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Epilepsy Foundation Northwest Camp Discovery August 31–September 3 The Epilepsy Foundation Northwest’s Camp Discovery, located at Camp Fire USA’s Camp Killoqua in Stanwood, Wash. (Snohomish County), is a 4-day, 3-night camp for children and teenagers, ages 7–17, with epilepsy. It’s a great opportunity for kids to experience the fun of camp activities—swimming, fishing, sports, hiking and more—all designed to be accessible and adapted to campers’ individual needs and abilities, all in a safe, medically monitored setting. The camp is free to kids with epilepsy and costs $150 for siblings. Scholarships are available for qualified individuals, based on availability and financial need. Contact Brent Herrmann at 206-547-4551, or register at www.epilepsynw.org.

These guides make it easier for young children with disabilities to participate in early literacy learning activities. Written for both parents and practitioners, the practice guides describe everyday home, community, and childcare learning opportunities that encourage early literacy learning.

Jane Farrall has constructed a great table listing all the important features about all the known assistive/adaptive communication (AAC) applications for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. She’s actively updating the table in response to feedback, this is a great resource for those looking for information about AAC out there.

Modernizing Public Benefits Programs:  What the Law Says State Agencies Must do to Serve People with Disabilities.  The pamphlet, adapted from NCLEJ materials, discusses the legal obligation to make agency websites accessible to people with disabilities, to make any online application forms and process accessible, to modify agency policies and practices when necessary to ensure accessibility, to ensure that telephone communication with individuals with disabilities is effective, and to use automated phone systems that are accessible to and usable by people with disabilities.

This academy gives the paraeducator knowledge and skills specific to the use of instructional strategies and methods. The academy bases teaching upon the belief that paraeducators must be constantly involved in the dynamic process of analyzing the teaching environment and individual student needs for the particular level of support, degree of adaptation/accommodation or modification, and instructional method that would best facilitate learning. The academy is designed to provide these skills for use by paraeducators supporting students in inclusive classrooms, resource rooms, or in self-contained settings. Paraeducators that attend this training will learn strategies to use with reading, math, and writing instruction. These strategies can be used in whole group, small group or individual instruction.

Creating a Sense of Urgency - Great Falls - Feb. 3, 2011 Click here to download the full brochure with registration form (PDF) When: February 3, 2010 Where: Hampton Inn Great Falls, MT What: This motivating keynote focuses on how we can adapt our educational system to a rapidly changing world. Participants will begin to look at education in a global context, how this view is imperative to raising student achievement, and why a sense of urgency must be created in order to engage all stakeholders. FREE TRAINING FOR: Elementary middle school and high school teachers special education teachers administrators paraprofessionals and parents.

Inexpensive and Easily Available Toys That Work for Children with Special NeedsWhen a birthday or holiday rolls around, I can usually get a nice assortment of age-appropriate toys for my typically-developing children for less than $100.  But just one adapted toy for my child with cerebral palsy can be anywhere from $50 to $200.   In an attempt to find some alternatives, I asked a group of moms what off-the-shelf toys worked well for their children, who have a wide range of disabilities, including physical, behavioral, developmental, and sensory disabilities.  I've included a variety of their favorites in this article.

Conference and Workshop Updates: TATRA - Webinar - Multiple Dates

DREAMs' mission is: To make the Flathead Valley accessible for all people through awareness, coordinating networking, and increasing accessibility.

Once a week during winter, high school students with disabilities head to Whitefish Mountain Resort to ski, train for the Special Olympics and, above all, have a lot of fun. For many of them, it’s unlike any other experience of their lives. Their ticket to the mountain is DREAM Adaptive Recreation Inc., an organization established in 1985 to give disabled children and adults access to recreational opportunities in the Flathead Valley. DREAM stands for “Disabled Recreation and Environmental Access Movement.”

What: The print, bound book is an educational barrier for many students with print disabilities. Because these students cannot read a print book, they require books in alternative formats such as DAISY and BRF (digital Braille). Books in accessible digital formats can remove the barriers and provide access to the general curriculum. In this webinar, you will learn about digital accessible books and how to get digital textbooks from the NIMAC (National Instructional Materials Accessibility Center). You'll also learn the services and benefits Bookshare offers to educators and qualified students.

