The nonprofit behind Big Bird, Elmo and Abby Cadabby is launching a new effort to reduce stigma surrounding kids with autism and help those with the developmental disorder learn life skills. Through a new initiative dubbed “See Amazing in All Children,” Sesame Workshop said it will create digital tools to help children with autism learn to play with others and complete everyday activities like brushing teeth, getting dressed and trying new foods. In addition, the organization said it will use Sesame Street’s brand and characters to educate the public about autism and emphasize that kids on the spectrum are much like their typically developing peers. “This has become one of the most widely-discussed topics in childhood development, yet we have found that there’s a lack of understanding among the general public about children with autism,” said Jeanette Betancourt, Sesame Workshop’s senior vice president for community and family engagement. “Sesame Workshop has a long history of addressing diversity, acceptance and inclusion, and we felt we could play a critical role in reducing misconceptions by highlighting the commonalities children with autism share with all children.” Beyond its efforts aimed at children, Sesame Workshop said it also plans to work with Exceptional Minds, a Sherman Oaks, Calif. vocational center that teaches young adults with autism computer animation and post-production skills, to help create content. http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2014/04/04/sesame-street-autism/19257/
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Nick Lachey once exposed his life for the reality-show cameras, but there was one topic that was kept off limits: his brother with Asperger syndrome. "It's a personal issue for me and my family," the singer tells PEOPLE of his brother Zac, who was adopted. Now 19, Zac was diagnosed at age 7. "It's something we've all been helping him with for a long time," his big brother adds. Lachey, 40, is speaking out as he launches the fifth-annual Lindt Gold Bunny Celebrity Auctionon Friday to raise funds and awareness for Autism Speaks. (The auction features porcelain gold bunnies signed by Lachey and such other celebs as Blake Shelton, Kelly Clarkson and Harrison Ford.) Zac, who lives with their mom Cate in Cincinnati, was diagnosed when he began having trouble learning in elementary school. "He wasn't learning in the same way as the other kids at school," says Lachey, who now lives in New York City with his wife, Vanessa, and their son, Camden, 18 months, for his new hosting VH1 gig, Big Morning Buzz Live. "They originally thought it was ADD. It took a while to narrow it down." At the time, Lachey was touring the country with his other brother, Drew, and their band 98 Degrees, and no longer living at home. It was stressful for his mom. "She was looking for answers more than anything else," Lachey tells PEOPLE. "Once she had them, she could learn to deal with it. It was more stress but at the same time, she could now understand how better to help him." As a teenager, Zac enrolled in the Cincinnati School of the Performing Arts, the same school his elder brothers had attended. "He studied technical theater and learned sound, which suited his interests," says Lachey. "And he made friends in the department." Still, he admits, "Social interactions can be a challenge for him. When he's focused on something, it's tough to get him off of it." Zac, he adds, "is highly functioning and very intelligent. A little introverted, but he's a sweet kid." To read more click here: http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20803153,00.html SALT LAKE CITY — People keep asking me versions of this question: "How can I help my neighbor who has a child with special needs?" They ask me this because I have a couple of boys on the autism spectrum. I suspect they ask because they know my life is kind of a hot mess. It's a lovely question, because it shows that people are aware of those around them facing challenges raising children with special needs. To those who have asked, I say thank you! You rock, people. In my experience, there are a few welcome gestures that come from understanding what life with special needs children is all about. It's exhausting Parents of special needs children are universally tired. Some, like my friends April and Katie, are frequently up at night with a child having seizures. One of my sons is a strange sleeper, waking and wandering the house in the wee hours. All of us find ourselves staying up too late to accomplish the myriad tasks that we can't do when our kids are awake. Special needs parenting is tiring. It just is. The cumulative effect of handling medications, difficult behaviors and esoteric routines for years and years without respite can turn us into zombies. Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=1009&sid=29013117#wJq6RuvT4mO9eZhP.99 A young schoolgirl touched the heart of her teacher when she wrote an essay wishing her brother could be “healed of autism”. “Every person needs a Rachel in their lives,” wrote Co Meath teacher Kathryn Lenaghan, after she read the impromptu essay by nine-year-old Rachel Cahill. Although written in February, her mother Caroline Cahill asked for the letter to be highlighted for World Autism Awareness Day, which is tomorrow, April 2nd. The third class student began the essay after she had finished her day’s work at St Paul’s NS in Navan. Titled “I wish, I wish, I wish,” she begins: “Since my little brother Matthew was two, I have always had the same wish. When Matthew was two, he was diagnosed with autism. Autism has no cure. Some children with autism can talk, understand and communicate, but Matthew can’t. “When you have autism, your brain is different. Matthew would hear things more loudly than us, he feels things more differently and sees things we don’t. So ever since Matthew was diagnosed with autism, my wish was for Matthew’s autism to be healed.” Click here to read more: http://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/i-wish-i-wish-i-wish-my-brother-could-be-healed-of-autism-1.1745836 Sara Mae Hickey knew she wanted to be a difference maker for a long time. She considered the Peace Corps after she graduated fromSkidmore in 2012, but she soon realized her most important