For Sophie White, Saturdays are truly something to look forward to.
The pint-sized pixie wakes up early to pull together her ensemble for the day – a black leotard, pink skirt, leggings and a pair of black ballet shoes.
With her short dark hair pulled back into a barrette, Sophie is anxious to leave her Chaska home and head to dance class. But this isn’t any old dance class she’s off to. Sophie’s dance class is for children with special needs. She is one of 20 students that cheerfully fill the bright studio space at River Valley Dance Academy each Saturday afternoon.
Sophie’s mom Tracy White said that the adaptive dance class has made a big difference for her daughter, who lives with autism.
“She didn’t used to be able to cross mid-line,” said White. “She used to fall down all the time.”
After seven years in various classes at River Valley Dance Academy, White said Sophie’s coordination and mobility is much improved. In class, she can pirouette with the best of them.
Dreams
The success of the adaptive dance class is a dream come true for studio owner and instructor Jocelyn Braudt.
“I always wanted to open up a school for the arts for children with special needs,” she said.
But Braudt, who majored in therapeutic recreation in college and taught dance classes for students with spina bifida and osteogenesis imperfecta, realized upon moving to Minnesota that a special needs school couldn’t support itself. So instead, she opened a dance studio in Chaska and incorporated programming for special needs within the school.
Braudt was intimately familiar with the power of dance for those with physical challenges. As a “very pigeon-toed” 4-year-old, Braudt’s mother had once asked her pediatrician how to resolve her condition. The doctor advised signing her up for ballet. It worked like a charm and Braudt has been dancing ever since.
Eleven years ago, Braudt started her Chaska program with a single special needs dancer. Michaela Powers was a girl in a wheelchair that wasn’t about to let cerebral palsy keep her from dancing. “She took in a typical dance class and we adapted the moves,” said Braudt.
The next year, Braudt expanded to offer the first dedicated adaptive dance class for those with physical disabilities. At the time, she had two students with cerebral palsy. The second year, Braudt had three students in wheelchairs. When year three rolled around, Braudt had expanded the program to offer a creative movement class for those with developmental disabilities like autism.
“Then I decided to have all the kids in one class,” she said.
Braudt said that ultimately she wanted to offer a class that would help to “build confidence, provide recreation and socialization.”
“We’re creating the same experience any other kid can have,” she said.
White said that one of the reasons Sophie loves the class is that it allows her to dance, just like her big sister.
Meaningful
Today, Braudt’s Saturday afternoon class has 20 students – including veterans like Sophie and Powers. They come to Chaska from all around the metro – places like Blaine, Delano, Shakopee, and Minnetonka.
The class also features 21 peer helpers – students from her other dance classes that have volunteered their help.
Braudt loves to see the interaction between the students and the peer helpers – many of which have known each other since they were little.
“They develop this great friendship,” she said.
The class is so popular that there is a waiting list of people who want to volunteer as peer helpers, Braudt said. “There is a huge desire to be a part of something more meaningful.”
“It’s just rewarding,” said Sara O’Konek, 17, of Carver. O’Konek is a graduate of the adaptive dance class who now serves as a peer helper.
“It’s my favorite part of the week,” said Ali Witte, 17, of Chaska. “I’m just beaming when I leave here.”
Seventeen-year-old Taylor Troyak, of Minnetrista, said that working with special needs “might even be something I want to do in college.”
That’s music to Braudt’s ears. “We try hard for the studio to not be about the trophy and the princess thing,” she said. “We try to educate the whole person.”
“Each of us has weaknesses,” she continued. “Each of us has abilities and disabilities.”
The differences seem to disappear when the music cues up, however. Whether they are practicing ballet positions to classical music, shaking purple pom poms to RuPaul, or twirling to Miley Cyrus’s “The Climb,” the shared smiles are hard to miss.
“The program runs itself,” said Braudt. “I just push play.”
-Mollee Francisco, staff writer
Showing posts with label adaptive. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adaptive. Show all posts
11 February 2010
Spasticity/tone
February 9, 2010 by afp
I would venture to say many of us have issues with spasticity or tone. What is this, what does it mean, and what is the difference? My, oh, my, I was confused when they would mention these two different terms, and then I decided to dig. I found out it was more confusing trying to express the meanings.
I did find out that spasticity seems to react differently for each of us. Spasticity and tone affects us with weird mannerisms. Some do well on medications, some do not. Some have pain associated with this, where some do not. Some are assisted by physical therapy, whereupon reading further, it shall be detailed.
Overview of spasticity
The most common causes of spasticity are lack of oxygen to the brain before, during, or after birth (cerebral palsy); physical trauma (brain or spinal cord injury); blockage of or bleeding from a blood vessel in the brain (stroke); multiple sclerosis (MS); or infection of the brain (encephalitis) or the covering of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis).
When damage that causes the eventual spasticity first occurs, the muscles are usually flaccid before they become spastic. Spasticity may not be present all the time—it may be related to a trigger, or stimulus, such as pain, pressure sores, a urinary tract infection, ingrown toenails, tight clothing, or constipation.
Spasticity may be painful, especially if it pulls joints into abnormal positions and or prevents a normal movement of the joints. Spasticity may range from slight muscle stiffness to permanent shortening of the muscle. When the muscle is permanently shortened, the joint becomes misshapen. This is called a contracture and is one of the most significant consequences of spasticity. Another closely related problem with muscles in many people who have spasticity is clonus, or rapid repeated muscle spasms.
While spasticity may affect any muscle group, there are some common patterns. When spasticity affects one or both arms, flexed (bent) elbow, flexed wrist, and clenched fist may result. These can all affect the person’s ability to dress, eat, or write or may interfere with balance, thereby causing difficulties with walking. Spasticity of the legs can cause flexed hip, adducted (or scissoring) thigh, stiff knee, flexed knee, equinovarus foot, and hyperextended great toe (which is also called the hitchhiker’s toe). Spasticity of one or both legs may interfere with the ability to walk, position in bed, sit, transfer, or stand.
Epidemiology
Overall, spasticity affects about 500,000 people in the United States, and more than 12 million people throughout the world. The number of people affected depends upon the cause of the spasticity. In the United Kingdom, approximately 100,000 people have a first-time stroke every year, and an additional 30,000 have a repeated stroke. Stroke afflicts almost 2,000 out of every 1 million people per year worldwide. Almost 40 percent of people who have a stroke continue to have spasticity one year later.
One year later? Ha! I bet, besides myself, many still have it years later.
Clinical examination
A standard evaluation of the nervous system forms the basis of the clinical examination in spasticity. Strength and reflexes are both assessed in this examination. The clinician asks the patient to relax and then moves the joints through their full range of motion at various speeds. Spastic muscles may have a “spastic catch,” exhibit the “clasped knife” phenomenon, or both. Observing the person with spasticity perform activities such as walking, drinking from an open cup, and moving from one position to another often yields valuable information.
The clinical examination also includes an evaluation of deep tendon reflexes. The most commonly used method of testing these reflexes is the tapping technique. With the patient sitting on the examination table and his or her legs hanging freely, the examiner gently but firmly taps below the knee (testing the patellar reflex), first on one leg and then the other.
The responses should be the same in the two legs. Similar techniques may be used to test reflexes in the Achilles tendon (behind the ankle), and reflexes may also be checked in the biceps, triceps, and brachioradialis muscles of the arms.
The Spasticity Management Team
The best treatment of spasticity usually includes an active patient or advocate and caregivers working with several health-care professionals from various medical backgrounds. Members of this team may include one or more of the following people.
Neurologist
A neurologist is a medical doctor trained in disorders of the nervous system. The neurologist may diagnose the neurologic problem; prescribe treatments, including medications and physical and occupational therapy; and refer the patient for surgical evaluation if necessary. The neurologist may also inject the chemodenervation treatments (see the section on treatment that follows).
Physiatrist
A physiatrist is a medical doctor who specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation. The physiatrist may design the rehabilitation program, working with other team members to maximize the patient’s function and minimize the disabling aspects of the neurologic injury. The physiatrist may also prescribe medications and administer chemodenervation treatments.
Physical Therapist
A physical therapist is a healthcare professional who is responsible for the physical aspects of treatment. The physical therapist may perform or direct another person to perform the exercises that are necessary to assist in maintaining the range of motion of limbs affected by spasticity. The physical therapist may also apply and fit braces, splints, or casts that may be prescribed by the physiatrist or other treating physician.
In addition, the physical therapist may direct training to improve the patient’s ability to walk or move and may instruct patients and caregivers on how to position affected arms and legs to help reduce spasticity. A physical therapist often works closely with an occupational therapist to design changes in the home and equipment that might be necessary to accommodate the patient’s needs.
Occupational therapist
An occupational therapist is a healthcare professional who specializes in adaptation of the physical environment to meet the patient’s needs. The occupational therapist may teach modifications for dressing, feeding, and grooming to the patient and caregiver. This therapist may also offer expertise on adaptive devices such as wheelchairs and bath equipment and may advise on home and workplace modifications to increase accessibility and ease of use. The occupational therapist is usually the medical professional who advises the school on issues such as seating, writing, and use of facilities.
Neurosurgeon
A neurosurgeon is a medical doctor who is specially trained to perform surgical procedures related to the nervous system. For example, when a patient with severe spasticity has a positive response to a screening test (intrathecal baclofen bolus) and is then recommended to receive continuous intrathecal baclofen (ITBTM Therapy), the neurosurgeon may implant the baclofen delivery pump.
Neurosurgeons may also perform an operation to destroy selected sensory nerves at their entry point into the spinal cord (selective dorsal rhizotomy) when other treatments cannot offer adequate spasticity relief. When a patient requires exposure of a target nerve for chemodenervation, the neurosurgeon is usually the physician who performs that operation; a neurologist or physiatrist then usually performs the chemodenervation.
Orthopedic surgeon
An orthopedic surgeon is a medical doctor who is specially trained to perform operations related to bones, joints, muscles, and surrounding connective tissue. These types of procedures may help to reduce or correct contractures that lead to abnormal positioning of joints. Orthopedic operations often involve reconstruction or revision of tendons and bones. The orthopedic surgeon may also assist with the fitting of braces and assessing growth and development.
Spasticity treatment
In some patients with mild spasticity, the best treatment may be no treatment, with a watch-and-wait strategy. Typically, treatment is reserved for spasticity that causes pain, interferes with activities of daily living or sleep, or leads to increasing levels of functional disability.
Some key questions that should be answered before beginning any treatment for spasticity include:
1. Is treatment necessary?
2. Do the patient and caregiver have the time and resources necessary to put the treatment into action?
3. Will the treatment improve the patient’s or the caregiver’s quality of life?
Treatment goals
Patient and family expectations regarding the possibilities of treatments and outcomes may be realistic or unrealistic. Inappropriate expectations about the effectiveness of treatment may lead to disappointment regarding relief of symptoms and pain. Therefore, ongoing communication and agreement by the patient, caregivers, and healthcare professionals regarding the goals of treatment are extremely important. The following list includes goals that are commonly developed in the treatment of spasticity.
· Relieve the signs and symptoms of spasticity
· Reduce pain, frequency of spasms, or irritating stimuli
· Improve gait, hygiene, activities of daily living, or ease of care
· Reduce problems with passive function, that is, the functions provided by the caregiver, such as dressing, feeding, transfer, and bathing
· Improve voluntary active motor function, that is, the behaviors and functions that are under the patient’s control, such as reaching for, grasping, moving, and releasing an object
Types of treatment
A combination of various types of treatment is usually required to attain the specific goals of treatment for a particular patient. Most people with spasticity require physical and occupational therapy to improve or maintain the range of motion in their spastic limbs.
Description of types of therapies: You can follow this at the following web link: www.wemove.org/spa/spa_pot.html.
Physical and occupational therapy
Although physical therapy is a mainstay of treatment for spasticity, there has been surprisingly little research conducted to support the use of these techniques. Physical therapy for spasticity refers to a range of physical (as opposed to drug or surgical) treatments. These treatments of spastic muscles are designed to reduce muscle tone, maintain or improve range of motion and mobility, increase strength and coordination, and improve care and comfort.
The choice of treatments is individualized to meet the needs of the person with spasticity. Physical therapy is the most common form of treatment for spasticity in children. The success of the therapy is often based upon the motivation of the person with spasticity and the caregiver, as well as the physical therapist’s skills.
Please note the last paragraph. Team effort is a must. The success of therapy is often based upon motivation of the person and the caregiver. If you are alone, the team may be you and the therapist. It will not work unless you have motivation. I refer it as “attitude.” I have written about “attitude” in previous articles. Get one !!! Never give up, I improve everyday despite two brainstem strokes.
Here are some additional sites for more info:
- www.webmd.com/pain-management/pain-management-spasticity
- www.geocities.com/aneecp/terms.htm
- www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/spasticity/spasticity.htm
I would venture to say many of us have issues with spasticity or tone. What is this, what does it mean, and what is the difference? My, oh, my, I was confused when they would mention these two different terms, and then I decided to dig. I found out it was more confusing trying to express the meanings.
I did find out that spasticity seems to react differently for each of us. Spasticity and tone affects us with weird mannerisms. Some do well on medications, some do not. Some have pain associated with this, where some do not. Some are assisted by physical therapy, whereupon reading further, it shall be detailed.
Overview of spasticity
The most common causes of spasticity are lack of oxygen to the brain before, during, or after birth (cerebral palsy); physical trauma (brain or spinal cord injury); blockage of or bleeding from a blood vessel in the brain (stroke); multiple sclerosis (MS); or infection of the brain (encephalitis) or the covering of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis).