The challenges faced by those with A.D.H.D. -- weighing the decision to take stimulant medication, facing those who doubt your disorder and adapting to your symptoms -- are daunting and deeply personal. Here, in their own words, are the stories of adults and children coping with A.D.H.D.

DREAMs' mission is: To make the Flathead Valley accessible for all people through awareness, coordinating networking, and increasing accessibility. We seek to enhance and promote the self-esteem and physical well-being of participants of all ages and disabilities.

Identifying High-Ability/High Potential Students What: A hands-on workshop on best practices in Identification for Gifted Education Programming for Administrators, School Psychologists and Gifted Education Coordinators. Participants will gain information about achievement and ability testing, observation tools, portfolios and using multiple criteria for identification. Opportunities for discussions to allow for adaptation of material for each school setting will be included. Featured Workshop Facilitator: Dr. Karen L. Westberg is a faculty member in the Gifted/Creative/Talented education program at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. She spent ten years as a faculty member at the University of Connecticut where she was a principal investigator at the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) and taught coursework in gifted education and research methodology. She began her career as a classroom teacher and gifted education specialist in Minnesota schools. She has served on the Executive Committee of the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) and is a member of the Gifted Child Quarterly Editorial Board. Her research interests include classroom practices, gifted education identification, program development and differentiating instruction. When: Friday, January 21, 2011 Where: Montana State University-Billings Student Union Building Lewis/Clark Room 8:30 A.M. – 4 P.M.   Registration: There is no fee for the workshop, but registration is required. Lunch is provided and OPI renewal units will be available. For Registration Contact: Deb Poole, Gifted and Talented Specialist, at debpoole@mt.gov (406) 444-4317

This morning, I read an article online at Education Week titled, "Where Are the Autism Teaching Competencies?" (1)  This commentary calls attention to the fact that only a few states have set forth autism competencies for teachers. What is most interesting is that a few states, both Virginia and California, have successfully this accomplished this task. Yet the majority of states haven't figured create or adapt currently existing autism teaching competencies.

Click here to download the full flyer with registration information (PDF) What: This academy is intended to give the paraeducator knowledge and skills specific to the use of instructional strategies and methods. The academy bases teaching upon the belief that paraeducators must be constantly involved in the dynamic process of analyzing the teaching environment and individual student needs for the partic-ular level of support; degree of adaptation/accommodation or modification, and instructional method that would best facilitate learning. The academy is designed to provide these skills for use by paraeducators supporting students in inclusive classrooms, resource rooms, or in self-contained settings. When: October 20, 2011 8:00am - 5:30pm Where: Marias River Electric Coop Shelby, MT

Click here to register for this event What: The M-Enabling Summit, Global Summit and Showcase for Mobile Applications and Services for Seniors and Persons with Disabilities, is the first global program solely dedicated to participants in the emerging ecosystem for mobile accessible and assistive technologies, applications and services. Unlike any other conference or exposition, the M-Enabling Summit brings together all facets of the industry. Key stakeholders from across the globe that develop, market, create policy, and deploy the initiatives that are setting new frontiers for Mobile Accessible and Assistive Solutions will be in attendance. Participants at M-Enabling Summit will be able to: Network and exchange ideas with peers and experts from industry, service providers, and organizations of seniors and persons with disabilities Learn about the latest developments, innovations, market drivers and emerging opportunities Share perspectives with global policy makers and regulators See the latest products, services and applications in a showcase featuring companies and organizations driving innovation with accessible and assistive mobile technologies solutions Gain new insights from case studies by service providers, and public and private sector organizations experienced in marketing and services for seniors and persons with disabilities Who Should Attend: Mobile service providers Accessibility experts Organizations of seniors and persons with disabilities Application developers Telecom regulators Emergency response officials IT professionals Corporations using mobile communications with their customers Federal agencies and local government Academia and research centers When: December 5-6, 2011 Where: The Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center Washington, D.C.