public.doe.k12.ga.us/ci_exceptional.aspx?PageReq=CIEXLREAdminGuide
IA | Iowa | Least Restrictive Environment
http://www.iowa.gov/educate/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1605&Itemid=2384
IL | Illinois | LRE Clearinghouse
http://www.isbe.state.il.us/SPEC-ED/html/lre.htm
KS | Kansas |Least Restrictive Environment
http://www.ksde.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=wlJCmT3jcvg%3d&tabid=3757&mid=9192
KY | Kentucky | Kentucky Accessible Materials Database
http://www.education.ky.gov/KDE/Instructional+Resources/Exceptional+Children/Kentucky+Accessible+Materials+Database+(KAMD)/
LA | Louisiana | Standards for Building Inclusive Schools
http://www.doe.state.la.us/lde/eia/2410.html
LA | Louisiana | Access Guide: Locate Strategies, Accommodations, and Technologies for the LA Comprehensive Curriculum
http://accessguide.doe.louisiana.gov/default.aspx
ME | Maine | Least Restrictive Environment
An entire page full of materials and resources for educators.
http://www.maine.gov/education/speced/tools/b5lre/index.html
MN | Minnesota | Special Education in the Classroom
http://education.state.mn.us/MDE/EdExc/SpecEdClass/index.html
MT | Montana | Best Practices for Instruction
Lots and lots of resources!
http://www.opi.mt.gov/Programs/SpecialEd/Index.html#gpm1_11
NC | North Carolina | Lots of instructional support materials.
At the link below, you’ll see a menu of choices to the left. You’ll find lots of support for educating students with specific disabilities (LD, autism, behavior problems, intellectual disabilities) under “Instructional Support and Related Services,” and “Program Improvement and Professional Development.”
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/ec/
NE | Nebraska | Assessment and Instruction of Students with Disabilities
http://www.education.ne.gov/sped/assessment.html
NJ | Placement in the LRE —
http://www.state.nj.us/education/specialed/lre/lre2.htm
NJ | Developing an IEP for Educating Students with Disabilities in the Least Restrictive Environment —
http://www.spannj.org/START/DevelopinganIEPfortheLRE5-21and28-2008.pdf
NV | Nevada | Instructional and Assessment Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
http://nde.doe.nv.gov/SpecialEdResources/instruct_assess%20accomm.pdf
OH | Ohio | Preschool Special Education: Least Restrictive Environment
http://tinyurl.com/28mx6wp
WV | West Virginia | Educating students with disabilities in the LRE
http://wcteachers.org/sped/SE_LRE.pdf
Back to top
________________
[1] Developed by the Facilitator Team for the LRE Part B Community of Practice, based on a review of research and literature, as well as on the team’s experience in providing technical assistance.
PDF 
