Resource Directory /

Education Resources

  • Ladder Up

    Ladder Up provides free programs to eligible Chicagoland residents to help move up the economic ladder. Individuals can receive guidance in financial education, tax help and preparation, and turning the dream of college into reality. Ladder Up programs and services include:

    • The Tax Assistance Program
    • The Legal Tax Clinic
    • Financial aid for college workshops
    • Financial education workshops
    • Tax tips for self-employed/small business owners

  • Learning Disabilities & Differences: What Parents Need To Know

    HealthyChildren.org provides information on the early signs of learning disabilities and difficulties in children and how to help them succeed.

  • National Deaf Center on Postsecondary Outcomes’ COVID-19 Information Page

    Tips and resources from the National Deaf Center on Postsecondary Outcomes

  • National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS)

    The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS ) is a free braille and talking book library service for people with temporary or permanent low vision, blindness, or a physical or perceptual disability that prevents them from reading or holding the printed page. Through a national network of cooperating libraries, NLS offers books the way you want them: in braille or audio, mailed to your door for free or instantly downloadable.

    NLS works to ensure that all may read by providing eligible individuals access to reading material regardless of age, economic circumstances or technical expertise.

  • Nine Tips for Motivating Children to Learn at Home

    As families and teachers are struggling to help children learn at home, many children are grappling with motivation, finding it difficult to stay interested in schoolwork without the structure of the
    classroom.

    The American Psychological Association provides these tips to help parents and caregivers foster their children’s motivation to stay engaged in schoolwork.

  • Northwest Special Recreation Association’s Online Activity Center

    The Northwest Special Recreation Association (NWSRA) launched the NWSRA Activity Center to ensure that families have access to free activities, games and other online resources that will enable participants to lead healthy, active lives. The center includes activities, resources, videos and games as well as a program guide for weekly Zoom programs.

  • PACER Center

    PACER Center is a parent training and information center for families of children and youth with all disabilities from birth to young adults. It serves families across the nation.

    Parents can find publications, workshops and other resources to help make decisions about education, vocational training, employment and other services for their children with disabilities.

  • Parent & Educator Partnership

    Lists many educational and other resources for parents as well as a mentoring program.

  • Parent Guide to Special Education

    “Educational Rights and Responsibilities: Understanding Special Education in Illinois” is a guide for parents, teachers, administrators and others to learn about the educational rights of children who receive special education and related services due to disabilities that affect their ability to achieve academically.

    Special education laws and procedures are complicated and can be difficult to understand. This guide from the Illinois State Board of Education will clarify some of the procedures of special education. It contains information about many of the most common topics related to the broad special education landscape, from identification and evaluation to transition planning and complaint procedures

  • Parent Institute Lectures for Families of Children With Hearing Loss

    The Institute for Parents of Preschool Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing is a one-week program for parents of children ages 5 and under who have a significant hearing loss. It takes place on the campus of the Illinois School for the Deaf in Jacksonville each June.

    Participating parents attend daily lectures by experts in the field to learn about raising a child with hearing loss. Lecture topics include the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), advocacy, communication options, language, assistive listening devices, literacy and amplification.

    UIC’s Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC), a supporter of the Institute, has made these presentations available online so they can benefit more families of children with hearing loss.