Campaign to Open Employers’ Eyes to the Power of People with Down Syndrome

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By Globenewswire.com

Boston Bruins Foundation, MDSC and others join forces to raise awareness about lack of employment opportunities

BOSTON, Sept. 29, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress will be launching its new public awareness campaign, Your Next Star, on Oct. 1, aimed at opening the eyes of employers to the power of people with Down syndrome in the workplace. Two years in the making, Your Next Star came about because of our increasing awareness of the challenges facing adults with Down syndrome looking for meaningful work opportunities in their communities.

KICKOFF/PRESS CONFERENCE FOR YOUR NEXT STAR CAMPAIGN
Thursday Oct. 1 | 11 a.m.
Boston Bruins Foundation
TD Garden
West End Room

At the press conference on October 1, the website, www.yournextstar.com, will be officially unveiled, including the centerpiece video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI7czCgeehY – EMBARGOED UNTIL OCT. 1

The event takes place at the Boston Bruins Foundation on the first day of National Down Syndrome Awareness Month and Down Syndrome Awareness Month in the Commonwealth as declared by official proclamation by Governor Charlie Baker.

– See more at: http://globenewswire.com/news-release/2015/09/29/771787/10150950/en/Campaign-to-Open-Employers-Eyes-to-the-Power-of-People-with-Down-Syndrome.html#sthash.cyHmb73I.XJb2Ait8.dpuf

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Post-Secondary Programs See Signs Of Success

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By Michelle Diament | Disabilityscoop.com

As a growing number of colleges offer programs for students with intellectual disabilities, a new report provides the most comprehensive look yet at who’s attending and their outcomes.

The federally-mandated report out this month from the Think College National Coordinating Center at the University of Massachusetts Boston offers a snapshot of what’s happening at post-secondary programs across the country using data solicited from 50 programs that receive funding from the U.S. Department of Education.

http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2015/09/21/post-secondary-signs-success/20810/

 

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Transition Conference 2015 – The Arc of Massachusetts

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Statewide Transition Conference for Parents – Does Your Son or Daughter Have a Plan for the Future?

Saturday, October 3, 2015 | 8:00 AM-4:00 PM | Best Western/Royal Plaza, Marlborough, MA

Learn:

  • About the Transition process from planning to IEP implementation
  • What elements a Transition program should offer
  • The types of services that can be provided outside of the classroom
  • About the new ABLE Account – how it works and the benefits
  • How to begin thinking about housing and much, much more!

For more information and to register click on this link http://thearcofmass.org/transition-conference-2015/

 

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Technical Assistance Advisory SPED 2016-2: Promoting Student Self-Determination to Improve Student Outcomes

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By Mass.gov | Special Education Guidance, Administrative Advisories

The Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has issued a new advisory which might be of interest to transition-age students and families.

The purpose of this advisory is to:

(1) Highlight the fundamental importance of supporting and encouraging student self-determination to promote successful adult outcomes.
(2) Provide guidance to school districts on multiple means of advancing student self-determination skills.

http://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/advisories/2016-2ta.pdf

 

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Think:Kids – Collaborative Problem Solving

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From Think:Kids | ThinkKids.org

Think:Kids Conference
Date: Saturday, October 17th, 2015
Location: Microsoft NERD Center | 1 Memorial Drive | Cambridge, MA 02142

Registration Info

 

Think:Kids will bring together parents and professionals at our First Annual Conference. ALL ARE WELCOME – those who are passionate about the Collaborative Problem Solving Approach, those who want to learn more, even those who are completely new to the approach can attend! A special keynote address will be given by Jerome Kagan, Ph.D., a luminary figure in the field of developmental psychology and the forefather of temperament research.

How can we help children with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges?

