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To share the story of the emotional journey that his family has taken to come to terms with Sam’s autism, Todd Drezner has made a smart and deeply affecting documentary called Loving Lampposts, which is available today for purchase on DVD, on Netflix, and as a download on iTunes.

April is Autism Awareness Month, and to kick off events, the advocacy group Autism Speaks is releasing results of its first online community survey on livability. The organization used the data to generate a list of places to live for people with autism, reporting the places most often cited by respondents for best availability of services and resources, including educational offerings and recreational and medical services.

Autism is an environmental illness -- at least in some cases. Just as lead paint chips can cause learning disabilities and radon in the basement can cause lung cancer, certain chemicals and other outside influences seem to help set autism in motion. But autism is also a genetic disease. It definitely runs in families, and scientists have identified several specific genes that put kids at risk.

Chris Cragwick isn't that different from any other student. He likes listening to music and watching old "Walker, Texas Ranger" episodes on YouTube. "No show has had fight scenes with surround sound," he says. "But that show does." The thing that makes Cragwick just the slightest bit different from other students is the fact that he has autism. It's only noticeable when he takes long pauses, combing his fingers through his beard while he thinks of what to say. He doesn't make eye contact too often, but when he does, it's easy to see his bright blue eyes. Despite his condition, Cragwick doesn't consider himself disabled. He's held jobs before and is getting his bachelor's degree in English. He's even written several book-length stories. "It's hard to think of things I can't do," he says.

Nearly 20 percent of Americans have physical or mental disabilities, yet only a small fraction of medical schools teach students how to talk with disabled patients about their needs.

Are current drug policies failing? According to Dr. Hart's book, yes. He explains why with his landmark, yet controversial studies of race, poverty,, and drugs as well as the relationship between drugs and pleasure, choice, and motivation, both in the brain and in society. Hart relates his own story that started in a tough Miami neighborhood and resulted in a career as a neuroscientist and Columbia University's first tenured African American professor in the sciences.

The animated characters in your preschooler’s favorite TV show invite her to interact, play and learn. But is she learning? Only a little, according to a Vanderbilt study, which found that educational programming is minimally effective unless parents watch too—and engage the child. In a first-of-its-kind study, parents were trained to pause, ask questions and encourage the child to tell parts of the story while they watched educational videos together. When evaluated, the 3-year-olds whose parents used this simple technique—known as dialogic questioning—showed significant gains in vocabulary and comprehension over those who watched alone.

The RTI Action Network travels to schools across the nation to find examples of real people doing real work with RTI. These Virtual Visits offer you frontline perspectives combined with informative stories of schools implementing RTI with success and dedication.

Local candidates for the state Legislature gathered at a forum Wednesday to discuss the challenges facing disabled Montanans. Held at Eagle Mount in Bozeman, the forum drew 16 candidates from both major parties who asked and answered questions about the issues facing disabled people and their families. Most told stories of disabilities in their own families.

Felix Klieser was born with no arms, so uses his feet to do most things. This includes eating, dressing, writing ... and being a professional French horn player.

A nook full of signs…Words, pictures, and stories come to life with the magic of American Sign Language (ASL). Within our cozy nook, you will learn many new signs such as the alphabet, colors, emotions, animals, and beyond.

GREAT FALLS - West Elementary is one of 86 schools in Montana to serve free meals to all of their students under the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act. The program provides free breakfast and lunch to students that may otherwise go without.

The kids in the camp are part of the Children’s Autism Waiver, but Faulkner said QLC welcomes children with autism regardless of their payer method, as long as they are already working with a direct service provider.

The Attitude Group is the global thought leader on disability - passionate about promoting possibilities. Our extensive catalogue of video content covers disability, health and wealth-being, produced as documentary, short stories and video blogs. AttitudeLive.com is the global platform where people can watch great content, learn and connect to others. It's an endeavour led by people with lived experience of disability and embraces the voice of the broader disability community.