The Reason For It All

The Autism Commission proves successful

Parent Seminar: Social Skills in Northridge, CA

US TOO Gymnastics in Lake Forest, CA

Why Juice Plus+???

AEFCT invites you to our...

PAUSE4kids Mom's Night Out

Train4Autism

Concert at T.E.R.I., Inc.

Augmentative and Alternative Communication Devices and Strategies

Existing Drug Reverses a Form of Mental Retardation in Mice

New Clues to Autism's Cause

Heart of Sailing Back in CA

Mental Activity May Affect Autism-Linked Genes

Melaleuca, The Wellness Company

Common Mechanisms May Underlie Autism's Seemingly Diverse Mutations

Empowering Through Information & the Fostering of Connections

I never endorse anyone or anything. Opinions expressed in what I send out, may not be shared by me. Everything is for informational purposes only.

People who "advertise" through this newsletter have never been checked out by me. This includes professionals and even people who are interested in babysitting, etc.

Please take the time to thoroughly check out anyone and everyone that will be working with or caring for your child. We are all sadly aware, through news stories and word of mouth, of people who pray upon special needs children because of their extra vulnerability.

Thank you,
Valerie Dodd-Saraf
My enewsletters are archived on my website:
www.ValeriesList.com

Thanks for providing such a valuable resource for sharing information, Valerie. Would you please post.

The Autism Commission (Sen. Darrell Steinberg, Chair; Dr. Barbara Firestone, Vice-Chair) is delighted that the first bill (AB 2302) of its comprehensive legislative package has just been signed into law!

This important bill, authored by Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, is a step in the right direction to address the critical shortage of adequately trained teachers for students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD.)

AB 2302 authorizes that classes for ASD can be taught by holders of mild/moderated specialist credential who have either provided one year of full time autism instruction or completed three semester units of autism coursework.

As Rick Rollens, who supported this bill on behalf Alliance of California Autism Organizations noted, "AB 2302 not only helps meet the demand of more qualified teachers but also enables pupils with milder forms of ASD to have access to appropriate educational services."

This bill, which was supported by 19 autism and educational organizations, has no known opposition and goes into immediate effect. A companion bill (AB 131) by Assembly-member Jim Beall, which provides similar provisions for students with ASD who are three or four years of age, has been placed on the Senate "consent calendar" and, therefore, should also be approved in the near future.

Dear Valerie,
One of my colleagues, Dr. Janice Schneider, and I are facilitating a seminar for parents that teaches them how to facilitate social skills with their children. The seminar will be held in Northridge on Saturday, August 2nd from 9am-4pm with a follow-up session on Saturday, September 13th from 9am-10:30am This seminar will give parents techniques to implement into their everyday lives. For parents with children who are currently attending social skills groups, they will learn how to continue the work that is being done during therapy. For parents whose children may not yet be ready for social skills, they will be able to use the techniques learned to prepare their children for peer group experiences.

I wanted to pass along this information to Valerie's List. If you think any of your members may be interested in our seminar, please feel free to pass along this information.

Nicole Brown, M.A.
Psychological Assistant
Registration # PSB-32725
Yellen & Associates
11260 Wilbur Ave., Suite 303
Northridge, CA 91326
(818) 360-3078 ext. 127
(805) 494-4086
Fax (818) 360-4327
www.yellenandassociates.com

Hello,
My name is Lindsey Hartman and I am the assistant program director for a non-profit organization located in Lake Forest Ca. Us Too Gymnastics is dedicated to teaching children with special needs, such as autism, down syndrome, ADD/ADHD and other learning disabilities gymnastics, track, and theater in a fun recreational environment.

I came across your web-site and noticed that you have a resource page for families. I was wondering how we could become a part of that list. We are fairly new to the area and are trying to get our name out there, and reach as many families as possible. It is our goal to help better the lives of these very special children in Orange County.

Lindsey Hartman
Us Too Gymnastics
Assistant Program Director
949-716-1970
www.ustoogymnastics.org

Why Juice Plus+?
The best way to answer that question, is to ask another. How do you think you would feel; how healthy would your body be; how much positive energy would you have, if you ate a serving of 15 different fruits and vegetables and 2 grains EVERYDAY?
That is what JP+ is and that is what it does.

Juice Plus+ provides the natural nutrition (millions of nutrients) of fully ripened, RAW fruits and vegetables in a capsulated form for adults and chewables and gummies for kids.

The cost for adults is $41.50 per month, or $1.36 per day. (Could your buy a serving of 15 fruits and veggies, and eat all of them, RAW for $1.36 per day?)

The cost for kids for Chewables or Gummies is $22.50 per month, or .74 cents per day? Could you even get your kids to eat 15 RAW, fruits and veggies per day?

