February 2011 Telability WATCH Newsletter

Last month, TelAbility had the wonderful opportunity of collaborating once again with the Erikson Institute graduate school for child development (www.erikson.edu) in Chicago.

On Saturday January 15th we hosted the Influence of Sensory Processing on Child Development & Behavior training. Six North Carolina therapists met at Community Partnerships, Inc. and participated in an interactive class with Dr. Jennifer Rosinia who presented from Chicago. We discussed the theoretical basis behind sensory integration & sensory processing. Dr. Rosinia outlined 8 different sensory systems as well as the structures in the brain that are involved in processing sensory information. We discussed how sensory information is received through the brain and used to produce a behavioral outcome.

Dr. Rosinia's lively & humorous personality kept the pace of the session moving and enjoyable. We were able to ask questions & engage in discussion not only with Dr. Rosinia but also the more than 30 attendees in the classroom at Erikson.

Feedback from the Raleigh therapists was overwhelmingly positive

"I loved the level of learning from this training."

"This workshop was amazing and would be completely unaffordable without it being a videoconference."

"Having access to high quality professional development opportunities with others around the country is so helpful."

Thanks to thank Community Partnerships, Inc. for opening up their doors on a Saturday to host this training. We could not have done it without them!

WATCH Listserv Etiquette...

by Stephanie Hoyer

Let me preface this by admitting that I have been guilty of this mistake, but as a courtesy to all WATCH members, please remember that clicking "reply" to a WATCH email will send your response to the entire listserv.

Instead, please respond directly to the person writing the email (by deleting the WATCH address and copying/pasting the senders email address in to the send box), unless otherwise noted in the email to avoid inundating inboxes with non-pertinant mail.

Thank you for your understanding in this matter - and I promise to check myself before responding in the future :)

TelAbility/WATCH Upcoming Free Multipoint Training...

Roundtable Discussion on Autism

February 18th, 2011 1:00-2:30pm

This session will be a discussion among participants on their experience working, or caring for a child with autism. Topics addressed will include early signs of autism, characteristics of the children we are seeing, therapies/techniques that are being used, successes, strategies that parents are trying, and sharing books/studies/articles.

Nora Roehm will be attending the "Insights into Autism" Conference in Virginia Beach the week prior, and will share information from that presentation.

This presentation is open to both professionals and parents. If you are interested in attending this session at either of our host sites; Abilitations: 11030 Raven Ridge Rd., Ste. 101, Raleigh, or the Raleigh CDSA: 319 Chapanoake Rd., Raleigh, please email sorourke@med.unc.edu including your host site preference.

Agency Profile...

Developmental Therapy Associates

Changing Lives Through Everyday Successes since 1982

www.developmentaltherapy.com

by Linda King-Thomas, Director, Developmental Therapy Associates, Inc., and Nora Roehm, Project Coordinator, TelAbility/WATCH

Developmental Therapy Associates has been serving children & families for the past 29 years. Co-founded and currently owned by Linda King-Thomas MHS, OTR/L, DTA provides occupational and, more recently, speech therapy. Linda studied with Dr. A. Jean Ayers in 1977 and thus her interest in the sensory system was born. Her vision for the company is to be recognized as a distinguished private practice providing exceptional therapeutic services. She has outlined some core values that include honoring and valuing the abilities of each person, being committed to excellence and integrity in the services they provide and in all that they do, supporting the collaborative aspect of service delivery in all environments, adapting to an ever changing world & maintaining a sound fiscal base to ensure continued service to the community.

Developmental Therapy Associates provides occupational and speech/language services primarily to children but they have worked with a few adults with developmental disabilities and autism. They have a Spanish speaking speech therapist on staff as well. Their staff have a combined level of over 200 years of pediatric experience. They keep up to date on the latest theories & techniques in the field so they can be on the cutting edge of new practices. DTA therapists use a variety of intervention approaches but have expertise in the sensory integrative framework.

In addition to the therapy services they provide, they also participate in outreach services by educating & training staff, parents and other professionals in the community. They routinely collaborate with local universities to provide fieldwork experience for students in occupational & speech/language therapy programs.

