MISSOULA ― Tony Attwood, a world-renowned autism and Asperger’s syndrome expert, will present “A Complete Look at the Autism Spectrum,” a daylong conference Monday, July 19, at The University of Montana.             The conference, sponsored by UM’s Neuro Networking Club, will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the University Center Ballroom. It will cover many aspects of the autism spectrum, such as relationships, emotional management and social skills.

HELENA - Former Montana Supreme Court Justice John Warner, now overseeing a $9.5 million mental health trust fund, announced Monday he has assembled the seven-member committee to help decide how the state spends the money.

I worry that the people in the system who are helping me and our kids will get burned out and quit - which is the last thing we want to see! So, having discovered how much it cheers and reinvigorates me when I get thank you notes from clients or others I've helped, I've started a campaign to spread the cheer. It takes just a few minutes of time, and can be done by email or snail mail.

Virginia education leaders moved this week to introduce a standardized test for students with disabilities and phase out a widely used alternative that many officials say is undermining the state's accountability system.

State Representative Martha Walz, the bill’s primary author, said the mandates will deter bullying and prevent it from reaching dangerous proportions.“When this passes, it will the strongest antibullying legislation in the country,’’ said Walz, a Boston Democrat and House chairwoman of the Joint Committee on Education. “Without mandatory reporting, things can spiral out of control.’’

Children with dyslexia often struggle with reading, writing and spelling, despite getting an appropriate education and demonstrating intellectual ability in other areas. New neurological research from Vanderbilt University has found that these children’s difficulties with written language may be linked to structural differences within an important information highway in the brain known to play a role in oral language. The findings were published in the June 2010 issue of Cortex.

Parents and teachers often tell children to pay attention — to be a “good listener.” But what if your child’s brain doesn’t know how to listen? That’s the challenge for children with auditory processing disorder, a poorly understood syndrome that interferes with the brain’s ability to recognize and interpret sounds. It’s been estimated that 2 to 5 percent of children have the disorder, said Gail D. Chermak, an expert on speech and hearing sciences at Washington State University, and it’s likely that many cases have gone undiagnosed or misdiagnosed.

These Bright Futures training and implementation materials funded by the Commonwealth Fund with support from the US Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, have been developed to facilitate implementation of the Bright Futures: Guidelines for Health Supervision of Infants, Children, and Adolescents, 3rd Edition, at the practice system level (for tools and resources to use in conjunction with health supervision visits, see the Bright Futures Tool and Resource Kit).

I once received an e-mail from a woman, a reader of my blog, wanting to know what sort of advice I could give to her nine-year-old daughter recently diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. She gave me a very thoughtful suggestion, which was to write a blog entry in the form of a letter to my younger self, which could then also serve as advice for current parents of children with autism and Asperger’s Syndrome.

Lit2Go is a free online collection of stories and poems in Mp3 (audiobook) format. You can: Download the files to your Mp3 player and listen on the go, Listen to the Mp3 files on your computer, View the text on a webpage and read along as you listen, Print out the stories and poems to make your own book.

SMA, which stands for Spinal Muscular Atrophy, occurs in one of every 6,000 births. Commentator Ben Mattlin has a SMA and is paraplegic. He is often asked what he would do if a cure became available. His answer: He wouldn't choose to be cured.

The Behavior Analyst Certification Board, Inc.® has approved the course sequence at MSU Billings as meeting the coursework requirements for eligibility to take the Board Certified assistant Behavior Analyst Examination® and Board Certified Behavior Analyst Examination®. Applicants will have to meet additional requirements to qualify.

Nearly 40 percent of Americans without high-speed internet have disabilities, according to the first-ever federal working paper on internet accessibility. People with disabilities largely cite the same reasons for limited access to high-speed internet as their non-disabled peers, according to the paper issued this month by the Federal Communications Commission. Cost is a top concern followed by limited computer literacy and a lack of interest in internet content. But the white paper does point out that these barriers can be exacerbated for those with disabilities. For example, assistive technology devices some people need in order to access the internet can make new technology cost prohibitive.

Jessica's daughter, Isabelle, has Williams syndrome, a genetic disorder with a number of symptoms. Children with Williams are often physically small and frequently have developmental delays. But also, kids and adults with Williams love people, and they are literally pathologically trusting. They have no social fear. Researchers theorize that this is probably because of a problem in their limbic system, the part of the brain that regulates emotion. There appears to be a disregulation in one of the chemicals (oxytocin) that signals when to trust and when to distrust.

Michael Boll , is the father of an eight -year old boy on the autism spectrum.  A twelve-year, certified classroom teacher, Michael decided to take some time off from his career to create and implement a home program that compliments his son’s school program.  After two enjoyable years, Michael is back in the classroom. He teaches fifth grade at Concordia International School, Shanghai, China.  His son is now attending a school for kids with special needs in Shanghai.  Michael’s wife, Lori, works at that school. He interviews parents, therapists, and other experts about the latest trends and methodologies for working with kids on the autism spectrum.

Ah, summer camp. The mosquitoes, the swim races, the friendships, the bug juice, the postcards home. What child wouldn't benefit from the fun and structured freedom camps provide? Kids with special needs are no exception. But the prospect can seem daunting to parents and kids alike — how can you be sure that your child will get the attention he or she needs? Will your child be able to participate fully? What about the other kids? Will your child make friends? Will they understand your child's special needs?

Public health scientists and clinicians tout vaccines as one of the greatest achievements of modern medicine. But for many ordinary Americans vaccines have become controversial. Young parents are concerned at the sheer number of shots--some 26 inoculations for 14 different diseases by age 6--and follow alternative vaccination schedules advocated by gurus like Dr. Robert Sears. Other parents go further. In communities like Ashland, Oregon, up to one-third of parents are choosing not to vaccinate their kids at all. And some advocacy groups, like Generation Rescue, argue that vaccines are no longer a public health miracle but a scourge; they view vaccines as responsible for alarming rises in certain disorders, including ADHD and autism.

Once considered a disturbance in the classroom, cell phones, texting devices and other wireless technology are being embraced by some of the very same people who used to malign them: teachers.