When damage that causes the eventual spasticity first occurs, the muscles are usually flaccid before they become spastic. Spasticity may not be present all the time—it may be related to a trigger, or stimulus, such as pain, pressure sores, a urinary tract infection, ingrown toenails, tight clothing, or constipation.
Spasticity may be painful, especially if it pulls joints into abnormal positions and or prevents a normal movement of the joints. Spasticity may range from slight muscle stiffness to permanent shortening of the muscle. When the muscle is permanently shortened, the joint becomes misshapen. This is called a contracture and is one of the most significant consequences of spasticity. Another closely related problem with muscles in many people who have spasticity is clonus, or rapid repeated muscle spasms.
While spasticity may affect any muscle group, there are some common patterns. When spasticity affects one or both arms, flexed (bent) elbow, flexed wrist, and clenched fist may result. These can all affect the person’s ability to dress, eat, or write or may interfere with balance, thereby causing difficulties with walking. Spasticity of the legs can cause flexed hip, adducted (or scissoring) thigh, stiff knee, flexed knee, equinovarus foot, and hyperextended great toe (which is also called the hitchhiker’s toe). Spasticity of one or both legs may interfere with the ability to walk, position in bed, sit, transfer, or stand.
Epidemiology
Overall, spasticity affects about 500,000 people in the United States, and more than 12 million people throughout the world. The number of people affected depends upon the cause of the spasticity. In the United Kingdom, approximately 100,000 people have a first-time stroke every year, and an additional 30,000 have a repeated stroke. Stroke afflicts almost 2,000 out of every 1 million people per year worldwide. Almost 40 percent of people who have a stroke continue to have spasticity one year later.
One year later? Ha! I bet, besides myself, many still have it years later.
Clinical examination
A standard evaluation of the nervous system forms the basis of the clinical examination in spasticity. Strength and reflexes are both assessed in this examination. The clinician asks the patient to relax and then moves the joints through their full range of motion at various speeds. Spastic muscles may have a “spastic catch,” exhibit the “clasped knife” phenomenon, or both. Observing the person with spasticity perform activities such as walking, drinking from an open cup, and moving from one position to another often yields valuable information.
The clinical examination also includes an evaluation of deep tendon reflexes. The most commonly used method of testing these reflexes is the tapping technique. With the patient sitting on the examination table and his or her legs hanging freely, the examiner gently but firmly taps below the knee (testing the patellar reflex), first on one leg and then the other.
The responses should be the same in the two legs. Similar techniques may be used to test reflexes in the Achilles tendon (behind the ankle), and reflexes may also be checked in the biceps, triceps, and brachioradialis muscles of the arms.
The Spasticity Management Team
The best treatment of spasticity usually includes an active patient or advocate and caregivers working with several health-care professionals from various medical backgrounds. Members of this team may include one or more of the following people.
Neurologist
A neurologist is a medical doctor trained in disorders of the nervous system. The neurologist may diagnose the neurologic problem; prescribe treatments, including medications and physical and occupational therapy; and refer the patient for surgical evaluation if necessary. The neurologist may also inject the chemodenervation treatments (see the section on treatment that follows).
Physiatrist
A physiatrist is a medical doctor who specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation. The physiatrist may design the rehabilitation program, working with other team members to maximize the patient’s function and minimize the disabling aspects of the neurologic injury. The physiatrist may also prescribe medications and administer chemodenervation treatments.
Physical Therapist
A physical therapist is a healthcare professional who is responsible for the physical aspects of treatment. The physical therapist may perform or direct another person to perform the exercises that are necessary to assist in maintaining the range of motion of limbs affected by spasticity. The physical therapist may also apply and fit braces, splints, or casts that may be prescribed by the physiatrist or other treating physician.
In addition, the physical therapist may direct training to improve the patient’s ability to walk or move and may instruct patients and caregivers on how to position affected arms and legs to help reduce spasticity. A physical therapist often works closely with an occupational therapist to design changes in the home and equipment that might be necessary to accommodate the patient’s needs.
Occupational therapist
An occupational therapist is a healthcare professional who specializes in adaptation of the physical environment to meet the patient’s needs. The occupational therapist may teach modifications for dressing, feeding, and grooming to the patient and caregiver. This therapist may also offer expertise on adaptive devices such as wheelchairs and bath equipment and may advise on home and workplace modifications to increase accessibility and ease of use. The occupational therapist is usually the medical professional who advises the school on issues such as seating, writing, and use of facilities.
Neurosurgeon
A neurosurgeon is a medical doctor who is specially trained to perform surgical procedures related to the nervous system. For example, when a patient with severe spasticity has a positive response to a screening test (intrathecal baclofen bolus) and is then recommended to receive continuous intrathecal baclofen (ITBTM Therapy), the neurosurgeon may implant the baclofen delivery pump.
Neurosurgeons may also perform an operation to destroy selected sensory nerves at their entry point into the spinal cord (selective dorsal rhizotomy) when other treatments cannot offer adequate spasticity relief. When a patient requires exposure of a target nerve for chemodenervation, the neurosurgeon is usually the physician who performs that operation; a neurologist or physiatrist then usually performs the chemodenervation.
Orthopedic surgeon
An orthopedic surgeon is a medical doctor who is specially trained to perform operations related to bones, joints, muscles, and surrounding connective tissue. These types of procedures may help to reduce or correct contractures that lead to abnormal positioning of joints. Orthopedic operations often involve reconstruction or revision of tendons and bones. The orthopedic surgeon may also assist with the fitting of braces and assessing growth and development.
Spasticity treatment
In some patients with mild spasticity, the best treatment may be no treatment, with a watch-and-wait strategy. Typically, treatment is reserved for spasticity that causes pain, interferes with activities of daily living or sleep, or leads to increasing levels of functional disability.
Some key questions that should be answered before beginning any treatment for spasticity include:
1. Is treatment necessary?
2. Do the patient and caregiver have the time and resources necessary to put the treatment into action?
3. Will the treatment improve the patient’s or the caregiver’s quality of life?
Treatment goals
Patient and family expectations regarding the possibilities of treatments and outcomes may be realistic or unrealistic. Inappropriate expectations about the effectiveness of treatment may lead to disappointment regarding relief of symptoms and pain. Therefore, ongoing communication and agreement by the patient, caregivers, and healthcare professionals regarding the goals of treatment are extremely important. The following list includes goals that are commonly developed in the treatment of spasticity.
· Relieve the signs and symptoms of spasticity
· Reduce pain, frequency of spasms, or irritating stimuli
· Improve gait, hygiene, activities of daily living, or ease of care
· Reduce problems with passive function, that is, the functions provided by the caregiver, such as dressing, feeding, transfer, and bathing
· Improve voluntary active motor function, that is, the behaviors and functions that are under the patient’s control, such as reaching for, grasping, moving, and releasing an object
Types of treatment
A combination of various types of treatment is usually required to attain the specific goals of treatment for a particular patient. Most people with spasticity require physical and occupational therapy to improve or maintain the range of motion in their spastic limbs.
Description of types of therapies: You can follow this at the following web link: www.wemove.org/spa/spa_pot.html.
Physical and occupational therapy
Although physical therapy is a mainstay of treatment for spasticity, there has been surprisingly little research conducted to support the use of these techniques. Physical therapy for spasticity refers to a range of physical (as opposed to drug or surgical) treatments. These treatments of spastic muscles are designed to reduce muscle tone, maintain or improve range of motion and mobility, increase strength and coordination, and improve care and comfort.
The choice of treatments is individualized to meet the needs of the person with spasticity. Physical therapy is the most common form of treatment for spasticity in children. The success of the therapy is often based upon the motivation of the person with spasticity and the caregiver, as well as the physical therapist’s skills.
Please note the last paragraph. Team effort is a must. The success of therapy is often based upon motivation of the person and the caregiver. If you are alone, the team may be you and the therapist. It will not work unless you have motivation. I refer it as “attitude.” I have written about “attitude” in previous articles. Get one !!! Never give up, I improve everyday despite two brainstem strokes.
Here are some additional sites for more info:
- www.webmd.com/pain-management/pain-management-spasticity
- www.geocities.com/aneecp/terms.htm
- www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/spasticity/spasticity.htm
16 January 2010
For 25 Years, Therapy on the Slopes
DREAM Adaptive gives recreation opportunities to people with disabilities
DREAM Adaptive Recreation volunteer Bob Zahller, center, helps guide Phillip Sotello into a turn while descending Big Mountain under Chair Six at Whitefish Mountain Resort as Ryan McCoy follows closely behind. - Lido Vizzutti/Flathead Beacon
By Myers Reece, 01-12-10
WHITEFISH MOUNTAIN RESORT – The therapy is in the snow. It’s on the mountains, in the base lodge and on the bus rides.
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.”
“There’s a huge amount of emotional therapy involved in being able to finally go out and finally access these things,” said Bruce Gibson, DREAM’s program director.
Twenty-five years ago, a small group of Flathead residents set out to expand accessibility to both recreational locations and activities for people with special needs. This was five years before the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Among the earliest leaders of this forward-thinking group were Dottie Maitland, Larry Dominick, Dennis Jones and Jane Lopp. They collaborated with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies to create Glacier National Park’s Trail of the Cedars, a hiking trail that is conducive to disabled access, with a paved portion and a boardwalk.
In addition, they worked on accessibility surveys, along with projects at Foys Lake and Woodland Park, Lopp said. And they created perhaps their most defining legacy, the ski program at Whitefish Mountain Resort. Lopp is pleased to see Gibson continuing and expanding upon DREAM’s vision.
“I’m so glad Bruce is doing all he’s doing,” Lopp said.
The kids who traveled up to Whitefish Mountain Resort last week attend Glacier and Flathead high schools. They represent only a percentage of the total population that DREAM serves. The organization works with roughly 200 people with disabilities each year, Gibson said, about two-thirds of whom are kids.
The nonprofit assists people of many different disabilities, both physical and cognitive. The list includes cerebral palsy, autism, muscle degeneration, Down syndrome, amputees, paraplegics and others. Gibson is the only full-time staff member. The rest are volunteers.
“We have people that can work with about anyone,” Gibson said. “It’s pretty much across the board.”
DREAM Adaptive differs somewhat from the Bozeman-based Eagle Mount program, mostly in the area of professional therapy. Eagle Mount is more therapy based, while DREAM is more recreation based, Gibson said. But Gibson points out: “Therapy comes from getting out and skiing.”
“They’re structured a little bit differently, but for the most part they’re doing the same thing,” Gibson said.
The nonprofit also started a summer program in 2009 with water skiing, tubing and kayaking at Echo Lake. The program will continue, and perhaps expand, in future summers, Gibson said.
The “adaptive” skiing movement started in Colorado in the late 1970s, Gibson said. It has grown exponentially since then. There are adaptive programs in countries such as New Zealand and France, as well as in other states, but Gibson said “almost everything adaptive comes out of Colorado.” DREAM’s program was modeled after one in Winter Park, Colo.
DREAM Adaptive doesn’t charge for any of its services. It relies on community donations, grants and a large fundraiser held each year on the Friday before Valentine’s Day. The event, scheduled for Feb. 12 at the Hilton Garden Inn this year, features live big band music, dancing, dinner and auctions – both live and silent.
Also, the organization negotiates a yearly agreement with Whitefish Mountain Resort. It receives an unlimited amount of lower chairlift tickets for its participants and a fixed amount for the higher lifts. Volunteers who don’t have season passes get free tickets. When their volunteer time is done each day, they are free to use the rest of the day to ski.
The resort also provides DREAM with senior ski instructors and storage space. The required equipment list for skiers with disabilities is fairly large, including both bi and mono sit-skis, outriggers, gadgets that can either help spread legs or keep skis together, and more.
“Sometimes we just invent something based on individual needs,” Gibson said.
Volunteers must be intermediate skiers or better. Beyond that, they need no prior experience, Gibson said. After signing up, they take a training session. Then they are paired with skiers, with the advanced volunteers taking on more difficult tasks like guiding sit-skiers.
Gibson said his organization also seeks “off-snow” volunteers. These volunteers help with tasks such as grant writing and preparing for fundraisers. Donations are always needed as well, he said.
Last week was Chuck Cassidy’s first day as a ski volunteer, though he has followed the DREAM program for years. His son, Mark, has been skiing since 2004 and was one of the more accomplished skiers on the mountain on Jan. 7, if not the most enthusiastic. The gregarious 18-year-old Cassidy, a senior at Glacier High who has a learning disability, begins preparing for ski days a week ahead of time, his father said.
Cassidy, who saw many different school systems in his travels with the Navy, said the Kalispell school district has the best recreational program for kids with disabilities that he has seen. The district’s collaboration with DREAM is just one example, he said. There are also opportunities for activities such as softball, bocce, track and basketball.
“It’s really an awesome program,” Cassidy said. “The valley should be proud.”
Of the 13 high school students who skied last week, 12 were from Glacier and one was from Flathead, said Jodie McGough, who is the special education instructor at Glacier. A few of the regulars didn’t make the trip because of the cold.
The students ski with DREAM eight days per year to train for the Special Olympics, said Jenny Griswold, who teaches at Glacier and runs the Special Olympics program there.
“A lot of our kids never even have a chance to go fast in their lives,” Griswold said. “That’s why we’re up here when it’s 10 below.”
She added: “DREAM is the only way we have access to this.”
