Group items matching

in title, tags, annotations or url

The nation's premier special-needs theme park, Morgan's Wonderland opened four years ago based on the vision of philanthropist Gordon Hartman. "I was at a hotel pool with my daughter, Morgan, who was 11 or 12 at the time, when she kept looking over at two other kids in the pool who were tossing around a ball," he recalls. "I knew she wanted to play with them, but because she has special needs she didn't have the communication skills to ask, so she hit the ball. They grabbed it from her and got out of the water." That's the moment the retired homebuilder decided that he wanted to create a place where kids with special needs and those without could have fun together. He traveled around the country, seeking input from pediatricians, families, therapists, and engineers. The result: a 25-acre oasis on the city's northeast side, where every ride and attraction -- from the carousel to the train to the off-road adventure -- can accommodate all children and adults.

Smugglers' Notch Jeffersonville, Vermont Although it's known for its skiing, this resort area offers amazing summertime adaptive programs for kids ages 3 and up. Depending on the need, children may be given a trained camp counselor and can be incorporated into the kids' program to swim, hike, climb the rock wall, and do arts and crafts, or be part of a special-needs group. If they're 6 or older, they can take part in an Autism Mountain Camp that includes horseback riding and sailing. Private swim lessons, which focus on fulfilling a child's sensory needs, are also available.

Morgan's Wonderland San Antonio, Texas

About 300 people from across the state are expected to attend the Montana State Conference on Mental Illness on Oct. 27-29 in Billings. The theme of the conference at the Crowne Plaza Hotel is “Recovery and Reform.” The conference will examine mental illness and recovery in a manner designed to help consumers, families, providers and advocates.

Mark your calendars to attend the Montana Conference for Exceptional Children Conference on April 13-15th in Billings, Montana. Scholarships are available for this event (see below). The Theme this year is: Special Education in the 21st Century: Tools for the Future If you are interested in presenting at this conference, visit http://www.mtcec.org/conference Click here to download the Scholarship Application (PDF) A limited number of scholarships are available on a first come, first serve basis for residents of Region IV consisting of the following counties:  Park, Gallatin, Meagher, Broadwater, Lewis and Clark, Jefferson, Madison, Powell, Granite, Silverbow and Beaverhead Scholarships are available to use for registration costs up to $400.00 per school/organization. Scholarships will be awarded to teams attending one of the listed conferences. Teams should include a combination of personnel such as General Educators, Special Educators, Paraeducators, Administrators, Related Service Personnel, Parent, and/or Agency Personnel.  Each team must attach a narrative identifying the school/organization goals and a description of how attending the specified conference will help the team make systemic changes to the school/organization. CEC (Council for Exceptional Students) Conference in Billings, April 13-15, 2011 MBI (Montana Behavior Initiative) Summer Institute in Bozeman, June 20-24, 2011 MEI (Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development) Conference in Helena, June 14-16, 2011 MASP (Montana Association of School Psychologists) Summer Institute in Billings, June 12-14, 2011 Scholarships will be awarded on a first come, first serve basis.  If interested send this form with required narrative to: Denielle M. Miller, Coordinator Region IV CSPD 3929 Baxter Lane Bozeman, MT  59718.  Or email as an attachment to dmiller@bridgeband.com

Click here to download the full flyer (PDF) When: April 13, 20106:00-7:00PM Where: Hyalite Elementary School What: Experts from the Museum of the Rockies will present fossil identifications and paleo-themed crafts and activities for all to enjoy in this Educational Outreach Program. For more information, please contact Maggee Harrison at 580-6870

Register for Conference Each National Conference brings together the OI community to share, earn and enjoy life. Attendees are as diverse as OI itself – parents, grandparents, kids with OI, siblings, teens, adults of every age, spouses, people with a new diagnosis and people who are conference veterans. Planning is well underway for the 2010 Conference scheduled for July 8-10, in Portland, OR. The theme will be: Living Well with an Unbreakable Spirit!  

