The presentation was very interesting. It was amazing to hear Barb's story and actually experience what she was thinking. Often times people who have autism and nonverbal are such a mystery to others. I have heard many people say, as well as myself, "I wish I could get in their head and see what they see and think the way they think." The fact that Barb wrote a book and allowed us to enter inside her mind is amazing. When Barb talked about admiring the condensation on the side of a bottle to me was wonderful. It makes you learn to look at things differently and not take things for granted like we do every day. I like very much how Barb and Lois talked about how autism is just a different neurological way of thinking. Many people hear the word autism and think, "Oh that poor thing. That has to be so hard for them and their family." This is the wrong way to look at autism. People with autism are capable of achieving great success, Barb and Temple being great examples of achievement. When I graduate I would actually love to work with kids with autism. I have been looking into grad schools for ABA certification. I have worked with people 'with different neurological ways of thinking" for a few years and absolutely love it I am actually very excited because I just got a job at Breakthrough (an organization that works with adults with autism) here in Knoxville. I think that people need to open their mind up when it comes to people with autism or other disabilities. People who are close minded to this group of wonderful people are only harming themselves. I encourage everyone to work with a person with disabilities, they will make you see the world in a whole new light. I was fortunate to see Temple Grandin a few weeks ago and seeing Barb today was a wonderful treat. It is fascinating to think that she wrote the book even though it took her ten years to complete. Many people would have given up. I believe that Barb has accomplished more in her life then some people who are considered "normal" ever will in their life. I hope that all the soon to be teachers in room today took to heart what Barb and Lois had to say and hope that everyone will take a second and try to see the world from a different perspective at least once a day. 

Today in the discussion I learned the idea of a "model minority". Prior to today I had never heard of that term before. I knew the stereotypes that Asian Americans fall under but did not think of it as a model structure that we as educators almost push on these students. My thoughts about this were more based on the idea of the cultural back grounds of the different ethnic and socioeconomic groups. I strongly believe that many teachers follow stereotypes about their students because of the heavy undertones of society. I know that in the article my group read about multiculturalism and racism, it discussed the idea that the educational systems and processes continue to promote racism, sexism, and classism in the schools and in society. I am a strong believer that as educators and adults working with young impressionable minds, it is our responsibility to model tolerance of every individual. If we are aware of the issues of racism, sexism, and classism within the structure of society and fail to address the issue and model behavior that combats these problems, then we have robbed the students a chance to shape their future in a more positive light. 

I like how the forum articles linked together in a relevant way. I think that all the issues discussed today in class build off one another. I do not think one issue has stronger ties to educational issues more than any other. These issues have been always been present in society which transfers into the schools. Personally, I grew up without a real religious presence in the home. My parents are religious but never pushed the matter on me and my brother. Even though I went to public schools, it seemed that all my classmates were extremely religious to the point that I felt like an outcast because of my views on the institution of religion. I cannot count how many times people told me that I was going to hell because I did not have a religion. Which I always responded with, "You have to believe in God to believe in the devil and considering I do not then I am not too worried," or when I was not in the best mood, "I'll see you there." It was strange to me because in my first elementary school, an inner city school, actually promoted the tolerance of different cultures. Then I moved into the county schools where there was intolerance of any other religion that was not Christianity. I think that it is important that teachers try and promote the tolerance of others. Not only does this build a sense of school community but I also think that is helps reduce the issue of bullying. When students feel that they do not belong within their school then they are not going to want to learn. 

I 

Children who are deaf follow a similar language development as those children who are hearing. That is, if the children have access to language from the start. What do mothers, family, even strangers do to babies when they see them? They talk and talk to the baby even thought they know the baby can't talk back or understands what they are saying. However, this is how children develop language. If a mother or other family members did not talk to the baby from the start then the child would lag behind in language development. The same goes for babies who are deaf. If a baby is deaf what should the mother and family do with the baby from day one? Sign! Start signing to the baby so they do not fall behind. It sounds like an easy thing to do, however, there are several factors that make this difficult like hearing parents and deaf children. Looking at the chart on page 51, there are some things that differ from hearing children and deaf children in terms of language development. In children grades K-2, conversational norms would have to be modeled especially if the deaf student is mainstreamed and if they have hearing parents. Sign language, of course, relies on visual cues to indicate turn taking. For example, putting your hands down to your side or in your lap can indicate that you are finished conversing. Also, ASL does  use -ed or -s to modify words. For ages 3-5, ASL uses would not use the words -the or -a, no pronunciation (unless they were also in speech class), and no use of rhyming words. For 6-8, may have trouble detecting sarcasm because sarcasm is different in ASL and in English. For 9-12, may have a hard time understanding metaphors, proverbs, and hyperboles without formal instruction. If a deaf student is mainstreamed into the a public school, all of the nuances of English are not going to come naturally or through exposure. These things will have to be formally taught or modeled through the interpreter. Children whose first language is English, will be able to learn a lot of the strange nuances of the language through incidental listening where as the deaf student does not have the same luxury. A majority of the English nuances cannot be incidentally learned through the interpreter either. These are things that need to be formally taught in order for the deaf student to understand.