TAAG is Pleased to Announce a Free Workshop and Open Discussion for Fathers of Children on the Autism Spectrum

Where: Temecula Public Library, 30600 Pauba Road, Temecula 

When: Thursday, Dec. 17th, 6:30 - 8:30 pm 

Moderators: Blake Burnham and Joseph Trance

Here’s a chance for fathers of children with autism spectrum disorders to learn how self-efficacy plays a role in fatherhood and every day life and to engage in an open discussion, moderated by Blake Burnham and Joe Trance, who are autism coordinators with TVUSD, though they are not representing TVUSD at this workshop.

Participants will be asked to fill out a brief and confidential survey which is being used for a California State University at Chico study on the topic of fathers and autism. Survery participation is encouraged but optional.

Jennifer Kropke has notified us that she’s offering our members a Back to School No-Cost Legal Clinic on Saturday, September 19th.

Many of you were at the presentation that Ms. Kropke gave to our group, and she’s represented some of our members. Those of you who have dealt with her know that she’s an extraordinarily effective Special Education Attorney, to say the least, so this is a FANTASTIC opportunity to get legal advice that is effective, expert and free.

If you would like to participate, send an email to Ms. Kropke with your requested appointment time, but understand that appointments are scheduled on a first-scheduled-first served basis. The appointments are hourly and you should bring any documents you would like to review and discuss. The appointments can also be done by telephone if preferred, though face to face appointments tend to be more effective.

Here’s the info you’ll need:

Ms Kropke’s Email: jennifer.kropke@kropkelawfirm.com

Telephone: (626) 963-7102

Office location: 216 N. Glendora Avenue, Suite 208, Glendora, CA 91741

Kropke Law Firm Website: http://www.kropkelawfirm.com/

The full announcement can be viewed by clicking here.

TAAG is pleased to announce the

PAL Fitness Club

Fri. Aug 7, 1:00-2:00pm at

31795 Rancho California Rd, Temecula

FitWize4Kids, the nation’s first healthy lifestyle center just for kids, will be hosting this series of fun, private events for TAAG.

FitWize4Kids,which was recently featured on the Today Show, is dedicated to empowering the youth of today and tomorrow. An innovative concept that combines resistance circuit training with a world-clas s nutrition curriculum. The assisted 45-minute program is a quality outlet that promotes self-esteem, healthy living and fitness in a fun and positive environment.Programs are designed for kids regardless of their current interest or involvement in fitness and sports. Members and their parents report improved academic and athletic performance, positive social behavior, increased self-esteem, and healthy weight management.  

Children on the autism spectrum and their siblings are all welcome to attend.

Parent volunteers are always welcome. If your child needs assistance, your participation will be appreciated.

• Dress your child in comfortable clothing & sneakers (no filp-flops).

•Bring water or juice for you child. 16oz bottles of cold water available for 50¢.

This event will be sponsored by

and coming soon……

Getting Your Kids to Eat Right

A Health Education Talk for the Entire Family!

FREE for the whole family

If you are a parent then you must know that we are

and learn how to fight the battle and WIN!

Please RSVP to: Bobbi Klein

951-676-KIDS (5437)

Can a harmless UFO obsessive stricken by autism be saved from 70 years in a brutal American jail?

The fate of self-confessed ‘bumbling computer nerd’ and UFO spotter Gary McKinnon - who faces extradition to the U.S. and a possible 70-year prison sentence after hacking into 97 military and Nasa computers - hangs in the balance.

In just a few days, this softly-spoken 43-year- old, who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome (a form of autism), will go to the High Court in London for a judicial review that might allow him to appeal again against his extradition.

This will be his last chance to stop the British Government sending him for trial in the U.S., where, if found guilty, he could spend what’s left of his life in a maximum security jail in New Jersey.

McKinnon’s crime was to hack into U.S. military computers in a naive attempt to unearth secrets about the existence of alien life.

Better, faster… and no office politics: the company with the autistic specialists

A pioneering company in Denmark is giving people with autism the chance to apply their skills to jobs from IT to product testing.  The result is a huge success that’s about to be rolled out across Europe. Founder Thorkil Sonne tells Michael Booth how his workforce’s superhuman recall and unflinching focus could teach the rest of us a thing or two.
[...]
Thorkil Sonne and his wife already had two sons when their third, Lars, arrived in 1997, so they had plenty of experience of the behavioural quirks of growing youngsters. But as Lars entered kindergarten aged two-and-a-half, the couple began to notice a more troubling change. Lars wouldn’t play with the other children, preferring to sit alone for hours on end. He began to talk less and less, until he was virtually unable to engage in any kind of dialogue at all. Something was clearly very wrong.

