The Reason For It All

2008 FACCT Conference - Registration is Open!

News from Bill Stillman

Center for Social Thinking: Fall 2008 Mentor Training Dates

Why Juice Plus+???

Autism's Social Struggles Due To Disrupted Communication Networks In

CCC Friends Group

Study Participants Needed for Autism Research Study at The Salk Institute

Pasadena: Back to School Workshop Information

Annual Ability Awareness Celebration

New Little Builders Session

Financial Planning Tools for Families of Children with Special Needs

Special Education, You Can Do It!

Encinitas Family Looking for Pre-School Shadow for September

Monthly San Diego GRASP meetings and info

Melaleuca, The Wellness Company

The Gray Center Children's Resource SALE

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

The COMPASS Family Center at USD is pleased to open registration for the 2008 FACCT Conference, scheduled for Saturday, September 27th, 2008 from 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

To register online click here

Workshop topics are attached and a brochure with the full workshop descriptions will be available in the coming weeks.

TICKET PRICES:
$55 for professionals (includes CEUs)
$30 for general admission
$20 for students with valid ID

Pricing includes the cost of the conference, continental breakfast and lunch.

Keynote speaker Lee Thomas will also be available during the lunch hour for book signings.

If you would like to be an exhibitor at this event, please contact: slanglais@sandiego.edu

Friends,
The recent Mike Savage radio controversy has incited nationwide backlash that is fast becoming as equally vitriolic as the emotion underscoring the originally expressed sentiments. This is not a helpful response. In contrast, I'd like to offer an alternate perspective via my article, "Autism: A New Cultural Competency." It is newly posted to the authors' blog, Basil & Spice, and may be accessed at the following link: Click here: Author & Book Views On a Healthy Life! - MIND AND BODY

In addition, I have posted to the "Archived Articles" portion of www.williamstillman.com several new articles including the provocative "Everyone has Autism," "The Real Autism Epidemic," "Special Schools for 'Special' Kids: If You Build Them, They will Come," and "The World Needs Autism," which is an exclusive excerpt from my new book, The Soul of Autism. Several of these appear on Basil & Spice (but not all), and this has lead to their wider circulation in several instances through Reuters national online news service.

My new book, When Your Child has Asperger's Syndrome, is a low-cost condensation of my 2005 work, The Everything Parent's Guide to Children with Asperger's Syndrome, and is now available on Amazon.com and through local booksellers. Likewise, my spiritually-themed contributions found in Upper Room Books' Disciplines 2009 may be pre-ordered on Amazon.com as well.

My document, "Presuming Intellect: Ten Ways to Enrich Our Relationships Through a Belief in Competence," will be included in a forthcoming School Community Tool Kit from Autism Speaks. Watch for its announcement at www.autismspeaks.org.

Finally, my book, The Autism Answer Book, is reviewed in the current issue of the Autism-Asperger's Digest with the following endorsement, "The Autism Answer Book is a gift from the brilliant voice of an exceptional author and speaker. Stillman's version of 'Autism 101' manages to face the challenges of autism head-on while imparting hope and encouragement." Further information about this book may be found at the "Bill's Books" section of my Web site.

Here's wishing a peaceful remainder of the summer to us all.
William Stillman
Autism Spectrum Self-Advocate, Author, and Consultant
www.williamstillman.com

We are now accepting applications for Fall 2008 Mentor Trainings.

Since 2000, hundreds of participants have participated in Mentor Training at Michelle G. Winner's Center for Social Thinking, Inc. in San Jose, CA. This intensive 3 day session provides training in social thinking and demonstration therapy, as well as spending time meeting with Michelle Garcia Winner, Stephanie Madrigal or Dr. Pamela Crooke.

"The mentor training at Michelle Garcia Winner's clinic far exceeded my expectations. Michelle and her staff were incredibly generous with their wealth of ideas, strategies and materials. Seeing highly skilled and creative therapists in action is the best way to learn!" -- P. Taboni, Speech Language Pathologist (private practice).

The following dates are currently scheduled:
September 16 - 18
October 6 - 8
November 10 - 12
Monday, December 1 - 5 (3 days training plus 2 days at a Michelle G. Winner workshop in the Bay Area - separate registration required. See website for details)

These popular trainings fill up quickly - apply today!
For Full Details and Application, Click Here

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!!! Click here for info on ingredients for all the JP+ products.

Starting in September, I will be having Juice Plus+ In-Home Parties. It is a great way to learn more about good, lasting health and JP+. If you are interested in learning about JP+ as a home-based business, click here. Juice Plus+ and its' parent company NSA, are NOT Multi-Level Marketing Companies. 95% of the people who order from the companies are customers only. NSA has been in business for 47 years.

