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AUTISM FIRST STEPS
AUTISM DAILY NEWSLETTER
Saturday January 5, 2002
INDEX:
* Computers Help The
Autistic To Connect With Society
* Therapeutic Classroom Teaches Good Behavior
* The vaccines,
especially for your mom and dads that are in the military
* The Northeast Illinois Chapter of the Autism Society of America
* Summer program in St. Clair Shores for Special Needs
kids, ages 5-12.
* Emily Greco, who died from bacterial meningitis at the age of 11,
left
behind a legacy of helping other children
* Cherie Blair takes personal interest in mother's MMR claim
* Encouraging families to attend these court proceedings that can
mean so
much to their families' future
******************************
Computers Help The Autistic To Connect With
Society
By Nigel Hawkes.
For those who find social skills do not come naturally, the computer
can be a lifesaver. Predictable, controllable, and safe, the computer screen
can provide a way of breaking into the tunnel-vision world of those with
autistic disorders.
To most people computers lack a human dimension,
but to those with
autism that can be an advantage, providing a medium of communication that
matches their single-minded, perfection-seeking behaviour.
At Nottingham University, Dr Sue Cobb manages a
project which aims to
develop virtual reality as a technique for teaching life-skills to people
with autism and Asperger’s syndrome.
“We know that virtual reality systems are good
for practical training,
like how to make a drink, or cook a meal,” she says. “They can teach
cause-and-effect relationships. So might they also be useful for teaching
social skills? That is what we are trying to find out.”
Autistic people find even the simplest social
situations, such as
taking a seat on a bus, or ordering a drink in a café, fraught with
difficulty. Because they lack appreciation of other people’s feelings, they
can behave in ways that appear abrupt or rude.
The Virtual Reality Applications Research Team
(VIRART) at Nottingham
has modelled these two situations in virtual reality, so that teenagers can
learn the social skills they need by working with a desktop PC.
The team is now 15 months into a three-year
project, working with
Rosehill School for Children with Autism, also in Nottingham. The project
has been funded by the Shirley Foundation and the National Autistic Society,
the subject of this year’s Times Christmas Appeal.
Dr Sarah Parsons, of the Psychology Department at
Nottingham, is
responsible for assessing the project’s effectiveness. “It looks very
positive so far,” she says. “The group who are using it have few problems,
and are very motivated.”
The plan is to look at whether the project helps
autistic children to
avoid social problems in these two environments — pushing into queues, for
example, sitting at other people’s tables, or saying the wrong things.
The autistic children will be compared with two
control groups,
consisting of normal children and those with learning disabilities. So far,
the autistic group has learnt to use the virtual reality system just as
readily as the normal children, but it is too soon to know what it is
teaching them.
Andy Sloan, Deputy Head of the school, says: “The
children enjoy it,
and hopefully it will be another way of teaching them to operate well in
normal life.”
For some high-functioning autistic people, computers offer more than a
training opportunity. They can provide a job, as well.
Alex Cockell, who is 30, was diagnosed as having
Asperger’s syndrome
when he was 16. Brought up in Exmouth, Devon, he says that life at school
was “pretty much hell” until his condition was diagnosed.
He now works in computer systems at Prudential
Insurance in Reading,
where he is involved in the day-to-day running of a messaging network and in
resolving any technical problems that arise.
Mr Cockell, who has a Higher National Diploma in
computing, says that
before he joined the Pru he had several short-term contracts and could
always manage the work well enough. What defeated him was the subtlety of
office relationships.
“Employers couldn’t fault me technically,” he
said. “Once I was given
a job that was supposed to take six weeks, and I finished it in two.
“There was never a problem with my ability, only
with social
integration. There are so many unwritten rules, and office politics. People
who see things literally and respond with complete honesty just don’t fit
into an office environment.”
At the Pru, he says, he has supportive
colleagues: “If they hadn’t
been understanding, I wouldn’t have been as successful as I have.” He also
has a support worker, who comes in once a month.
“She is there as an advocate for me with the
company if there are any
issues that need clearing up. That means that I don’t get penalised for
anything I do that is purely to do with Asperger’s.”
