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Who Should Attend: • School Based Personnel • Physical Therapists • Psychologists • Occupational Therapists • Marriage & Family Therapists • Nurses • Educators • Counselors • Teacher Assistants • Speech Language Pathologists • Special Education Teachers • Social Workers This program is appropriate for all levels of knowledge regarding Asperger’s Syndrome, Nonverbal Learning Disorder, and High-Functioning Autism. 

#addressBook { width: 550px; font: normal 11px Verdana, Tahoma, Helvetica, sans-serif; } #addybook_title { padding-left: 100px; } #addybook_title span { display: block; padding-top: 10px; } #address_book_login_error { font-size: 16px; } #addressBook a { color: #0f6ffe; text-decoration: underline; } #addressBook_alphabet { margin-top: 4px; } #addressBook_alphabet span { color: #ccc; font-weight: bold; } #addressBook_alphabet a { text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold; } #addressBook #addressBook_name { border-left: 1px solid #dbd9d9; border-right: 1px solid #999; } #addressBook #addressBook_email { border-right: 1px solid #dbd9d9; } #addressBook .title { background: #dbd9d9; font-weight: bold; padding: 5px; } #addressBook .list { margin: 0 auto; border: 1px solid #c4c3c3; margin-top: 10px; height: 195px; width: 500px; overflow: auto; } #addressBook .list table { width: 100%; min-height: 195px; height: 0; } #addressBook ul { margin: 1em 0; } #addressBook li { height: 1.7em; padding-left: 10px; } #addressBook_email li{line-height: 1.7em;overflow: hidden;} #addressBook_name li{line-height: 1.7em;overflow: hidden;padding-left:20px;} #addressBook_name li.friend{background: transparent url(http://dingo.care2.com/ecards/v1/friends_frog.gif) no-repeat scroll 3px 3px;} #addressBook li.over { background-color: #daf6d1; cursor:pointer; } #addressBook li.selected { background-color: #e9e5c7;/*#fdf9db;*/ } #addressBook_add_button, .button_generic { font: normal 11px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; display: block; color: #000; text-decoration: none !important; padding: 6px 0 9px 13px; background: transparent url(http://dingo.care2.com/ecards/v1/button_generic_left.png) no-repeat scroll 0 0; } #addressBook_add_button span, .button_generic span { color: #000; padding: 6px 13px 9px 0; background: transparent url(http://dingo.care2.com/ecards/v1/button_generic_right.png) no-repeat scroll top right; } * html #addressBook_add_button, * html .button_generic { display: inline-block; } .importer_buttons li { padding: 0 !important; } #plaxo_div { margin-top: 12px; border-top: 1px solid #ccc; padding-top: 12px; font: normal 12px Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; } #plaxo_div .powered_by { clear: both; background: transparent url(http://dingo.care2.com/ecards/v1/plaxo_powered.gif) no-repeat scroll top left; width: 132px; padding-top: 26px; height: 0; overflow: hidden; margin-left: 37px; margin-bottom: 15px; } #plaxo_div .import_button { display: block; background: transparent url(http://dingo.care2.com/ecards/v1/plaxo_import.png) no-repeat scroll top left; width: 173px; padding-top: 30px; height: 0; overflow: hidden; margin: 15px auto; } #addybook_box { position: absolute; width: 570px; height: 366px; z-index: 999999; } #addressBook_alphabet .active { cursor: pointer; color: #0f6ffe; } Address Book Loading... /* tell a friend styles */ .tellafriend_container { color: #666; background-color: #ececec; line-height: 16px; padding: 10px 0 10px 25px; } .tellafriend_container .taf_error{ color: red; } .tellafriend_container .naturalState{ border: 1px solid black; } .tellafriend_container .errorState{ border: 1px solid red; } .tellafriend_container_extended { padding: 10px 0; width: 535px; background-color: #ececec; color: #666; } .tellafriend_container .send_success, .tellafriend_container .send_error { font-weight: bold; } .tellafriend_container .send_success{ color: green; } .tellafriend_container .send_error{ color: red; } .tellafriend_container .smallerFont{ margin: 0; padding: 