Being a Special Needs parent can be a little lonely and a little overwhelming at times, so I ask for you to help me and all of those that need a voice .I ask that as parents, teachers or friends, you help in the ways you can.
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Our “Whoo” for January is Claire Foster.
Claire Foster is a 19 year old student at Mills Godwin High School in Henrico County. She also attends Highland Springs Technical Center where she is in her second year of the Early Childhood Development Program. Prior to attending Henrico County Schools, Claire attended Northstar Academy, a private school for students with a wide range of disabilities, for twelve years. Claire’s first love is singing, dancing and acting—she has performed in over 12 shows with Richmond CYT/CharacterWorks. She has also participated in shows and one act competitions with Chesterfield Children’s Theater as well as three LIVE ART productions with SPARC. She performed in her high school’s production of Little Shop of Horrors and was recently inducted into Godwin High’s thespian society. In addition to theater, Claire is involved with the young adult group at her church, West End Assembly of God, as well as the Richmond and West End branches of Young Life/Capernaum. She was a 2014 delegate to the Youth Leadership Forum sponsored by the Partnership for People with Disabilities and attended the I’m Determined Summit for youth with disabilities in 2012. She loves dogs, Disney, Broadway and hanging out with her friends.
Read more on “Whoo’s Know Different?” A Child’s Perspective…
It’s All in the Game!
There is a great deal of attention focused on the importance of executive functions for successful learning. Executive functions are skills that help your child develop
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February 13 – West End Presbyterian Church invites DSAGR members to Night to Shine, an unforgettable (and free) prom night for those 16 and above with special needs sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation. Walk the red carpet and dance the night away from 6-9 p.m. The registration deadline is Jan. 5 (space is limited). Visit www.nighttoshinerva.com for more information.
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Imagine always sitting on the sidelines. For most children with a disability that is how
they spend the majority of their lives, watching others do what they have been told they cannot do.
Read more on Miracle League of Richmond- No more sidelines!…
When it comes to listening with ADHD, many of us have fallen short of the mark. But, in our defense, most students have never even been taught ‘how to’ listen well. Do you remember a class in school called ‘how to listen well.’ I don’t.
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… by Sandra Harris, Mom
My husband and I were stunned after our son’s diagnosis. We didn’t know anything about autism. Our only frame of reference was a movie we had seen years earlier, “Rain Man.” The doctor was not helpful and didn’t give us any information regarding therapies or what we could do to help our son. Maybe he didn’t have access to that information or maybe he thought we wouldn’t hear anything else because we were still in a state of shock. He did give us the phone number to the Autism Society Central VA (ASCV). Family and friends tried to encourage us, but no one knew how to help us. When I made that phone call to the ASCV, it felt like someone had thrown me a lifeline. Finally, I had someone who understood what I was going through, another parent just like me.
Read more on What the Autism Society Central Virginia (ASCV) has meant to one family…
Engineering For Kids…Inspiring the next generation of engineers! This says it all and it is exactly why Dara Dawson and Sara Butler decided to leave their middles school classrooms to pursue a new path for engaging young people in learning. As co-owners of the Central Virginia Engineering For Kids location, Dara and Sara are veteran educators with experience teaching children from pre-school through middle school. Engineering For Kids is the perfect pairing of innovative ideas and hands-on STEM activities for children in pre-school through middles school.
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This month, we are highlighting my “why” . This is our son Marky. I was going to prompt him and tell him what to say and to share that he was Autistic, then , I changed my mind.
I asked him to introduce himself to the camera so all of our friends could meet him
This is what he had to say:
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