Mr Cockell’s success is not unique. The NAS says
that many people at
the highfunctioning end of the autistic spectrum have a remarkable memory
for facts and figures and outstanding mathematical ability which make them
extremely good at jobs involving computers.
So computers are even more vital to autistic
children than they are to
others. Ofsted’s targets are that normal schools provide one computer for
each two pupils. The National Autistic Society’s schools need 129 computers
to cover pupils’ requirements, as well as the accompanying software and
printers. A donation of £50 will help to adapt a standard PC to suit a child
with special education needs.
Copyright 2002 Times Newspapers Ltd
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/0,,61-2002001179,00.html
******************************
Therapeutic Classroom
Teaches Good Behavior
By Dawn Ziegenbalg
Winston-Salem Journal, AP
Winston-Salem, N.C. - Seven little boys sit cross-legged on the floor,
wiggling in their places and raising their hands as their teacher holds up
flash cards.
"A stands for ... what?" the teacher
asks, calling on one boy.
"Ac-know-ledge my an-ger," the child
sings out.
He is just 5 years old.
He's here because he's had a tough time behaving
in kindergarten.
Teachers and day-care workers can refer 3- to
5-year-olds to the
Therapeutic Classroom, run by CenterPoint Human Services, for a variety of
behavioral problems. Some children throw chairs at their teachers, fight
with their classmates or have frequent temper tantrums; others can't sit
still for 30 seconds and don't listen to directions.
The children are so little that their behaviors
hardly seem
threatening.
"But wait until they get older," said
Chris Barger, the program's
director. "This is the prime time to catch these kids before it gets
bigger
and badder."
The program started as the Preschool Enrichment
Program about 20 years
ago, but since then it has focused more on behavioral therapy. Now, it works
to identify children's difficulties in an effort to improve their behavior.
The program also offers education and counseling to the children and their
parents.
Some of the children act out because they
struggle to deal with a
parent's death, drug abuse or mental disabilities, Barger said. Others are
abused, neglected or have difficulty dealing with stress. And still more
have teen-age parents who are not equipped to deal with the challenges of
raising them.
Over the years, as the number of children facing
these kinds of
problems has grown, the program has struggled to keep pace.
It doubled its capacity two years ago, with money
from a federal grant
administered by the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, and it now serves
32 children. Teachers easily could fill another classroom with the need that
exists, Barger said.
"The biggest complaint is that we can't get
kids in fast enough," she
said.
Rochester Damon Jr., one of the program's
teachers, opens his class
every day with a song. Sometimes, he personalizes each verse for the
children.
"Christopher, Christopher. Christopher,
Christopher," he and the
children sing.
"We like you. We like you.
"You are very special. You are very special.
"Hip hooray. Hip hooray."
The boys beam and giggle as, one by one, they enjoy their moment of
fame.
"We do a lot to build self-esteem,"
Barger said. "All these kids have
been screaming children in other classrooms, but here, in a small classroom,
they do well."
The program, which moved into rented space in an
open wing at Cook
Elementary School this year, offers two morning sessions and two afternoon
sessions for eight students each -- most of them boys.
Two teachers and an assistant work in each class
because so many of
the children need highly individualized attention.
They spend a lot of time teaching
anger-management techniques. The
children can recite the strategies by heart -- "ignore distractions,"
"stay
on task," "when you're getting mad, walk away." When the
children get
frustrated in class, the teachers help them apply the techniques.
In one activity, children use breathing exercises
to blow their angry
feelings into an imaginary balloon that they release into the air. In
another, students jump around to "get their wiggles out."
Teachers alternate the games with traditional
class work including
handwriting practice and vocabulary lessons.
"My goals are different for each individual
child," Damon said. "For
some, it could be to sit in their seat for 30 seconds. For some, it's to
stay on task or to walk in class instead of run. For some, it's to express
how they feel. My goal, truly, is to plant seeds and water those seeds and
have other people nurture them as time goes by."
Some of those nurturers will be the children's
parents. The program
offers counseling and classes to teach parents how to reinforce their
children's positive behavior at home.
"If we have us working, the parents working
and the teachers working,
the children can do well," Barger said. "A lot of times these kids
just need
socialization. They're bright kids who develop bad habits."