10px; background: #ececec; clear: both; } .tellafriend_container label { padding: 0px; margin: 10px 0 0; display: block; clear: both; } div.tellafriend_container textarea{ padding: 5px; } .tellafriend_container input.inputwidth { width: 350px; padding: 3px; } .tellafriend_container textarea.inputwidth { width: 500px; } .tellafriend_container .inputborder { border: 1px solid #5E5E5E; } #addressBook_textarea { width: 500px; height: 75px; border: 1px solid #5E5E5E; color: #999999; } .addressbutton_section { padding: 15px; float: left; background-color: #D6D6D6; margin-top: 20px; position: relative; } .addressbutton_section img.taf_arrow{ position: absolute; left: 150px; top:-14px; } .addressbutton_inner { border: 1px solid #5E5E5E; background-color: white; color: black; padding: 10px; } .addressbutton_inner table.nologin{ width: 325px; } .addressbutton_inner a, .addressbutton_inner a:visited { color: #0000cc; text-decoration: none; } .addressbutton_inner a:hover { text-decoration: underline; } .addressbutton_inner img { border-width: 0px; } div.addressbook_care2btn { width: 139px; height: 24px; float: left; } div.addressbook_otherbtn { width: 192px; height: 24px; float: left; } .addressbutton_container { margin-top: 5px; } /* Care2 addressbook button */ div.addressbook_care2btn a, div.addressbook_care2btn a:visited { background-image:url(http://dingo.care2.com/c2/petitionsite/taf_button_sprite.png); background-repeat:no-repeat; text-decoration:none; display: block; width: 138px; height: 24px; } div.addressbook_care2btn a:hover { text-decoration:none; background-position: 0px -23px; } /* plaxo button */ div.addressbook_otherbtn a, div.addressbook_otherbtn a:visited { background-image:url(http://dingo.care2.com/c2/petitionsite/taf_button_sprite.png); background-repeat:no-repeat; text-decoration:none; display: block; width: 192px; height: 24px; background-position:-137px 0; } div.addressbook_otherbtn a:hover { text-decoration:none; background-position: -137px -23px; } /* plaxo button in Care2 Address book popup */ a.ib_other, a.ib_other:visited { background-image:url(http://dingo.care2.com/petitions/home/addressbook_otherbtn.gif); background-repeat:no-repeat; text-decoration:none; display: block; width: 192px; height: 24px; float: left; margin-top:10px; padding-top: 30px; height: 0; overflow: hidden; } a.ib_other:hover { text-decoration:none; background-position: -192px 0px; } /* tell a friend specific styles */ .tellafriendSection h3 a, .tellafriendSection h3 a:visited { color: #2B769C; text-decoration:none; } .tellafriendSection h3 a:hover { text-decoration: underline; } div.tellafriend_container ul.errorlist { list-style: outside; } div.tellafriend_container ul.errorlist li { color: #ff0000; margin: 5px; padding: 5px; } div.modal_box{ background-color: #FFFFFF; } div#tell-a-friend-form div.tafheader{ padding: 10px; background: #ececec; } /* send and cancel buttons */ a.tafpopupsubmit, a.tafpopupsubmit:visited { text-decoration:none; display:block; width: 94px; height: 27px; background-image:url(http://dingo.care2.com/petitions/home/tafpopupsend.gif); background-repeat:no-repeat; float: left; margin-right: 15px; } a.tafpopupsubmit:hover { text-decoration:none; background-position: -94px 0px; } a.tafpopupcancel, a.tafpopupcancel:visited { text-decoration:none; display:block; width: 95px; height: 27px; background-image:url(http://dingo.care2.com/petitions/home/tafpopupcancel.gif); background-repeat:no-repeat; float: left; } a.tafpopupcancel:hover { text-decoration:none; background-position: -95px 0px; } #addressBook_newGroup, #addressBook_newGroup table { font-size: 10px; font-weight: normal; } #addybook_box, #addybook_box table { font-size: 10px; font-weight: normal; } .floatright { float:right; } .largefont { font-size: 13px; } .sharetitle { font-size: 18px; color: #F4713B; } .tafShareSection { width: 580px; margin-left: 25px; margin-top: 25px; font-size:12px; } .tafShareButtonSection { padding-left: 25px; width: 535px; padding-bottom: 10px; background-color: #ECECEC; } From Your Email To

