Get ready. I’m going to try and get some posting done.
Because it is after April 1, you know I’m not fooling when I say that April is Autism Awareness month.
For authoratative information and resources about this subject, check out
The National Autism Society
And
Autism Speaks.
Also, for some insightful reflection on what the designation of Autism Awareness Month means to one person, check out the Disaboom post titled,
Can We Get Some Actual Help Here?
As an aside, while on that Disaboom post, go to the comment area at the bottom of that post, and check out the accessible CAPTCHA they offer. The audio is very clear and informative, down to the case of the letters it is asking you to input. It is also missing the bothersome background noise that is too common on other audio CAPTCHAs. I’m not sure if that is working well at screening out spam replies, but I didn’t see any comments posted, so I’ll assume its working. Are you listening to this,
Yahoo?
Showing posts with label Autism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Autism. Show all posts
Saturday, April 04, 2009
Thursday, October 25, 2007
More discussion on service animals
Several weeks ago, I was engaged in a conversation with a family friend and was explaining the Access Ability blog to him. One of the subjects that I discussed was a letter I had received from a reader, inquiring about therapy animals and access to hospitals in California. This conversation then took on a shift to include comparing service animals and therapy animals.
One of the questions my friend asked was what kinds of animals are used as service animals? (We have previously discussed guide dogs, so I didn’t even approach that group.) He assumed, and I agreed, that it is most often dogs, but I did explain about the case of the Missouri woman who was fighting with her city to recognize her monkey as a service animal. Additionally, on several occasions when I’ve flown with my Seeing Eye dog, I’ve had flight attendants tell me about a woman with some motor impairment, who regularly flies with an assistance monkey. The monkey will open her drinks for her, insert a straw and then hold it up for her to drink.
Of course, there are also other animals being used as service animals. One of the first that may come to mind are
guide horses for the blind,
a novel approach for providing an animal guide which attempts to maximize the miniature horse’s longer lifespan over that of conventional guide dogs.
But, I still defer to my assertion that it is most often dogs being used. Last week, I read a news article about a school presentation being made by somebody with their Hearing dog from
Texas Hearing and Service Dogs.
I think that dogs are well suited to do this type of work for people who are deaf. I would think there is room for other types of animals to conduct these functions, but am not certain that others are being trained in this capacity.
On an ADHD web site, I later also read about
4 Paws for Ability,
an organization that trains and provides service animals for people who have often been turned away from other service animal organizations.
One thing that 4 Paws does, which is quite interesting to me, is that they place animals with children. Some times, they even certify the parent and child together to work as a three part team with the dog. It basically surprised me that they place dogs with children. From my own experience, I know that it is a rare situation that a teenager will be able to get a guide dog.
They claim to be the innovater of the training and use of Autism assistance dogs. This is the organization’s apparent niche as the web site states that 90% of applicants are those working toward getting an Autism assistance dog.
Also on its web site, 4 Paws specifies it is not taking applications for psychiatric service dogs or emotional support animals for adult partners. I also find that note particularly interesting, being I had never heard of the term “psychiatric service dog” until working on my previous post. Now, I see it again, in such a brief time span.
I know there are many other service animal organizations out there doing some good work. I just don’t have their names or web sites handy at this time. If you would like to leave a comment and share the name of your favorite service dog organization, please do so. If you have personal experience with one of these, please share that as well.
One of the questions my friend asked was what kinds of animals are used as service animals? (We have previously discussed guide dogs, so I didn’t even approach that group.) He assumed, and I agreed, that it is most often dogs, but I did explain about the case of the Missouri woman who was fighting with her city to recognize her monkey as a service animal. Additionally, on several occasions when I’ve flown with my Seeing Eye dog, I’ve had flight attendants tell me about a woman with some motor impairment, who regularly flies with an assistance monkey. The monkey will open her drinks for her, insert a straw and then hold it up for her to drink.
Of course, there are also other animals being used as service animals. One of the first that may come to mind are
guide horses for the blind,
a novel approach for providing an animal guide which attempts to maximize the miniature horse’s longer lifespan over that of conventional guide dogs.
But, I still defer to my assertion that it is most often dogs being used. Last week, I read a news article about a school presentation being made by somebody with their Hearing dog from
Texas Hearing and Service Dogs.
I think that dogs are well suited to do this type of work for people who are deaf. I would think there is room for other types of animals to conduct these functions, but am not certain that others are being trained in this capacity.
On an ADHD web site, I later also read about
4 Paws for Ability,
an organization that trains and provides service animals for people who have often been turned away from other service animal organizations.
