I have been blessed with helping to raise a ‘special needs’ granddaughter and have had the pleasure and privilege to play with many ‘special needs’ persons. I prefer to use that term because what I have come to realize is that these people were far from disabled, although all of them required special things and I had to learn those needs in order for our play to be effective and mutually satisfying. Whether the person is blind, or deaf, or whether they have physical limitations or diseases that you must be aware of, you must learn about what is required and those special needs to be able to play with the individual. For many, the fear of not knowing what to do or hurting someone (not in a good sense) keeps many people paralyzed with fear. However, if you learn about the person, the illness, the disability and their special needs, you can play with them safely and with the same kind of risk as any other person. What you gain from this type of play (besides the comfort level that comes with the experience) is invaluable knowledge about a disease or a culture of people you may otherwise have never been exposed to. This is a valuable class for those who would like to experience this type of play.