Autism spectrum disorders are surrounded by a haze of misconceptions, many of which are harmful for autistic children and adults. It’s time to straighten a few things out, and to spread the word on this complex series of cognitive and intellectual disabilities with a little good old-fashioned debunking. 1. Autistic people have no empathy. This is a common belief about autism; people think that because autistics are sometimes blunt or have difficulty navigating social norms, they aren’t empathetic. In fact, just the opposite seems to be true. Rather than not feeling enough, many autistics feel very intensely, and are easily overwhelmed by the emotions of those around them. 2. Autistic people can’t communicate. Autism spectrum disorders take a variety of forms, and some people with autism are nonverbal, but that doesn’t mean they can’t communicate. Some use communication boards and other methods to communicate with the people around them, but it requires patience to establish and maintain communication with them. Historically, people with more severe forms of autism were often isolated in institutions, but more modern treatment of autism encourages the use of therapy and other techniques to interact with patients and find a communication mode they feel comfortable with. 3. Autistic people are violent. This particularly damaging assumption about autism was widely bandied around in the aftermath of the horrific Sandy Hook shooting. In fact, autistic people are no more likely to commit acts of violence than anyone else, and when they are violent, self-harm is a much more significant concern. Autism and other disabilities also put people at an increased risk of violence, which means autistics have far more to fear about the world around them. Some autistic people do act out or have what are known as “meltdowns,” usually as expressions of frustration with themselves or situations, but this doesn’t equate to violence against other people; an autistic might throw objects in frustration, for example, without any desire or intent to hit people with them. 4. Autistic people are savants. Everyone who’s seen Rainman thinks autistic people are savants, capable of extreme feats of memorization and other amazing skills. While it’s true that some savants are autistic, not everyone with an autism spectrum disorder has these capabilities; some in fact have significant learning disabilities that require accommodations in the classroom. 5. Autism is the result of “refrigerator mothers.” This awful myth about autism has been largely debunked, but it’s still worth a mention. Some people used to believe that autism was caused by bad parenting, with a specific focus on cold or isolated mothers. The result was a lot of misinformation about autism, and terrible pressure on mothers who were already learning about how to navigate the world with autistic children. In fact, autism has no clear cause. 6. Autistics can’t make friends. Along with the belief that autistic people lack empathy comes the assumption that they live isolated lives and have difficulty making friends. Just like everyone else, though, autistics are perfectly capable of establishing and maintaining not just friendships but other kinds of relationships with the people around them. Isolating autistic people in a misguided attempt to protect them can be very harmful, just as it would be for anyone else. 7. Stimming (repetitive behavior like flapping or rocking), is undesirable and should be stopped. Stimming is familiar to many people who are at least vaguely familiar with autism — sadly, it’s often used in mockeries of autistic people, by individuals who think that making flapping gestures or imitative noises is funny. For autistic people, stimming is one way to deal with chaotic environments or stress, and rather than being something that should be suppressed, it can actually be a healthy method of personal expression and sometimes communication as well. Autistics who are forced to modify or hide their stimming behaviors can develop even more stress, which can interfere with focus, completing tasks of daily living, and other activities. It’s important to be aware that the autism spectrum is vast, and that autism spectrum disorders can manifest in a huge variety of ways. Every autistic is different, and every one deserves respect and dignity. That includes not perpetuating harmful stereotypes, and correcting people who falsely repeat them.

As a speech language pathologist, one of my greatest joys have been communicating and connecting with both children and adults with autism, specifically those who are nonverbal or minimally verbal. I have met countless individuals who are living in a silent world and have been waiting to be opened up so they could communicate and connect with others.

Click here to download the full flyer (PDF) What: Presentations focus on effective communication training for students with autism, Asperger's Syndrome, other autism spectrum disorders, nonverbal learning disabilities or other communication, learning or behavior challenges. Programs are designed to provide a framework for understanding the unique communication needs of targeted students.Presentations are packed with lots of examples of practical intervention strategies that have been used successfully to improve communication, behavior, and participation in school and home routines. When: August 16, 2010 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM Where: Front Street Learning Center 815 Front Street Helena, MT 59601

Click here to download the full flyer (PDF) What: Presentations focus on effective communication training for students with autism, Asperger's Syndrome, other autism spectrum disorders, nonverbal learning disabilities or other communication, learning or behavior challenges. Programs are designed to provide a framework for understanding the unique communication needs of targeted students.Presentations are packed with lots of examples of practical intervention strategies that have been used successfully to improve communication, behavior, and participation in school and home routines. When: August 16-17, 2010 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM Where: Front Street Learning Center 815 Front Street Helena, MT 59601

Who Should Attend: • School Based Personnel • Physical Therapists • Psychologists • Occupational Therapists • Marriage & Family Therapists • Nurses • Educators • Counselors • Teacher Assistants • Speech Language Pathologists • Special Education Teachers • Social Workers This program is appropriate for all levels of knowledge regarding Asperger’s Syndrome, Nonverbal Learning Disorder, and High-Functioning Autism. 