For more information on DREAM Adaptive Recreation Inc., and how to contribute, call (406) 862-1817, e-mail at dreamadaptive@yahoo.comor mail to P.O. Box 4084, Whitefish, MT 59937.
DREAM Adaptive Recreation volunteer Bob Zahller, center, helps guide Phillip Sotello into a turn while descending Big Mountain under Chair Six at Whitefish Mountain Resort as Ryan McCoy follows closely behind. - Lido Vizzutti/Flathead Beacon
By Myers Reece, 01-12-10
WHITEFISH MOUNTAIN RESORT – The therapy is in the snow. It’s on the mountains, in the base lodge and on the bus rides.
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.”
“There’s a huge amount of emotional therapy involved in being able to finally go out and finally access these things,” said Bruce Gibson, DREAM’s program director.
Twenty-five years ago, a small group of Flathead residents set out to expand accessibility to both recreational locations and activities for people with special needs. This was five years before the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Among the earliest leaders of this forward-thinking group were Dottie Maitland, Larry Dominick, Dennis Jones and Jane Lopp. They collaborated with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies to create Glacier National Park’s Trail of the Cedars, a hiking trail that is conducive to disabled access, with a paved portion and a boardwalk.
In addition, they worked on accessibility surveys, along with projects at Foys Lake and Woodland Park, Lopp said. And they created perhaps their most defining legacy, the ski program at Whitefish Mountain Resort. Lopp is pleased to see Gibson continuing and expanding upon DREAM’s vision.
“I’m so glad Bruce is doing all he’s doing,” Lopp said.
The kids who traveled up to Whitefish Mountain Resort last week attend Glacier and Flathead high schools. They represent only a percentage of the total population that DREAM serves. The organization works with roughly 200 people with disabilities each year, Gibson said, about two-thirds of whom are kids.
The nonprofit assists people of many different disabilities, both physical and cognitive. The list includes cerebral palsy, autism, muscle degeneration, Down syndrome, amputees, paraplegics and others. Gibson is the only full-time staff member. The rest are volunteers.
“We have people that can work with about anyone,” Gibson said. “It’s pretty much across the board.”
DREAM Adaptive differs somewhat from the Bozeman-based Eagle Mount program, mostly in the area of professional therapy. Eagle Mount is more therapy based, while DREAM is more recreation based, Gibson said. But Gibson points out: “Therapy comes from getting out and skiing.”
“They’re structured a little bit differently, but for the most part they’re doing the same thing,” Gibson said.
The nonprofit also started a summer program in 2009 with water skiing, tubing and kayaking at Echo Lake. The program will continue, and perhaps expand, in future summers, Gibson said.
The “adaptive” skiing movement started in Colorado in the late 1970s, Gibson said. It has grown exponentially since then. There are adaptive programs in countries such as New Zealand and France, as well as in other states, but Gibson said “almost everything adaptive comes out of Colorado.” DREAM’s program was modeled after one in Winter Park, Colo.
DREAM Adaptive doesn’t charge for any of its services. It relies on community donations, grants and a large fundraiser held each year on the Friday before Valentine’s Day. The event, scheduled for Feb. 12 at the Hilton Garden Inn this year, features live big band music, dancing, dinner and auctions – both live and silent.
Also, the organization negotiates a yearly agreement with Whitefish Mountain Resort. It receives an unlimited amount of lower chairlift tickets for its participants and a fixed amount for the higher lifts. Volunteers who don’t have season passes get free tickets. When their volunteer time is done each day, they are free to use the rest of the day to ski.
The resort also provides DREAM with senior ski instructors and storage space. The required equipment list for skiers with disabilities is fairly large, including both bi and mono sit-skis, outriggers, gadgets that can either help spread legs or keep skis together, and more.
“Sometimes we just invent something based on individual needs,” Gibson said.
Volunteers must be intermediate skiers or better. Beyond that, they need no prior experience, Gibson said. After signing up, they take a training session. Then they are paired with skiers, with the advanced volunteers taking on more difficult tasks like guiding sit-skiers.
Gibson said his organization also seeks “off-snow” volunteers. These volunteers help with tasks such as grant writing and preparing for fundraisers. Donations are always needed as well, he said.
Last week was Chuck Cassidy’s first day as a ski volunteer, though he has followed the DREAM program for years. His son, Mark, has been skiing since 2004 and was one of the more accomplished skiers on the mountain on Jan. 7, if not the most enthusiastic. The gregarious 18-year-old Cassidy, a senior at Glacier High who has a learning disability, begins preparing for ski days a week ahead of time, his father said.
Cassidy, who saw many different school systems in his travels with the Navy, said the Kalispell school district has the best recreational program for kids with disabilities that he has seen. The district’s collaboration with DREAM is just one example, he said. There are also opportunities for activities such as softball, bocce, track and basketball.
“It’s really an awesome program,” Cassidy said. “The valley should be proud.”
Of the 13 high school students who skied last week, 12 were from Glacier and one was from Flathead, said Jodie McGough, who is the special education instructor at Glacier. A few of the regulars didn’t make the trip because of the cold.
The students ski with DREAM eight days per year to train for the Special Olympics, said Jenny Griswold, who teaches at Glacier and runs the Special Olympics program there.
“A lot of our kids never even have a chance to go fast in their lives,” Griswold said. “That’s why we’re up here when it’s 10 below.”
She added: “DREAM is the only way we have access to this.”
For more information on DREAM Adaptive Recreation Inc., and how to contribute, call (406) 862-1817, e-mail at dreamadaptive@yahoo.comor mail to P.O. Box 4084, Whitefish, MT 59937.
12 November 2009
New brain findings on dyslexic children
Good readers learn from repeating auditory signals, poor readers do not
The vast majority of school-aged children can focus on the voice of a teacher amid the cacophony of the typical classroom thanks to a brain that automatically focuses on relevant, predictable and repeating auditory information, according to new research from Northwestern University.
But for children with developmental dyslexia, the teacher’s voice may get lost in the background noise of banging lockers, whispering children, playground screams and scraping chairs, the researchers say. Their study appears in the Nov. 12 issue of Neuron.
Recent scientific studies suggest that children with developmental dyslexia — a neurological disorder affecting reading and spelling skills in 5 to 10 percent of school aged children — have difficulties separating relevant auditory information from competing noise.
The research from Northwestern University’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory not only confirms those findings but presents biological evidence that children who report problems hearing speech in noise also suffer from a measurable neural impairment that adversely affects their ability to make use of regularities in the sound environment.
“The ability to sharpen or fine-tune repeating elements is crucial to hearing speech in noise because it allows for superior ‘tagging’ of voice pitch, an important cue in picking out a particular voice within background noise,” said Nina Kraus, Hugh Knowles Professor of Communication Sciences and Neurobiology and director of the Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory.
In the article “Context-dependent encoding in the human auditory brainstem relates to hearing speech-in-noise: Implications for developmental dyslexia,” Kraus and co-investigators Bharath Chandrasekaran, Jane Hornickel, Erika Skoe and Trent Nicol demonstrate that the remarkable ability of the brain to tune into relevant aspects in the soundscape is carried out by an adaptive auditory system that continuously changes its activity based on the demands of context.
Good and poor readers were asked to watch a video while the speech sound “da” was presented to them through an earphone in two different sessions during which the brain’s response to these sounds was continuously measured.
In the first session, “da” was repeated over and over and over again (in what the researchers call a repetitive context). In the second, “da” was presented randomly amid other speech sounds (in what the researchers call a variable context). In an additional session, the researchers performed behavioral tests in which the children were asked to repeat sentences that were presented to them amid increasing degrees of noise.
“Even though the children’s attention was focused on a movie, the auditory system of the good readers ‘tuned in’ to the repeatedly presented speech sound context and sharpened the sound’s encoding. In contrast, poor readers did not show an improvement in encoding with repetition,” said Chandrasekaran, lead author of the study. “We also found that children who had an adaptive auditory system performed better on the behavioral tests that required them to perceive speech in noisy backgrounds.”
The study suggests that in addition to conventional reading and spelling based interventions, poor readers who have difficulties processing information in noisy backgrounds could benefit from the employment of relatively simple strategies, such as placing the child in front of the teacher or using wireless technologies to enhance the sound of a teacher’s voice for an individual student.
Interestingly, the researchers found that dyslexic children showed enhanced brain activity in the variable condition. This may enable dyslexic children to represent their sensory environment in a broader and arguably more creative manner, although at the cost of the ability to exclude irrelevant signals (e.g. noise).
“The study brings us closer to understanding sensory processing in children who experience difficulty excluding irrelevant noise. It provides an objective index that can help in the assessment of children with reading problems,” Kraus says.
For nearly two decades, Kraus has been trying to determine why some children with good hearing have difficulties learning to read and spell while others do not. Early in her work, because the deficits she was exploring related to the complex processes of reading and writing, Kraus studied how the cortex — the part of the brain responsible for thinking –encoded sounds. She and her colleagues now understand that problems associated with the encoding of sound also can occur in lower perceptual structures.
Northwestern University
The vast majority of school-aged children can focus on the voice of a teacher amid the cacophony of the typical classroom thanks to a brain that automatically focuses on relevant, predictable and repeating auditory information, according to new research from Northwestern University.
But for children with developmental dyslexia, the teacher’s voice may get lost in the background noise of banging lockers, whispering children, playground screams and scraping chairs, the researchers say. Their study appears in the Nov. 12 issue of Neuron.
Recent scientific studies suggest that children with developmental dyslexia — a neurological disorder affecting reading and spelling skills in 5 to 10 percent of school aged children — have difficulties separating relevant auditory information from competing noise.
The research from Northwestern University’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory not only confirms those findings but presents biological evidence that children who report problems hearing speech in noise also suffer from a measurable neural impairment that adversely affects their ability to make use of regularities in the sound environment.
“The ability to sharpen or fine-tune repeating elements is crucial to hearing speech in noise because it allows for superior ‘tagging’ of voice pitch, an important cue in picking out a particular voice within background noise,” said Nina Kraus, Hugh Knowles Professor of Communication Sciences and Neurobiology and director of the Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory.
In the article “Context-dependent encoding in the human auditory brainstem relates to hearing speech-in-noise: Implications for developmental dyslexia,” Kraus and co-investigators Bharath Chandrasekaran, Jane Hornickel, Erika Skoe and Trent Nicol demonstrate that the remarkable ability of the brain to tune into relevant aspects in the soundscape is carried out by an adaptive auditory system that continuously changes its activity based on the demands of context.
Good and poor readers were asked to watch a video while the speech sound “da” was presented to them through an earphone in two different sessions during which the brain’s response to these sounds was continuously measured.
In the first session, “da” was repeated over and over and over again (in what the researchers call a repetitive context). In the second, “da” was presented randomly amid other speech sounds (in what the researchers call a variable context). In an additional session, the researchers performed behavioral tests in which the children were asked to repeat sentences that were presented to them amid increasing degrees of noise.
“Even though the children’s attention was focused on a movie, the auditory system of the good readers ‘tuned in’ to the repeatedly presented speech sound context and sharpened the sound’s encoding. In contrast, poor readers did not show an improvement in encoding with repetition,” said Chandrasekaran, lead author of the study. “We also found that children who had an adaptive auditory system performed better on the behavioral tests that required them to perceive speech in noisy backgrounds.”
The study suggests that in addition to conventional reading and spelling based interventions, poor readers who have difficulties processing information in noisy backgrounds could benefit from the employment of relatively simple strategies, such as placing the child in front of the teacher or using wireless technologies to enhance the sound of a teacher’s voice for an individual student.
Interestingly, the researchers found that dyslexic children showed enhanced brain activity in the variable condition. This may enable dyslexic children to represent their sensory environment in a broader and arguably more creative manner, although at the cost of the ability to exclude irrelevant signals (e.g. noise).
“The study brings us closer to understanding sensory processing in children who experience difficulty excluding irrelevant noise. It provides an objective index that can help in the assessment of children with reading problems,” Kraus says.
For nearly two decades, Kraus has been trying to determine why some children with good hearing have difficulties learning to read and spell while others do not. Early in her work, because the deficits she was exploring related to the complex processes of reading and writing, Kraus studied how the cortex — the part of the brain responsible for thinking –encoded sounds. She and her colleagues now understand that problems associated with the encoding of sound also can occur in lower perceptual structures.
Northwestern University
17 October 2009
Adaptive bikes aid 3 riders
Princeton Union Eagle
By Joel Stottrup
Three Princeton students are now enjoying what most kids take for granted — riding a bicycle.
For a long time eighth graders Stephanie Ackerman and Brady Hopland, and fifth grader Colton Benner were unable to ride regular bicycles because of their disabilities. But they could ride the adaptive kind of bikes available during school hours when they had adaptive physical education. However, when they were not in school they were out of luck. They just had to watch other kids ride their bikes.
That changed for Stephanie, Brady and Colton this year, as they got their own bicycles, bikes with three wheels that they can ride. The idea came about after Princeton developmental adapted phy ed instructor JoAnn Aderman began thinking about the bicycle-deficit plight of the three.
“Every kid deserves a bike,” Aderman said at her office last week. “Most kids want to be mobile, get around. Most kids want to ride a bike, they want to swim and be able to get places.”
Trouble is, the three-wheel adaptive bicycles designed for children with disabilities can cost hundreds of dollars and are unaffordable for many families.
Aderman had met Sally Brown who has a St. Paul-based business called Every Kid Mobility that helps find and obtain bicycles for families with kids with disabilities. Brown, who has cerebral palsy, got her own adaptive bicycle at age 50.