Programs offered include:

Free Speech Screenings
Astronaut Training
Auditory Integration Training (Genuine Berard AIT)
Therapeutic Listening
Craniosacral Therapy
Bike Riding
Interactive Metronome
Handwriting clinic
Handwriting Intensive
Social Skills Groups
Treatment Intensive

DTA occupational therapists and speech/language pathologists have extensive training in many areas and use sensory based, play based and relationship based intervention strategies. DTA therapists have training and/or certification in areas such as:

Alternative Augmentative Communication

Brain Gym

Cranial Sacral Therapy (CST)

DIR/floor time training

Handwriting Without Tears (HWT)

Interactive Metronome (IM)

Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)

Reiki

Sensory Integration and Praxis Test (SIPT)

Yoga for Kids

...and much more.

Developmental Therapy Associates has an office in Durham and one in Cary to serve children & families. They have recently moved their Cary office to a new location:

Durham clinic: Cary clinic: NEW ADDRESS

3514 University Drive #8 875 Walnut Street, Suite 100

Durham, NC 27702 Cary, NC 27511

919-493-7002 919-465-3966

Noteworthy Arcticle...

Cerebral Palsy No Limit For Champion Speller

By Carol Savazos, CBS 11 News

RICHARDSON, TX (CBSDFW.COM) - Cerebral palsy took Tanu Shivaswamy's ability to speak, but it didn't take away her ability to compete.

Tanu is a 5th grader at Canyon Creek Elementary in the Richardson Independent School District and uses sign language to spell all her words. That's how she became her school's spelling bee champ.

Wednesday, the girl her father describes as very determined faced competition from the district.

"She puts her mind to it, she will go after it," Kiran Shivaswamy said.

Her interpreter is her voice. Kim Spiegel has known Tanu since the little girl was in the first grade. Ask Tanu if she receives A's in spelling, and Kim Spiegel responds, "Yes. Yes. As a matter of fact almost every week, it's 100 on the spelling test."

Tanu learned how to spell as a toddler when other toddlers were just learning how to speak.

"We were trying to understand what she was spelling and then inevitably correct her," Shivaswamy said.

Tanu has spelled thousands of words but never the word "phalanx," which is a group or body in close formation. It's the word that took her out of the district competition in the fourth round.

She said she'll remember that word forever. And she's already made up her mind to come back next year. Because that's the kind of champion she is.

District winners advance to competitions at the county, state and then national level - held in June.

Parent Resources...

The listings below are intended for informational purposes only. TelAbility does not endorse any agency or organization.

Recall:

Jogging Strollers recalled for amputation risk

Reuters article

Please spread the word at your site and to the families you serve that some jogging strollers imported by phil&teds USA, have just been recalled because of a danger of fingertip amputation when folding/unfolding the stroller.

Camp Royall Announces: Registration Open!

Camp Royall Summer camp registration is now open on-line. The summer camp lottery registration period is from Friday, January 14 until Monday, February 21. You must go to Autism Society of NC website to register for camp during this time. If you are new to camp, or have questions about the registration process, please visit The Autism Society of NC's website for more indepth information.

We've Gotcha Covered! North Raleigh Babysitters

Let "We've Gotcha Covered" take the stress out of looking for a babysitter, by finding one for you. Our babysitters are Red Cross certified, and specialize in watching kids with disabilities. For more information, please email Kayla McMillan at kg4me@bellsouth.net, visit our website, or call (919)518-2829.

Abilitations Children's Therapy & Wellness Center:

Abilities Indoor Soccer League!

A soccer league for children with special needs (no limitation on physical or developmental level) 2011 Spring Co-Ed soccer league for ages 5-12.

Location: MVP Sports Center at The Factory MVP Sports Center, 1839-360 S. Main Street, Wake Forest, 27587.

Registration fee is $75.00 per player, and teams meet once per week for practice and games. MVP requires all players to have shin guards and flat soled shoes.

For more information please contact Jennifer Moc or T.R. Goins at (919) 844-6611.

Capitol City Speech Therapy

http://www.capitolcityspeechtherapy.com/

Mom's Morning Out!

Need to get some grocery shopping done? Capitol City Speech Therapy is here to help!