There is a vital need for more enlightened approaches for understanding and helping the increasing number of children with social, emotional and behavioral challenges. All too often, their difficult behavior is seen as willful and goal oriented. This has led to interventions that focus on gaining greater compliance through the use of consequences. Such interventions often don’t adequately address the child’s needs. As a result, many such children continue to have very adversarial interactions with teachers, family members, peers… and are at risk for poor long-term outcomes. This conference brings together parents and professionals to learn and network together. Based on current research, caregivers will gain the knowledge needed to understand the nature of these children’s challenges in a new light; as the result of a delay in the development of crucial cognitive skills that are essential for handling frustration, demands for flexibility and adaptability, and for problem solving. Innovative intervention strategies that are based on this understanding and that focus on working collaboratively with children to building skills will be taught. The day begins with a keynote address given by Dr. Jerome Kagan renowned expert on child temperament. During the remainder of the day, attendees have the opportunity to attend three separate breakout workshop sessions, where they will choose from a variety of workshops on pertinent topics.

Topics will include the following:

Plan B Troubleshooting
Session 1 Breakouts:

  • Introduction to Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS): Philosophy and Assessment (Dr. Tai Katzenstein)
  • Troubleshooting: Beyond the Plan B Basics (Dr. Stuart Ablon, Dr. Larry Epstein, Ben Stitch, Dr. Aude Henin)
  • Collaborative Problem Solving and Lagging Skills

Session 2 Breakouts:

  • Introduction to Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS): The Three Plans (Dr. Tai Katzenstein)
  • Helping Bright Kids who Can’t Keep Up: (Dr. Ellen Braaten); When Excessive Worry Gets in the Way: (Dr. Aude Henin)
  • Helping Kids Regulate so They Can Relate and Reason: (Jennifer Boggett-Carsjens, OTR and Dr. Larry Epstein)
  • Collaborative Problem Solving in Real Life

Session 3 Breakouts: 

  • Introduction to Collaborative Problem Solving: Plan B (Dr. Tai Katzenstein)
  • Psychiatric Medications and Collaborative Problem Solving: What to Consider? (Dr. Tanishia Choice)
  • Building Bridges: Advocating for Your Child at School (Joan Toussaint and Dr. Larry Epstein)
  • Evaluating CPS Across Settings: The Research Process and Outcomes (Dr. Alisha Pollastri)
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Community Partnership Award Nominations

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From Federation for Children with Special Needs

Call for Nominations

Each year the Federation for Children with Special Needs presents Community Partnership Awards to individuals in Massachusetts who have successfully promoted an inclusive environment in their community at our Visions of Community conference. Do you know a p­­arent, student, teacher, administrator, health provider, coach, neighbor or other individual who has worked to create and support the inclusion of individuals with disabilities, those at-risk, or those who face cultural or linguistic barriers, in your school, health care or other place in the community? Nominate a person who has made a difference for a Community Partnership Award!

http://fcsn.org/voc/cpa-nominations/

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Learning Program Online – Registration Closing Soon

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From The Learning Program Online:

Registration is closing for LP Online! Offered by our affiliate-partner, the Down Syndrome Foundation (Orange County, CA) this series of 10 online workshops is for parents/caregivers and educators of elemtary-aged students with Down syndrome. LP Online is the webinar equivalent of our Learning Program parent sessions. Registration is currently open for Level 1, 2 and 3 – these workshops mirror the content covered in our LPB parent sessions, but in an interactive, online format. The live event will be on a weekday, depending on level – all webinars will be recorded and online links will be accessible after each session if you are unable to attend the live event. The deadline to register for LP Online is Sept 11. The first webinar will be on Sept 14.

For more information and to register, go to: https://lponline2015-2016.eventbrite.com

 

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Can we teach math through reading?

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By Alex Lauric

Increasingly research is showing that a powerful way of connecting school mathematics to everyday life is by exposing children to the mathematics embedded in literature.  We are talking about books of literary quality which were not written for the primary purpose of teaching math. Instead the books are supposed to provide a pleasurable literary experience with mathematics used to serve the story for authentic purposes. Children’s literature can provide children with a meaningful context for learning math, by connecting mathematical ideas to their personal experiences. Reading these stories can help build up informal knowledge to serve as a foundation for developing formal and generalized understanding of mathematics.