Eighth-grader Stephanie Ackerman's adaptive bike allows her to ride with her firends. "Every kid deserves a bike," said adapted phy ed instructor JoAnn Aderman.
For a child to get their own bike and ride is “such a life change,” Brown said last Thursday. “Riding a bike is like a rite of passage. It’s an amazing thing.”
Brown puts on bike fairs during which people can look at the different styles of adaptive bicycles available and see which ones would be suitable. Aderman met Brown at one of those fairs.
Brady would need an especially adaptive bike as he is severely disabled physically and cognitively, said Aderman. The adaptive bicycle he ended up with through the help of Brown, would be the most expensive at $1,700. Colton’s would be the next most expensive at $700-800, according to Aderman, and Stephanie’s bicycle would come in at about $200. Stephanie’s requirement was mainly that it have three wheels and coaster and hand brakes, Aderman explained.
Brady’s three-wheel bike had to have certain cables and a special seat, handlebars and pedals, Aderman noted.
Before the bicycles could be purchased, funding had to be arranged. The three families applied for and received grants from Minnesota Big Dads, Inc., Princeton Lions Club and Minnesota P.E.O. Home Fund to fund the purchases. Money was also donated by some Princeton school staff members, mostly at the middle school and some at North Elementary, Aderman said.
Colton’s new adaptive bicycle is a three wheeler that sits low to the ground and has a sleek, low slung look.
The left side of Colton’s body is compromised by the post strep autoimmune dystonia that he had when he was seven and at the end of second grade, his mother Bobbi Benner noted.
During the summers of 2007 and 2008, the Benners tried seeing if Colton could ride a regular bicycle. They added training wheels, and also Velcro to keep both of his feet on the pedals.
“But it was hard for him and he still wiped out,” Bobbi said. “He couldn’t get going fast enough and he couldn’t stop. He was frustrated and he would cry.”
Colton, Stephanie and Brady received their adaptive bicycles this past summer.
Colton’s new adaptive bike is “super cool,” Bobbi says. “All his cousins and stuff want to ride it. It’s real smooth. He doesn’t need to worry about the balance and he can go a lot faster, smoother.”
Colton can now also keep up with the rest of his family when they are bicycling, and Colton rides much longer, Bobbi says.
Colton has ridden with family members from his home outside city limits and into Princeton to go to the Dairy Queen. He’s also been able to go on the bicycle during family camping trips.
“It’s been really neat for him,” Bobbi said. “It’s kind of a freedom thing. He’s just so excited.”
Bobbi remembers that, at first, Colton hesitated checking out an adaptive bike, thinking he would not look so good on one. She remembers that when the family took him to an adaptive bike fair in St. Cloud to look at adaptive bikes that she could hardly get him out of the car. But once he was at the fair and trying one of the adaptive bicycles he liked, she could hardly get him to leave.
“It’s been really fun,” Bobbi said. “We were really thankful for JoAnn’s help and referral.”
Aderman said she thinks Colton is still “bound and determined” to ride a two-wheel bike.
When Bobbi was asked about that, she agreed. Colton has still been trying to ride a regular bicycle, Bobbi explaining that he had gotten up on a cousin’s two-wheel bike this past summer but “wiped out. But we know he’ll get up again.”
Colton works hard to succeed at things, Bobbi said. She noted that he has not being able to use his arms to swim like most people. So, during a family vacation in Florida he taught himself to swim in the resort swimming pool and taught himself by moving his body “like a dolphin,” she said.
Aderman talked excitedly about Colton, Brady and Stephanie getting their bikes and being able to now ride beyond the school day.
It wasn’t until the seventh grade that Stephanie rode a bike and that was because it was the first time Stephanie had access to an adaptive bicycle at school, Aderman said. Now Stephanie will benefit from getting the exercise that bike riding offers, Aderman added.
And Brady?
“There are only a couple things he’s successful at and bicycling is one of them,” Aderman said. “He loves it.”
By Joel Stottrup
Three Princeton students are now enjoying what most kids take for granted — riding a bicycle.
For a long time eighth graders Stephanie Ackerman and Brady Hopland, and fifth grader Colton Benner were unable to ride regular bicycles because of their disabilities. But they could ride the adaptive kind of bikes available during school hours when they had adaptive physical education. However, when they were not in school they were out of luck. They just had to watch other kids ride their bikes.
That changed for Stephanie, Brady and Colton this year, as they got their own bicycles, bikes with three wheels that they can ride. The idea came about after Princeton developmental adapted phy ed instructor JoAnn Aderman began thinking about the bicycle-deficit plight of the three.
“Every kid deserves a bike,” Aderman said at her office last week. “Most kids want to be mobile, get around. Most kids want to ride a bike, they want to swim and be able to get places.”
Trouble is, the three-wheel adaptive bicycles designed for children with disabilities can cost hundreds of dollars and are unaffordable for many families.
Aderman had met Sally Brown who has a St. Paul-based business called Every Kid Mobility that helps find and obtain bicycles for families with kids with disabilities. Brown, who has cerebral palsy, got her own adaptive bicycle at age 50.
Eighth-grader Stephanie Ackerman's adaptive bike allows her to ride with her firends. "Every kid deserves a bike," said adapted phy ed instructor JoAnn Aderman.
For a child to get their own bike and ride is “such a life change,” Brown said last Thursday. “Riding a bike is like a rite of passage. It’s an amazing thing.”
Brown puts on bike fairs during which people can look at the different styles of adaptive bicycles available and see which ones would be suitable. Aderman met Brown at one of those fairs.
Brady would need an especially adaptive bike as he is severely disabled physically and cognitively, said Aderman. The adaptive bicycle he ended up with through the help of Brown, would be the most expensive at $1,700. Colton’s would be the next most expensive at $700-800, according to Aderman, and Stephanie’s bicycle would come in at about $200. Stephanie’s requirement was mainly that it have three wheels and coaster and hand brakes, Aderman explained.
Brady’s three-wheel bike had to have certain cables and a special seat, handlebars and pedals, Aderman noted.
Before the bicycles could be purchased, funding had to be arranged. The three families applied for and received grants from Minnesota Big Dads, Inc., Princeton Lions Club and Minnesota P.E.O. Home Fund to fund the purchases. Money was also donated by some Princeton school staff members, mostly at the middle school and some at North Elementary, Aderman said.
Colton’s new adaptive bicycle is a three wheeler that sits low to the ground and has a sleek, low slung look.
The left side of Colton’s body is compromised by the post strep autoimmune dystonia that he had when he was seven and at the end of second grade, his mother Bobbi Benner noted.
During the summers of 2007 and 2008, the Benners tried seeing if Colton could ride a regular bicycle. They added training wheels, and also Velcro to keep both of his feet on the pedals.
“But it was hard for him and he still wiped out,” Bobbi said. “He couldn’t get going fast enough and he couldn’t stop. He was frustrated and he would cry.”
Colton, Stephanie and Brady received their adaptive bicycles this past summer.
Colton’s new adaptive bike is “super cool,” Bobbi says. “All his cousins and stuff want to ride it. It’s real smooth. He doesn’t need to worry about the balance and he can go a lot faster, smoother.”
Colton can now also keep up with the rest of his family when they are bicycling, and Colton rides much longer, Bobbi says.
Colton has ridden with family members from his home outside city limits and into Princeton to go to the Dairy Queen. He’s also been able to go on the bicycle during family camping trips.
“It’s been really neat for him,” Bobbi said. “It’s kind of a freedom thing. He’s just so excited.”
Bobbi remembers that, at first, Colton hesitated checking out an adaptive bike, thinking he would not look so good on one. She remembers that when the family took him to an adaptive bike fair in St. Cloud to look at adaptive bikes that she could hardly get him out of the car. But once he was at the fair and trying one of the adaptive bicycles he liked, she could hardly get him to leave.
“It’s been really fun,” Bobbi said. “We were really thankful for JoAnn’s help and referral.”
Aderman said she thinks Colton is still “bound and determined” to ride a two-wheel bike.
When Bobbi was asked about that, she agreed. Colton has still been trying to ride a regular bicycle, Bobbi explaining that he had gotten up on a cousin’s two-wheel bike this past summer but “wiped out. But we know he’ll get up again.”
Colton works hard to succeed at things, Bobbi said. She noted that he has not being able to use his arms to swim like most people. So, during a family vacation in Florida he taught himself to swim in the resort swimming pool and taught himself by moving his body “like a dolphin,” she said.
Aderman talked excitedly about Colton, Brady and Stephanie getting their bikes and being able to now ride beyond the school day.
It wasn’t until the seventh grade that Stephanie rode a bike and that was because it was the first time Stephanie had access to an adaptive bicycle at school, Aderman said. Now Stephanie will benefit from getting the exercise that bike riding offers, Aderman added.
And Brady?
“There are only a couple things he’s successful at and bicycling is one of them,” Aderman said. “He loves it.”
03 October 2009
SportsAbility to bring outdoor activities to those with disabilities
| Ocala.com | Star-Banner | Ocala, FL
By Andy Fillmore
Correspondent
Published: Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 6:30 a.m.
Diane Leaf has been toiling almost a year for grins.
Or, more specifically, smiles.
Since January, Leaf, program supervisor for the city of Ocala Recreation and Parks Department, has been working on a joint venture with Marion County Parks and Recreation and the Florida Disabled Outdoors Association to bring SportsAbility to the area.
SportsAbility - open to the public and free to participants and spectators - is a two-day event aimed at making park and outdoor leisure activities accessible to those who encounter barriers to healthful leisure time.
Leaf, a certified therapeutic recreation therapist, said the event will be fun for participants experiencing something they may never have done because conventional playground and sports equipment would not accommodate their wheelchairs or allow accessibility.
"My joy is seeing the smiling faces," Leaf said.
SportsAbility literature lists some benefits of outdoor activity as better overall health and avoiding additional health problems.
Everyone deserves the opportunity to be involved with healthful and relaxing leisure activities, Leaf said.
"Prior to the Americans with Disabilities Act, there may not have been the same opportunities," she said.
SportsAbility is a program of the Florida Disabled Outdoors Association. Outdoorsman David Jones founded the 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 1990 after a hunting accident left him with paralysis in his left side. He wanted to establish a means to allow people with varying physical capabilities to start or continue to enjoy the benefits of outdoor activities, Leaf said.
"Individuals have participated with conditions from arthritis to cerebral palsy," she added.
During the event, activities at the MLK Recreation Complex and the Ed Croskey Center's Hampton Aquatic Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday will include wheelchair basketball, adaptive golf and tennis, bocce, laser target shooting, an interactive fishing simulation and therapeutic horseback riding. An adaptive aquatics demonstration and pool party are on the agenda.
An exposition on the recreation complex grounds will include sponsor displays with information about adaptive equipment such as custom-made sit-to-ski chairs. The Pyramid Players, sponsored by the Marion County Children's Alliance, will provide song and dance entertainment at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
In the same timeframe Saturday, events will take place at the Carney Island Recreation and Conservation Area in Ocklawaha. They will include skiing programs by U Can Ski 2, sailing, canoeing, kayaking and pontoon boat rides. Also on tap are archery, target shooting, fishing and nature presentations.
A free hamburger and hot dog lunch will be available, while supplies last.
Therapeutic horseback riding also is planned that day, and Betty Gray of Stirrups 'n' Strides is planning to bring Morgan horses Barney and Knickee. Gray's daughter, Kathy, is a national award winner in Special Olympics riding.
"It's miraculous what riding has done for Kathy; she would likely be in a wheelchair without it," Gray said.
"Kathy plans to participate in the water sports on Saturday," she added.
Leaf said she hopes for a good turnout.
"I love to help people" in the therapeutic recreation setting, Leaf said. "That inspires me."
By Andy Fillmore
Correspondent
Published: Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 6:30 a.m.
Diane Leaf has been toiling almost a year for grins.
Or, more specifically, smiles.
Since January, Leaf, program supervisor for the city of Ocala Recreation and Parks Department, has been working on a joint venture with Marion County Parks and Recreation and the Florida Disabled Outdoors Association to bring SportsAbility to the area.
SportsAbility - open to the public and free to participants and spectators - is a two-day event aimed at making park and outdoor leisure activities accessible to those who encounter barriers to healthful leisure time.
Leaf, a certified therapeutic recreation therapist, said the event will be fun for participants experiencing something they may never have done because conventional playground and sports equipment would not accommodate their wheelchairs or allow accessibility.
"My joy is seeing the smiling faces," Leaf said.
SportsAbility literature lists some benefits of outdoor activity as better overall health and avoiding additional health problems.
Everyone deserves the opportunity to be involved with healthful and relaxing leisure activities, Leaf said.
"Prior to the Americans with Disabilities Act, there may not have been the same opportunities," she said.
SportsAbility is a program of the Florida Disabled Outdoors Association. Outdoorsman David Jones founded the 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 1990 after a hunting accident left him with paralysis in his left side. He wanted to establish a means to allow people with varying physical capabilities to start or continue to enjoy the benefits of outdoor activities, Leaf said.
"Individuals have participated with conditions from arthritis to cerebral palsy," she added.
During the event, activities at the MLK Recreation Complex and the Ed Croskey Center's Hampton Aquatic Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday will include wheelchair basketball, adaptive golf and tennis, bocce, laser target shooting, an interactive fishing simulation and therapeutic horseback riding. An adaptive aquatics demonstration and pool party are on the agenda.