Capitol City Speech Therapy will be offering a Mom's Morning Out on Fridays from 9:00 - 11:00. Bring your kids between the ages of 18 months and five years to our office on 141 Main Street, Fuquay Varina ready for two hours of crafts, story times, games and tons of fun. Be sure to pack any diapers or a change of clothes that your child may need. A charge of $20.00 per child will be accepted upon arrival with discounts available for multiple children ($15.00 for the second child, $10.00 for the third child, etc).

Space is limited to eight children per Friday so please call ahead for reservations!

For more information, please click here.

Exceptional Children's Assistance Center

http://ecac-parentcenter.org/

ECAC is a private non-profit parent organization committed to improving the lives and education of ALL children through a special emphasis on children with disabilities.

ECAC is all about Parent Education! Since the beginning in 1983 ECAC has been committed to "improving the lives and education of children" by providing parents with the knowledge and skills to become their child's best advocate. ECAC's parent education programs are designed to meet the needs of parents and families, young children and students, educators and other professionals.

Parent Education Programs include:

The NC Parent Training and Information (PTI)

The NC Parent Information and Resource Center (PIRC)

The NC Family-to-Family Health Information Center (HIC)

NC State Improvement Project

Behavior and Reading Improvement Center (BRIC)

Bridging the Gap

For more information, pleaes visit ECAC's website at the link above.

Dynamic Therapy for Kids

http://www.dynamictherapyforkids.com/

Kindergarten Readiness Class

This group class will introduce school readiness activities to young children of all ability levels using music, movement, building, coloring, and multisensory activities. Classes will be taught by Melanie Lee, MS, OTR/L; Occupational Therapist and Handwriting Without Tears Certified Handwriting Specialist.

This class is being offered on Fridays from 10:30am-12:00pm and runs for 12 weeks. Please click below for more information

Kindergarten Readiness

Yoga for Movement

Helps children get a "jump start" and begin their school day with a clear, focused mind. Class is offered to kindergarten through 5th graders and will emphasize building strength and flexibility with fun movement activities. Classes will be taught by Jennifer Credle, LPT. Please click below for more information

Yoga for Movement

Book Review...

Book Review by Nora Roehm*:

*This reveiw is the opinion of Nora Roehm and not an official endorsement of this or any other product.

Sensory Integration: A Guide for Preschool Teachers

by Christy Isbell & Rebecca Isbell

Gryphon House Publishers 2007 $19.95

http://www.gryphonhouse.com/store/trans/productDetailForm.asp?BookID=16561

Although the title of this book references preschool teachers as the intended audience, it is also very helpful for parents and therapists. The book is clearly structured into 6 chapters that outline what Sensory Processing is, what sensory disorders looks like in the preschool child, how to design the environment to meet the sensory needs of all children, activities to help with different processing issues, suggestions for daily routines & how to make low cost props to use when working on certain activities. What I liked about this book was how the authors broke down & listed all the different sensory systems and described what "avoiders", "seekers" & "under-responders" look like in language that a teacher or parent would recognize. They use vignettes to describe the various conditions such as "Visual Seeker", Vestibular Under-Responder" or "Proprioceptive Avoider". They describe what "this type" of child does and red flags to look for in determining what kind of sensory issue may be exhibited. These descriptions can help therapists explain a specific sensory disorder to parents and teachers in a way that makes sense to them. It can also help early intervention providers (developmental therapist, psychologists, pediatricians, etc.) understand how the sensory system affects behaviors they may contribute to other causes.

This book only gives general suggestions for activities to help children who experience sensory difficulties. The overall repeated message is that children who exhibit significant sensory issues need to see a professional trained in sensory processing techniques (such as a pediatric occupational therapist). There is a small section that addresses how to observe children, how to talk to parents about concerns and when & how to refer children for services. These sections could be more substantial, in my opinion, but the fact that this is supposed to be a source of guidance to teachers and not a comprehensive primer on working with families, I understand their need to be brief. As one of many tools used in the treatment of children in the early intervention system, this book provides good information and a way to start a conversation about possible sensory processing differences.

Giving to TelAbility...

As we begin this New Year, you can recognize a child you serve, or a professional you admire by making a donation to TelAbility/WATCH on their behalf.

Send your gift, along with a few words about the child or professional to:

TelAbility

1101 Weaver Dairy Road, Suite 202

Chapel Hill, NC 27514

Checks can be made out to the UNC Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Include "TelAbility" in the memo line.

Thank you!