Strategy Instruction for Middle and Secondary Students with Mild Disabilities: Creating Independent Learners

Teach your students learning strategies that will last a lifetime!

The pressure is on special and general education teachers alike. If we′re to ensure that adolescents with mild disabilities achieve the very same gains as their peers, we must first teach them how to learn. Here′s a one-stop guide for getting started, pairing the very best instructional methods with assessments and IEP goals so all students can be independent learners.

Driven by research, this indispensible resource features:

• Evidence-based strategies for teaching vocabulary, reading, written language, math, and science, as well as study skills, textbook skills, and self-regulation
• Clear presentation that describes strategies in context
• Informal assessments for every content area or skill addressed
• Case studies that link assessment results, IEP goals, and learning strategies 
• Application activities with questions and suggested responses

Whether you teach in an inclusive, resource, or self-contained setting, there′s no better guide for teaching your students learning strategies that will last a lifetime.

"This is a rare find―a book for practitioners that actually stays on task throughout and provides an abundance of teaching strategies. As a veteran of the classroom, it is nice to find strategies that are useful and can be readily implemented."
―Sally Jeanne Coghlan, Special Education Teacher
Rio Linda Preparatory Academy, Rio Linda CA

"I really like this comprehensive resource of strategies. I felt the book was written for people like me, struggling to do the very best for my students to make their time in school truly of benefit."
―Cheryl Moss, Special Education Teacher
Gilbert Middle School, Gilbert, IA

Greg Conderman is full professor of special education at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois, where he teaches methods and collaboration courses for elementary education, secondary education, and special education majors. He was a middle and high school special education teacher and special education consultant for 10 years before entering higher education. He has authored over 70 articles on instructional methods and collaboration, which have been published in special education and general education journals. He is a frequent presenter at local, state, and national conferences. He has also received numerous teaching awards for excellence in instruction at the college level

Laura Hedin is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Special and Early Education at Northern Illinois University. She teaches instructional methods courses including reading methods in both the graduate and undergraduate special education certification programs. Her research interests include reading in the content areas for intermediate and secondary students with disabilities as well as teacher preparation and co-teaching.

Val Bresnahan is an adjunct instructor of special education at Northern Illinois University, where she teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in learning disabilities and inclusion. Bresnahan has taught elementary, middle, and high school students in special and inclusionary environments, and she has been a learning facilitator and a speech-language pathologist. In addition to teaching college courses, she is a middle school co-teacher in language arts and social studies in a central Illinois suburb. She has authored books and articles on vocabulary instruction and co-teaching and is a frequently invited presenter on reading and language skills.