FreeLists / spednet / [spednet] upcoming events posted on www.spednet.org

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March 18: Saturday,  9am to 3 pm, Fee:  $75. Susan Santora and Learning House 
are pleased to  present Not your USUAL Technology Workshop! Led by David 
Levine. Get  inspired and learn how to transform the three main components of 
MS 
Office  (Word, PowerPoint, and Excel) into customized tools for creating 
instructional  materials for your classroom use. Youâll learn to create 
âclickableâ 
interactive  PowerPoint presentations, customized paper and pencil games to 
reinforce  academic skills, table templates for Bingo and Flash Cards, and how 
to use tabs  and leaders in Word to make custom lined writing paper. It is 
recommended that  participants bring their own laptops to use at this workshop. 
PLEASE BRING  LUNCH. Prepaid registration is required. Telephone 203-453-3691 
for further  information. 
March 19: Epilepsy Parent Support Group: A support  group for parents of 
children with epilepsy.  Join leader Maria Dominici  and other parents to talk 
about your situation. Meets the 3rd Sunday  of the month at 4:00 pm, Maria 
Dominci's home in Weston. Please call Maria at  203-454-2227 for more 
information. 
March 21: Tuesday. 6:30 to 8:30 pm. Inclusion Success  Stories: What Works, 
How and Why. Panel of parents, educators,  administrators, and students with 
disabilities. Attorney Anne Eason will  moderate.  
Panel members will include Dr.  Candy Lombardo, who has held directorships in 
several Fairfield County towns,  with years of experience overseeing the 
provision of services to students in the  least restrictive environment. She is 
currently is available for consultation to schools.  Vivian Birdsall is an 8th 
grade math teacher and president of the  teacherâs union in New Canaan Public 
Schools. She successfully included a  student with a significant intellectual 
disability in a typical pre-algebra math  class. Linda Spenard is an assistant 
principal of Saxe Middle School in New  Canaan. She has played active 
leadership roles to insure successful inclusion  for her students with 
disabilities. 
Beth Lurie is the board president of  Greenwich ARC and also a parent of a 4th 
grader who is successfully  included. Cathy Petrone is a parent from the town 
of Fairfield. Her son is successfully included at Fairfield   Ludlowe HS. 
Cathy was   president  of the Ridgefield Organization for Special Education  
and  
now am publicity director of our Fairfield SEPTAS. Eva Eason is a HS  student 
with a significant disability, fully included. Her friend Amy Farina  will 
also participate. 
Held in  conjunction with the general public WestportREADS discussion of The 
Curious  Incident of the Dog in the Night. Sponsored by WE BELONG, Inclusion 
in  Fairfield County (IFC), a network of individuals from Fairfield County who 
are  interested in Inclusive Education for students with disabilities! Six 
meetings a  year are held at the Westport Library, in Westport, CT.  
_http://www.spednet.org/IFC.htm_ (http://www.spednet.org/IFC.htm)   6:30 to 
8:30 pm, 
Refreshments served.  
Note from We Belong: We  will be honoring outstanding members of our 
community who promote inclusion at  an awards ceremony/dinner on June 7 -- 
please note 
that this date is a change  from an earlier date.  Please send in your nominee
âs name, address, phone,  email address and detailed reasons why this person 
should be receive an  award,  to _evagreenwald@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
(mailto:evagreenwald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx)  or to  the above address no later than 
March 15. 
March 21: Our  Place. The Place To Be for Young Adults. The Kennedy Center 
offers this group for Young  Adults ages 17-21 with special needs entering 
those 
transitional years into  their 20s! Enjoy music, dancing, games, art, 
cooking, snacks and more! Our Place  will be held the 3rd Tuesday evening of 
every 
month from 7:00-9:00 p.m. On the  following nights: March 21, April 18, and May 
16. Held at  Senior Options,  30 Lindeman Drive, Trumbull, CT 06611. There is 
a fee of $10 per session, and  registration is required. For More  Information 
Call Opportunities Unlimited (203) 332-4535 ext. 223 or email us at  
_oppunlimited@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:oppunlimited@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx) .  
