Stars 4 Kidz

Archive for August, 2009

Not that I don’t appreciate it, but where have you been for the last eight years? And does anyone know where Sarah Palin’s newfound expertise in autism comes from? Down Syndrome and autism are apples and oranges, and I can promise you, Sarah Palin is never going to have to fight for services for her child.

My daughter is a special ed teacher who evaluates and implements individual instruction plans at an elementary school. She told me about Obama nearly 2 years ago when she volunteered to work his campaign. Her only goal in life is the betterment of kids who don’t have the same abilities as everyone else. Like she says, you can anyone, but it takes a bit more imagination to break through to some kids. Since she believe in children as much or more than anyone I know, I am following her lead on this.

McCain has adapted his words and campaign to what has been successful for Obama I’ve noticed. After the polls showed huge upticks with Obama’s "change", McCain decided to become a Maverick, etc. Of course, the GOP wants to cut school spending, it’s always been a party mandate.

My daughter is 10 years old, and is being tested shortly for dyslexia – although it is pretty definite she has it, we are having the proper testing done. However, how can I explain about dyslexia in a kind way so that my daughter does not think there is something "wrong" with her. She already struggles with her self esteem because of reading, writing, spelling and maths issues and has been bullied at school. How can I explain why having this test is a good thing and that dyslexia is only a minor part of who she is?

Tell her that everyone’s brain works differently. Some people are good at sports, others at math, others at reading, others at art or cooking. Some people’s brains have a more difficult time making sense of the signals that are a part of reading. Their eyes and their brains don’t communicate very well. The good news is, that once you understand how your brain works, there are ways to help you learn better.

I just found out at the end of last school (university) year that I have ADHD. I’m not taking classes now and am working on my parents farm for the summer. I am especially concerned with my social troubles, but do not have any access to social situations here (REALLY small town and all the people my age are gone for summer — plus I’ve never really had any friends to start with). What are some things that I can do now to make next year better?

There are tons of ways to practice social skills over the summer, even if you are in a relatively isolated area. One good way to do so is to by joining an online group or playing an online role-playing game. It may sound weird, but even this "virtual" interaction can help you practice conversation skills and other social strategies.

Here are some great articles about other things you can do:
http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/2998.html

http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/885.html

http://www.additudemag.com/topic/adult-add-ADHD/friends-relationships.html

Well I have to do a project and I want to include an activity to teach them some more about dyslexia eg. A dyslexia test or something suggestions please?

To do this you will need to do a bit of research and reading, so I have given you a few links to help.

I would start by giving everyone a list of some of the signs and symptoms of dyslexia, then maybe give them a test as set out below, (but make sure you tell them that this test etc is no way conclusive of having dyslexia), and whom they would need to see for a formal diagnoses, a Educational Psychologist, and I would then explain how dyslexia can affect a person, even showing them what a dyslexic may see when trying to read. I would then finish off with some strategies on how to support and manage dyslexia, I can give you a fairly comprehensive list if you need it.

Dyslexia affects people differently, and can vary in its severity. There is three types of dyslexia, and dyslexia does not affect a persons intelligence, in fact many dyslexics are highly intelligent people.

Dyslexia – causes problems with reading letters, words, number, symbols and spelling.
Dyscalculia – causes problems with doing maths.
Dysgraphia – causes problems with writing, spelling etc.

Dyslexia can be managed if we learn how it affects our ability to read, write and spell etc, parents and teachers can help by utilizing a number of strategies to assist their child/student both in the classroom and at home, such as having a list of spelling rules, homophones etc, or when writing on the board each paragraph is written in a different colour, coloured overlays may help with reading and so much more.

Both my daughter and I are both dyslexic, my daughter can read better than I, she learnt to read about 3, I learnt to read at 14, strangely I can write quite well, but my daughter has problems with writing (looks like a spider crawled across the page), we both have trouble with spelling especially similar sounding words, and we both have dyscalculia.

which are the high schools in bangalore who admit and support children with Learing Disabilities (Dyslexia)? What are the best educational options for such Children? Where can I get the contact details of Special Educators in Bangalore?

Go to the Bangalore High School and ask them.

I have adhd without a learning disability and read in a book that this is rare and that that most people with adhd have a learning disability. By the way, even though I don’t have a learning disability, would I be considered slow, because I have adhd?

Hi mjurecki89 -

Great questions, and I think the answer will vary based on who / what you are reading.

Yes, it is very common for a person diagnosed with ADHD to also have what is called a comorbid or coexisting condition. This includes depression, bipolar disorder, and as you are asking – learning disabilities.

Now, just because they are common does not necessarily mean they are always present.

As for the last part of your question, NO you would not and are NOT considered "slow" because you have ADHD. Some people (who are misinformed) might think that of you — but in no way are you slow because of ADHD.

ADHD is pretty much misunderstood by the general population to mean that someone has difficulty with attention, concentration, follow through, etc…

BUT, a person with ADHD can also be rather quite successful if they have the right tools, supports, strategies, and resources in their life.

My advice, consider yourself "different" and not disordered or disabled. Find your passion, and follow that.

Hope this helps.

All the best,

Rory

Rory F. Stern, PsyD
ADHD Coach & "Former" Therapist
http://www.ADHDFamilyOnline.com

I work with people with learning difficulties and i’ve always wondered why two of the people I teach with severe autism have dysmorpic facial features, and the other people with servere autism look normal!

How does this work?

