Inclusive Schools Week

Inclusive Schools Week | ISN

Inclusive Schools Week 2012
December 3-7, 2012

Thank you for all of your support in making Inclusive Schools Week 2011 a success. Please mark your calendars for the December 3-7, 2012 event.

Our theme for the 2012 Inclusive Schools Week is Social Inclusion: More than a Seat in the Class! Click here to read more about our theme.

Inclusive Schools Week and Inclusive Schools Network products are available all year! Order your pencils, mugs, pens and other products that support inclusive schools here. Learn how to use the products to enhance your celebration week lessons on our Product Activities page!

About Inclusive Schools Week

Inclusive Schools Week is an annual event sponsored by the Inclusive Schools Network (ISN) and Stetson & Associates, Inc., which is held each year during the first week in December. Since its inception in 2001, Inclusive Schools Week has celebrated the progress that schools have made in providing a supportive and quality education to an increasingly diverse student population, including students who are marginalized due to disability, gender, socio-economic status, cultural heritage, language preference and other factors. The Week also provides an important opportunity for educators, students and parents to discuss what else needs to be done in order to ensure that their schools continue to improve their ability to successfully educate all children.

How to Celebrate

You care about the dignity of all children—those with disabilities and those from diverse backgrounds—and you know that your school and community can do a better job of meeting their needs through the use of inclusive educational practices. We encourage you to take the lead in coordinating Inclusive Schools Week in your school, school district, or community. Thousands of individuals—teachers, family members, and schools administrators—local, state, and national organizations and advocacy groups, and entire school districts have enthusiastically stepped up to this task—and have found this experience to be extremely rewarding in terms of its impact on children and youth.

Here are some of the free Inclusive Schools Network materials that schools and communities used in planning past Celebrations, and that you can use to promote awareness about the importance of inclusive education year-round in your own school and community:

Featured Activity 1: “Why We Teach”

Audience: Faculty

This activity is a small group discussion that reconnects the participants to the reasons for teaching and the characteristics of effective teachers. The facilitator concludes by debriefing the last two questions on the participant form for the whole group.

Facilitator Guide
Facilitator Presentation (PPT and PDF)
Participant Materials

Featured Activity #2: “The Word Wall and the Rock”

Audience: Faculty

This activity involves group brainstorming and individual selection of the most meaningful word or words to serve as a paperweight. This rock paperweight will remind each participant of their commitment to support all learners.

Facilitator Guide
Facilitator Presentation (PPT and PDF)

Featured Activity #3: Project UNIFY “Get Into It” Curriculum

Audience: Students

Special Olympics Get Into It consists of online resources that include lessons, activities, videos, athlete stories and supplemental materials. At the core of Get Into It are age-appropriate lessons designed to be taught in the context of class periods. Activities with ties to service learning are completed in a classroom or community setting, as part of a club, an afterschool activity or a community based event and include involvement with local Special Olympics Programs whenever possible.

https://getintoit.specialolympics.org/

Featured Activity #4: “Inclusive Schools Week Slideshow”

Audience: Students

Ask students to create Inclusive Schools Week cards or artwork including reasons why they like being part of an inclusive school. Create a slideshow of the students’ designs using Animoto or Photopeach to show your school’s commitment to inclusive education. Post the slideshow on your school website. Share your video with the Inclusive Schools Network!

Partnership with

Unified Theater has created a free week-long production plan for schools to celebrate Inclusive Schools Week. The production is designed for middle and high school students with and without disabilities (grades 4-12 and transitional) around an "Inclusion Out Loud" theme, allowing students to celebrate and explore inclusion through performance. They've made it simple for you and your students to implement with script prompts, simple costume ideas, student leader roles, and a pre-choreographed song and dance to "We're Unified". Productions are designed to be implemented in just four 60-90 minute rehearsals (Monday-Thursday) and a Friday performance. Get ready to celebrate inclusion and "put the spotlight on ability" with Unified Theater!

Access the production website http://outloud.unifiedtheater.org or for more information about Unified Theater beyond Inclusive Schools Week email:contactus@unifiedtheater.org. You can also register for free on the website's home page.

Find out more about what Unified Theater is all about at www.unifiedtheater.org or follow them @unifiedtheater on twitter.