|
|
|
The
following is the latest news and
information related to special education and
disabilities.
Please
note, the
information contained on the pages in this section is intended as a
resource only. Inclusion of it is not to be considered an endorsement
by QPAC. If
your child needs assistance when attending programs, please contact the
program/organization directly to discuss their needs.
Disabilities
Characteristics and Accommodations Booklet
The
Disabilities Characteristics and Accommodations Booklet is another
example of cooperation between QPAC and the district. Initially a
project of the Quincy Public Schools Special Education Team, QPAC has
assumed supervision for completion of the Booklet whose purpose is to
outline common disabilities and document the classroom accommodations
and modifications that are associated with them. When completed, it
will serve as a guide for the regular-education teachers and other
personnel who work directly with our children.
One of the most
exciting aspects of this project is the collaboration. Parents,
teachers, and others are invited and encouraged to contribute directly
to booklet, sharing the tips and tricks that have proven effective with
their child or students. Pages have been created for each identified disability
in
Google Docs, a web-based word processing application, to allow
individuals to share and edit information as their schedule permits.
Pages have been set up for following disabilities:
ADHD
Anxiety
Asperger Syndrome
Attachment Disorder
Auditory Processing Disorder
Autistic Disorder
Bipolar Disorder
Blind/Visually
Impaired
|
Cerebral
Palsy
Conduct
Disorder
Deaf-Blind
Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing
Depression
Down Syndrome
Dyscalculia
Dysgraphia
|
Dyslexia
Dyspraxia
Nonverbal Learning Disorder
Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Schizophrenia
Tourette's Syndrome
Traumatic Brain Injury |
If you are interested in contributing to
the Disabilities Characteristics and Accommodations Booklet, contact us!
| Massachusetts Department of Elementary
and Secondary Information |
Child-First Practice When Serving Students with Disabilities in Educational Settings
In
2007, the Massachusetts Special Education State Advisory Council (SAC)
commissioned a subcommittee to discuss ethical dilemmas related to
service delivery decision-making. The subcommittee decided to develop a
position paper on "child-first" practice and initiated discussions with
the full SAC on the topic. Over the following three years, the SAC had
numerous in-depth discussions on the topic of child-first practice as
the paper was developed. It was included in the SAC's annual report to
the Commissioner and Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. Click
here (pdf) to read this paper.
-
Top -
NAMI Mass Family-To-Family (F2F) Education Program
NAMI
Massachusetts is offering a free 12-week course for family
caregivers of individuals affected with a serious mental illness. F2F
is taught by trained family member volunteers and meets in weekly
sessions of 2 ½ hours for twelve consecutive weeks. The F2F curriculum
utilizes a variety of teaching techniques and includes a broad range of
topics, including:
- Information about
Bipolar Disorder, Major Depression, Schizophrenia, Borderline
Personality Disorder, Panic Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
(OCD)
- Coping skills, handling crisis and relapse
- Listening and communication techniques
- Problem solving and limit setting; rehabilitation
- Understanding the actual experience of people suffering from mental illness
- Self-care; learning how to recognize normal emotional reactions among families
- Basic information about medications and their side effects
- Information about connecting with appropriate community services and community supports
- Advocacy; getting better services, fighting discrimination and stigma
For more information, visit the Nami Mass website.
Come to Think of It - New Group for Parents of Challenging Children
Are
you struggling to raise a child with behavior issues? Do you spent your nights
worried about tomorrow’s behaviors? Do you dread the next call from the
school, the after-school or the babysitter? You are not alone.
Join other parents
with similar concerns for a parent to parent information and support
group based on the book Treating Explosive Kids: The Collaborative Problem-Solving
Approach, by Dr.
Stuart Ablon of Massachusetts General Hospital’s Think:Kids
initiative. Thursday September 30th, 7-9pm at the Hingham Public Library (corner of Rt. 228 and Leavitt Street). For more
information send an email to cometothinkofit@comcast.net.
The AIM Navigator is now available
The
National Center of Accessible Instructional Materials is pleased to
announce that the AIM Navigator, the latest in a series of tools
developed under the auspices of the AIM Consortium, is now available at
the National AIM Center website! Please share this information
with others. The AIM
Navigator is an interactive online tool that facilitates the process of
decision-making about accessible instructional materials for an
individual student. The AIM Navigator guides teams through a
step-by-step process and provides just-in-time support with Frequently
Asked Questions (FAQs), resources, and links to other helpful tools at
each of four major decision-points:
- Determining the need for accessible instructional materials;
- Selecting format(s) that address student needs;
- Acquiring needed formats; and,
- Selecting
supports for use (technology, training, instructional strategies,
support services, and other accommodations and modifications)
We invite you to explore the AIM Navigator and try out the following features at the National AIM Center website.
-
Top -
|
|
|