An exposition on the recreation complex grounds will include sponsor displays with information about adaptive equipment such as custom-made sit-to-ski chairs. The Pyramid Players, sponsored by the Marion County Children's Alliance, will provide song and dance entertainment at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
In the same timeframe Saturday, events will take place at the Carney Island Recreation and Conservation Area in Ocklawaha. They will include skiing programs by U Can Ski 2, sailing, canoeing, kayaking and pontoon boat rides. Also on tap are archery, target shooting, fishing and nature presentations.
A free hamburger and hot dog lunch will be available, while supplies last.
Therapeutic horseback riding also is planned that day, and Betty Gray of Stirrups 'n' Strides is planning to bring Morgan horses Barney and Knickee. Gray's daughter, Kathy, is a national award winner in Special Olympics riding.
"It's miraculous what riding has done for Kathy; she would likely be in a wheelchair without it," Gray said.
"Kathy plans to participate in the water sports on Saturday," she added.
Leaf said she hopes for a good turnout.
"I love to help people" in the therapeutic recreation setting, Leaf said. "That inspires me."
11 June 2009
Parking lot art — Jackson Pollock style
By Sharon Sullivan
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — In the spirit of Jackson Pollock, local amateur artists created a painting at The Art Center Tuesday, by rolling wheelchairs across a canvas stretched over a portion of the parking lot.The Pollock Project was named for the famed late abstract expressionist artist known for painting on the ground, and flinging paint randomly on the canvas.
Although not every painter Tuesday could cut out his or her own stencil — which was then applied to a roller in front of the wheelchair — most could at least choose the shape and color they wanted to add to the canvas.“We have quite a few clients who love doing art — especially the explosive colors,” said Nikki Benning, day program supervisor at Mesa Developmental Services.“A lot of people didn't show much interest in anything until we started doing these art projects. When you mention going to The Art Center, or doing art projects, they're ready. There are lots and lots of smiles.”The Pollock Project was a collaboration between The Art Center, MDS and Very Special Arts of Colorado and their Arts for All program. The nonprofit's executive director Damon McLeese, and his daughter, Zoe, helped supervise the event.VSA of Colorado is a branch of Very Special Arts — an international nonprofit organization founded in 1974.
McLeese calls it an “Arts for All mobile art studio. With a home office/gallery in Denver, he brings adaptive art equipment to communities around Colorado at least 20 to 30 times a year for similar projects.”“The nice thing about this, everyone has added something to this,” McLeese said. “So often things are done for them, or to them. This is a much more inclusive process.”Although it may look like one huge abstract painting, there are “lovely compositions within,” McLeese said.
Clients chose all kinds of shapes, including a chocolate chip cookie, birds, fish, and big geometric shapes.Three of the canvases within the larger painting were later stretched and placed in frames to be hung at the Art Center and at MDS, 950 Grand Ave.The Pollock Project was initiated by local artist Mark Saro, owner of Unishape Adaptive Equipment, a national company that builds products for people with developmental disabilities. Saro contacted Denver's Very Special Arts to bring the project to Grand Junction. Saro began sponsoring art classes for MDS clients a couple of years ago. Since then other groups have helped provide art classes for handicapped individuals.“Our goal is to bring back art programs for the disabled,” Saro said.Tuesday was the first time The Art Center has collaborated with the nonprofit VSA of Colorado.“We'll probably bring them back. People are having so much fun,” said Art Center Director Cheryl McNab.The Art Center offers an art program once a month for the disabled. This month's event was sponsored by Wells Fargo Bank.MDS clients have a wide range of disabilities, including multiple sclerosis, scoliosis, degenerative spine disease, quadriplegia, and cerebral palsy. Jessica Snarr is a 22-year-old with spina bifida. She enjoyed maneuvering her wheelchair across the canvas, Tuesday.“I like it. It's really neat for us,” Snarr said. “I love art.” Reach Sharon Sullivan at ssullivan@gjfreepress.com.
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — In the spirit of Jackson Pollock, local amateur artists created a painting at The Art Center Tuesday, by rolling wheelchairs across a canvas stretched over a portion of the parking lot.The Pollock Project was named for the famed late abstract expressionist artist known for painting on the ground, and flinging paint randomly on the canvas.
Although not every painter Tuesday could cut out his or her own stencil — which was then applied to a roller in front of the wheelchair — most could at least choose the shape and color they wanted to add to the canvas.“We have quite a few clients who love doing art — especially the explosive colors,” said Nikki Benning, day program supervisor at Mesa Developmental Services.“A lot of people didn't show much interest in anything until we started doing these art projects. When you mention going to The Art Center, or doing art projects, they're ready. There are lots and lots of smiles.”The Pollock Project was a collaboration between The Art Center, MDS and Very Special Arts of Colorado and their Arts for All program. The nonprofit's executive director Damon McLeese, and his daughter, Zoe, helped supervise the event.VSA of Colorado is a branch of Very Special Arts — an international nonprofit organization founded in 1974.
McLeese calls it an “Arts for All mobile art studio. With a home office/gallery in Denver, he brings adaptive art equipment to communities around Colorado at least 20 to 30 times a year for similar projects.”“The nice thing about this, everyone has added something to this,” McLeese said. “So often things are done for them, or to them. This is a much more inclusive process.”Although it may look like one huge abstract painting, there are “lovely compositions within,” McLeese said.
Clients chose all kinds of shapes, including a chocolate chip cookie, birds, fish, and big geometric shapes.Three of the canvases within the larger painting were later stretched and placed in frames to be hung at the Art Center and at MDS, 950 Grand Ave.The Pollock Project was initiated by local artist Mark Saro, owner of Unishape Adaptive Equipment, a national company that builds products for people with developmental disabilities. Saro contacted Denver's Very Special Arts to bring the project to Grand Junction. Saro began sponsoring art classes for MDS clients a couple of years ago. Since then other groups have helped provide art classes for handicapped individuals.“Our goal is to bring back art programs for the disabled,” Saro said.Tuesday was the first time The Art Center has collaborated with the nonprofit VSA of Colorado.“We'll probably bring them back. People are having so much fun,” said Art Center Director Cheryl McNab.The Art Center offers an art program once a month for the disabled. This month's event was sponsored by Wells Fargo Bank.MDS clients have a wide range of disabilities, including multiple sclerosis, scoliosis, degenerative spine disease, quadriplegia, and cerebral palsy. Jessica Snarr is a 22-year-old with spina bifida. She enjoyed maneuvering her wheelchair across the canvas, Tuesday.“I like it. It's really neat for us,” Snarr said. “I love art.” Reach Sharon Sullivan at ssullivan@gjfreepress.com.
07 February 2009
Speech-language pathologist
Speech-language pathology is the study of disorders that affect a person’s speech, language, cognition, voice, swallowing (dysphagia) and the rehabilitative or corrective treatment of physical and/or cognitive deficits/disorders resulting in difficulty with communication and/or swallowing. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) or Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) address people’s speech production, vocal production, swallowing difficulties and language needs through speech therapy in a variety of different contexts including schools, hospitals, and through private practice.
Communication includes speech (articulation, intonation, rate, intensity), language (phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics), both receptive and expressive language (including reading and writing), and non-verbal communication such as facial expression and gesture. Swallowing problems managed under speech therapy are problems in the oral, laryngeal, and/or pharyngeal stages of swallowing (not oesophageal).
Depending on the nature and severity of the disorder, common treatments may range from physical strengthening exercises, instructive or repetitive practice and drilling, to the use of audio-visual aids and introduction of strategies to facilitate functional communication. Speech therapy may also include sign language and the use of picture symbols (Diehl 2003).
The practice is called:
Speech-language pathology (SLP) in the United States and Canada
Speech and language therapy (SLT) in the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa
Speech pathology in Australia
Speech-language therapy in New Zealand
Other terms in use include speech therapy, logopaedics and phoniatrics.
Contents
1 Scope of practice
2 Professional roles
3 Education
4 Methods of assessment
5 Patients/clients
6 Place of work
7 Colleagues
8 See also
9 External links
Scope of practice
The practice of speech-language pathology involves:
Providing prevention, screening, consultation, assessment and diagnosis, treatment, intervention, management, counseling, and follow-up services for disorders of:
speech (i.e., phonation, articulation, fluency, resonance, and voice including aeromechanical components of respiration);
language (i.e., phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatic/social aspects of communication) including comprehension and expression in oral, written, graphic, and manual modalities; language processing; preliteracy and language-based literacy skills, including phonological awareness;
swallowing or other upper aerodigestive functions such as infant feeding and aeromechanical events (evaluation of esophageal function is for the purpose of referral to medical professionals);
cognitive aspects of communication (e.g., attention, memory, problem solving, executive functions).
sensory awareness related to communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Establishing augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) techniques and strategies including developing, selecting, and prescribing of such systems and devices (e.g., speech generating devices.)
Providing services to individuals with hearing loss and their families/caregivers (e.g.,auditory training; speechreading; speech and language intervention secondary to hearing loss; visual inspection and listening checks of amplification devices for the purpose of troubleshooting, including verification of appropriate battery voltage).
Screening hearing of individuals who can participate in conventional pure-tone air conduction methods, as well as screening for middle ear pathology through screening tympanometry for the purpose of referral of individuals for further evaluation and management.
Using instrumentation (e.g., videofluoroscopy, EMG, nasendoscopy, stroboscopy, computer technology) to observe, collect data, and measure parameters of communication and swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions in accordance with the principles of evidence-based practice.
Selecting, fitting, and establishing effective use of prosthetic/adaptive devices for communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions (e.g., tracheoesophageal prostheses, speaking valves, electrolarynges). This does not include sensory devices used by individuals with hearing loss or other auditory perceptual deficits.
Collaborating in the assessment of central auditory processing disorders and providing intervention where there is evidence of speech, language, and/or other cognitivecommunication disorders.
Educating and counseling individuals, families, co-workers, educators, and other persons in the community regarding acceptance, adaptation, and decision makes about communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive concerns.
Advocating for individuals through community awareness, education, and training programs to promote and facilitate access to full participation in communication, including the elimination of societal barriers.
Collaborating with and providing referrals and information to audiologists, educators, and health professionals as individual needs dictate.
Addressing behaviors (e.g., perseverative or disruptive actions) and environments (e.g., seating, positioning for swallowing safety or attention, communication opportunities) that affect communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Providing services to modify or enhance communication performance (e.g., accent modification, transgendered voice, care and improvement of the professional voice, personal/ professional communication effectiveness).
Recognizing the need to provide and appropriately accommodate diagnostic and treatment services to individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds and adjust treatment and assessment services according.
Professional roles
Speech-language pathologists serve individuals, families, groups, and the general public through a broad range of professional activities. They:
Identify, define, and diagnose disorders of human communication and swallowing and assist in localization and diagnosis of diseases and conditions.
Provide direct services using a variety of service delivery models to treat and/or address communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive concerns.
Conduct research related to communication sciences and disorders, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Educate, supervise, and mentor future speech-language pathologists.
Serve as case managers and service delivery coordinators.
Administer and manage clinical and academic programs.
Educate and provide in-service training to families, caregivers, and other professionals.
Participate in outcomes measurement activities and use data to guide clinical decision making and determine the effectiveness of services provided in accordance with the principles of evidence-based practice.
Train, supervise, and manage speech-language pathology assistants and other support personnel.
Promote healthy lifestyle practices for the prevention of communication, hearing, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive disorders.
Education
In the UK( United Kingdom) , SLTs undertake a three to four year degree course devoted entirely to the study of clinical language sciences and communicative disorders. This qualifies them to work in any of the three main clinical areas. The course, which varies according to university, includes intensive study of core theoretical components underpinning competence to practice , Linguistics, Psychology and Medical science, in addition to the study of a range of communicative disorders in children and adults. Students are also expected to become familiar with a range of policies, processes and procedures relevant to working in different contexts, including health and education. The course is very demanding, and is assessed via coursework, exams and clinical placement. Some universities require students to assess and diagnose an ‘unseen client’ prior to completing their degree course; all require the completion of a pilot study related to the field of Speech and Language Therapy. Throughout the course, students undertake a variety of clinical placements in which their ability to practise is continually assessed. All courses require students to complete a certain amount of hours of clinical placement, although the structure of placement differs from course to course.
Upon qualifying SLT’s enter the profession as a newly-qualified practitioner. The recommended career course is that they then achieve a number of competencies, which qualify them to work autonomously. The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, the professional body representing Speech and Language Therapists in the UK, provides a framework of competencies which therapists are expected to achieve within 12–18 months of beginning clinical practice. Access to supervision during this period varies from trust to trust, and each individual therapist is expected to provide documentary evidence of competencies achieved to a senior colleague (usually a manager) who determines whether a therapist meets the required criteria for admission to the ‘full register’.
Speech and Language Therapists in the UK are required by law to register with the Health Professions Council, a regulatory body governing a range of health professions. The Health Professions Council has the power to discipline members who do not meet the rigorous standards for effective and safe clinical practice, and may ’strike off’ or deregister members who fail to maintain these standards.
In the United States, Speech Language Pathology practice is regulated by the laws of the individual states. However, by 2006, the minimal requirements to be a certified SLP member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association were: a graduate degree in Speech-Language Pathology, which typically entails 2 years of post graduate work; a completed clinical fellowship year, which is generally employment for a year while supervised by a practicing SLP who is also ASHA certified; and passing the Praxis Series examination. The graduate degree work to acquire a Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology is rigorous and demanding, requiring many hours of supervised clinical practica, and intensive didactic coursework in medical sciences, phonetics, linguistics, phonology, scientific methodology, and other subjects.
