Happy 21st Birthday! Now What?

There are few words in our language that will automatically solicit a smile from the majority of people.  Birthdays are memorable and joyous occassions full of celebration with loved ones.  It is a day to honour the past, enjoy the present and dream about the future.  Birthdays help mark significant milestones.  The first birthday celebrates the successful survival of the parents who have managed multiple night wakings, endless feedings, first smiles and first steps.  The fifth birthday sees a toddler becoming a young boy or girl with growing independence especially as they get ready to head off to school.  The 21st birthday is another milestone.  For the parents of a special needs child, this milestone contains much joy but it also brings to the forefront questions about the future.  At 21, the public education of the special needs child is finished.  Thus, the following questions arise.  What will my special needs child do with their time now that their schooling is finished?  Will my special needs child be able to find a job?  Will my special needs child be able to live on his or her own?  What kinds of resources, public or private, are available for  my special needs chid?

Hopefully, as a special needs parent, these questions are not being asked for the first time at the 21st birthday.  Like all special needs programs, public or private, there are long waiting lists and one wants to be sure find the best fit for their child.  Moreover, it is important to dream of the possibilities when your child is younger so your child can work towards the dream.  So as a special needs parent what do I need to know about the services offered after 21 years of age and what should I consider as I begin planning?

Weekend Links

• L'Arche Montreal :: community living for adults with disabilities; especially take a look at their videos describing their community life in the right column
• Hayden's World: Hayden's IEP :: a great how to on the IEP
• What I Want You To Know About Having a Child with Autism 
• Life According to Sam :: a documentary trailer about Sam who lives with progeria

RAISING AWARENESS FOR STUDENT SUCCESS - THE PARENTS ROLE (CONFERENCE SPONSORED BY THE LESTER B. PEARSON SCHOOL BOARDS' CENTRAL PARENTS COMMITTEE)

Today I was able to take the time to attend this parent conference sponsored by the Lester B. Pearson school board's Central Parents' Committee.  Of course, I attended the workshops related to special needs and I came away encouraged and with added resources in hand.

The first workshop I attended was on IPads and Social Stories for special needs students.  I learned about some really cool apps but the two best take aways from this workshop were...

1)  Learning about the Endeavour program.  The Endeavour program is held at the Place Cartier Adult Education Centre and provides a training and social integration program for special needs adults (persons over 16 years).  As it is under the Lester B. Pearson school board it is free tuition.  It is a growing program and led by a wonderful team of teachers!

2)  Learning about Misunderstood Minds.  The website is based on a documentary called Misunderstood Minds and is a great compilation of information.  The best part of this website is it lets you EXPERIENCE a disability.  If you click on any one of their categories (Attention, Reading, Writing or Mathematics), you will see close to the top a bar labelled "Experience Firsthand".  There are a number of activities you can can try and it definitely gave me a new perspective.

The second workshop I attended was "Dyslexia Does Not Spell Disability/School Success with Disabilities".  I went to this workshop because I had taught Christopher Simeone, one of the speakers, Secondary 4 Science and was excited to hear his story.  I grew prouder and prouder as I listened to Chris speak.  He is resilient, perseverant and has not let his disability define him.  Rather he has come to understand his disability thereby learning coping skills and has risen to maximize his strengths.  It was so rewarding to know I played a small part in this child's life.  Check out Christopher's story here.