cause was at home — her sister Emily. And so at 23, Hickey is the owner of Puzzles Bakery & Cafe, which is set to open sometime between April and June at 515 State St. in Schenectady and will employ adults on the autism spectrum and who have other disabilities, a group studies have shown to be severely underemployed. She's also the president and founder of the nonprofit The Autism Initiative, which helps provide educational and recreational programming to those in the autism community. Hickey's sister Emily, who is on the cusp of turning 21, has autism and is considered low-functioning. She requires constant care, has a limited vocabulary for her age and is unable to live on her own. When Hickey was in kindergarten, she toted a pamphlet about autism along to class, a result of her parents' longtime involvement with the local chapter of the Autism Society of America. In a lot of ways, Emily's disability shaped Hickey's path. "My whole life she's always been a big inspiration to me. I've always seen the bigger picture. We know so many families who are affected by this disability," says Hickey, who has bachelor's degrees in anthropology and government from Skidmore College and a master's certificate in nonprofit management from SUNY Purchase. "I don't think everyone really understands it's a lifelong disability. These children become adults, and they live a very long time." To read more: http://www.timesunion.com/default/article/Puzzles-to-fill-a-special-need-5261216.php#photo-5931224 For more on The Autism Initiative, visit theautisminitiative.org. For more on Puzzles Bakery & Cafe, visit www.facebook.com/Puzzles.Bakery.Cafe Contact Sara Mae Hickey about either organization at saramae@theautisminitiative.org. There is so much to say to you all, you fierce soldiers of breakthrough. You grow up in the same house as one they call “special,” and that carries more weight than we understand. It means that your parents’ eyes look past you. That we take it for granted that you are whole even when you are not. It means that you give and give and give. Every big sister shares with her siblings, but most of them don’t give away their entire portion. You do it. Often. You watched your brother grow bigger but not older. We had that talk, introducing you to that mysterious word, “autism,” but you already knew something was wrong. When did you figure it out? Was it when you saw other boys trying to play with him? Or when he threw himself on the floor and screamed in the lobby of the bank? I hope it was something like that, and not something we, your parents, did. Because I’m sure you saw the change in us, too. We traded in our laughter for dark clouds and chronic busyness—not just from the doctors’ appointments, but from the other appointments, too. The ones that took our joy and concentration even when we sat next to you on the sofa. To read more click here: http://www.jasonhague.com/2013/02/25/a-salute-to-the-siblings-of-autism/ Dylan Siegel, 7, would do anything for a friend -- especially if that friend is his best one, 8-year-old Jonah Pournazarian. The pair has been inseparable ever since they met in preschool, when Dylan learned that Jonah faces a rare battle their other classmates didn't -- glycogen storage disease, or GSD, according to LEX 18. The condition causes Jonah's blood sugar to drop to potentially fatal levels, forcing his parents to follow an inflexible, round-the-clock schedule of feeding Jonah through a stomach tube in order to keep his metabolism stable, according to ABC News. GSD does not have a cure. And, to Dylan, that is unacceptable. So, back in 2013, when he was 6 years old, Dylan wrote a book to help his friend and others struggling with the disease. But, it's not your typical page-turner, every penny from sales of "Chocolate Bar" -- a term used by Dylan to mean "awesome" -- goes directly to a lab at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville, Fla., which is working on a cure for the disease. "It is now reality. It's not just a dream that these children can be cured," Dr. David Weinstein, who runs the University of Florida lab, told Fox 17. To date, Dylan has raised more than $750,000 in the fight against GSD. Before the money began pouring in from book sales, funding for Weinstein's research was falling flat, ABC News reported. "Chocolate Bar" has given those suffering from GSD renewed hope for a better tomorrow. To read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/12/boy-writes-book-for-charity_n_4949967.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl28%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D453593 Please visit website Dylan and Jonah's website: http://chocolatebarbook.com/ Carly Fleischmann has autism and cannot speak. She communicates with her family and the wider world using computers and tablets -- a skill she began to develop when she was 10, and for years, has been an advocate for autism awareness. One of the 18-year-old's most creative communications, a 2012 short film called"Carly's Cafe," presents a typical coffee shop outing as the teenager herself would experience it: She can't express what she wants out loud -- be it a cup of coffee or the chance to spend her evening doing something without her sister -- and as the video progresses, spectators get a sense (briefly) of a world where basic interactions are beyond their control. The film was released along with a complementary website that received a Silver Lion in the Cyber Lions category of the Cannes Lions Awards. It is based on an excerpt from the book the 18-year-old and her dad, Arthur Fleischmann, co-wrote. "Carly's Cafe" gained attention after its release and was shown at the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. It closes with Carly's message: "Everyone has an inner voice. I found a way to let mine out." What am amazing person to be able to do this. It gives people a different perspective with in inside look into Autism. I first found this article on the Autism Now FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/AutismNowCenter To read more about Carly please visit her website at: http://carlysvoice.com/ When Gabby Abramowitz was younger, she was cautious about inviting new friends to the house. She wasn't sure how they would react to her younger brother, Ben, who is