BY DEANNA PICON Prominent national landmarks will light up in blue, awareness events will be held throughout the country and major fundraising campaigns will be conducted as America recognizes Autism Awareness Month. Hundreds of organizations and thousands of people will bring much needed attention to the key issues and topics surrounding autism, as well as the plight of the millions of people it affects. However, in the midst of all of these diverse activities, it’s […]
SIBLING TIES BY PAIGE TALHELM I just want people to see autism for how it truly is. It isn’t just this blue light that shines in the city every April. It isn’t just that one savant that can tell you what day of the week March 21 was in 1934. As Autism Awareness month approached, I began to think about all of the things I wanted people to be aware of when it came to […]
ACCEPTANCE OF THE DISABILITY LABEL: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL, AND EDUCATIONAL GROWTH OF THE DEAF CHILD BY J. FREEMAN KING, ED.D. Labels are especially damaging to the child who is deaf, and immediately establish low expectations that hamstring the child. Sadly to say, the perspective expressed by Meniere in 1853 is still a prevalent belief among many educators and medically-aligned professionals in the United States today. A pathological label imposed by society, the medical […]
BY KAREN KABAKI-SISTO, M.S. CCC-SLP For brothers or sisters with special needs, the bond with their new sibling is not necessarily automatic due to challenging adaptations in social relations and communication. Recently, the mother of my 11-year-old client with autism gave birth to a girl. A few hours after the baby arrived, I texted “Congratulations!” to the mom. She texted me back with: “I’m worried. ‘Lisa’ won’t come near the baby. What do I do?” […]
BY GAIL FRIZZELL For parents to be confident that their children could survive in this world without them, we would need a direct support workforce, of adequate number, trained to provide the supports our children need to be safe, healthy, and happy. My 30-year-old daughter, Lauren, loves her home in a town just a 20-minute drive from Mom’s. It meets all of her wants and needs and has a lovely view from her bedroom window […]