Some people diagnosed with autism also have a genetic syndrome called Fragile X. Fragile X Syndrome is one of the few genetically inherited syndromes that has been known to actually CAUSE autism.
In laments terms, Fragile X syndrome occurs during gestation.. where the X chromosome blocks important brain development.

On occasion, it can be tiring trying to keep up with an active five-year-old. If you’ve been around an active child of this age, or if you have one of your own, you may have wished in vain that the kid would just “veg out” for a little while. Current research, however, is validating the long-term health benefits of this whirlwind of activity.

In fact, rather than attempting to slow these little ones down, five-year-olds should be encouraged to be as active as possible, according to a new University of Iowa study. What’s the rationale? “Because it pays off as they grow older,” said Kathleen Janz, lead author of the study and professor of health and sport studies in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Being active at age five assists kids in staying lean as they get older even if they don’t continue to be as active further into childhood. “We call this effect ‘banking’ because the kids benefit later on, similar to having a savings account at a bank. The protective effect is independent of what happens in between,” Janz went on to say.

Using an accelerometer that gauges movement every minute, and a distinctive scanner that meticulously measures bone, fat, and muscle tissue, the UI team calculated the body fat and activity level of 333 children at ages five, eight, and eleven. The kids put on accelerometers to tabulate their activity level for up to five days, affording much more reliable data than depending on kids or parents to track minutes of exercise.

The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, indicates that kids who are active at age five end up with less fat at age eight and eleven, even when controlling for their accumulated level of activity. The average five-year-old in the study got thirty minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per day. For every ten minutes on top of that, kids had one-third of a pound less fat tissue at ages eight and eleven.

Though supplementary investigation is required to discover exactly what takes place in the body of these active kids, Janz postulated that there was a possibility that the active 5-year-olds didn’t develop as many fat cells, that their insulin response improved, or that a process occurred metabolically that supplied some defense down the road even as the kids became less active.

Nonetheless, as appealing as this study is, weight moderation is not the only benefit of early exercise. As a chiropractor I have noticed in my own practice that active kids have far less common childhood health challenges, such as catching colds and the flu. Chiropractic care is, of course, exceptionally beneficial in helping kids to stay healthier. But, in addition, the stimulation to the brain that takes place during activities, especially those that necessitate “cross pattern” motor movements of the larger muscles, i.e., right hand/left leg and left hand/right leg, such as crawling, running, climbing, and skipping, also boosts the autoimmune system and keeps kids healthier.

Too many children these days are overweight and unhealthy. Though part of the problem is an inappropriate diet, lack of exercise is also a major contributing factor. If you have a five-year-old who prefers to watch television or play video games rather than participating in more active play, it is up to you to help your child to get up and get moving into healthier activities. Moderate to vigorous exercise will not only benefit your child now, but will help to build a healthier future. You can bank on it!

Dr. Jamie Phillips, is a consultant for Bloczone Marketing, a chiropractic marketing company specializing in chiropractic websites that attract new patients. She also instructs chiropractors in Honolulu and across the country how to market their chiropractic practices on the internet.

Technorati Tags: childhood health challenges, children, chiropractor, exercise, kids, overweight

My friend said to apply for disability for him. I can do this but I get child support. Would child support get cut from my X? would disability pay more than what I am getting from child support? Would he get disability for life? LD is learing disability.

From my past experience and depending upon the state in which you live, financial assistance can be available if you show the need for the educational and /or physica//mental assistance. I have taught students whose parents are divorced and one is paying child support however, because of the need of the child and because of the law (No Child Left Behind), financial assistance has been available to this parent however, you must have doctor’s proof up the ying-yang to declare that your child suffers from all of these issues. You must show that the additional money is needed to help him with life skills and be prepared to care for himself in the future. It does take extra money because this is way outside of the regular teaching requirements. Specially trained teachers are needed in addition to smaller classroom size and individual attention. I wish you well in your endeavor.

Studies in psychiatric journals in the early 90s showed a link between autism and feminism.

The rise in autism has been attributed to women with masculine minds marrying men with masculine minds, leading to children with hyper masculine minds.

Furthermore a link has been shown to exist between autism and women and the diagnostic criteria for autism.

A study tested 4200 women at the University of New Hampshire. 677 women tested scored highly on the feminist belief scale, or feministic scale.

254 out of 677 women who scored highly on the feministic scale also ranked highly in restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests and activities. Usually their obsession focused around feminist issues whether real or contrived.

107 of the 677 women scored low on the qualitative social interaction scale.

430 out of the 677 women who scored highly on the feministic scale also scored highly on the masculine personality type scale.

Do you know any autistic feminists?
This study was in a 1992 Issue of the Journal of Applied Psychiatric Medicine so you can look it up yourself if you like.

If a web link is absolutely necessary:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/femail/article.html?in_article_id=477153&in_page_id=1879&ito=1490
Anna you are correct, and you can be correct about more males being diagnosed with autism than females but that still does not have any relevance to the high rate of autism among feminists, a subset of women rather than all women, as noted in the study only a minority of the women tested actually scored highly on the feministic scale.
The ‘ Hyper-Masculine Mind’ is a working hypothesis of neurobiology wendy g. Furthermore you appear to have a rather obsessive need to prove yourself right. Perhaps caused by low self esteem, but nevertheless obsessive. Are you a feminist who has been diagnosed with autism by any chance? At the very least I would suggest that any children you have should be submitted for possible diagnosis immediately.

Actually, Wendy G., the " hyper- masculine mind " concept is more than conjecture. It is a working hypothesis of neurobiology.
Not that that has much to do with the rather stretched claims of the questioner.