Tech Is Fun!

This morning, I attended a session on Technology for Today and Tomorrow.  Oh, my, how my head is swimming with ideas!  There are SO many great ideas and applications for technology in the classroom (and at home, too).  I just wish we could educate all teachers and send them all to this conference.  With a teacher to take that extra half-step and take the time to set up a plan, their classrooms can be easily accessible to all students of all abilities.  

Are you aware that many schools now provide tablets to every student in the classroom?  Here's a great idea that one teacher had, and used, to include all of her students.  They were studying Charlotte's Web in 4th grade.  If a student cannot read/process that level of writing and vocabulary, or cannot produce a written report, what can be done?  This teacher provided QR codes (the squares with the black & white pixels on them that can be scanned with your phone) posted on 8 1/2" x 11" papers around her room.  Groups of 3 students then went to each station, scanning the QR codes.  Each code took their tablet to a video, picture, or animation from the story that explained or demonstrated the vocabulary words, plot, character information, etc.  Just think what a great time all of the kids had, and every child could learn about the story without having to read and write pages of straight text.  I want that kind of teacher for my kids! :)

This presentation was given by Sean Smith, Dad of son Nolan with Down syndrome, Associate Professor in the Dept for Special Education at the University of Kansas.  Sean is passionate about this topic, and also showed off some fun tools that seem to come straight out of a sci-fi movie.  You can scan a photo, and have it come to life in 3D and interact with background photos.  This is one of those things that you may say "that sounds neat" until you see it in person.  Then you go "wow! That's so cool!"

You can find out more about this presentation, and see a list of the resources that were discussed, and the types of tools and applications are available for both PC's and iPads at http://delivr.com/2t8n4

Dance Party!

This year, we purchased the conference meal plan.  We have done meals "on our own" at previous conferences.  There are pros and cons to both ways.  Finding your own meals can be economical if you can find a local grocery, or it can be a bit pricey finding local restaurants with no first-hand knowledge of the area.  It can also take more time than you'd like, as the time allotted for meals between sessions is limited.  With so many workshops, things need to begin and end on time, and they usually do.  Finding a restaurant, being seated and served, and getting back on time for your next workshop can be stressful and make a tight schedule even tighter.

This year, we decided to go with the meal plan.  The pros are convenience, not having to find restaurants, and you know exactly what to budget for meals.  The meal plan provides Friday dinner, Saturday breakfast and lunch, and Sunday lunch.  This gives you a chance to check out the local quisine Saturday evening after the sessions are finished and you have time to enjoy your meal or take a walk and enjoy the local sights.  This year, our local sight is the baseball stadium right across the street from the Marriott:

The cons to the meal plan are that you get whatever they offer, so there's really no choice.  They do offer a gluten-free option (again, no choice).  You are also relying on the quiality of the food at the convention center.  At Disney, the food was excellent.  At Washington, it was pretty good, too.  Here, we've found it ok, but not great.  However, it's been very quick, easy to get, plenty of seating, and Marriott employees bus your tables and will serve you drinks once you arrive at your table from the buffet.  Friday's dinner was chicken, rice, and beans with a caramel cake dessert.  Breakfast was scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, cereal, and fruit.  Lunch was pasta, alfredo sauce, broccoli, and bread sticks.  Nothing special, but super convenient.  We figure the price of the meal plan would approximate to what we'd spend on our own, so it's really up to you how you want to go.  If you're a foodie, on-your-own is definitely the way to go :)

As always, we attended the dance party Friday evening.  This year, they had a DJ from a local Radio Disney station, and they had everyone up and dancing and having a great time.  We love, love, love the dance and ran into a few of our Rochester friends at the bars (one for drinks, one for desserts.  Lots of chocolate goodies... yummy!).  We danced a bit and enjoyed seeing hundreds of happy faces.  We didn't stay 'til the close of the dance, since we'd been up since 4:00 a.m.  We slept very well!

First Glimpse

We arrived just past 3:00 pm, and the first afternoon session begins at 3:30.  Talk about timing!  David sat in on the latest D.A.D.S. National (Dads Appreciating Down Syndrome) session, getting a few more ideas and  updated information for our local D.A.D.S. chapter.  David is the current director of our local D.A.D.S. group.  They try to meet monthly, and organize some great activities and fund raisers for our local area families in Rochester, NY.  You can visit their web page at www.dadsroc.com.