autistic. And she didn't want a repeat of the Simpsons incident. That was the time she had a friend over for dinner, and Ben sat at the table reciting the entire "Treehouse of Horror" Simpsons Halloween special. Gabby pleaded with him to stop, but he persisted. "My friend was like, 'What's going on?' and then started laughing," she said.At that time, she was in elementary school and lacked the words and understanding to explain her brother's condition. But with the help of her parents and through her own study, Gabby, now 16 and a sophomore at Tenafly High School, has grown to understand the nuances of autism and often speaks out to teach her peers while growing closer to Ben, 14. Through her research, she found that her experiences, and those of others like her, often are overlooked. "I think the effect on siblings is underestimated. We get pushed into the background." Read more: http://www.autismsupportnetwork.com/news/autisms-effect-normal-siblings-09277321#ixzz2v2F3NBHL Two sisters won the Jamfest Dance Super Nationals in Covington, Kentucky over the weekend. In wheelchairs. Gracie Latkovski, 9, has cerebral palsy and cystic fibrosis. Her older sister, Quincy, can walk, but also performed in a wheelchair at the start of their routine. An inspiring story and adorable dance, set to “Reflection” from the Mulan soundtrack, led the sisters to victory over 4,500 other dancers from around the country. Watch their title-winning moves below: http://www.ryot.org/video-sisters-in-wheelchairs-win-national-dance-competition/580545#kLpLj8azcVBm0VA3.99 Sometimes, I wonder if my daughter, Emma, will one day feel embarrassed by her brother Charlie, who has intellectual and developmental delays. Maybe it’s the charming way (to me!) Charlie greets every stranger like the mayor of the universe. Maybe it’s his struggle to walk, his delayed speech or the low muscle tone that causes constant drooling. Of course, having Down syndrome (as with any disability) doesn’t mean it’s a given that he’ll embarrass his sister. After all, siblings are expert at embarrassing each other eventually. But as a parent, how can I prepare for the moment when embarrassment does stem from Charlie’s different abilities and help my daughter through it, all while acknowledging that it's OK to have those feelings? To read more: http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/1028265/my-sibling-with-disabilities-embarrasses-me Gavin Lawrey’s rare illness often zaps his energy, making it difficult for him to do all the activities he loves. But his sister, Makenzie, still sees him as nothing short of a superhero. The 6-year-old Cape Coral, Fla., boy has mitochondrial disease, or mito, a condition that can damage cells in the body’s major organs and lead to muscle weakness, poor growth and cardiac or liver disease, among a number of other serious issues, according to the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation. Makenzie sold 500 books in a week and raised $20,000. She plans to continue pushing forward until she reaches her goal! What an amazing little girl! To read more click on the link below: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/06/mighty-mito-superhero_n_4740368.html?ir=Parents Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Mito-Superhero-Makenzie-Lawrey/dp/149522435X What a great news story on Sibshops! This one is about the Sibshops in Colorado Springs run by Julie Hudak-Salvat for Special Kids Special Families. Along with some great young sibs, this video documents the first known visit to a Sibshop by Imperial Stormtroopers! COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- From treatments to appointments, to special trips, brothers and sisters of children with special needs can often feel left out. Because those kids don't get the same amount of attention, and often grow up quicker, Julie Hudak-Salvat decided to bring "SibShops" to Colorado Springs. "It was a passion of mine, I'm a clinical social worker, I have a practice and I've always seen that the siblings needed a lot of support," Hudak-Salvat said. SibShops acknowledge that being the brother or sister of a person with special needs is for some a good thing, others a not-so-good thing, and for many, somewhere in-between. The kids acknowledge that, too. "My brother has autism," Molly Kelso, who is 9 explained. "He's sometimes tough to live with, but I still like having him around," she said. Molly doesn't often have things that are just hers. At January's SibShop, she got her own lego set and to hang out with a Storm Trooper. To read more about the Colorado SIBs group please follow the link: http://www.fox21news.com/news/story.aspx?id=1003733#.UvUx-vldV8F Stories play a huge part in a child's development. Reading to children stimulates their imagination and expands their horizons. But, books also teach children about the world around them. Reading stories together provokes curiosity and discussion, which can be useful when talking to children about disability. "A year ago my daughter, Molly, became aware her left hand didn't always do the things she wanted it to do," says Emma Birch. "Her frustration prompted me to look for books to explain in simple terms what cerebral palsy is. But there wasn't anything that was child friendly or presented cerebral palsy in a positive way." Together with her occupational therapist and disability charity Scope, Birch has now launched Haylee's Friends, a story book about cerebral palsy for young children. To read more please go to: http://www.theguardian.com/social-care-network/2014/feb/03/stories-reading-teach-children-disability My Big Brother Bobby is officially on the ibookstore!! Woo! Here is the link to iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/my-big-brother-bobby/id806783900?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4 You can also find the book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Big-Brother-Bobby-Understand-Behaviors/dp/0615909450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1390863240&sr=8-1&keywords=my+big+brother+bobby If you have read the book, we encourage you to write an amazon review. |
AuthorRebecca is an independent publisher working to help siblings of children with emotional challenges. Archives
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