But not all parents are involved, and some of
those who are involved
may also struggle with overwhelming family problems or poverty.
One boy came to class last week wearing pants
that he couldn't zip
because they were a size too small. The boy's teacher gave him a new pair
from a closet stocked with donated clothes.
Principals say they've seen the program work
wonders.
"It's real cute to see the children come
back and share what they've
learned with other children in their classes," said Tobie Arnold, the
principal of Old Town Elementary. "They'll say, 'You could have made
another
choice,' or 'That's not right to say that to your teacher."'
The children attend the program Monday through
Thursday and then go to
their own schools Fridays. The program's teachers visit them there and work
with them in their classes.
"It helps them deal with some issues that we
can't deal with as well
here," Arnold said. "But with a little bit of extra help in smaller
classes,
they can express their feelings and learn different tools on how to get
along in class.
"There are so many children that could
benefit from the tools they're
learning. Sometimes we just have to say, 'Who needs this the most?"'
The program already needs more money to meet the
need that exists,
directors say.
This year, it has a $502,000 budget. Most of that
comes from tax
dollars, fees and Medicaid reimbursements for children's mental-health
treatment. More than $140,000 comes from an annual federal grant from the
Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative, administered by the
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools.
The grant runs out after this year, and the classroom will
need
additional money to continue operating at its current capacity, said Ron
Morton, the director of CenterPoint.
Morton says he is confident CenterPoint will find
the money to keep or
even expand the program because it has a unique strength -- it helps
children when they're young, before their problems become more severe and
harder to handle.
"There's never been quite enough of this,"
he said. "And there aren't
so many things out there today that are so hopeful. People just turn
immediately to these kinds of things."
© Copyright 2001, The News & Observer
http://www.brainconnection.com/SITEWare/2001/12/30/eng-raleigh_home/eng-rale
igh_home_132823_2347811700453738868.php3
******************************
The
vaccines, especially for your mom and dads that are in the military
you may also be of knowledge of Dan
Burton's concern over the Anthrax vaccine
I was in the military from 1985 - 1991. In that time, I was stationed
overseas, and was part of a rapid response unit that was prepared to go
anywhere, anytime.
I think back now to the multitude of vaccinations I had received as part of the
preventative measures taken to protect us from whatever diseases,
infections, or whatever we could have possibly come in contact with in some
obscure part of the world.
In all my research into the how, what, and why of my sons' conditions, even to
point of considering the vaccine (MMR) issue that I firmly believe had a lot to
do with my youngest son, I never once considered anything from my military
days.
I have a complete set of my medical records somewhere. Going to go through and
see exactly how many vaccinations I did receive.
Shawn M. Martin
Engineering Technician, Engineering
American Power Conversion Corporation
E-mail shawn.martin@apcc.com
******************************
The Northeast Illinois Chapter of the Autism
Society of America
The Northeast Illinois Chapter of the
Autism Society of America will be having its monthly meeting Thursday January
10th at 7:00 p.m. We will be meeting in our normal room at the Warren Special
Recreation Association building, Southwest Corner of Washington and Almond
Roads in Gurnee
Please e-mail me at NEChapASI@aol.com or call me at 543-4502 if you have any
questions! Happy 2002...hope to see you all on the 10th.
******************************
Summer program in St. Clair Shores for Special
Needs kids, ages 5-12.
There
is a nice summer program in St. Clair Shores for Special Needs kids, ages 5-12.
It runs for 9 weeks in the summer, M-F, 9am-4pm. The cost last summer was
$50/week (yes, I am not kidding!) for SCS residents, and $55 or $60 for those
not in St. Clair Shores.
It is run out of the Parks and Recs Department in St. Clair Shores and that is
who you would contact for more information. I do not have the number
handy, but you can call Information or try to look up their website, I know
that they have one.
The was run for at least the past 2 summers by a teacher from the Clintondale
School District (I believe that is where he works). His name is Sean
Barrell and he is very good. There is a ratio of 2 to 1 I believe, but
you can double-check that. All I know is there are several young kids
there and they are just wonderful with the children. Most of them are
college students who are pursuing teaching or special education teaching
degrees.