March  22,  Wednesday 6:30 to 8:00 with the March of Dimes in Wethersfield, 
CT. MetDESKÂ,  Planning For The Future of Your Child or Dependent with Special 
Needs.  Important Issues to be addressed: Government Benefits Eligibility, 
Guardianship  and Conversatorship and Financial Security and Funding Options.  
MetDESKÂ,(MetLifeâs Division of Estate Planning for  Special Kids) was 
established to help families through the maze of  legal and financial 
complexities 
surrounding planning for the future of children  and other dependents with 
special 
needs. Anthony has been involved in the  MetDESKÂ program for more than three 
years and is the parent of a child  with special needs. He is actively 
involved with the special needs community  through the ARC of Middletown and 
the 
Collation for Inclusive Education. Please  RSVP to Heather Barrett at (860) 
258-3810 or _habarrett@xxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:habarrett@xxxxxxxxxxx) .  

March 23: Thursday. 9:30  to 11:30 am. Assistive Technology for Students with 
Learning  Disabilities, presented by Shelley Lacey-Castelot, Director, 
Innovative Solutions Group, LLC. Held at Weston Public Library, 56 Norfield  
Rd., 
Weston, CT. An expert in the use of assistive technology for students with  
learning disabilities and attention disorders who struggle with reading,  
writing, 
and math, Lacey-Castelot will demonstrate a wide range of available  
technology â from Dragon NaturallySpeaking speech recognition software &  
Kurzweil 
3000 Scan & Read Professional e-reader/study programs to simple  low-tech aids 
and solutions. This program is made possible by a grant from the  
Westport/Weston United Way. Sponsored by Smart Kids with Learning Disabilites.  
To register 
for this free program, call 203-226-6831. _www.SmartKidswithLD.org_ 
(http://www.smartkidswithld.org/)  
March 23, April 13, May  4: MACS ATTACKS:  PRACTICAL STRATEGIES FOR 
SUPPORTING PEOPLE WITH LABELS ON  THE AUTISM SPECTRUM. Three Day Program - 
participants 
 MUST plan to attend all three days. Check 
_http://www.rammlerandwood.com/trainings.html_ 
(http://www.rammlerandwood.com/trainings.html)   for more 
information, including fees and CEU credits. Held at the Hilton Garden  Inn in 
Windsor. 
March 25: Facilitating Social Skills for  ASD Children, Teens, and Adults. 
PRESENTER:  James Loomis, PhD. Dr. Loomis is  considered one of the top people 
in New England working with teens and adults  with ASD.  He currently is in 
private practice with Dr. Michael Powers at  the Center for Children with 
Special 
Needs in Glastonbury, where he does  consulting with school systems as well 
as evaluations, individual therapy, and  he is currently running a number of 
long term social skills groups for  pre-teens, teens and adults.  We are very 
pleased to be offering this  workshop.  We feel it is an excellent opportunity 
for school and community  psychologists, social workers, and speech and 
language professionals either  running groups or wanting to run groups for the 
ASD 
population. Held at ACES  Staff Development/Administration Building â 205 
Skiff 
Street, Hamden, CT.   Time:  9am to 1 pm, check-in and coffee at 8:30 am.  
Workshops will  start promptly at 9 am. CEUs offered. Fee $40. Phone: 
203-248-5222. Sponsored by the CT Autism Resource  Center. 
