Special Thanks to our friends over at the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation for bringing this story to our attention. We caught it on their great blog, The Daily Dose today.
A couple of years ago, we blogged about a young man who did a double back flip on his wheelchair on a skateboard ramp. Now meet Josh Dueck who is the first skier living with paraplegia to complete a backflip on the slopes!
How’s that for some inspiration for the young people you work with! Awesome!
[Source: New York Times Sunday Review]
by Annie Murphy Paul
THE word “dyslexia” evokes painful struggles with reading, and indeed this learning disability causes much difficulty for the estimated 15 percent of Americans affected by it. Since the phenomenon of “word blindness” was first documented more than a century ago, scientists have searched for the causes of dyslexia, and for therapies to treat it. In recent years, however, dyslexia research has taken a surprising turn: identifying the ways in which people with dyslexia have skills that are superior to those of typical readers. The latest findings on dyslexia are leading to a new way of looking at the condition: not just as an impediment, but as an advantage, especially in certain artistic and scientific fields.
Dyslexia is a complex disorder, and there is much that is still not understood about it. But a series of ingenious experiments have shown that many people with dyslexia possess distinctive perceptual abilities. For example, scientists have produced a growing body of
[Source: Science Daily]
Mystery surrounds autism. Its theories of causes and treatments are as unique and diverse as the people who have it. The same holds true for its symptoms. Scientists and physicians are uncovering more about this disorder every day; many of those studies and findings concentrate on diet.
Dr. Yasmin Neggers, a professor of human nutrition and hospitality management in The University of Alabama College of Human Environmental Sciences whose main research focus is nutrition during pregnancy, was inspired by a visiting colleague to learn more about this disorder that affects the brain’s normal development of social and communication skills.
The colleague, Dr. Eun-Kyung Kim from Kangnung-Wonju National University in Korea, and Neggers decided to look at blood levels of lipids and fatty acids in two groups of South Korean children — one group of typically developing boys and another group of boys with an autism diagnosis. These fatty acids, particularly omega-3 and omega-6, are needed for normal development of the nervous system, including the brain.
“Many studies have shown omega-3 fatty acids to be neuroprotective because they decrease the risk of neurological problems,” Neggers explains.
“We were surprised when we didn’t find studies that looked at omega-3 levels in children with autism.” Omega-3 fatty acids, found in salmon and many other foods, are known to be neuroprotective.
[Source: CNN]
Penmanship. To grown-ups, the word conjures up memories of coarse sheets of paper with solid and dotted lines – and a pencil so big that you had to practically balance it on your shoulder to practice writing your letters.
For some of today’s elementary school kids, there won’t be any memories of penmanship class. With classroom time at a premium and the common use of the keyboard, some school districts are abandoning handwriting as part of the curriculum.
But Dr. Laura Dinehart says not so fast.
Dinehart, an assistant professor at the Florida International University School of Education, was examining data collected on 1,000 second-graders and comparing it with information collected when they were in pre-kindergarten. She and her research team expected to find that early number skills might predict math achievement and that early language skills might predict who would be better readers in second grade. But they were surprised to find that a 4-year-old’s fine motor writing skill – the ability to form letters, numbers and shapes – was an indicator of stronger academic achievement later on.
Read the Rest of this Article on the CNN Schools of Thought blog
I want to thank my new friend Ruth Morgan, MS CCC-SLP of the Chapel Hill Snippets blog for sharing this bit of levity on with all of us.
According to Ruth’s write-up, this video short, called ‘What’s Wrong With This Picture’ won all kinds of awards in 2003, but is just now going viral.
Ruth shared it with her OT friends who really cut up laughing. I love what Ruth says: “I think this movie explains why some kids really don’t like fine motor activities!”
HA! Enjoy.
Now that I think about it, this would be a great little conversation starter to show your kiddos at the start of a therapy session. Immediately, emotions work and inference come to mind.
What could YOU do with this video to share it as part of your therapy?
