Anxiety
Attack:
Tests, Friends, the World & Other Things Your Child Worries About
by
Joanna Leefer
Childhood
is full of stresses. Kids are constantly bombarded with
new stimuli and sensations: Their bodies are changing and
growing; their school becomes more demanding; and they are
continually
confronted with new social situations. Life is a roller
coaster
of emotions and changes both physical and mental. No
wonder kids often experience anxiety or "blue" periods.
Guide
to Advocacy for Parents of Children with Learning Disabilities
The
National Center for Learning Disabilities and the Charles
and Helen Schwab Foundation have announced the release of
the LD Advocates Guide, a handbook designed to provide
simple, accessible instruction on how to work with the government
and the media on issues affecting individuals with learning
disabilities.
Racial
Inequity in Special Education: Harvard University Findings
Racial
inequities pervade special education in American schools.
In 1998, approximately 1.5 million minority children were
identified as having mental retardation, emotional disturbance,
or a specific learning disability. Racial Inequity in
Special Education , The Civil Rights Project at
Harvard University which is a new book published by
Harvard Education Press, explores the inequities experienced
by minority school- children in special education and the
potential life consequences of such inequities.
Victory
for Those Living With Spina Bifida
The
Spina Bifida Association of America (SBAA), the Spina
Bifida Foundation (SBF) and the 70,000 people in the United
States
who live with Spina Bifida extend their gratitude to
the members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives
for passing the "Birth Defects and Developmental
Disabilities Prevention Act of 2003."
A
Therapeutic Mecca: The McCarton School
by Jocelyn K. Egyes
Sitting
in Dr. Cecelia McCarton's office there is no doubt that her passion is children.
Kermit the Frog and a teddy bear sit side by side on a bookshelf while dozens
of other toys line her office. But it's a special kind of child that warms the
heart of this pediatrician, it's "children who are different" says
McCarton, her blue eyes passionately sparkling as she speaks of 'her' children.
McCarton
School Parent Shares Views
One parent who sees the learning first hand is
Noam Spanier. His 6-year-old daughter Shira has been
with the program...
Helping
the Visually Impaired at Baruch College by
Jocelyn K. Egyes
It’s
not everyday that advances are made in technology to benefit
the blind and visually impaired.
Dr.
Cecelia McCarton Leads Symposium on Learning Disabilities by
Joanna Leefer
“How
can I tell if my child has a learning disability?” “Will my
son be stigmatized if he is officially classified as LD?” “I’m
applying to schools for my daughter.
Reforming
Special Education. . . Again by
Michelle Accorso
How
can we best serve the city’s neediest children? That was the
question posed to the diverse array of panelists at a recent
special education hearing housed at the New School.
Products
for the Visually Impaired
Wheelchair
Charities A Superstar by
Mike Cohen
Steve
Francis took a pass from Nick Van Exel on the wing and drove
past Stephon Marbury for a thunderous highflying one-handed
dunk. The Crowd at Madison Square Garden erupted with applause.
Deaf
Actor Signs Up for Broadway Stardom
Tyrone
Giordano wins raves as Huck Finn in a play that mixes
music, speech, sign language and Mark Twain. Like
Huck Finn, Tyrone Giordano savors the simple pleasures.
As a child, he said, “I would lie in the night, with
the stars, listening to crickets.”
Inclusion:
What Are We Doing? Perspectives From The Field by
Marjorie Aug
In
the mid-seventies a landmark act for educating special education
students was passed to ensure the rights of special needs students
to receive appropriate instruction in a regular education setting,
based on the individual needs of each student.
Dancing
with Wheelchairs in New Mexico by
Jan Aaron
“Like
other people, little girls in wheelchairs and older people,
too, want to dance,” says Shira Greenberg, founder and artistic
director of Keshet Dance Company based in Albuquerque, NM.
She adds: “Anyone—regardless of age, physical abilities,
or expertise can become a beautiful dancer.”
New
Dyslexia Study at NYU Child Study Center
by
Adam Koplewicz
A research study of teenagers with dyslexia has begun at
the New York University Child Study Center. This study is attempting
to shed new light and understanding on a common but disabling
condition.