The camp is located at the Memorial Park in SCS, at the foot of Masonic and
Jefferson. It is a beautiful lakeside park. They just installed a
"Wet and Wild Pad" or whatever those things are called-it is pretty
cool:)
They go on field trips every Thursday, examples: Detroit Zoo, Movies, Chuckie
Cheese. Every Monday and Wednesday they go to the city pool, located at
11/Jefferson, for 3 hours. A bus transports them on all of these outings
and my son was very fond of the bus driver, too:)
If that isn't enough...we are also invited to several holiday parties, bowling
league, Tiger Games, throughout the year, low cost or free of charge! Halloween
is usually at a restaurant, Christmas is at a hall and Easter at the Park &
Recs center. They serve a meal and give the kids presents....it is really
an awesome team of people they have there.
They have a "Regular Ed" camp, too, but the cost is about $80 a week.
The reason why the Special Needs is less, is because they get grants and
donations. If you have ever heard of Emily Greco, or The Emily Greco
Foundation, it provides financial assistance to them, too. (She is a
little girl who dies of meningitis in the fall of 2000). Another big fan
is Fred Maloof of Maloof's Gifts on Harper in SCS.
Now....if you are still with me....lol....the reason why I am telling you all
of this, is not just for those who are thinking of enrolling their child into
this program....but, for those of you are interested in having a program like
this in your town...try contacting the Parks and Recs Department at St. Clair
Shores for information and guidance. This is one town that truly embraces
our kids...isn't it great??
Bella1104@peoplepc.com
******************************
Cherie Blair takes personal interest in mother's
MMR claim
The Daily
TelegraphBy Sarah Womack, Political Correspondent (Filed: 11/12/2001)
CHERIE BLAIR has expressed a personal interest in a mother's legal fight
for compensation for a son she believes was brain damaged by the MMR
vaccination.Mrs Blair's response to emails sent to her by Julie Loch from Wales
has raised speculation about whether Leo Blair, now 18 months old, has received
the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccination.A Downing Street spokesman
refused to comment, saying the Prime Minister's children were entitled to
"complete privacy in medical matters".But a doctor at the centre of
the MMR row said the Blairs should be open about what medical route they had
chosen. Peter Mansfield, a Lincolnshire GP who offers single dose injections,
said: "If you expect to be some kind of role model, it is important to be
transparent."It is prudent to be beyond reproach. I do not know what the
Blairs' situation is." Mrs Blair thanked Mrs Loch for keeping her
informed, and said she would be "happy to receive further
information".The Department of Health retains faith in MMR, insisting that
parents have no need for concern. MMR is recommended for children at 13 months
and for four-year-olds.But with fears mounting that the vaccine could be linked
to autism in young children, an increasing number of parents are having
children vaccinated privately with separate jabs at a cost of almost £200.A
report by the Medical Research Council has concluded that the possibility of
MMR causing autism in susceptible children cannot be ruled out on current
evidence.Mrs Loch said her youngest son began to "regress developmentally
and behaviourally" when he was two years old.He is now autistic, with
chronic bowel damage which was affecting his gastrointestinal tract. She said
"countless medics" had refused to accept that her son was vaccine
damaged. However, her son was among eight cases that had been selected to
represented a group litigation case against the vaccine manufacturers. Pat
Troop, the Government's deputy chief medical officer, said she had been advised
that the single jabs were not safe.Dr Mansfield was charged by the General
Medical Council's disciplinary body with putting patients at risk and failing
to conform to the recommendation of the Chief Medical Officer. The charges were
subsequently dropped.He said: "The MMR vaccine should not be administered
in one dose. When three live viruses are forced alongside each other into the
body, they may mutate with devastating consequences." © Copyright of
Telegraph Group Limited 2001. Terms & Conditions of reading.Commercial
information. Privacy Policy.
http://www.talkinternational.com/issues_health_mmr_vaccines_dec_01.htm
******************************
Encouraging families to attend these court
proceedings that can mean so
much
to their families' future
Tony
Paulauski & Jim Bown
January 1, 2002
This is
intended for any Arc advocates and others interested in the best possible life
situation
for their family with special needs.
