Promoting friendships amongst special needs and non-disabled
children and teens can be difficult, but can result in lasting
relationships.One of the biggest obstacles to promoting such
friendships is the social taboo of disability. This taboo can be
overcome by educating children about disabilities.Like everyone
else, children and teens are often scared of the unknown; when
they are unfamiliar with children and teens who suffer from
disabilities they will be more likely to shy away from them.
Educating all children, disabled and non-disabled alike, will
promote tolerance and acceptance of the differences between
them. This acceptance and understanding of one another will pave
the way for lasting friendships. Another issue that may need to
be addressed is attention. Disabled children often require more
attention than non-disabled children, which can make non-
disabled children feel left out. This feeling of isolation may
lead them to act out, either by ignoring the child receiving the
attention or by misbehavin