One thing that 4 Paws does, which is quite interesting to me, is that they place animals with children. Some times, they even certify the parent and child together to work as a three part team with the dog. It basically surprised me that they place dogs with children. From my own experience, I know that it is a rare situation that a teenager will be able to get a guide dog.
They claim to be the innovater of the training and use of Autism assistance dogs. This is the organization’s apparent niche as the web site states that 90% of applicants are those working toward getting an Autism assistance dog.
Also on its web site, 4 Paws specifies it is not taking applications for psychiatric service dogs or emotional support animals for adult partners. I also find that note particularly interesting, being I had never heard of the term “psychiatric service dog” until working on my previous post. Now, I see it again, in such a brief time span.
I know there are many other service animal organizations out there doing some good work. I just don’t have their names or web sites handy at this time. If you would like to leave a comment and share the name of your favorite service dog organization, please do so. If you have personal experience with one of these, please share that as well.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Disability professional teaches class on using ASL to communicate with infants
One of my favorite disability service professionals was recently featured in a Houston Chronicle news article about her class on teaching American Sign Language (ASL) to preverbal infants.
In the article, Beth Case, of North Harris Montgomery Community College, and also the host of the
Disability 411 podcast,
Discusses how she began using sign language with her own nephew and what the class will encompass. The article also describes the community interest that grew to become this class offered through Case’s college.
One item mentioned briefly in the article that grabbed my attention was the applications for using ASL for communicating with developmentally delayed children, including those with Down syndrome and autism.
Link to the Houston Chronicle article:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/tomball/news/5201083.html
In the article, Beth Case, of North Harris Montgomery Community College, and also the host of the
Disability 411 podcast,
Discusses how she began using sign language with her own nephew and what the class will encompass. The article also describes the community interest that grew to become this class offered through Case’s college.
One item mentioned briefly in the article that grabbed my attention was the applications for using ASL for communicating with developmentally delayed children, including those with Down syndrome and autism.
Link to the Houston Chronicle article:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/tomball/news/5201083.html
Monday, April 02, 2007
April is Autism Awareness Month
The
Autism in Connecticut
Blog site reminds us that April is autism awareness month.
This blog makes a good autism resource and is sponsored by the Autism Society of Connecticut. It offers a good assortment of news and information for issues dealing with autism, including grants, training opportunities, and other available resources.
In a related bit of news, I wrote a post several weeks ago about Amanda Baggs, a woman with autism, and her
Ballastexistenz
Blog.
If you haven’t been following her web site, she has more to say. Her most recent posting is an interesting passage about describing autism to others. She discusses what autism is like for her as it pertains to interacting with people versus objects. Check it out for an enlightened perspective of what life is like for a person with autism.
Also, you might want to check out Ms. Baggs' March 31 posting about the real barriers in communication. In it, she discusses using text-to-speech software on a laptop (and other assistive technology) as a means for communicating with others. This concept is actually not too far-fetched. Think about it. She is unable to communicate in a method that most people understand, but by typing her thoughts on a computer, it can speak via the text-to-speech software and act as a translator, enabling all to communicate. That type of thinking is a good idea to keep in mind when facing a problematic situation where additional resources are needed.
As a reminder, Ms. Baggs Describes herself as a “non-speaking physically disabled and autistic woman. Again, I proclaim that for someone who is “non-speaking,” she sure has a lot to say and says it most eloquently.
Autism in Connecticut
Blog site reminds us that April is autism awareness month.
This blog makes a good autism resource and is sponsored by the Autism Society of Connecticut. It offers a good assortment of news and information for issues dealing with autism, including grants, training opportunities, and other available resources.
In a related bit of news, I wrote a post several weeks ago about Amanda Baggs, a woman with autism, and her
Ballastexistenz
Blog.
If you haven’t been following her web site, she has more to say. Her most recent posting is an interesting passage about describing autism to others. She discusses what autism is like for her as it pertains to interacting with people versus objects. Check it out for an enlightened perspective of what life is like for a person with autism.
Also, you might want to check out Ms. Baggs' March 31 posting about the real barriers in communication. In it, she discusses using text-to-speech software on a laptop (and other assistive technology) as a means for communicating with others. This concept is actually not too far-fetched. Think about it. She is unable to communicate in a method that most people understand, but by typing her thoughts on a computer, it can speak via the text-to-speech software and act as a translator, enabling all to communicate. That type of thinking is a good idea to keep in mind when facing a problematic situation where additional resources are needed.
As a reminder, Ms. Baggs Describes herself as a “non-speaking physically disabled and autistic woman. Again, I proclaim that for someone who is “non-speaking,” she sure has a lot to say and says it most eloquently.