For more information about Juice Plus+ and/or purchase it, please visit my website here. JP+ is certified GF/CF Dairy Free and Kosher!!!

If you have a JP+ franchise and are interested in selling it, please contact me.

· Parents' Night Out: AEFCT would like to offer you the opportunity to enjoy "mom & dad" time. Our next Parents' Night Out will be on Friday, August 15th and Saturday, August 16th from 6pm-9pm. Choose either night. Please R.S.V.P by Friday, August 8th to reserve a spot.

· Bicycle Club: There's no better way to spend an afternoon than pedaling with friends and family in beautiful San Diego! Our next ride will be at Mission Bay on Saturday, July 26th at 11am. Please R.S.V.P. by Tuesday, July 22nd to reserve a spot.

For more questions, please contact the AEFCT office at 619-269-6057 or email info@aefct.com.

PAUSE4kids presents Mom's Night Out 7/17 at 7PM. We will meet at The Landing Grill and Sushi Bar on Westlake Lake in Westlake Village. RSVP to susan@pause4kids.org
For more information please go to www.pause4kids.org

Valerie,
Hi, my name is Ben Fesagaiga. I am a parent & Co- Founder of Train 4 Autism. We are a new 501c3 nonprofit that is dedicated to promoting autism awareness and raising funds for autism related causes. I wanted to announce to the SD Autism community that we have launched our new website and your members can use our system to create their own webpage and start raising funds for the autism nonprofit of their choice. Thanks for your time & if possible grant me permission to post on your discussion board.

Thank you
Ben Fesagaiga
Parent & Co-Founder
Train 4 Autism, Inc.
www.train4autism.org

Greetings Art Enables Supporters,
We have the great and good fortune of having Akayaa Atule in concert here at the Center for the Arts and Adult Education. Akayaa hails from a tradition of "Highlife" music from Ghana, Africa.

Come experience her high energy and infectious zest live in concert on Monday, July 14. This extraordinary performer will have you dancing, clapping, and begging for more! Please see the attached announcement for details. You can listen to her at http://www.bolgamusic.com/

We look forward to swaying in the aisles with you!

Greg Snaer
Art Enables Coordinator
T.E.R.I., Inc.
251 Airport Road · Oceanside, CA 92058
760-721-1706 / 760-721-9872 fax
760-801-4992 cell
www.teriinc.org

Wednesday, July 23, 2008
6:30-8:00 P.M.

Presented by: Bruce Fleming
See the latest speech devices offered by DynaVox Technologies and visual support tools from Mayer- Johnson, Inc. Bruce Fleming, the local Sales Consultant for DynaVox and Mayer-Johnson, has worked in the Assistive Technology field for 16 years and been our local DynaVox resource for almost 6 years. He is a long-time advocate, product specialist, and resource to parents and speech therapists considering augmentative and alternative communication devices and strategies for adults and children. Bruce has also provided direct support to Crimson Center's AAC language group this summer.

Crimson Center for Speech & Language
9606 Tierra Grande #107
San Diego, CA 92126
Miramar Area
Please call 858 695 9415 to reserve free seating
Sorry-No childcare is available

A drug already on the market for a completely unrelated condition could be used to treat a form of mental retardation linked to autism-if the results of a study in mice hold up, researchers report.

Scientists used rapamycin-a medication doctors prescribe to patients who have had transplants to prevent their bodies from rejecting the new organs-to treat learning disorders associated with a disease called tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) in mice. TSC is a rare genetic disorder that causes brain tumors, seizures, learning disabilities, skin lesions and kidney tumors in the 50,000 Americans and one million people worldwide who have the disease.

What exactly is going awry in the brains of people who have autism? The answer is very slowly coming into focus. A paper published in the current issue of Science by researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and members of the Boston-based Autism Consortium identifies five new autism-related gene defects. Already, more than a dozen genetic defects have been found to be associated with autism spectrum disorders, which affect about 1 in 150 children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the good news, say the Boston researchers, is that many of the genes are beginning to fit into a pattern. "While it might seem discouraging that it's a growing list of genes, we can be encouraged that a common pathway is emerging," says Dr. Christopher Walsh, chief of genetics at Children's Hospital Boston and an author of the paper.

Heart of Sailing introduces sailing to children, teens and adults with disabilities as a form of education and recreational therapy. Very safe fun for the whole family.

San Diego
San Francisco THIS WEEKEND
Dana Point
Ventura

website

New research suggests that some cases of autism arise from defects in genes that can be turned on or off by mental activity, a finding that sheds light on the devastating condition and might eventually lead to strategies to treat it. The findings are drawn from gene scans of about 1