March 25: Saturday. Orange SEPTA  Wine Tasting Fundraiser will be held from 
7:00 pm to 11:00 pm at the Holy  Infant Church Gymnasium on Racebrook Road in 
Orange, CT.  The cost is $25  per person ($50 per couple) and includes lots of 
wines to taste, martinis  to taste, lots and lots of appetizers and deserts to 
eat!  We have many  Raffle Prize Baskets for winning and many Secret Auction 
items for  bidding!  The profits from this fundraiser go to providing parent 
education  on special needs issues and fun family/children programs to provide 
social skill  practice opportunities for the children and networking 
opportunities for the  parents.  It's lots of fun!  Contact Cristy Jones at 
(203)882-0212 or  _crjones@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:crjones@xxxxxxxxxxxxx)  to 
reserve your 
 table! 
March 25 - May  6: Saturdays. Handwriting Groups. Using  the Handwriting 
Without Tears Curriculum. Ages 3 -12.Get Set for  School-preschool program, 
Kindergarten and Grade 1 printing program,Grade 2-3  printing program and 
beginning 
cursive program. Stefanie Saad Seanor,OTR/L.  Total Learning and Therapy 
Center,5893 Main Street,Trumbull. Call 203-268-8852  for information. Saturday, 
March 25, and will continue weekly. There will be an  additional session 
running 
May 13-June 10. These classes are for students with  handwriting issues. 
March 28: Tuesday.10am â noon.  Robert and Martha Perske book  signing event! 
 Held at DandyTales Bookstore, 13 South Avenue  in New Canaan, CT.  ROBERT 
AND MARTHA PERSKE are a unique and  unrepeatable team that dedicated most of 
their efforts in changing attitudes  toward persons with intellectual 
disabilities. Robert tracks, works with and  writes about persons with 
intellectual 
disabilities who were coerced into  confessing to murders they did not commit 
as 
well as those on death  row.   Martha works as a book illustrator and as a 
caring editor of  Robertâs work. They turned out 16 books as well as hundreds 
of 
articles and  drawings during the past 34 years.  They did everything they 
could 
to give  wings to the words of those crying out for a full life in their own  
neighborhoods.   _Click here_ (http://www.spednet.org/NewCanaan.htm)  to read 
more about Robert and Martha Perske. This event is sponsored by SPED*NET New 
Canaan.  SPED*NET is a monthly forum for discussing ideas  and developing 
strategies for special education and Â504 issues. DandyTales is a  children's 
bookstore that specializes in books about disabilities and inclusive  
education. 
Owner Carolyn White can be reached at 203-966-7713 or _carolyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
(mailto:carolyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx) .    
March 28: Autism Parents  Club: A group of parents (dads too!) of children on 
the autism  spectrum.  If you're part of "the club" you will laugh & cry with 
other  parents who could relate to your situation, support each other, share 
stories  & resources, vent & have fun.  Open to parents from all over  CT.  
Meets the last Tuesday of the month at 7:30 PM, Francesco's  Restaurant, Route 
7, Wilton.  Casual. No need to RSVP, just come!   More info: Patti Sylvia 
761-0248 or _pattisylvia@xxxxxxxx (mailto:pattisylvia@xxxxxxx) .  
March 28: Free Seminar on LD/AD/HD for Parents. As part of its 2006 Family 
Education  Series, the Connecticut Association for Children and Adults with 
Learning  Disabilities (CACLD) is holding free information/discussion workshops 
for the  parents of children with learning disabilities (LD) and attention 
deficits  (AD/HD). âLetâs Talkâ, led by school psychologist and advocate, 
Rena 
Schine,  Ph.D., will cover such topics as understanding test results; what 
Federal and  State laws mandate; and how to know if the school is meeting a 
childâs 
needs.  The three workshops will meet from 10:30 a.m. to noon on the following 
Tuesdays:  March 7; March 14th and March 28th in CACLDâs conference room at 
25 Van Zant  Street, Suite 15-5, Norwalk. There is no fee for these workshops. 
Registration  is open to any interested parent, but is limited to 10 
participants. Please call  CACLD at 203-838-5010 to register or for further 
information. CACLD is a  regional, non-profit organization that supports 
individuals, 
families and  professionals by providing information, education, and 
consultation 
while  promoting public awareness and understanding. CACLDâs goal is to 
ensure access  to the resources needed to help children and adults with 
learning 
disabilities  and attention deficits achieve their full potential. For more 
information please  contact Carol Maloney or Beryl Kaufman at CACLD 
203-838-5010 
or _cacld@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:cacld@xxxxxxxxxxxxx) .  
