Week 6

Yuting is now 13 years old and is in Jr. High school.  She does well academically and especially enjoys English because of her love of reading, and has been put in advanced classes because of her high aptitude.  Yuting is very involved in extra-curricular activities and really enjoys playing on the softball team after school and being a part of the yearbook club.  However, some girls in school have recently been picking on Yuting because she has two dads; they make fun of her for being different.  Because of the bullying Yuting has become depressed and is missing school frequently claiming to be sick. This has not helped her math grade, and, in spite of time with a special education resource teacher, she seems to be falling further behind the other students.

* How should Yuting deal with be bullied?

* What is the parents' responsibility in this situation? Both the parents of the student(s) being bullied and the parents of the bully? Evaluate the extent to which Yuting's problem with bullies is an "inside of school" problem versus an "outside of the school" problem.
 

* How common is depression common in adolescents?  


* What steps should be taken to support Yuting regarding her difficulties in math?

Week 5

Yuting is now 9 years of age. 

* Write a narrative “interview” in which you communicate with Yuting in an effort to get to know her.

* Write a narrative “interview” in which you talk with Yuting’s parents about her.

* Who is Yuting? What kind of child is she? What might someone expect upon meeting her for the first time? Base Yuting’s imagined personality on what you know about she and her family so far.

Week 4

Yuting is now 7 years of age and is in the 2^nd grade. She and her family live in a small city which is fairly diverse, and there are several other families who have adopted with whom Ron and Tom are friends. Ron is 3^rd generation Chinese, and Tom’s family background is Irish with some German in the distant past. Tom and Ron have found a way to have many close friends who often stop by the house – Tom is old enough to remember growing up in the Irish borough when everyone lived in rowhouses. It seemed like there was always family around, and Tom and his grandfather used to walk everywhere. Tom is thrilled that he’s been able to create some of that again, this time with friends and non-familial loved ones. Tom’s parents are both deceased, and Ron’s parents live in a distant state. Tom and Ron met in college when Tom was studying to gain his doctorate in English, and Ron was finishing up his Master’s degree in Computer Science. Tom teaches at a local community college, and Ron works for a local software company. Ron’s work is flexible, and he is able to flex his time in such a way that one of them is able to be home when Yuting comes home from school. 

Yuting has grown into a beautiful little girl. Tom and Ron always made sure to read to her, and now Yuting has a wonderful command of language, both written and spoken. They can’t make sense of it, however – she really seems to struggle in math. In fact, she sometimes has to go to the office during math class because she gets so upset. Tom and Ron have been talking with the school about what to do.

* What is the first step of the process of attempting to help Yuting in math? What kind of meeting ought to happen?

* Describe typical developmental milestones for a 7 year-old.

* What kind of math should Yuting be able to do? Simple addition? Multiplication? Be as specific as possible.

* What might be the outcomes of the meeting described in the first question?

* Describe how the process of special education might unfold if Yuting is found to have a learning disability in math. How would such a finding occur?