My Supports

As I made my way through high school, college, my job teaching, and my masters now, I have learned a lot about what I need to be successful and accomplish tasks. I am a big picture person - I need to see where I'm going and what my destination is/where I will end up. I need to be reminded of things. I need to be organized, as well as organize my thoughts. I need visuals, details, steps, and examples to show me how to do things or what something should look like. I need practice, and a teacher or guidance through learning a task in order to truly understand it and master it to the point where I can become comfortably independent. I believe all of these things are extremely beneficial to me because they help me stay organized and on top of things, and they help me understand better and become independent. If I did not have these things I would be frustrated, overwhelmed, and definitely unable to complete certain tasks, learn new things or accomplish goals that I set for myself.

Throughout my day I have various supports that I need -
1. My phone (gives me reminders and schedules,contact with another support system)
2. A teacher binder ( filled with schedules, reminders, important papers)
3. Write things down (to make lists, important reminders/things, to understand, organize my thoughts, or remember the steps that it takes to do something.)
4. Pictures/Visuals (to show me what something should look like or how it should be set up.
5. Examples (to help m understand how something should look, sound or the way in which I should do it)
6. Step by Step Directions (to help me understand the order I should take to complete a task or do something)
7. Details (to give specifics of whatever it is I am doing, completing, etc.)
8. Organizers (to help me organize my thoughts and see the big picture,and to set goals)
9. Practice (I need to practice doing things myself and sometimes with step by step guidance in order to really understand or master the task.)
10. My Family and Friends (to help guide me, boost my confidence, understand or show empathy, help me problem solve, and love me no matter what.)

Challenge - Learning Disability in Math
The supports I would need -
1. A teacher and caregivers who show love and care, and have a lot of patience and understanding.
2. Peers who are willing to help and guide me as well.
3. Learn different ways/strategies to get the same answer, a way that works for me.
4. Practice of the skills over and over, drilling the skills and using strategies
5. Step by Step Examples - I need to be shown how to do it, step by step
6. Visuals or Cues - Reminders of how to do something, specific details or steps I need to take to complete the task or remember when I'm practicing the skills.
7. Manipulatives/Tools - to work with and manipulate in order to understand it better.
8. Write it down - I  need to write things down in order to remember what steps to take to solve the problem or how to complete it.
9. Details - Include specifics and reasoning as to what I'm doing and why
10. Low amount of pressure to understand the task/skill. Not rushing, and knowing that I can continue to work at my own pace.
11. The understanding that  it may take me longer than my peers or others to understand or master the skills.

I believe that all of these things will be important for me to learn, understand, practice and master the skills and work/accommodate my learning disability in math. I believe that all of these things are tailored to my needs, and by fitting my needs, it sets me up for success, and for gaining a better understanding in order to become independent in my math skills. I believe that without these supports, I will become frustrated, shut down, and/or lose hope that I can learn the skills/strategies I need in order to understand and complete math independently. I would probably, for the rest of my life, tell myself I hate math, not want to put any effort towards learning any more math, and become withdrawn. I think it would also have a negative impact on my self-esteem and self-worth, because I would feel like I am unable to achieve certain things or set goals and accomplish them. I would eventually be completely turned off from math altogether, thus always failing math or scoring poorly on math assessments. Also, because of the lowered self esteem, I may not feel that I have the ability to grow up and be who I want to be, or have the career that I dream of having. Overall, having these supports truly is the foundation and the start of gaining a positive aspect on life and a positive perspective of yourself; without these supports, I believe it would be very difficult to have any positive feelings and aspirations, or continue to go on as if things were different. I believe putting these tailored supports into place will help me succeed and understand that even if I do not become a "math whiz" that I still have strengths and areas that I am successful in, and that I can, with the support, continue to learn and grow.