Certification by ASHA is noted as carrying one’s “C”s. (Certificate of Clinical Competence) It is noted after an SLP’s name as: CCC-SLP.
In Australia, Speech Pathologists either undertake a four year undergraduate degree, or a two year Masters degree to qualify. These dual pathways are considered by Speech Pathology Australia to produce equally prepared graduates. To be eligible for optional membership of Speech Pathology Australia, students must study in one of the accredited courses outlined on their website. Speech Pathology degrees in Australia vary in curriculum, but always include streams teaching anatomy and physiology, professional practice, communication and swallowing disorders, and often some elementary psychology and audiology. Most include no or minimal elective subjects. All degrees include a heavy clinical component, and many also include a research component in final year. Once graduated, students become fully qualified Speech Pathologists and are eligible for any Level 1 position, without the need for an internship or general examination. Registration is only required in the state of Queensland, and membership of the professional organization is optional, although it is encouraged.
Methods of assessment
There are separate standardized assessment tools administered for infants, school-aged children, adolescents and adults. Assessments primarily examine the form, content, understanding and use of language, as well as articulation, and phonology. Oral motor and swallowing assessments often require specialized training which includes the use of bedside examination tools and endoscopic/modified barium radiology procedures.
Individuals may be referred to an SLP for the following: Traumatic brain injury; Stroke; Alzheimer’s disease and dementia; Cranial nerve damage; Progressive neurological conditions (Parkinson, ALS, etc); Developmental delay; Learning disability (speaking and listening); Autism Spectrum Disorders (including Asperger Syndrome); Genetic disorders that adversely affect speech, language and/or cognitive development; Injuries due to complications at birth; Feeding and swallowing concerns; Craniofacial anamolies that adversely affect speech, language and/or cognitive development; and Augmentative Alternative Communication needs.
There are myriad Speech-Language Assessment tools used for chidren and adults, depending on the area of need.
Patients/clients
Speech and language therapists work with:
Babies with feeding and swallowing difficulties
Children with mild, moderate or severe:
learning difficulties
physical disabilities, language delay
specific language impairment
specific difficulties in producing sounds (including vocalic r and lisps)
hearing impairment
cleft palate
stammering
autism/social interaction difficulties
dyslexia
voice disorders
Adults with eating and swallowing and/or communication problems following
stroke
head injury (Traumatic brain injury)
Parkinson’s disease
motor neuron disease
multiple sclerosis
Huntington’s disease
dementia
cancer of the head, neck and throat (including laryngectomy)
voice problems
mental health issues
learning difficulties, physical disabilities
stammering (dysfluency)
hearing impairment
transsexual women seeking voice therapy
In the United States, the cost of speech therapy for a child younger than three years old is likely covered by the state early intervention (zero to three) program.
In Britain, the majority of Speech and Language therapy is funded by the National Health Service (and increasingly, by partners in Education) meaning that initial assessment is available cost-free to all clients at the point of service, regardless of age or presenting problem. The large numbers of referrals contribute to high caseloads and long waiting lists, although this differs from area to area. To meet the needs of many of these clients, it has become necessary for many services to focus heavily on training and consultative models of service provision. The number of hours of direct therapy available to clients varies widely from trust to trust and most areas operate strict guidelines for prioritisation to meet the high clinical demand.
Place of work
Speech and language therapists work in community health centres, hospital wards and outpatient departments, mainstream and special schools, further education colleges, day centers and in their clients’ homes. Some now work in courtrooms, prisons and young offenders’ institutions.
Some speech and language therapists who work independently will see children and adults in their own homes, and may offer appointments on a Saturday.
Colleagues
SLTs/SLPs work closely with others involved with the client, for example difficulties with eating and drinking may also involve an occupational therapist. Speech and language therapists also work closely with parents and caregivers and other professionals, such as audiologists, teachers, nurses, dietitians, physiotherapists, and doctors.
Communication includes speech (articulation, intonation, rate, intensity), language (phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics), both receptive and expressive language (including reading and writing), and non-verbal communication such as facial expression and gesture. Swallowing problems managed under speech therapy are problems in the oral, laryngeal, and/or pharyngeal stages of swallowing (not oesophageal).
Depending on the nature and severity of the disorder, common treatments may range from physical strengthening exercises, instructive or repetitive practice and drilling, to the use of audio-visual aids and introduction of strategies to facilitate functional communication. Speech therapy may also include sign language and the use of picture symbols (Diehl 2003).
The practice is called:
Speech-language pathology (SLP) in the United States and Canada
Speech and language therapy (SLT) in the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa
Speech pathology in Australia
Speech-language therapy in New Zealand
Other terms in use include speech therapy, logopaedics and phoniatrics.
Contents
1 Scope of practice
2 Professional roles
3 Education
4 Methods of assessment
5 Patients/clients
6 Place of work
7 Colleagues
8 See also
9 External links
Scope of practice
The practice of speech-language pathology involves:
Providing prevention, screening, consultation, assessment and diagnosis, treatment, intervention, management, counseling, and follow-up services for disorders of:
speech (i.e., phonation, articulation, fluency, resonance, and voice including aeromechanical components of respiration);
language (i.e., phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatic/social aspects of communication) including comprehension and expression in oral, written, graphic, and manual modalities; language processing; preliteracy and language-based literacy skills, including phonological awareness;
swallowing or other upper aerodigestive functions such as infant feeding and aeromechanical events (evaluation of esophageal function is for the purpose of referral to medical professionals);
cognitive aspects of communication (e.g., attention, memory, problem solving, executive functions).
sensory awareness related to communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Establishing augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) techniques and strategies including developing, selecting, and prescribing of such systems and devices (e.g., speech generating devices.)
Providing services to individuals with hearing loss and their families/caregivers (e.g.,auditory training; speechreading; speech and language intervention secondary to hearing loss; visual inspection and listening checks of amplification devices for the purpose of troubleshooting, including verification of appropriate battery voltage).
Screening hearing of individuals who can participate in conventional pure-tone air conduction methods, as well as screening for middle ear pathology through screening tympanometry for the purpose of referral of individuals for further evaluation and management.
Using instrumentation (e.g., videofluoroscopy, EMG, nasendoscopy, stroboscopy, computer technology) to observe, collect data, and measure parameters of communication and swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions in accordance with the principles of evidence-based practice.
Selecting, fitting, and establishing effective use of prosthetic/adaptive devices for communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions (e.g., tracheoesophageal prostheses, speaking valves, electrolarynges). This does not include sensory devices used by individuals with hearing loss or other auditory perceptual deficits.
Collaborating in the assessment of central auditory processing disorders and providing intervention where there is evidence of speech, language, and/or other cognitivecommunication disorders.
Educating and counseling individuals, families, co-workers, educators, and other persons in the community regarding acceptance, adaptation, and decision makes about communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive concerns.
Advocating for individuals through community awareness, education, and training programs to promote and facilitate access to full participation in communication, including the elimination of societal barriers.
Collaborating with and providing referrals and information to audiologists, educators, and health professionals as individual needs dictate.
Addressing behaviors (e.g., perseverative or disruptive actions) and environments (e.g., seating, positioning for swallowing safety or attention, communication opportunities) that affect communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Providing services to modify or enhance communication performance (e.g., accent modification, transgendered voice, care and improvement of the professional voice, personal/ professional communication effectiveness).
Recognizing the need to provide and appropriately accommodate diagnostic and treatment services to individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds and adjust treatment and assessment services according.
Professional roles
Speech-language pathologists serve individuals, families, groups, and the general public through a broad range of professional activities. They:
Identify, define, and diagnose disorders of human communication and swallowing and assist in localization and diagnosis of diseases and conditions.
Provide direct services using a variety of service delivery models to treat and/or address communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive concerns.
Conduct research related to communication sciences and disorders, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Educate, supervise, and mentor future speech-language pathologists.
Serve as case managers and service delivery coordinators.
Administer and manage clinical and academic programs.
Educate and provide in-service training to families, caregivers, and other professionals.
Participate in outcomes measurement activities and use data to guide clinical decision making and determine the effectiveness of services provided in accordance with the principles of evidence-based practice.
Train, supervise, and manage speech-language pathology assistants and other support personnel.
Promote healthy lifestyle practices for the prevention of communication, hearing, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive disorders.
Education
In the UK( United Kingdom) , SLTs undertake a three to four year degree course devoted entirely to the study of clinical language sciences and communicative disorders. This qualifies them to work in any of the three main clinical areas. The course, which varies according to university, includes intensive study of core theoretical components underpinning competence to practice , Linguistics, Psychology and Medical science, in addition to the study of a range of communicative disorders in children and adults. Students are also expected to become familiar with a range of policies, processes and procedures relevant to working in different contexts, including health and education. The course is very demanding, and is assessed via coursework, exams and clinical placement. Some universities require students to assess and diagnose an ‘unseen client’ prior to completing their degree course; all require the completion of a pilot study related to the field of Speech and Language Therapy. Throughout the course, students undertake a variety of clinical placements in which their ability to practise is continually assessed. All courses require students to complete a certain amount of hours of clinical placement, although the structure of placement differs from course to course.
Upon qualifying SLT’s enter the profession as a newly-qualified practitioner. The recommended career course is that they then achieve a number of competencies, which qualify them to work autonomously. The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, the professional body representing Speech and Language Therapists in the UK, provides a framework of competencies which therapists are expected to achieve within 12–18 months of beginning clinical practice. Access to supervision during this period varies from trust to trust, and each individual therapist is expected to provide documentary evidence of competencies achieved to a senior colleague (usually a manager) who determines whether a therapist meets the required criteria for admission to the ‘full register’.
Speech and Language Therapists in the UK are required by law to register with the Health Professions Council, a regulatory body governing a range of health professions. The Health Professions Council has the power to discipline members who do not meet the rigorous standards for effective and safe clinical practice, and may ’strike off’ or deregister members who fail to maintain these standards.
In the United States, Speech Language Pathology practice is regulated by the laws of the individual states. However, by 2006, the minimal requirements to be a certified SLP member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association were: a graduate degree in Speech-Language Pathology, which typically entails 2 years of post graduate work; a completed clinical fellowship year, which is generally employment for a year while supervised by a practicing SLP who is also ASHA certified; and passing the Praxis Series examination. The graduate degree work to acquire a Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology is rigorous and demanding, requiring many hours of supervised clinical practica, and intensive didactic coursework in medical sciences, phonetics, linguistics, phonology, scientific methodology, and other subjects.
Certification by ASHA is noted as carrying one’s “C”s. (Certificate of Clinical Competence) It is noted after an SLP’s name as: CCC-SLP.
In Australia, Speech Pathologists either undertake a four year undergraduate degree, or a two year Masters degree to qualify. These dual pathways are considered by Speech Pathology Australia to produce equally prepared graduates. To be eligible for optional membership of Speech Pathology Australia, students must study in one of the accredited courses outlined on their website. Speech Pathology degrees in Australia vary in curriculum, but always include streams teaching anatomy and physiology, professional practice, communication and swallowing disorders, and often some elementary psychology and audiology. Most include no or minimal elective subjects. All degrees include a heavy clinical component, and many also include a research component in final year. Once graduated, students become fully qualified Speech Pathologists and are eligible for any Level 1 position, without the need for an internship or general examination. Registration is only required in the state of Queensland, and membership of the professional organization is optional, although it is encouraged.
Methods of assessment
There are separate standardized assessment tools administered for infants, school-aged children, adolescents and adults. Assessments primarily examine the form, content, understanding and use of language, as well as articulation, and phonology. Oral motor and swallowing assessments often require specialized training which includes the use of bedside examination tools and endoscopic/modified barium radiology procedures.
Individuals may be referred to an SLP for the following: Traumatic brain injury; Stroke; Alzheimer’s disease and dementia; Cranial nerve damage; Progressive neurological conditions (Parkinson, ALS, etc); Developmental delay; Learning disability (speaking and listening); Autism Spectrum Disorders (including Asperger Syndrome); Genetic disorders that adversely affect speech, language and/or cognitive development; Injuries due to complications at birth; Feeding and swallowing concerns; Craniofacial anamolies that adversely affect speech, language and/or cognitive development; and Augmentative Alternative Communication needs.
There are myriad Speech-Language Assessment tools used for chidren and adults, depending on the area of need.
Patients/clients
Speech and language therapists work with:
Babies with feeding and swallowing difficulties
Children with mild, moderate or severe:
learning difficulties
physical disabilities, language delay
specific language impairment
specific difficulties in producing sounds (including vocalic r and lisps)
hearing impairment
cleft palate
stammering
autism/social interaction difficulties
dyslexia
voice disorders
Adults with eating and swallowing and/or communication problems following
stroke
head injury (Traumatic brain injury)
Parkinson’s disease
motor neuron disease
multiple sclerosis
Huntington’s disease
dementia
cancer of the head, neck and throat (including laryngectomy)
voice problems
mental health issues
learning difficulties, physical disabilities
stammering (dysfluency)
hearing impairment
transsexual women seeking voice therapy
In the United States, the cost of speech therapy for a child younger than three years old is likely covered by the state early intervention (zero to three) program.
In Britain, the majority of Speech and Language therapy is funded by the National Health Service (and increasingly, by partners in Education) meaning that initial assessment is available cost-free to all clients at the point of service, regardless of age or presenting problem. The large numbers of referrals contribute to high caseloads and long waiting lists, although this differs from area to area. To meet the needs of many of these clients, it has become necessary for many services to focus heavily on training and consultative models of service provision. The number of hours of direct therapy available to clients varies widely from trust to trust and most areas operate strict guidelines for prioritisation to meet the high clinical demand.