“We were patient,” says Sonne. “Our older boys had taught us that each child has their pace at which they climb the ladder, but Lars seemed to be stuck on a step.” The Sonnes are Danes and, fortunately, the Danish education system is good at diagnosing childhood developmental problems. Unfortunately in Lars’s case, the diagnosis was childhood autism.
[...]
Most parents, upon learning their child has a condition like this, will read up on it, learn about the treatments, therapies and consequences and start planning for the future. Sonne went somewhat further. He became involved with his local autistic society, ending up as vice-chairman of a housing facility for people with Asperger’s syndrome, a type of autism that affects social imagination, interaction and communication. Through the housing association, he got to know an 18-year-old Asperger’s sufferer who was especially gifted with computers. “He had retired on a state pension,” says Sonne. “But I thought that was so unfair as he had valuable IT skills that I could see would be useful for software- testing, support monitoring, programming and so on.”

So, in 2004, Sonne left his job of 15 years at the Danish communications company TDC, remortgaged his house, and founded a company, Specialisterne (The Specialists), to find employment for adults with autism and Asperger’s as software and systems testers. The 18-year-old Sonne had met through the housing association was his first employee.

Many autism cases ‘undiagnosed’

A Cambridge University team looked at existing diagnoses - and carried out recognised tests to assess other children.
[...]
The scientists first looked at cases of autism and Asperger syndrome among 8,824 children on the Special Educational Needs registers in 79 schools in East Anglia.

A total of 83 cases were reported, giving a prevalence of 94 in 10,000, or 1 in 106 children.

The team then sent a diagnosis survey to parents of 11,700 children in the area.

From 3,373 completed surveys, 41 cases of autism-spectrum conditions were reported, corresponding to prevalence of 1 in 101.

Adults with autism run Camarillo school for kids with autism

Preschool student teacher Ben Brock sat on a child-sized chair at a table and poured vinegar into a soda bottle containing baking soda, stones and a few other small objects. The four preschool-aged children sitting around the table watched, wide-eyed, as a raisin and a cork popped to the surface of the bottle and bubbled onto the table.

“Look, they’re dancing!” said Brock, 30.

The kids chirped in delight, except one little boy, who jumped and covered his ears.

Brock immediately understood the little boy’s reaction, because like him, Brock has a form of autism. He knows people with autism tend to have extremely acute hearing. The hiss of the chemical reaction when the vinegar penetrated the baking soda sounded loud to the boy.

“He’s like a thermometer among kids with autism,” said Felice Fausto, Brock’s sister and director of the family-owned school where Brock teaches — the Footprints Preschool and Family Resource Center in Camarillo.

Disability Rights Legal Center (DRLC) is a non-profit civil rights organization that has been protecting the rights of people with disabilities for 33 years through litigation, advocacy, training, and education.

DRLC will be holding an education workshop in Temecula for families of students with special needs, such as Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorder, Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Emotional Disturbance, Hearing, Vision and other disabilities. The 1.5 hour training sessions will be followed by a 1.5 hour legal clinic where you can meet and speak with a DRLC lawyer about your child’s needs.

Learn about laws that protect your child with a disability. Your child has rights even if he or she is in a County program, group home, or Non-public school!

When: Sat. June 13th from 10:00-1:00 P.M.

Where: Grace Mellman Library 4100 County Center Dr. Temecula, CA 92591

Please contact Norma Montano at (909) 460-2026, or via email at norma.montano@lls.edu to obtain more information and to reserve your place.

42070 Meadows Parkway, Temecula
McCabe and Meadows, across from TMS
(Click for for directions)

On-site restrooms and parking

 

Everyone is welcome!

March 31st, 6:00-8:00pm
Temecula Public Library Community Room
30600 Pauba Road, Temecula
As always, FREE Admission - Parking Available

www.lindamoodbell.com

The new version of www.WhiteHouse.gov launched on inauguration day, 1/20/09, and there was only one disorder or disease specifically addressed in the administration’s agenda. It’s a doozy and a surprise. The bullet points:

1. Increased funding for research, treatment, screenings, public awareness and support services for autism spectrum disorders.
2. “Life-long services” for people with autism spectrum disorders, as children and as adults. Many parents struggle to find and pay for screening and treatments for their children, but there is even less coverage and capacity for adults with autism-based impairments
3. More funding for the 2006 Combating Autism Act, as well as improving state and federal autism programs.
4. Universal screening for all infants for autism disorders, as well as re-screening for all 2-year-olds. This is the biggie; children are currently screened only if parents or pediatricians voice a concern, so too many children aren’t diagnosed until they enter elementary school. The earlier treatment starts, the more effective it is, and a national screening program would help reduce the number of kids falling through the cracks. It would also be a huge undertaking, at a time when both government and privately insured health care is foundering.