Juice Plus+ "Thins" and anxiety and OCD:
Since, giving Tony "Thins" everyday, starting just 2 years ago, with no other medication or change, I noticed that Tony was more relaxed. Less anxiety. And, even more remarkable his repetitive, obsessive behaviors dropped about 80%. Changes in his routine/schedule became much easier, new experiences were no longer hard. Repetitive behaviors/routines nearly disappeared. I have been also able to reduce his medications: Zyprexa, Celexa & Tenex.

Please think seriously about giving this a try!!! If you have any questions about the "Thins", please email me and if you would like to order them, click here.

Picking up on innuendo and social cues is a central component of engaging in conversation, but people with autism often struggle to determine another person's intentions in a social interaction. New research from Carnegie Mellon University sheds light on the neural mechanisms that are responsible for such social difficulties in autism, and on the workings of these social brain mechanisms in all of us.

According to the study, which is available on the Web site of the journal Social Neuroscience, inefficient pathways for transmitting information between certain brain regions are to blame. The research implicates abnormalities in the brain's inter-regional communication system, which connects the gray matter's computing centers.

Due to popular demand, the Community Coaching Center is opening up another CCC Friends Group for teens age 13-18 affected by HFA/AS that meets two Saturdays a month.

CCC is a Community Behavioral Social Skills Development program that focuses on developing socially appropriate behaviors, friendship building, and citizenship in the community. The teens participate in small peer friendly groups in recreational activities such as: visiting museums, parks, beaches, zoo/Wild Animal Park, amusement parks, festivals, performing arts, and local restaurants. The group also participates in sporting and leisure activities such as bowling, sailing, swimming, biking, hiking, golfing, rock climbing, skating, and much, much more.

To find out more about the CCC Friends Group or the weekday CCC programs, please visit our website:
www.communitycoachingcenter.org

To call and set up a site visit please call: 858-603- 9835

We are looking for adolescents (age 10-18) with an ASD diagnosis, siblings of people with an ASD diagnosis, and typically developing teens to participate in a vision research study. Participants will be asked to sit in a quiet, dimly lit room and locate target images that appear on a computer screen. The task will be similar to playing a simple video game. Each volunteer may participate in a variable number of sessions, which will typically last 1 hour, with breaks provided upon request. Participants will be compensated $10 per hour.

With your help, we hope to better understand how people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) process visual information differently than other individuals.

We will gladly share and explain the results of this study with participants and their parents. Testing will be arranged to fit your schedule. We offer weekday, evening, and weekend appointments.

For more information, please visit http://www.snl-k.salk.edu/autism.htm or contact Karine at kvb@salk.edu, (858) 518-5460.

"Back to School" Autism-Aspergers Conference
August 9-10, 2008
Three Professional Worshops for Parapros SLP's / OT's / PT's and SLP's

McMillin Elementary (Chula Vista/South San Diego) needs volunteer presenters (who experience disability) to come and share about their lives with the students. Their Annual Ability Awareness Celebration, a 2-day event will take place on: Wednesday and Thursday, August 13th and 14th, from 8:30 am - 2:30 pm. If you can come present either for all or part of the event (or if you don't have a disability, but know of someone else who might be interested), please contact Diana Pastora Carson at Diana@AbilityAwareness.com or 619.370.2789. Topics of discussion will include: Disability History, Disability Rights, Accessibility, Universal Design, Assistive Technology, Attitudes & Assumptions, Respectful/Dignifying Language and Possibilities!

A new Little Builders session (play-based social skills group) will be starting mid August. This group will be for children with ASD, ages 5-7 with HFA, PDD-NOS or Aspergers. It will run Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:30- 6pm in Scripps Ranch for 10 weeks.

The August Summer intensive is currently being scheduled and will either run Aug 4-15 or Aug 11-22 (Mon-Fri 9-11 am).

Another two-day per week session will begin in September.

For more information or to schedule an assessment, contact Courtney Olinger 858-444-8823 x1221 or colinger.cares@yahoo.com

The "Special Needs Planning Guide: How to Prepare for Every Stage of Your Child's Life" is written by authors who also have family members with special needs (John W. Nadworny & Cynthia R. Haddadis). Also included is a CD-Rom which contains a helpful Financial Planning Timeline and a printable Letter of Intent that lets parents communicate key information, concerns, and desires to future caretakers. The book is available through Brookes Publishing. For more information click here.