Dear Mark, Not only do I see you as a friend, but I look up to you and respect you as an educator. I am writing you this letter to discuss an issue that I know is an important one for the both of us: we hold children’s education in high regards. I believe that a child with special needs should be educated along side their typically developing peers, not segregated in a separate classroom with other children with special needs. It is their right to learn and socially interact with their peers. Inclusion of children with special needs in classrooms gives them the opportunity to flourish and learn basic life skills along with other children. All children learn important lessons from one another regardless of their skill level. I have a younger cousin who started preschool two years ago. At the time, his teachers believed he had a form of Autism, was falling behind the other children, and he needed to be placed in a “special education” classroom. He proceeded his education in a segregated room for children with special needs and actually ended up regressing. His parents ultimately chose to move him back into a typically developing preschool classroom where within a year, he had did a complete turn around and proved to be no different than any of his peers, even though he did indeed have Autism. He is now in Kindergarten and has improved his education tremendously. He is a contributing member of his classroom and part of a loving community of his peers. My college education has led me to strongly believe in inclusion for children with special needs into classrooms. Time has brought much progress and research in the field of childhood education that has ultimately lead to the rights of children with special needs. I completely respect your views as a long-serving educator and your standing on children with special needs in a typically developing classroom. I understand your belief that children with special needs should be educated in their own environment. Your experiences of children with special needs in your classroom have proven to be