Special
Education in New York City
by
Jill Levy
Thirty-five years ago, many children, including my own,
did not have the right to attend public schools. They were
children with “problems”—disabilities that prevented them
from learning or attending school as easily as other children.
Would
You Recognize a Troubled Teen?
One
of the difficulties parents and educators face when dealing
with adolescents is recognizing the difference between a teen
going through the normal rebelliousness of adolescence and a
teen who is heading down a destructive path.
Blackman
Lecture at Teachers College
by
Adam B. Kushner
If
it was just another dreary and wet pre-spring day outdoors,
the scene inside Grace Dodge Hall at Columbia University’s Teacher’s
College was something else entirely.
Hooray
for the ERBs
by
Sloan Roberts
At two -years old, I noted my daughter’s
somewhat scattered language that was not in keeping with her
other skills.
An
11 Year-Old Boy Wonder Wins State Science Fair
Andrew
Hsu, age 11, became the youngest winner ever of the grand prize
in the 46th annual Washington State Science and Engineering
Fair.
Resources,
Referrals and Help
Parents
of learning disabled children often need information on resources.
Research
On Beach Access for the Handicapped
It’s
virtually impossible for people who use wheelchairs and other
mobility devices to enjoy the full benefits of a beach experience,
but the National Center on Accessibility (NCA) at Indiana University
Bloomington is working to remedy this situation that affects millions
of Americans. . . .
Resources,
Referrals and Help
As
a principal of a private school for learning disabled
children, I am asked by parents and other professionals
on a daily basis for information on resources. .
. .
Wallace-Reader’s
Digest Fund gives $50,000 for Study of Successful Leaders
in High-Poverty Schools
The
Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund has given $50,000 to Dr.
Jacobson, University of Buffalo professor of educational
administration in the GSE’s Department of Educational
Leadership and Policy, for a study of successful leadership
in elementary and secondary school settings that serve
high-poverty communities. .
. .
E-cards
from the “Braille Bug” Children’s Web Site
The
days of flimsy paper cards with cartoon animals are gone.
. . .
Technology
& Inclusion at Children’s Center
By Nancy Glass
The
Children’s Center School, a division of Queens Centers for Progress,
in Jamaica Queens, offers comprehensive educational and clinical
services to children with special needs, from birth through
twenty-one years of age. Students at the school present with
a variety of disabilities, ranging from mild to profound. While
many students are multiply-handicapped, the school also services
“typically developing” youngsters who are often participants
in inclusionary programs where children with and without disabilities
share the same classrooms. . . .
Rhodes
Scholar “Sees” The World
By
M.C. Cohen
Cyrus
Habib is in elite company. As one of the 32 recipients of
this year’s Rhodes Scholarship, Habib is an accomplished senior
comparative literature and Mideast studies major at Columbia
University. Yet, he’s far from an elitist. Whether lobbying
for the rights of students with disabilities at Columbia,
where he is president of the campus group “Columbians Organized
for Disability Advocacy,” or rallying at a peace demonstration
in New York, Habib sees the world as a place bigger then himself.
“Education can’t exist in a vacuum,” he says. “We must always
remember to fight the world’s fight.”. . . .
Resources,
Referrals and Help
As
a principal of a private school for learning disabled children,
I am asked by parents and other professionals on a daily
basis for information on resources. . . .
Special
Education Update Around the Nation
Compiled By Andrew Schiff
Important Events Around the Nation
OSEP Joint Personnel Preparation/ State/Improvement/CSPD Conference,
will be held at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington
D.C., from February 19 to February 21. The theme for the 2003
Joint Conference is.....
"Circus
of the Senses” Brings Children with Disabilities Under the Big
Top
By
Marie Holmes
The Big Apple Circus recently held its annual Circus of
the Senses for hearing and visually impaired students under
the circus tent set up at Lincoln Center. The show happened.....
Living
and Overcoming Learning Disabilities
By
Rob Langston
I spent many miserable years as a “handicapped” child
and I have spent many wonderful years as a “successful” adult.
Somewhere in between lies living and overcoming......
Students
Spread Cheer to Group Homes
Nearly 30 young adults with developmental disabilities were
treated to a holiday party recently, courtesy of the eighth-grade
confirmation class at Holy Innocents Church.......