Lutefisk
or Turkey
Looking
back on the holidays, we can see we've had a lot of decisions to make. We
chose
what to make for Christmas dinner, what presents to buy, and made a whole
lot of
other decisions. We even made a lot of choices for others for whom we had
responsibility.
Not all our choices were correct, and we may have had regrets. Not all
our
choices were popular, and not all our choices were for everyone. Isn't this
what
life is
about – making choices? Now that I've had my turkey and chocolate cake, I
am suffering
the consequences - overweight.
What has
this to do with anything? We have, and are, making major life choices right
now for
our loved ones, such as where they live and how they live. But what if there
were no
choices, no alternatives, and we were made to feel grateful for whatever we
got? I
shudder, just like taking a bite of lutefisk, to think of accepting what was
doled
out to us
at the time my son was growing up. Born in 1957, we, the parents of
special
needs children, found ourselves fighting for every scrap of service. Parents
led the
charge, bunches of parents, where we had to force the choices we wanted.
We found
sympathetic lawmakers, bureaucrats, and administrators to help shape
and enact
our cause. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and
Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA) were fought on the National scene, but where
do you
think it started? At the grass roots.
Most of
the Arc Chapters were started about 50 years ago by parents to help make
better
choices for their loved ones. Through the years, starting in the mid 1800's,
the
institutions
grew and grew until the mid-1900's when alternative settings were
developed.
Across the United States institutions are closing, or in the plans to close.
Approx 14
states do not have institutions at all. Why? Because parents, and others,
found a
better way and fought to change the system to allow choice.
Unfortunately
the State of Illinois is one of the last to change, keeping with the same
11
Institutions that have been open for years and years, some since 1854. But
change is
coming. New laws have given people with developmental disabilities the
choice to
live in a nursing home or move to the community. Advocacy organizations,
like The
Arc, have voiced loud and clear their belief of the best setting for people
with
developmental
disabilities. It is called "The Community Imperative" and states that
persons
with developmental disabilities have the right to choose where they live.
Through
experience and research it has been shown that the correct choice is to live
in their
natural home or in a small community setting that simulates family life, as
close as
possible, near family and friends. It is a simple concept in improving, or
maintaining,
a high quality of living, a high quality of service delivery, and at a cost far
less than
large institutions.
Not
everyone agrees with this concept, and that's okay; those parents have made a
choice
they believe is best for them. But now parents, guardians, and friends, we
don't
have choice. And why not? Two major factors: Sit in Federal Court with me, and
listen to
the lawyers, Judge, and defendants argue whether we have empty beds, and
if we do,
how many, and in what type of setting. In the nine county area around
Chicago,
there is a waiting list at one provider of over 10 years and hundreds of
people
long. But yet, as claimed by the state, there is a surplus of over several
hundred
beds. I won't get into ICFDD'S, CILA's, SLA's, etc., etc. What we are really
talking
about is size and locations of facilities. The state does have empty beds in
Institutions
around the state. Do you want your family members downstate four or
more
hours away? Do you want your loved one in a large setting with hundreds of
others?
Where's the quality care?
If you
answer no, then what is your choice? The Department of Human Services is
not
putting anyone into small group homes (usually called CILA's) unless it's an
emergency
or a "priority" case. You can't choose. They have only given
permission
for two
providers to build larger, campus like settings. Where is the small,
community
environment here? Where is the choice?
What is
to be done? We need the parents back into the fight. All parents, not
just
those
that agree with us. Our adversary is again the state funders, the Department of
Human
Services, the antiquated thinking that we are powerless. The Boudreau vs.
Ryan
lawsuit is just what we are fighting for. That courtroom should be packed every
court day
with parents and guardians showing their interest and feelings. Testimony
resumes
January 10th, in Judge Grady's court at 10:00 a.m. in Chicago at the
Dirksen
Federal Office Building, 219 S. Dearborn, Federal Court 2201. As parents,
as grass
root advocates, let's get our hands dirty. Let's advocate for choices now and
the
future. Who did it for you in the past?
See you
in court January 10th, at 10:00 a.m. Show them …we care
Jim Bown,
Parent of a special needs son and
President, The Arc of Illinois Board of Directors
******************************
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ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.