Margaret Rice Moir, MS/Sp. Ed.

Margaret comes to Abilities in Action with 34 years of working in the classroom with preschoolers. Her teaching career has served a wide variety of needs, including children within the autism spectrum disorder, neurological issues, learning disabilities, cerebral palsy, developmental delays, as well as children with behavioral and emotional disorders. Margaret has worked in collaborative settings within the public school system, creating comprehensive interdisciplinary programming that meets each child’s individual needs. She has been a life-long advocate for families of children with special needs, assisting with appropriate service delivery in an environment which is too often overly beaurocatic and underfunded. She has trained teachers and parents to look at the “whole child”, establishing family and school relationships that support children and encourage social and academic development. Her employment history includes Brookdale Community College, Matawan Board of Education, Edgewater Park Board of Education, and most recently, the Middletown Board of Education, until her retirement in June of ’07.

In 2001, Margaret worked with several Middletown colleagues and the State of New Jersey to pilot an innovative program (TEAM) for transitioning preschoolers with special needs into general education kindergartens. In 2006, she was selected Teacher of the Year by the faculty and staff of the New Monmouth School.

Margaret will be teaching the toddler and preschool groups held at Abilities in Action. She will also be facilitating parent training courses in the evenings, including topics such as potty training, appropriate toys for your child to play with, handling difficult behaviors, and advocating for your child.