North Carolina Inclusion Initiative
Mapping Where Children with IEPs are Being Served
Purpose:
This activity is intended to assist leadership teams in identifying where children with disabilities are
located throughout a district or within a community. The leadership team should first identify if their
focus is on classrooms within a program, an LEA, or across their community. It is recommended that the
collaborative planning committee develop a vision/mission/belief statement about inclusion prior to
engaging in this activity. Use the DEC-NAEYC Full Position Statement on Inclusion as a reference.
Instructions for LEA focus with up to 40 classes and administered by two different programs:
Program coordinators should identify all children with IEPs enrolled in the targeted classrooms prior to
engaging in this activity. The facilitator will draw a large “map” outline of the district on a chalk or
bulletin board, or use a large district map. Each classroom, regardless of funding source, will be
designated on the map by a symbol, such as the outline of a schoolhouse printed on a piece of
construction paper. Different colors may be used to designate different programs, such as Title I PreK,
state PreK, Head Start or state-specific programs, such as Developmental Day (NC). Indicate the
numbers of children with IEPs by placing a colored dot per child on the classroom template
After all the children with IEPs have been indicated on each classroom symbol, place the symbol on the
map in the approximate geographic location of the classroom. A facilitated discussion should then take
place using leading questions such as:
1) What do we notice about these data?
2) What patterns or trends do we see?
3) What kinds of questions do we have?
4) What are the data telling us? What is the storyline?
5) Do these data reflect the vision/mission/belief statement developed earlier?
This activity may be adapted based on the size and needs of the district. For example, a district with 100
classrooms funded by Title I PreK and Exceptional Children PreK may choose to develop a chart that
designates the number of children with and without disabilities per classroom.
Attached are templates for the schoolhouse outline and a classroom level mapping chart.
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Classroom Level Mapping of Children with IEPs
Public School
Classroom
Title I
School/
Program
Teachers
Assistants
Children
with IEPs
Children w/o Total #
IEPs
Students
Title I
Title I
Title I
Title I
Title I
Special Ed
Special Ed
Special Ed
Special Ed
Special Ed
Special Ed
Total
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