Kids Together Email Newsletter "promoting inclusive communities where all people belong" July 2006 Newsletter Please notify us to receive this newsletter in text only. This list consists of over 3000 people (and growing!) Suggestions for newsletter items are welcome! Children require guidance and sympathy far more than instruction.. ~ Anne Sullivan ~ Whose Life Is It Anyway? How One Teenager, Her Parents, and Her Teacher View the Transition Process for a Young Person with Disabilities Wisconsin Healthy & Ready to Work: A Series of Materials Supporting Youth with Special Health Care Needs http://waisman.wisc.edu/hrtw/wlia.pdf Copies $10 call (608) 265- 9852 or order on-line http://www.waisman.wisc.edu/wrc/pub.html download booklet free at www.waisman.wisc.edu/wrc/pub.html (Adobe pdf 98 pages large print) This book encourages partners to take time to get to know each other as they move forward in the future planning process. In addition, in telling the story of Becky's transition, it offers readers some "out of the box" possibilities for young people, especially those with cognitive disabilities. New frontiers of assistive technology and college experiences are being realized for youth with cognitive disabilities across the country. We are seeing young people with cognitive disabilities who could never read or write, now reading and writing independently with their software programs. We are seeing young adults with such disabilities actively participating on college campuses with their same age peers: sitting in on college classes, studying with their peers, and joining student organizations. It is happening across this country and right here in this book with Becky. Readers are invited to dream big, live with great expectations, know the meaning of hard work, and commit to building trusting relationships with each other. For more stories go to http://www.waisman.wisc.edu/wrc/pub.html ------------------------------------------------------------ New IDEA Regulations Coming Soon! IDEA 2004 Part B Regs Approved on July 27 Office of Management and Budget IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004) Part B regulations were approved by the Office of Management and Budget on Thursday July 27, 2006 and should be issued sometime soon. The Department of Education will make them publicly available in advance of the Federal Register publication. ------------------------------------------------------------ Project Participate Website with success stories and practical solutions http://www.projectparticipate.org Project Participate provides families, educators, administrators and therapists with simple strategies to increase the active participation of students with disabilities in school programs. Supported by a U.S. Department of Education, Project Participate facilitates team collaboration and promotes the appropriate uses of technology in the classroom. Explore the site to see success stories and learn practical solutions to enhance learning, teaching, and the full inclusion of students with disabilities in the classroom. Download sample curricular adaptations, handouts for training, intervention planning forms and more! ------------------------------------------------------------ Taxis for All United Spinal Association http://www.unitedspinal.org/advocacy/taxisforall The addition of greater numbers of wheelchair-accessible taxicabs in North American cities and towns will enable persons with disabilities-young and old-to travel more easily for business or for pleasure. Wheelchair accessible taxi service offers a convenient, spontaneous, and affordable transportation option to individuals with disabilities. United Spinal Association believes that a widely-available affordable, accessible sedan taxi can open up this mode of transportation to wheelchair users. Sign Up For Taxis For All - North America. Receive occasional emails containing- Campaign updates - Tips on public awareness and advocacy strategies - Installments of the Taxis For All Toolkit - Updates on the development of a wheelchair accessible taxi vehicle. ------------------------------------------------------------ College Access and Opportunity Act (H.R. 609) amendment Provides students with intellectual disabilities access to federal work-study funds. http://sessions.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=41553 Full text http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/thomas search for bill number HR 609 Passed the House on March 30th, 2006 (Now on the calendar of the Senate) According to a recent report of the President's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities, in 2002 approximately 90 percent of adults with intellectual disabilities were not employed; 26 percent of youth with intellectual disabilities dropped out of school; fewer than 15 percent participated in postsecondary education; and over 700,000 people with intellectual disabilities lived with parents aged 60 or over. Research shows that comprehensive postsecondary programs have had a positive impact on student rates of employment and wages, social networks, and self-determination skills (Guenette, 2003). A growing number of two and four-year colleges and universities are now including students with mental retardation in educational, independent living and vocational programs. The increasing numbers of such programs reflects the strong need for a variety of postsecondary education opportunities for this population of students. "This group of nontraditional students can become more self-sufficient if provided opportunities. I believe they should have access to postsecondary education, and the resulting employment and independent living opportunities, just as their non-disabled peers do," Sessions concluded. ------------------------------------------------------------ Philadelphia Museum of Art http://www.philamuseum.org/ Artabilities: Celebrating the artistic talents of children with disabilities November 8, 2006 - December 3, 2006 This Exhibition represents the artwork of children aged 3 through 21 whose disabilities vary greatly from mild to severe. They are from thirteen state, public, and private schools in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. In their daily or weekly art classes, students produce two-dimensional art works in all mediums, from watercolor to computer. One work by each student is selected by their art teachers for submission to the Friends of Children's Seashore House of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia to be juried into and framed for this exhibition. ------------------------------------------------------------ Text-to-Speech Software TextAloud http://www.NextUp.com/ TextAloud uses voice synthesis to convert text into spoken audio. Listen on your PC or create MP3 or WMA files for use on portable devices like iPods, PocketPCs, and CD players. You can download a free trial version of TextAloud. It does not include the optional premium voices, but is a fully functional version of TextAloud that you can evaluate for 15 days with no obligation. Optional premium voices can be added at the time of purchase for $29.95. ------------------------------------------------------------ The Parent Side (tm) T-shirts, cards, magnets mugs, stickers & more! It's a campaign for inclusion and against exclusion! http://www.theparentside.com Get your stuff in time for the new school season! Gifts for everyone, children, adults, advocates, self-advocates, professionals and families. Give a unique gift to the advocate who supported you or reward yourself and make a statement! Tote bags, mugs, t-shirts, hats, sweatshirts, mousepads, buttons, magnets, posters and more! Designs that speak! ------------------------------------------------------------ . Resources are listed for general information purposes only Kids Together does not endorse products, services, or provide any legal advice Kids Together, Inc. is an all-volunteer non-profit 501(c)3 organization We support the belief that children with disabilities, like all children, have the need to be welcomed, cherished and embraced in our communities. 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