About me

Tiffany Scoco
Dr. Corinne McKamey                     
FNED:346 11 September 2018

About me

I am Tiffany Scoco and my major is special ed. I currently attend Rhode Island College where I am  a sophomore. So far college has been a non stop headache, with all the homework, classwork and tests given in each class. I knew college wouldn't be easy but I didn't think it would be this much work. It's a little overwhelming at times. I have learned the best way to stay on top of your work is to, ask your professor lots of questions and make time to stay after class or see your professor during office hours.
Image result for teaching special educationI have been interested in special education since the eighth grade. I started volunteering in a special needs classroom over the summer of eighth grade and I have gone back every year since. I have over 4,000 hours in total of volunteering. I went to N.A Ferri Middle School in Johnston Rhode Island. When I was in sixth grade I was introduced to a teacher named Mrs. Bagley, she is a special education teacher. She teaches children with autism, down syndrome, brain damage, and more.
One day she invited me into her classroom. I was nervous and didn't know what to expect because I didn’t have experience with anyone who has special needs. Mrs. Bagley started showing me around her room. She then introduced me to this boy named Stephen, she told me that he was working on math and she asked me to sit with him and help him with his math worksheet. So I did, Stephen had a bunch of fake money in front of him to help him answer the questions on his worksheet. I sat and watched Stephen count his money and answer the questions on his worksheet.
After a few minutes of watching Steven do his work he asked me for help. So I looked at the problem he was working on and read it outloud to him, “How many ways can you make a dollar?” So I grabbed a dollar bill and explained to Stephen that we need to use the change to make a dollar. Stephen and I then began making as many dollars as we could using the change. After we finished the worksheet, Stephen gave it to Mrs. Bagley. Stephen then walked over to me, hugged and thanked me for helping him. I was touched that he hugged me.
It was a totally new experience for me being around children with special needs. I immediately fell in love with Mrs. Bagley’s class. Her students were very sweet and a lot of people misjudge children with special needs, I am not one of those people. Mrs. Bagley invited me to come to her class anytime I want. So I took her up on that offer and began visiting her room whenever I had freetime. Once I got to eighth grade Mrs. Bagley told me that her students go to school in the summer and I was invited to come if I wanted. Of course I wanted to, I came the summer of eighth grade and never stopped. I plan on going back every summer until I become a special education teacher myself. Working with children with special needs is the most rewarding job there is, in my opinion. I love working with special needs children. It's not always the easiest job, but it's definitely the most rewarding job. Helping someone learn and grow to their potential is a really nice feeling.

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Comments

  1. UnknownSeptember 12, 2018 at 1:55 PM

    Tiffany, I think your passion for working with individuals with special needs is amazing! It takes a certain type of person who has patience to work in that field. I used to work in a household with six individuals with disabilities and I loved it. I ended up going for my teachers assistant certificate in order to work with children with special needs in their classroom!

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  2. Dr. McKameySeptember 15, 2018 at 4:09 AM

    Thanks for sharing your history/biography about working as an educator and advocate for young people with special needs.

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  3. Alyssa GiammarcoSeptember 16, 2018 at 9:36 AM

    Your passion for working with children with special needs is amazing! I agree with allison that it takes a certain type of person with patience in order to work in that type of field! Wow! You have 4,000 hours of volunteering! That's amazing! Keep up the good work!

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  4. UnknownSeptember 16, 2018 at 5:58 PM

    You are an inspiration to myself and many others. I hope to follow your example and dedicate more of my time to others. I am slowly increasing my hours of volunteering and your heartfelt story really pushed me to do more. Keep up the great work!

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  5. UnknownSeptember 23, 2018 at 8:22 PM

    I would have never guessed that you're so dedicated to helping others! It amazes me that you have so many volunteering hours. Also, if you're this passionate about working with kids then I know that you'll be successful in the field. Keep doing what you're doing and push through the boring college stuff. You'll make it!

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