Accomodation	Tools and procedures that provide equal access to instruction and assessment for students with disabilities.
ADD/ ADHD	Attention Defecit Disorder / Attention Defecit Hyperactivity Disorder: behaviour and learning are characterized by patterns of inattention, impulsivity and or hyperactivity. Children often present with poor organisational / planning skills, and poor short term memory.
AS	Asperger's Syndrome: is characterized by difficulties with social interaction, normal to above average intelligence, and repetitive or restrictive patterns of thoughts or behaviours.
ASD	Autism Spectrum Disorder: is characterized by difficulties with social interaction, communication and restricted, repetitive, and stereotypical patterns of behavior, interests, and activities
Asperger's Syndrome	Asperger's Syndrome: is characterized by difficulties with social interaction, normal to above average intelligence, and repetitive or restrictive patterns of thoughts or behaviours.
Autism Spectrum Disorder	Autism Spectrum Disorder: is characterized by difficulties with social interaction, communication and restricted, repetitive, and stereotypical patterns of behavior, interests, and activities.

Boardmaker

Boardmaker TM is a trademark of Mayer-Johnson LLC. It is a software program by www.mayer-johnson.com designed to create symbol based communication and learning opportunities.

Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral Palsy (CP) is a term used to describe a group of disorders affecting body movement and muscle co-ordination.

Developmental Delay / Disability	This occurs when a child is having difficulty meeting their developmental milestones. It may occur in the areas of physical, speech and language, cognitive/intellectual, personal and social skills.
Dysgraphia	Often associated with other learning difficulties, this relates to difficulties learning to write.
Dyspraxia	Difficulty with the ability to plan and carry out sequences of coordinated movements

Expressive Language Difficulties

Difficulties with the ability to articulate and construct meaningful language and use it in a socially appropritae way.

Fine Motor Control	Fine motor control is the coordination of the small muscles of the hand. These skills are necessary for learning to draw, write, use scissors, tie shoelaces and eat with a knife and fork. Other terms that might be used include dexterity and manipulation.
Fluency	Fluency as it relates to handwriting refers to the ability to smoothly coordinate the pencil/pen moving across the page, rather than using a stop-start movement pattern. Fluency involves the ability to change directions easily using a stable pencil grasp. Good fluency skills are required for neat, legible and fast handwriting.
Fragile X Syndrome	Fragile X syndrome is the most common cause of inherited intellectual disability (mental retardation). It is a genetic condition which impacts on behavior and learning.

Gifted / Learning Difficulties

Some children present with IQ scores in some areas in the gifted range of skill, but also have difficulties in other learning areas. These children often find it difficult to complete activities that have multiple skills required at the same time, they may be slow to complete work in class or add the bare minimum of details.

HFA	High Functioning Autism - This is an informal label for children diagnosed with Autism, but who have mild or no speech language difficulties.
Hyperlexia	A language disorder characterized by early precocious reading and/or intense fascination with letters and numbers. This is accompanied by limited comprehension of what is read, difficulty with verbal language, difficulties with social interaction and other autistic traits.

IDEA	Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the USA's special education law. It requires the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE).
IEP	Individual Education Plan: relates to the program and written documents that are put in place to support a child with a disability. It may include details of goals, and strategies of how the student will access the school curriculum. Each country has different 'rules' about implementing IEP's.
IFSP	Individual Family Services Plan: relates to the programming that includes a review of the child's present level of development, list of goals to work on, and what support services are involved. Each country has a different process for structuring IFSP's.

LD	Learning Disability: A learning disability is a neurological disorder that affects the brain's ability to receive, process, store and respond to information. The term learning disability is used to describe the seeming unexplained difficulty a person of at least average intelligence has in acquiring basic academic skills.
Learning Disability	A learning disability (LD) is a neurological disorder that affects the brain's ability to receive, process, store and respond to information. The term learning disability is used to describe the seeming unexplained difficulty a person of at least average intelligence has in acquiring basic academic skills.
Learning style	A learning style is considered to be the method of learning by which a child learn's best. Some children may have difficulty understanding verbal instructions and do well if they are presented in a visual picture format. Other children work better with activites that are hands-on. Some children work best with 1:1 support, whilst others learn best from project based activities.
Least restrictive environment	To the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities are to be educated with children who are not disabled.

Mainstream

Relates to the practice of teaching children with disabilities in regular education classrooms rather than a support class or special education school.

Non-verbal learning disability

A pattern of learning disability characterized by specific strengths usually in language and memory, but difficulty with executive functioning, problem solving and motor skills.

Occupational Therapy	An Allied Health Profession which focuses on enabling children and adults to be able to complete everyday activities within their daily routines. The word "occupation" is related to the activities that occupy our everyday routines. For children, therapists will assist with play, self-help and learning tasks.
OT	Occupational Therapist

PCS	Picture Communication Symbols used with Boardmaker program designed by www.mayer-johnson.com
PDD	Pervasive Developmental Disorder: This is a diagnostic category that takes into account Autism, Asperger Syndrome, Rett Syndrome, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified.
PDD-NOS	Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified
PECS	Picture Exchange Communication System: Method of using pictures / photographs to communicate
Pervasive Developmental Disorder	Pervasive Developmental Disorder: This is a diagnostic category that takes into account Autism, Asperger Syndrome, Rett Syndrome, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified.

Receptive Language Difficulties

Difficulties understanding the meaning and purpose of spoken language

Sensory Processing Disorder	Sensory Processing Disorder is a new term, that encompasses a range of sensory processing difficulites. It involves misinterpreting the incoming and outgoing sensory information e.g. touch, sound, movement. Sensory processing is an automatic process, where information is taken in, organised, interpreted in order to make a meaningful response. Children with sensory processing difficulties frequently become overloaded with new, busy or complex tasks or environments. They may be slower to process what is happening around them or they may miss out on important cues. Sensory processing impacts on attention / concentration, communication and social emotional skills.
SI	Sensory Integration
SLD	Specific Learning Disability: A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which disorder may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations.
Speech Language Delay	A delay in achiement of developmental milestones related to understanding instructions, communicating needs/wants, and articulating speech.