• Child advocate Marlo Thomas joined as a speaker and told a touching story about a sister of a child with special needs who had enough of seeing kids being bullied or left out of activities at school.  So she started the Smile and Hug Program at her school.  She activated a group of girls who, when they saw someone sitting alone or without anyone near them, they would go up to them and smile, offer a hug and sit with them so they were no longer alone.  We are trying to connect with the founder of Smile and Hug--whom we only know as Joana.  

• We heard from a young man who was bullied and then turned into a bully himself...fortunately he saw how horrible his actions were and is now an advocate helping other youth transform from bully to friend.  He said he became a bully because, "he didn't want to be vulnerable anymore."

• "1 can change a life. 6 or more can change a culture."

If you had to identify 6 like-minded people to join your 6 Degrees of Acceptance & Change--who would they be? You might have 6 immediately or you might start your list and build upon it in the weeks/months to come.  The point is begin to form your 6 Degrees so together we can change a culture. 

You can watch the bully prevention summit, live by visiting www.stopbullying.org/live. 


We're interviewing a youth attendee tomorrow who is a mentor to a young man with autism...stay tuned for more updates from your AbilityPath crew on the ground in DC! 
 

And if you are told "it will never happen" just remember this nonverbal young man with autism and his story that is coming from the UK; he spoke but a few words and is now about to release his first album.  There will be hits and there will be misses along our journey and its stories like this that we cling to and allow us to have "Hope!"  

Enjoy!

Shooting Beauty - Story of an aspiring fashion photographer whose career takes an unexpected turn
Fly Away - The story of a mother and her daughter with autism as the child grows up and eventually seeks her own independence
Wretches and Jabbers - Two men with autism that embark on a global quest to change attitudes on disabilities
Cowboy Song - Two brothers, one with a seizure disorder and cognitive disability, and their growing relationship





 

 

Across the country, many children with special needs will take part in this annual event. In particular, a nationwide drumming program will take place today , where teachers lead students who drum on their desks and repeat.  AbilityPath.org asks for parents and teachers to share videos of their children celebrating today's celebration. 

Upload your video on how your child participated in Music Monday to www.youtube.com including the tags "musicmonday" and "abilitypath" or share your video link on Facebook. You can also share your video in your AbilityPath.org parent blog. Here is a great example of one parent celebrating their child through music and video.
 

What many new parents may not know, is this five-minute checklist is something that has been used for years by pediatricians and caregivers. The checklist is a CSBS DP (Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile) Infant-Toddler Checklist. It was created in 2001 by  Wetherby and Prizant and includes questions such as "Do you know when your child is happy?" or "Does your child put two words together?" It wouldn't be surprising for a parent of a child with autism to find select warning signs when reviewing the questionnaire. In general, the checklist is a great resource for identifying concerns regarding a child's development. 

The checklist may be used for children as young as 12 months and is a critical tool to identify developmental delays including speech and communication delays and/or social and emotional development.

AbilityPath.org offers a variety of milestone tools and information on delays and special needs which are also useful tools for parents and caregivers. Parents can also learn more about autism and connect with parents of children with autism on the site. 

Time featured a great summary of all three studies.  It concluded that mom's exposure to pesticides, both inside and outside the house, may lower their child's IQ by 7 points or more. But avoiding pesticides may be harder than one realizes. For families that work in the agricultural industry, exposure may be part of their livelihood and neighborhood. With the rise in organic foods, more parents (including expecting moms) worry about exposure to pesticides in their fruits and vegetables. Many expecting moms try to eat healthier foods including greens, fibers and fresh fruits in their diet, but buying organic is also expensive. With the cost of food escalating, eating these healthy items are getting more difficult by the day. 

As more research is done on the cause of delays and special needs including autism, environment continues to be a factor that rises to the top. This may include the pollution in our air, chemicals on our foods or antibiotics in our meats. For some parents and scientists, it is a common sense answer to the sudden and rapid rise of diagnosis of spectrum disorders. 

As an expecting mom or parent, how can you stay healthy? Is it worth worrying if these environmental factors in our communities and foods are affecting your family's health? Or is your child's development not something you can control?