The question is can we apply this research to our children with Down syndrome? It may be worth trying; we have the need and the children have the strength for it.

For the need: Numeracy and math in general, are difficult for most children with Down syndrome. Because math is a relative weakness, children are at risk for becoming resistant to instruction for fear of failure and frustration. In most cases, in order to make progress and reach their potential, children need additional work and practice outside the school.

For the strength: Reading skills are an area of relative strength! Our children love books, love reading and are good at it. They are visual learners and master skills by repetition and over-learning. Can we channel the success in reading toward making math, especially numeracy skills, more accessible?

Reading can be a non-threatening way of introducing new concepts. The story provides the justification for pointing out mathematical ideas without formal teaching and testing. Books can be used both to preview and review skills, and can be revisited over and over again. Same skills can be presented in several books providing variation while focusing on targeted concepts. We are reading to our children anyway; why not pick up some good books highlighting math ideas? Here are some suggestions to get us started.

Title Author Recommended
grades		 Math concept
Bear in a Square Stella Blackstone PreK- K 2d shapes
The First Day of Winter Denise Fleming PreK- K counting, reasoning
One Monkey Too Many Jackie F. Koller PreK- K counting
Sheep in a Shop Nancy E. Shaw PreK- 1 money
Anno’s Counting Book MitsumasaAnno PreK- 3 counting, sets
What Time is it, Mr. Crocodile? Judy Sierra PreK- 3 time
Ten on the Sled Kim Norman K – 1 counting
Emily’s First 100 Days of School Rosemary Wells K – 1 counting
A Dollar for Penny! Julie Glass K – 1 money
Five Little Monkeys Go Shopping Eileen Christelow K – 1 counting subtraction
I’m the biggest thing in the ocean Kevin Sherry K – 2 counting, length
Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday Judith Viorst K – 3 money
Inch by Inch Leo Lionny K – 3 measurement
Ready, Set, 100th day! Nancy Wallace 1 – 2 place value, addition, subtraction
Counting on Frank Rod Clement 1 – 3 counting, estimation, comparisons
Five Creatures Emily Jenkins 1 – 3 sorting
One is a snail, ten is a crab April P. Sayre 1 – 3 place value, addition
Two of Everything Lily T. Hong 1 – 3 addition, subtraction
Bean Thirteen Matthew McElligott 1 – 3 odd/even numbers
365 Penguins Jean-Luc Fromental 1 – 4 addition
It’s Probably Penny LoreenLeedy 1 – 4 probability
Measuring Penny LoreenLeedy 2 – 4 measurement

 

Bibliography

1. Capraro RM, Capraro MM: Are you really going to read us a story? Learning geometry through children’s mathematics literature. Reading Psychology 27:21-36, 2006

2. Adams TL, Lowery RM: An Analysis of Children’s Strategies for Reading Mathematics. Reading & Writing Quarterly 23:161-177, 2007

3. Heuvel-Panhuizen Mvd, Boogaard Svd: Picture Books as an Impetus for Kindergartners’ Mathematical Thinking. Mathematical Thinking and Learning 10:341-373, 2008

4. Elia I, van den Heuvel‐Panhuizen M, Georgiou A: The role of pictures in picture books on children’s cognitive engagement with mathematics. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal 18:275-297, 2010

5. Marston JL, Muir T, Livy S: Can We Really Count on Frank? Teaching Children Mathematics 19:440-448, 2013

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Dad’s letter to daughter with Down syndrome on wedding day goes viral

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From Foxnews.com:

A father whose daughter with Down syndrome recently got married has written a letter for the new bride that will tug at the heartstrings of every parent and child.

“Do you remember all the stuff they said you’d never do, Jills?” Paul Daugherty, a sports columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer, writes in the letter, which was posted Wednesday, Aug. 26 on the website The Mighty, to his daughter Jillian. “You wouldn’t ride a two-wheeler or play sports. You wouldn’t go to college. You certainly wouldn’t get married. Now… look at you.”

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2015/09/03/dads-letter-to-daughter-with-down-syndrome-on-wedding-day-goes-viral/

 

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