Monday, February 26, 2007
Assistive technology allows "low functioning autistic" to function beautifully
I usually use the forum of Access Ability to provide links to web sites that provide qualified and worthy resources or news that is of interest to DSS professionals. As a result, I limit links to any personal blogs, as many are only personal soapboxes and do not usually provide credible, professional information. However, I have discovered one that is definitely worthy of the attention of DSS professionals. Let me direct you to
Ballastexistenz,
The blog site of Amanda Baggs, a woman with autism.
Her doctors describe Ms. Baggs as “a low-functioning autistic.” However, when you read her blog, you will see that this label is very misleading. What this misnomer fails to grasp is the stimulating intellect that Ms. Baggs’ possesses. The mind which hides behind her disabling condition can totally flourish when provided the proper assistive technology.
Ms. Baggs is a video blogger with a demonstrative video posted under her on-line name of
SilentMiaow
posted on Youtube. Her video
in my language
was shot, edited, and posted by Ms. Baggs herself.
On the link of her blog marked “About,” Ms. Baggs explains the insightful and thought-provoking source of the name of her blog and further discloses:
I am a non-speaking physically disabled and autistic woman who’s lived in institutions, whose income comes from a disability check, and whose services are funded by the state.”
“This blog is about assorted ideas, but most will have something to do with human rights, autistic liberation, disability rights, and so forth.”
Check out her blog and see what I’m talking about. For somebody who classifies herself as “non-speaking,” she sure has a lot to say…and she says a lot that is worthwhile. Her video is a strong statement of this fact.
I originally came across this post through another blogger’s writing about Ms. Baggs via a news alert for the terms “assistive technology.” I think her Ballastexistenz blog demonstrates a hallmark example of what strides people with disabilities can gain via AT.
Ballastexistenz,
The blog site of Amanda Baggs, a woman with autism.
Her doctors describe Ms. Baggs as “a low-functioning autistic.” However, when you read her blog, you will see that this label is very misleading. What this misnomer fails to grasp is the stimulating intellect that Ms. Baggs’ possesses. The mind which hides behind her disabling condition can totally flourish when provided the proper assistive technology.
Ms. Baggs is a video blogger with a demonstrative video posted under her on-line name of
SilentMiaow
posted on Youtube. Her video
in my language
was shot, edited, and posted by Ms. Baggs herself.
On the link of her blog marked “About,” Ms. Baggs explains the insightful and thought-provoking source of the name of her blog and further discloses:
I am a non-speaking physically disabled and autistic woman who’s lived in institutions, whose income comes from a disability check, and whose services are funded by the state.”
“This blog is about assorted ideas, but most will have something to do with human rights, autistic liberation, disability rights, and so forth.”
Check out her blog and see what I’m talking about. For somebody who classifies herself as “non-speaking,” she sure has a lot to say…and she says a lot that is worthwhile. Her video is a strong statement of this fact.
I originally came across this post through another blogger’s writing about Ms. Baggs via a news alert for the terms “assistive technology.” I think her Ballastexistenz blog demonstrates a hallmark example of what strides people with disabilities can gain via AT.
Friday, November 03, 2006
Combatting Autism Act of 2006
The fight for funding for autism research is on-going.
A news article in today’s Houston Chronicle about the
Combatting Autism Act
also contains some good statistical information about the explosive growth in diagnoses of children with autism spectrum disorders.
Does the six-fold increase in nine years documented by the Centers for Disease Control mean better diagnoses are being performed or that there are more children being born with the disease? You and I are not experts, and the only way to find out possible answers to that question is to conduct more research to understand what is going on.
If you haven’t heard of the Combatting Autism Act, , then take a little time to read the article and enlighten yourself. While reading that, note the number of Americans with autism—1.5 million. Yes, that’s accounting for the whole spectrum, but some of these people are or will someday be attending college classes.
If your office’s caseload has not been impacted yet, hang on. I predict the growth in these diagnoses will impact all DSS offices in coming years, no matter what the outcome of the Combatting Autism Act is.
A news article in today’s Houston Chronicle about the
Combatting Autism Act
also contains some good statistical information about the explosive growth in diagnoses of children with autism spectrum disorders.
Does the six-fold increase in nine years documented by the Centers for Disease Control mean better diagnoses are being performed or that there are more children being born with the disease? You and I are not experts, and the only way to find out possible answers to that question is to conduct more research to understand what is going on.
If you haven’t heard of the Combatting Autism Act, , then take a little time to read the article and enlighten yourself. While reading that, note the number of Americans with autism—1.5 million. Yes, that’s accounting for the whole spectrum, but some of these people are or will someday be attending college classes.
If your office’s caseload has not been impacted yet, hang on. I predict the growth in these diagnoses will impact all DSS offices in coming years, no matter what the outcome of the Combatting Autism Act is.
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