I headed for the workshop on Medical Issues in Children with Down Syndrome, and was very impressed with the presentation by Dr. Vellody, who is the Medical Director of the Down Syndrome Center of Western Pennsylvania, based at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.  Dr. Vellody has a 40 year old brother with Down syndrome, and has first-hand knowledge that adds a personal and real understanding of the challenges and concerns of caregivers.

One of the (many) topics he covered was the use of the out-dated "Down syndrome growth charts", which were developed in the 1950's using the medical knowledge and experiences of that time frame.  The charts were developed before the age of providing quality medical care and heart surgery to patients with Down syndrome.  The current recommendations are to use the standard growth charts, and plot height and weight relative to each child individually, and don't focus on that 'percentile' number.  New charts are currently being developed with updated data.

Dr. Vellody also discussed the use of x-rays for diagnosis of neck instability and other muscular and skeletal issues.  The use of trampolines is highly discouraged for children with Down syndrome, unless it is use of the small trampolines used with, and supervised by, physical therapists.  Since kids with Ds tend to have lower muscle tone and strength, and neck instability sometimes does not present with obvious signs, it's not a good idea to send your kids out on a trampoline to play.  Neck instability can either develop, or improve, over time.  The best way to prevent spinal cord injuries is to avoid exercises and activities that have a higher risk of causing them.

Thyroid testing, bone growth and abnormalities, speech issues, dentition, gait, physical therapy, speech and communication issues as they relate to medical diagnoses, skin problems, blood differences.... so many great topics were covered in Dr. Vellody's session.  

I think one of the best parts was when he highlighted the positive aspects of having a child with Down syndrome.  Some good news is that continuing studies are finding that NOT all people with Ds develop dementia (Alzheimers).  Some claims place the incidence of dementia in patients with Ds at 100%!  That's a frightening thought for parents and caregivers. 

The good news is, ongoing research is finding that often times, behavioral changes are being labeled as dementia, when they are really reactions to other changes in a person's life.  Dr. Vellody's example was a 17 year old patient that started to act out.  His regular doctors wanted to label him as early-onset dementia (because he has Ds).  Dr. Vellody's clinic took a closer look at all factors of the patient's life, and found that his older sister had moved out.  He was unable to process his grief, and began to act out.  Once that issue was discovered and dealt with, he was fine.  I think it is scary to think that our kids may be diagnosed and treated for dementia, simply because they have Down syndrome.  I also think that it's wonderful that we have access to expert information and clinics so that we can help our kids, and be sure to provide appropriate help for any issues.

People with Ds don't develop solid mass tumors, rarely have hypertension or plaque buildup in their arteries, are more likely to have positive outcomes with leukemia and infantile spasms, tend to be great readers, have positive attitudes, and be organized.  I can say from personal experience that Abigail loves to read, and certainly loves to clean and organize things.  Following her open heart surgery, she recovered in a remarkably short time and was home just 4 days after surgery.  Our kids really are amazing!!

If you have any questions about Dr. Vellody's presentation, please contact me with your email address, and I will send you more info.  By the end of the session, I wanted to bring his Ds Medical Center to Rochester with us.  Luckily, he's only a few hours' drive away!

Welcome to Indi!

I've been anticipating this year's conference for weeks!  I'd love to be able to say that I was packed, organized, and ready to go weeks beforehand, but I can't!  As usual, life with kids keeps us hopping.  Abigail had a change in her school placement for ESY, the older kids were signed up to be counselors for our church Vacation Bible School, our neighborhood yard sale had to be set up, and the conference all coincided to make for a very busy few weeks.

David and I headed out at 5:00 a.m. Friday morning for the drive to Indianapolis and the 42nd annual NDSC conference.  This year, it's just the two of us.  Indi isn't a place where there would be much to interest our kids, and since Grandma S. and Aunt Wendy volunteered to watch the kids... here we are!  It was a beautiful day for a drive, and the clear skies and sunny weather made for easy stops along the way.  We made the trip in just under 9 hours and arrived just in time to join the 3:30 afternoon workshops Friday afternoon.  More on those in the next few posts.

I must say that what we have seen of Indianapolis is very beautiful.  This year's conference is at the JW Marriott and the accommodations are very nice.  We are on the top floor next to the Presidential suite, and the garden view is spectacular!

We have been busy with breakout sessions, so posting time has been limited.  We're headed off to a movie premier (again, more in later posts!), so we'll see you later!