Place of work
Speech and language therapists work in community health centres, hospital wards and outpatient departments, mainstream and special schools, further education colleges, day centers and in their clients’ homes. Some now work in courtrooms, prisons and young offenders’ institutions.
Some speech and language therapists who work independently will see children and adults in their own homes, and may offer appointments on a Saturday.
Colleagues
SLTs/SLPs work closely with others involved with the client, for example difficulties with eating and drinking may also involve an occupational therapist. Speech and language therapists also work closely with parents and caregivers and other professionals, such as audiologists, teachers, nurses, dietitians, physiotherapists, and doctors.
02 November 2008
Physical therapy: It’s all about movement
By Erik Nieuwenhuis
October is National Physical Therapy Month, and this year’s theme is “It’s All About Movement!”Physical therapists are the movement experts. We help people move forward. e help people who have had a stroke or an amputation regain their independence. We help millions of Americans manage or eliminate their neck or back pain. We educate and lead workers and companies to work smart and improve the ergonomics in their workplace and homes. We help children with cerebral palsy improve their overall function and participation in life.Movement is essential to our everyday lives at work, home and play. Movement is an essential ingredient in your daily health and quality of life! Having the ability to move safely and effectively is crucial in our lives and the lives of the people physical therapists treat. The physical therapy profession empowers people to move forward and take control of the movement that is essential in everyone’s life.
What is a physical therapist?Physical therapists are good people to know. They’’re educated in understanding the interaction of all your body parts. Their hands-on approach begins with examination, diagnosis, and then treatment of the immediate problem. Then they teach you how to take care of yourself by showing you how to do exercises and how to use and move your body properly to gain strength and mobility while preventing injury and wear and tear to your body. You’ll find them advising on proper work smart posture and body mechanics in the workplace, treating injuries, consulting on fitness/wellness and self care of the working, aging body. You’ll also find them treating patients in the hospital, clinic or home settings. Today physical therapists provide help for every part of the body and to everyone from infants to the elderly, serving more than one million people each day.Where do physical therapists practice?- Outpatient clinics or private practice n 41.5 percent- Outpatient hospitals n14.5 percent- Acute hospitals n 13.1 percent- Patient’s home (home health) n 7.9 percent- Skilled nursing, extended care, or sub-acute facilities n 5.6 percent- Academic institutions n 4.8 percent- Schools (Pre-School, Primary and Secondary) n 4.1 percent- Inpatient rehab facilities n 3.5 percent- Hospices- Industrial, workplace or occupational environments- Fitness centers, health clubs, sports training facilities- ResearchAPTA website June 2007 http://www.apta.org/Educational requirementsCurrently, nearly 200 colleges and universities nationwide offer professional physical therapy education programs.Des Moines University, the University of Iowa, the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the University of South Dakota offer physical therapy programs close to the tri-state area. Western Iowa Tech Community College also offers a physical therapy assistant program. Most physical therapy programs require a student graduate from an accredited four year college and take prerequisite classes for the physical therapy school the student is applying to.Employment outlookThe demand for physical therapists is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2014. The demand for physical therapists should continue to grow as the number of individuals with disabilities or limited function increases. Job opportunities are expected to be particularly good in acute hospital, rehabilitation, and orthopedic settings because the elderly receive the most treatment in these settings. Plus, widespread interest in health promotion should increase demand for physical therapy services at the worksite and health clubs. A growing number of employers are using physical therapy services to evaluate worksites, develop exercise programs and teach WorkSmart and safety habits to employees to reduce injuries, claims and costs.Daily job tasksWe treat patients to: improve mobility, relieve pain, increase strength and balance, improve coordination and prevent or limit permanent physical disabilities of patients suffering from injuries or disease.Physical therapists restore, maintain, and promote overall fitness and health.Our patients include accident victims from motor vehicle accidents and slip, trip and fall injuries, individuals with disabling conditions such as lower back pain, arthritis, heart disease and stroke, diabetes or those with amputations, fractures or total knee and hip replacements among others.Physical therapists determine the patient’s ability to be independent and reintegrate into the community or workplace after an injury or illness with the goal of improving how an individual functions at work, play and home.Therapists also teach patients how to use assistive and adaptive devices to improve their safety and independence.Sources:1. American Physical Therapy Association Website at http://www.apta.org/2. US News and World Report 20063. Erik Nieuwenhuis MS, PT My Life and Career as a Physical TherapistContact Erik Nieuwenhuis at St Luke’s IMPACC WorkSmart and WELLness Services at 712-279-1842 or Nieuween@stlukes.org
October is National Physical Therapy Month, and this year’s theme is “It’s All About Movement!”Physical therapists are the movement experts. We help people move forward. e help people who have had a stroke or an amputation regain their independence. We help millions of Americans manage or eliminate their neck or back pain. We educate and lead workers and companies to work smart and improve the ergonomics in their workplace and homes. We help children with cerebral palsy improve their overall function and participation in life.Movement is essential to our everyday lives at work, home and play. Movement is an essential ingredient in your daily health and quality of life! Having the ability to move safely and effectively is crucial in our lives and the lives of the people physical therapists treat. The physical therapy profession empowers people to move forward and take control of the movement that is essential in everyone’s life.
What is a physical therapist?Physical therapists are good people to know. They’’re educated in understanding the interaction of all your body parts. Their hands-on approach begins with examination, diagnosis, and then treatment of the immediate problem. Then they teach you how to take care of yourself by showing you how to do exercises and how to use and move your body properly to gain strength and mobility while preventing injury and wear and tear to your body. You’ll find them advising on proper work smart posture and body mechanics in the workplace, treating injuries, consulting on fitness/wellness and self care of the working, aging body. You’ll also find them treating patients in the hospital, clinic or home settings. Today physical therapists provide help for every part of the body and to everyone from infants to the elderly, serving more than one million people each day.Where do physical therapists practice?- Outpatient clinics or private practice n 41.5 percent- Outpatient hospitals n14.5 percent- Acute hospitals n 13.1 percent- Patient’s home (home health) n 7.9 percent- Skilled nursing, extended care, or sub-acute facilities n 5.6 percent- Academic institutions n 4.8 percent- Schools (Pre-School, Primary and Secondary) n 4.1 percent- Inpatient rehab facilities n 3.5 percent- Hospices- Industrial, workplace or occupational environments- Fitness centers, health clubs, sports training facilities- ResearchAPTA website June 2007 http://www.apta.org/Educational requirementsCurrently, nearly 200 colleges and universities nationwide offer professional physical therapy education programs.Des Moines University, the University of Iowa, the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the University of South Dakota offer physical therapy programs close to the tri-state area. Western Iowa Tech Community College also offers a physical therapy assistant program. Most physical therapy programs require a student graduate from an accredited four year college and take prerequisite classes for the physical therapy school the student is applying to.Employment outlookThe demand for physical therapists is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2014. The demand for physical therapists should continue to grow as the number of individuals with disabilities or limited function increases. Job opportunities are expected to be particularly good in acute hospital, rehabilitation, and orthopedic settings because the elderly receive the most treatment in these settings. Plus, widespread interest in health promotion should increase demand for physical therapy services at the worksite and health clubs. A growing number of employers are using physical therapy services to evaluate worksites, develop exercise programs and teach WorkSmart and safety habits to employees to reduce injuries, claims and costs.Daily job tasksWe treat patients to: improve mobility, relieve pain, increase strength and balance, improve coordination and prevent or limit permanent physical disabilities of patients suffering from injuries or disease.Physical therapists restore, maintain, and promote overall fitness and health.Our patients include accident victims from motor vehicle accidents and slip, trip and fall injuries, individuals with disabling conditions such as lower back pain, arthritis, heart disease and stroke, diabetes or those with amputations, fractures or total knee and hip replacements among others.Physical therapists determine the patient’s ability to be independent and reintegrate into the community or workplace after an injury or illness with the goal of improving how an individual functions at work, play and home.Therapists also teach patients how to use assistive and adaptive devices to improve their safety and independence.Sources:1. American Physical Therapy Association Website at http://www.apta.org/2. US News and World Report 20063. Erik Nieuwenhuis MS, PT My Life and Career as a Physical TherapistContact Erik Nieuwenhuis at St Luke’s IMPACC WorkSmart and WELLness Services at 712-279-1842 or Nieuween@stlukes.org
04 September 2008
Adaptive bikes give disabled riders freedom of mobility
Jacob Honeyman broke into a huge smile as his father, Hal Honeyman, pulled the 15-year-old's bicycle out of a trailer behind the family's St. Charles shop, The Bike Rack.
The bike boasts a polished dark green frame with the name of the model emblazoned on the side: The Adventurer 2000. It has three wheels like a tricycle, a padded seat with a back, and pedal straps that loop over Jacob's shoes.
It is perfectly modified for Jacob, who was born with cerebral palsy, which includes a number of neurological disorders that affect body movement and muscle coordination. He grabbed its adjustable handlebars and pulled the bike to him before his father could move to help him out of his wheelchair.
"The bike is a pretty simple solution to some complex problems," Honeyman said.
Honeyman has spent the past 12 years fitting children and adults with disabilities all over the country on adaptive bikes.
The Bike Rack, 2930 Campton Hills Road, has been family owned and operated for 35 years, he said, and the Honeymans are a bicycling family. That didn't change when he and his wife, Julie, had their first son, Dane, 23, and it wasn't going to change several years later when they had triplets, Emily, Clare and Jacob.
Jacob's bike just needed a few modifications.
"Before we had our triplets, I think I was fairly compassionate and understanding of people," Honeyman said. "Once you get into this world, you realize how many people this is. There is a need out there. A lot of it is an invisible community until you get involved."
Honeyman founded the nonprofit Project Mobility: Cycles for Life Inc. about 12 years ago "to put a positive spin on wheelchairs and adaptive bikes" and began operating Creative Mobility out of The Bike Rack to find bikes for other children and adults with disabilities.
He created the Versa Trike, a low-riding, three-wheeled model with an upright seat, when nothing to fit specific disabilities could be found. Honeyman has hosted, supported and attended hundreds of adaptive cycling events and activities and collaborated with hospitals, schools, park districts and other organizations.
And it's all because of Jacob.
"(A doctor once) told him, 'Jacob, do you realize you're responsible for thousands of kids riding bicycles all over the world who would never have been able to ride a bike?'" Honeyman said.
Next month, Jacob will continue raising awareness about the importance of mobility for people with disabilities. He will be the run starter at the first Run for DayOne at 8 a.m. Sunday, Sunday, at St. Charles' Pottawatomie Park.
The event will be hosted by Geneva-based DayOne Network, which provides service coordination and advocacy for more than 2,900 children and adults with developmental disabilities and delays in Kane and Kendall counties and Hanover Township. About 500 people are expected to participate in a professionally timed 5K run and a wheelchair- and stroller-accessible family walk that will be shorter than 1 mile.
Executive Director Joyce Helander said DayOne Network asked Jacob to start the event because of its theme of mobility awareness.
"That's important because a number of people that we serve also have physical disabilities," Helander said. "It's important to raise awareness. It's important they have access to the community, be able to enjoy their community and their parks."
That's what a bike can do for children and adults with disabilities in addition to its physical benefits, according to Honeyman.
"When you're in a chair, you have a tendency to feel trapped. When you get on a bike, you're free of that," he said. "You feel the wind on your face, and you're out there with everybody else, with all your peers."
The bike boasts a polished dark green frame with the name of the model emblazoned on the side: The Adventurer 2000. It has three wheels like a tricycle, a padded seat with a back, and pedal straps that loop over Jacob's shoes.
It is perfectly modified for Jacob, who was born with cerebral palsy, which includes a number of neurological disorders that affect body movement and muscle coordination. He grabbed its adjustable handlebars and pulled the bike to him before his father could move to help him out of his wheelchair.
"The bike is a pretty simple solution to some complex problems," Honeyman said.
Honeyman has spent the past 12 years fitting children and adults with disabilities all over the country on adaptive bikes.
The Bike Rack, 2930 Campton Hills Road, has been family owned and operated for 35 years, he said, and the Honeymans are a bicycling family. That didn't change when he and his wife, Julie, had their first son, Dane, 23, and it wasn't going to change several years later when they had triplets, Emily, Clare and Jacob.
Jacob's bike just needed a few modifications.
"Before we had our triplets, I think I was fairly compassionate and understanding of people," Honeyman said. "Once you get into this world, you realize how many people this is. There is a need out there. A lot of it is an invisible community until you get involved."
Honeyman founded the nonprofit Project Mobility: Cycles for Life Inc. about 12 years ago "to put a positive spin on wheelchairs and adaptive bikes" and began operating Creative Mobility out of The Bike Rack to find bikes for other children and adults with disabilities.
He created the Versa Trike, a low-riding, three-wheeled model with an upright seat, when nothing to fit specific disabilities could be found. Honeyman has hosted, supported and attended hundreds of adaptive cycling events and activities and collaborated with hospitals, schools, park districts and other organizations.
And it's all because of Jacob.
"(A doctor once) told him, 'Jacob, do you realize you're responsible for thousands of kids riding bicycles all over the world who would never have been able to ride a bike?'" Honeyman said.