March 29: Wednesday,  7:00 to 8:30 pm. 
Navigating  the Evaluation Process for Your Child with LD or ADHD. Speaker 
Ken Magrath,  Ph.D., Licensed clinical  psychologist. Held at the Fairfield  
Public Library, 1080 Old Post Rd., Fairfield, CT. Dr. Magrath, who provides  
psychological assessment and consulting services in Westport and New York City, 
 
will speak on understanding the process of identifying and addressing learning  
and attention challenges â including what to expect from an evaluation, how 
to  interpret the results, and strategies for developing individualized plans 
that  will allow students to achieve academic success. To register for this 
free  program or to join Smart Kids, call 203-226-6831. 
_www.SmartKidswithLD.org_ 
(http://www.smartkidswithld.org/)  
March 29:  9:15-11:15am. Speaker is Eileen Luddy.  Held at the Darien  YWCA. 
To RSVP or to  find out more about STEP's, please call the YWCA at (203) 
655-2535 extension  27.  You can also reach them at 
_YWCASTEPSDarien@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
(mailto:YWCASTEPSDarien@xxxxxxxxxxxxx) . We are supported by the Darien YWCA, 
49 Old Kings Highway, Darien,  CT.  
March 29: 7 p.m. to  8:30 p.m. The ADHD Parent Survival Guide The essential 
workshop to  understand and deal with common home and school issues. Limited 
enrollment for  this FREE workshop at 898 Ethan Allen Highway Suite 2 in 
Ridgefield. To register  please contact Dr. Roseann Capanna-Hodge via email at 
_drroseann@xxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:drroseann@xxxxxxxxxxx)   or call  (203) 
730-0243. 
March 29: 7pm to 8:30pm. ARC Family Resources. What is a  special needs 
trust? When properly drafted, a Special Needs Trust may enable  a person with a 
physical or mental disability, or an individual with a chronic  or acquired 
illness, to hold, in Trust, an unlimited amount of assets, without  those 
assets 
being considered countable assets for purposes of qualification for  
governmental benefits that are based upon need. Join us to hear more about  
financial 
planning options for your child or family member. Presenters: Stephen  A. 
Ehrens, 
Northwestern Mutual Financial Network  & James D Funnell,  Jr, Connecticut 
Law Firm of Hermenze and Marcantonio LLC. Held at ARC, 50  Glenville Street, 
Greenwich, CT.  Please register by calling the  youth division office no later 
than Friday March 24. 203-629-1880 ext.  100. 
March 29 â  May 3: 7-8 pm, Six  Wednesday evenings. Support Group for Parents 
of Children with Learning  Disabilities and Emotional Special Needs. This may 
include but is  not limited to children with ADHD, Autism, Aspergerâs 
Disorder, or Pervasive  Developmental Disorders. Members will be encouraged to 
discuss the  daily issues that arise and will learn how to better structure 
their 
lives as  well as to accept challenges faced by people with disabilities.  The 
groups  will be facilitated by two board certified counselors, Donna Fletcher, 
M.A., NCC  and Cynthia Pucci, LPC, NCC who have many years of experience 
working with  children and families. For more information, please contact Donna 
Fletcher at  273-6529 or _jimact@xxxxxxxx (mailto:jimact@xxxxxxx) , or  Cynthia 
Pucci at 325-8791.   
