KATHLEEN FOODY
Associated Press
CHICAGO (AP) — For seven school days, Mila Cohen's 14-year-old daughter retrieved her backpack and urged her mother toward the door — her usual morning routine before Chicago teachers went out on strike.
But since a walkout by the Chicago Teachers Union began on Oct. 17, Cohen has kept Yelena, who is nonverbal and has cognitive disabilities, at home. Her daughter doesn't understand why, though, and most mornings have ended in tears.
"As a special needs kid, it's so much harder to get used to a new environment," Cohen said. "Her routine is completely upset. She just got into the swing of a new school and then, poof, it's gone."
The teachers' strike that canceled classes for a seventh day Friday has forced parents across the city to find other activi