Next month, Jacob will continue raising awareness about the importance of mobility for people with disabilities. He will be the run starter at the first Run for DayOne at 8 a.m. Sunday, Sunday, at St. Charles' Pottawatomie Park.
The event will be hosted by Geneva-based DayOne Network, which provides service coordination and advocacy for more than 2,900 children and adults with developmental disabilities and delays in Kane and Kendall counties and Hanover Township. About 500 people are expected to participate in a professionally timed 5K run and a wheelchair- and stroller-accessible family walk that will be shorter than 1 mile.
Executive Director Joyce Helander said DayOne Network asked Jacob to start the event because of its theme of mobility awareness.
"That's important because a number of people that we serve also have physical disabilities," Helander said. "It's important to raise awareness. It's important they have access to the community, be able to enjoy their community and their parks."
That's what a bike can do for children and adults with disabilities in addition to its physical benefits, according to Honeyman.
"When you're in a chair, you have a tendency to feel trapped. When you get on a bike, you're free of that," he said. "You feel the wind on your face, and you're out there with everybody else, with all your peers."
02 August 2008
Advocacy Development
Since I began to deal with the obstacles inherent in having a disability, I have taken many paths in advocating for myself and those I care about. One of the most rewarding directions I’ve taken was when I served as a fitness instructor for people with and without disabilities. People didn’t realize how much their bodies were capable of accomplishing. So, in each and every class I taught, I empowered them with my "I can do" attitude. I tried to make each class very enjoyable and carefree. In retaliation, my students in the adaptive aerobics class would take the time to playfully batter with me, as I counted out the number of repetitive repetitions to the rhythm of the music. They found amusement and light-heartiness in trying to pull one over on me.
In my private work, I have been a part of helping many clients grow and develop not only their physical abilities with their specific limitations, but , I have witnessed their self-confidence and awareness soar. Despite my so called barriers, I have found a way to rise above and conquer.
In my private work, I have been a part of helping many clients grow and develop not only their physical abilities with their specific limitations, but , I have witnessed their self-confidence and awareness soar. Despite my so called barriers, I have found a way to rise above and conquer.
Pondering the Past, and Guiding Individuals Towards Their Future
Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls. Thank you for inviting me to your school today, and to share with you a part of who I am. This afternoon, I will not only read to you a piece of my autobiographical book,” The Broken Hoof,” but we will move together in rhythm, while teaching, and, I will empower you with some videos of where I have come from and what gifts I’d like to give to all of you. I’d liked to help you learn that “Anything is Possible” if you put your mind towards it.
You are all sitting here before me now, because deep, down inside of your own heart, you believe in yourselves like no one else does or ever has. You believe in your own individuals gifts and talents. And you believe that you are very special, in a very unique way. Each and every one of you, just like me, I’m sure, has had to overcome challenges and extreme difficulties. We all have these difficulties and obstacles, however, not all of us have the courage and strength, to face up to them, accept them, learn from them, grow from them, and change our attitudes in a positive way, while becoming willing to do what ever it takes to reach the goal we desire so badly.
Today, we will find new techniques; new approaches, and new ways to bring about these changes within ourselves, our attitudes, our beliefs, and our lives. We will begin right where we are now. And we will do it with unconditional acceptance and kindness. We will learn to be gentle with ourselves and our feelings. And, we will learn to accomplish our challenges one at a time. Today we will have some fun exploring ourselves with some of these methods.
We as individuals, have the power to change, along with change the world around us, but only if we have that willingness. This willingness within, will take us on marvelous journeys, but only if we trust this power of belief, then and only then will our accomplishments be unlimited.
When I was your age, the young people who surrounded my world, were all disabled. Why, you might be asking yourself? Well, I’ll tell you. When I was five months old, I got very sick. It left me with the paralysis you see today on my left arm and leg. I could not go to a regular school, because I could not learn like other children my own age. I had a learning disability called dyslexia. This learning problem made it very, very, hard for me to read, write, and do math like the other children in my classes. Thus, I had to go to a school that had children with Cerebral Palsy, like me, polio, multiple sclerosis, down syndrome, and other disabilities.
These were the only young people that I knew. So I had to create different ways to learn. I had to motivate myself, and tell myself that I could pass a test. I had to learn to be open minded. I had to learn to believe in myself, and to believe that no matter what my outer appearances looked like, I could change it. I would keep telling myself that I could change my life and the world immediately around me.
The difference in having a disability now, verses when I was a child, was that the educational system did not have the laws that you have today. I was pushed into classes where I was not learning like the other children around me. And when my mother got the first special education teacher, by talking to the principal, I was put in a classroom, behind a screen, to figure things out for myself, while sitting all alone for hours at a time, to fend for myself.
Finding my dance teacher, Al Gilbert, changed my life completely. Through his caring, gentle, and poised composure, I learned by example what it took to give it to myself, and then, eventually to all of you. Everyone of you here today, are here because you want to be here, you want to change and make your life better, and, you want to find and develop your gifts and share them with the world. This is and can be possible. It is all encompassing.
I would like to share a little bit of the journey I took to try to change some of the attitudes about what people with my disability were able to do. I spent a lot of time trying to put together the pieces of the puzzle called learning. Just as dance had made my body and spirit strong, now I was on a quest to find the tools which would unlock the door for me. Inadvertently, I helped unlock the doors for all disabled people.
I understood intuitively, that I would some day have to ultimately care for myself completely. To do that, I needed a good job. To get that job, I needed a higher education. And, I needed to learn all the things I never learned in 12 years of my fundamental schooling. The people, who were supposed to be helping me, sadly didn’t see thing the same way I did. They felt I should settle for something less than I believed I was capable of. To make a long story short, I fought and won the first Civil Rights Case in California, this guaranteed my right to earn an Associate of Arts degree in English and dance. While I was at college, I found helpers who understood my desire to learn all the things I never learned before.
This now led me to succeed in many different areas. I became an adaptive fitness instructor, an advocate, a published author, and a public speaker. My book, which I am going to read from shortly, was published in 2006, but took over twenty years to complete. And, in its infancy, it won second place in the Kaleidoscope Literary Prose Fiction Art award of 1983. I know every one of you has something to offer and give to the rest of the world. It is all about unlocking it. My hope is that my story and my visit here with you today, is the key that unlocks a door of deep desires for you. My other hope is that you find the power within yourself to succeed and the ability to be positive in every way. I hope that by me speaking here today helps you to find the area, the talent, and the gift you so joyously feel within your heart to give and share with the world.
A Long time ago, I found a poem by a famous British amputee; William E. Henley. He lost both his legs at the age of 12. When I first read these words, in college, these words from Maya Angelou sung sweetly in my spirit. Angelou first sees this as a mark of paternalistic contempt. She is held by a white superintendent in school who has just told her class, to be content to be athletes and cotton pickers. She turns it into an anthem or song of praises for our people and hers. It goes like this… “It matters not how strait the gate, how charged with punishment the scroll. I am the master of my fate, the captain of my soul.
I leave you with these sweet empowering words- take them home with you today to conquer and triumph! Make a positive mark on this world and leave a path behind you that no one else has ever left before.
Thank you for allowing me to share this with you, today. I will now answer any questions that you may have or that cross your mind.
You are all sitting here before me now, because deep, down inside of your own heart, you believe in yourselves like no one else does or ever has. You believe in your own individuals gifts and talents. And you believe that you are very special, in a very unique way. Each and every one of you, just like me, I’m sure, has had to overcome challenges and extreme difficulties. We all have these difficulties and obstacles, however, not all of us have the courage and strength, to face up to them, accept them, learn from them, grow from them, and change our attitudes in a positive way, while becoming willing to do what ever it takes to reach the goal we desire so badly.
Today, we will find new techniques; new approaches, and new ways to bring about these changes within ourselves, our attitudes, our beliefs, and our lives. We will begin right where we are now. And we will do it with unconditional acceptance and kindness. We will learn to be gentle with ourselves and our feelings. And, we will learn to accomplish our challenges one at a time. Today we will have some fun exploring ourselves with some of these methods.
We as individuals, have the power to change, along with change the world around us, but only if we have that willingness. This willingness within, will take us on marvelous journeys, but only if we trust this power of belief, then and only then will our accomplishments be unlimited.
When I was your age, the young people who surrounded my world, were all disabled. Why, you might be asking yourself? Well, I’ll tell you. When I was five months old, I got very sick. It left me with the paralysis you see today on my left arm and leg. I could not go to a regular school, because I could not learn like other children my own age. I had a learning disability called dyslexia. This learning problem made it very, very, hard for me to read, write, and do math like the other children in my classes. Thus, I had to go to a school that had children with Cerebral Palsy, like me, polio, multiple sclerosis, down syndrome, and other disabilities.
These were the only young people that I knew. So I had to create different ways to learn. I had to motivate myself, and tell myself that I could pass a test. I had to learn to be open minded. I had to learn to believe in myself, and to believe that no matter what my outer appearances looked like, I could change it. I would keep telling myself that I could change my life and the world immediately around me.
The difference in having a disability now, verses when I was a child, was that the educational system did not have the laws that you have today. I was pushed into classes where I was not learning like the other children around me. And when my mother got the first special education teacher, by talking to the principal, I was put in a classroom, behind a screen, to figure things out for myself, while sitting all alone for hours at a time, to fend for myself.
Finding my dance teacher, Al Gilbert, changed my life completely. Through his caring, gentle, and poised composure, I learned by example what it took to give it to myself, and then, eventually to all of you. Everyone of you here today, are here because you want to be here, you want to change and make your life better, and, you want to find and develop your gifts and share them with the world. This is and can be possible. It is all encompassing.
I would like to share a little bit of the journey I took to try to change some of the attitudes about what people with my disability were able to do. I spent a lot of time trying to put together the pieces of the puzzle called learning. Just as dance had made my body and spirit strong, now I was on a quest to find the tools which would unlock the door for me. Inadvertently, I helped unlock the doors for all disabled people.
I understood intuitively, that I would some day have to ultimately care for myself completely. To do that, I needed a good job. To get that job, I needed a higher education. And, I needed to learn all the things I never learned in 12 years of my fundamental schooling. The people, who were supposed to be helping me, sadly didn’t see thing the same way I did. They felt I should settle for something less than I believed I was capable of. To make a long story short, I fought and won the first Civil Rights Case in California, this guaranteed my right to earn an Associate of Arts degree in English and dance. While I was at college, I found helpers who understood my desire to learn all the things I never learned before.
This now led me to succeed in many different areas. I became an adaptive fitness instructor, an advocate, a published author, and a public speaker. My book, which I am going to read from shortly, was published in 2006, but took over twenty years to complete. And, in its infancy, it won second place in the Kaleidoscope Literary Prose Fiction Art award of 1983. I know every one of you has something to offer and give to the rest of the world. It is all about unlocking it. My hope is that my story and my visit here with you today, is the key that unlocks a door of deep desires for you. My other hope is that you find the power within yourself to succeed and the ability to be positive in every way. I hope that by me speaking here today helps you to find the area, the talent, and the gift you so joyously feel within your heart to give and share with the world.
A Long time ago, I found a poem by a famous British amputee; William E. Henley. He lost both his legs at the age of 12. When I first read these words, in college, these words from Maya Angelou sung sweetly in my spirit. Angelou first sees this as a mark of paternalistic contempt. She is held by a white superintendent in school who has just told her class, to be content to be athletes and cotton pickers. She turns it into an anthem or song of praises for our people and hers. It goes like this… “It matters not how strait the gate, how charged with punishment the scroll. I am the master of my fate, the captain of my soul.
I leave you with these sweet empowering words- take them home with you today to conquer and triumph! Make a positive mark on this world and leave a path behind you that no one else has ever left before.
Thank you for allowing me to share this with you, today. I will now answer any questions that you may have or that cross your mind.
01 August 2008
Poor Standards and Self Education
One of the thing I have always struggled with is the argument between the help I felt I needed, and that which helpers were willing to give me. This was particularly true with my education. I have struggled for many years as you have heard me write about because I didn't receive the help I truly needed. People either got to much or too little of what they really needed. Especially today, where there is very little concern for individual learning styles and needs.
Educator are too worried, anxious, and obsessed with target and memorization. Leaving out the most important concepts to build not only skill, and memorization, but self-confidence and self-esteem. Unfortunately, because I was not getting the help I needed, I had to find other sources and ways to thrive, learn, and retain. My educators, had little understanding of my potential.
Later, I had to fight for the right, to learn, and to go to college, to fill all the empty spots I had not learned in twelve years of education in the educational system. What is wrong with this picture? Today, the educational system has not gotten any better. So my dear readers, and friends, we must forge forward, stay motivated, and educate ourselves though travel, reading, and conversation. However, there is far more to be learned.
Educator are too worried, anxious, and obsessed with target and memorization. Leaving out the most important concepts to build not only skill, and memorization, but self-confidence and self-esteem. Unfortunately, because I was not getting the help I needed, I had to find other sources and ways to thrive, learn, and retain. My educators, had little understanding of my potential.
Later, I had to fight for the right, to learn, and to go to college, to fill all the empty spots I had not learned in twelve years of education in the educational system. What is wrong with this picture? Today, the educational system has not gotten any better. So my dear readers, and friends, we must forge forward, stay motivated, and educate ourselves though travel, reading, and conversation. However, there is far more to be learned.
I had learned a great deal from my own experience, and thoughts I worked with while doing adaptive aerobics and Yoga. The journey is not over my friends. Yet I think we are turning a corner. Every time I write I am learning from you, as you are from me. The computer is the greatest tool for interaction and learning this world has known.
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