March 29, April 12, May  3: MAKING OR BREAKING INCLUSION:  PRACTICAL 
STRATEGIES FOR  PARAPROFESSIONALS IN INCLUSIVE CLASSROOMS. Three Day Program - 
participants  MUST plan to attend all three days. Presenters: Linda Rammler & 
Lynn 
Arment.  Sponsored by RAMMLER & WOOD, CONSULTANTS, LLC. Check 
_http://www.rammlerandwood.com/trainings.html_ 
(http://www.rammlerandwood.com/trainings.html)   
for more information, including fees and CEU credits. Held at the Hilton 
Garden  Inn in Windsor. 
March 30: What Every Parent Should  Know About Wills, Trusts and Estate 
Planning - Westport SEPTA is sponsoring  a financial planning workshop for 
parents 
of children with disabilities. 7:00pm to 9:00pm in the McManus Room at the 
Westport Public Library located  at 20 Jesup Road, Westport, CT. The workshop 
is 
free and open to the public.  Speakers are Greta Solomon, Esq. and Stephen 
Ehrens, CPA.  Westport SEPTA  advocates in an informed and positive manner on a 
broad-based community level  for the welfare of families and children with 
special needs. For additional  information and to make a reservation, please 
contact Janis Fox, SEPTA  Programming chair at (203) 222-8485 or e-mail 
Westport 
SEPTA at _westportsepta@xxxxxxxxxx (mailto:westportsepta@xxxxxxxxx) .  
Greta E.  Solomon, an attorney with the law firm of Cohen and Wolf P.C. with 
offices in  Westport and Bridgeport, CT, will guide parents through the legal 
maze of estate  planning as it applies to children with special needs. Stephen 
Ehrens, a CPA and  financial representative with the Northwestern Mutual 
Financial Network in  Fairfield, CT, will discuss the importance of thinking 
beyond day-to-day care to  planning for your special needs childâs future. He 
will 
discuss funding special  needs trusts utilizing insurance and/or investments, 
evaluating the familyâs  resources and exploring the parentsâ role in 
planning and providing for the  childâs financial needs over his or her 
lifetime. Ms. 
Solomon is a SEPTA board  member and concentrates her legal practice in the 
areas of special needs  planning, elder law, trusts, estates and probate. Mr. 
Ehrens is the father of a  child with special needs and focuses on estate 
planning and working with  families of children with special needs.  
March  30: THE NEW IDEIA: Changes and Challenges.  Presenter: Mark Partin, 
Esq.  Sponsored by RAMMLER & WOOD, CONSULTANTS, LLC. Check 
_http://www.rammlerandwood.com/trainings.html_ 
(http://www.rammlerandwood.com/trainings.html)   for 
more information, including fees and CEU credits. Held at the Hilton Garden  
Inn in Windsor. 
March 30 - April 2: COPAA conference. Held at the Hyatt Regency  Phoenix in 
Phoenix, AZ.  COPAA is The Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, an  
independent, nonprofit, organization of attorneys, advocates and parents whose  
primary mission is to secure high quality educational services for children 
with  
disabilities. Check _www.copaa.org_ (http://www.copaa.org/)  for more 
information. 
March 31:10:00 A.M. to 12:30 P.M., Friday. In her workshop, Using  Visual 
Supports: At Home, In School, Across the Curriculum, Lynne Guilmette,  M.Ed., 
behavioral educational consultant and clinical supervisor of Behavioral  
Development and Educational Services, Norwalk, will present concrete strategies 
 -- 
for home and school -- to facilitate daily routines for children with special  
needs who have strong visual learning skills. Visual supports help children  
learn more quickly, assist in learning to adjust to changes in routine and  
transitions, increase independence, and positively impact on one's ability to  
encode and organize information. Guilmette, who holds four Masters degrees in  
education and related fields, has worked with children with autism spectrum  
and 
behavioral disorders for nearly 30 years. A wealth of information, she  
consults with families and school districts to address such issues as difficult 
 
behaviors, peer interactions, problem solving and sensory sensitivities.   
Sponsored by SPED*NET Wilton. Held at the Wilton Library, 137 Old  Ridgefield 
Road, 
Wilton, CT. RSVPs encouraged; please call Eve at  761-0680.