Click here to download the full brochure with schedule and registration information (PDF) What: In contrast to Family Learning Weekends, Enrichment Weekends are designed to create opportunities for students who are deaf & hard of hearing to interact with their peers, rather than providing information for parents and siblings. The theme of the weekend is “Finding Yourself” and activities are implemented to build confidence and a sense of responsibility in each participant. All school aged students are welcome; activities will be modified according to each child’s age and ability. Parents are encouraged to participate activities as appropriate. When: February 25 & 26, 2011 Where: Montana School for the Deaf and Blind Campus Great Falls, MT

Click here to register Welcome to Doodle 4 Google, a competition where we invite K-12 students to use their artistic talents to think big and redesign Google’s homepage logo for millions to see. At Google, we believe that dreaming about future possibilities leads to tomorrow’s leaders and inventors, so this year we're inviting U.S. kids to exercise their creative imaginations around the theme, "What I’d like to do someday…" Whether students want to find a cure for cancer or take a trip to the moon, it all starts with art supplies and some 8.5" x 11" paper. And, one lucky student artist will take home a $15,000 college scholarship and $25,000 technology grant for their school, among many other prizes. Registration closes at 11:59:59 p.m. Pacific Time (PT) on March 2, 2011, and entries must be postmarked by March 16, 2011 11:59:59 p.m. Pacific Time (PT). The winning doodle will be featured on our Google.com homepage on May 20, 2011.

What: Mark your calendars for the 2011 Montana Association for the Education of Young Children (MtAEYC) in Bozeman, Montana.  The theme for the conference this year is well-being and the title is "Montana: Creating a State of Well-Being."  Rooms have been blocked at several hotels in Bozeman. This year's keynote is Donna Donnelly of Life Guides, Inc. Visit www.mtaeyc.org for more information. When: October 14-15, 2011 Where: Strand Union Building on the campus of Montana State University Bozeman, Montana Save money by registering before October 1st.

Click here for registration materials What: It’s time to register for the 14th Annual Montana Educator Forum. The forum is an outstanding opportunity for Montana educators and leaders to come together to discuss important issues affecting classrooms and schools in Montana. Sponsored by the Montana Professional Teaching Foundation, MEA-MFT, School Administrators of Montana (SAM), and the State Certification Standards and Practices Advisory Council (CSPAC), the forum is intended to initiate engaging and important conversations between Montana educators and policymakers. Here is what one forum attendee said about the annual forum: “I always leave energized, excited, and enthusiastic about my year.” This year’s forum theme is “Building Relationships That Work.” Strong partnerships between schools and communities and between teachers, administrators, and students are essential for our students’ success. The 2011 Montana Educator Forum will showcase a few of the many examples of key relationships that Montana school districts are engaged in that are creating a bridge to student success. Registration materials are available at: http://www.mea-mft.org/our_foundation/programs/montana_educator_forum.aspx When: September 30, 2011 Where: Red Lion Colonial Inn Helena, MT

The first of seven exhibits has been finished. It has a main-street theme with a pizza shop, animal clinic, post office, general store and library stocked with books and comfy chairs."Kids on the autism spectrum need a quiet space," Fast said. "They can get overwhelmed so we created the library as a quiet room."

We go to George Washington Middle School in Alexandria, Va., which participates in the NHD competition. This year, the theme is “Rights and Responsibilities.” We chose the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act as our topic for several reasons. We were inspired by “Including Samuel,” a video about a boy with disabilities and his struggles and successes of inclusion, told by his father. Between the three of us we have three relatives who are involved with special education, but we realized many people have no idea what the IDEA stands for and what it does (even us!). We also realized that though civil rights and women’s rights are taught in school, the rights of people with disabilities are mostly left out.

As the world's leading autism researchers and advocates gathered at the International Meeting for Autism Research last weekend to share the latest discoveries about autism spectrum disorder, a strong theme emerged: Autism is growing up.