American Airlines is taking heat for requiring a teen who is nonverbal to stow the iPad she relies on to communicate during a recent flight.

“Robert adores it,” Cindy said. “It’s not the cure for autism, but it is doing amazing things for kids who are nonverbal.”

Roughly 25 percent of people with autism speak few or no words. A generation ago, that figure was closer to 50 percent. Most researchers agree that the decline is due to the recognition of more people with milder forms of autism, as well as to the advent of early intervention programs  that have helped more children develop language than in the past.

A 2-year-old state-run program aimed at helping autistic children has given a Billings couple hope that their son, once considered nonverbal, will be integrated into a regular second-grade classroom.

McKenzie Tavary is on a mission to prove to the world that people with disabilities are smart. Although she doesn’t speak, “Mokn,” which she calls herself, communicates by typing on a computer and once wrote, “God put me on this Earth to be an Angel to show people how smart I am and other people with disabilities.” The world may soon find out. Tavary, 19, has been working for the past year since graduating from Capital High School to learn life skills. This fall she is set to start college at University of Montana–Helena, where she’ll be the first nonverbal student with autism to attend the two-year school.

Webinar - All About Apps for Education: Just the Apps and Nothing but the Apps Thursday, May 5, 2011, 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Mountain – Web-Based Training, register Discover the wonderful world of apps for education. This webinar will help you navigate and maximize your use of the iPod/iPad. The presenters will take you on an app adventure and share a variety of apps in such categories as early childhood, literacy, autism, communication, organization, and more. Funding for this webinar is made possible by a grant from the Minnesota Department of Education. The source of funding is from federal award, Grants to States-Special Education CFDA 84.027, P.L. 108-446 Individuals With Disabilities Education Act. Basic Vocabulary Organization in PRC Devices Monday, May 16, 2011, 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Mountain – PACER Center, Bloomington, MN, register This free workshop is for parents and professionals to learn more about Unity vocabulary organization included in all Prentke Romich Company PRC Communication or AAC Devices.  Participants will be introduced to the vocabulary options available.  This workshop will be held in the PACER computer lab where participants can bring their own device or use computer emulation software (Vantage Lite PASS software version 5.02).  The training will include hands-on experience to become familiar with how Unity supports creation of spontaneous novel communication, and to teach basic device operations such as customizing messages, changing icons, hiding keys, and backing up the device. The presenter is PRC Regional Consultant Helen Canfield.  The workshop is limited to 20 participants. Classroom Suite Version 4 Foundations Wednesday, May 18, 7:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mountain - PACER Center, register This workshop is designed for educators, SLPs, OTs, AT specialists, paraprofessionals and parents who are new to (or have limited experience with) Classroom Suite V.4. The goal of the Foundation Workshop for Classroom Suite V.4 is to enable educators to use Classroom Suite to teach early concepts, reading, writing, and math to students struggling because of learning difficulties or access issues. This workshop is sponsored by Cambium Learning Technologies. Registration fee $225. Kurzweil 3000 Version 11 Foundations Thursday, May 19, 7:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mountain - PACER Center, register This workshop is designed for educators, SLPs, OTs, AT specialists, paraprofessionals and parents who support students with learning disabilities and are new to (or have limited experience with) Kurzweil 3000. This workshop is sponsored by Cambium Learning Technologies. Registration fee $225.00. Putting LAMP (Language Acquisition through Motor Planning) to Work: AAC Strategies to Promote Communication Friday, May 20, 2011, 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mountain – PACER Center, Bloomington, MN, register Language Acquisition through Motor Planning (LAMP) is a therapeutic approach based on neurological and motor learning principles.  The goal is to give individuals who are nonverbal or have limited verbal abilities or speech a method to independently and spontaneously express themselves.  This workshop is for parents, professionals, and SLPs and will give an overview of the LAMP treatment approach, discussion of the components of LAMP and how and why children with autism would benefit from using a voice output AAC device, and discussion of features that are beneficial for teaching language to children with autism and other disabilities.  Lunch will not be provided.  A one hour lunch break will be taken and maps to area restaurants will be provided.  This free workshop will offer 0.5 ASHA CEUs.