Feelings Journal

Today I am bringing in a Guest Blogger to review Do2Learn's Feelings Journal.  Kaitlin Moncol is my daughter who you have all had the pleasure of reading about in past blogs. She is weighing in on this great product that offers specific information about different types of emotions.  For more info click here. Should you have any questions for Kaitlin leave them in the comment section and we will pass them along for her responses. Take it away Kaitlin!

Feelings Journal

Hi!  I'm the new guest blogger, Kaitlin, and I would like to talk about the Feelings Journal. The Feelings Journal is like the journals bought in the bookstore, but a lot more structured. I find it's structure makes it really easy to use because it's not just pages with blank lines. Some pages ask how you're feeling and why you feel that way. Other pages are more like worksheets by giving you an emotion and an activity related to that emotion. I even found some activities that I wish I could have used during high school English classes because they would definitely have been helpful. The best part of the structure is that it's not boring. When I wrote in a plain journal I got bored really easily. It just didn't motivate me. Even if it was an assignment in school, I was not motivated to do it at all. This journal motivates me because it gives easy directions and sometimes pictures, which I really like.

Another thing I really liked about this journal was the super, awesome, amazing cover. It has a design that is modern for today's world. I like that it is a mostly purple colored cover, but that is just my preference.  I also really like the paint splatters on the cover. Not only are designs on the cover, but they are also on the individual pages. They are different for the worksheets and the journaling pages. They are in black and white, so they would not distract from any writing thoughts.

I think that teens and young adults should write and/or draw in a journal. It helps get their feelings our when they don't want to talk about them. I know that when I was a teenager, I did not always want to talk about my feelings. It's not to offend you guys; we just don't always like to talk when we are upset about something.  Parents, I think you should get the Feelings Journal for your son or daughter because it might make it easier for them to express feelings in a productive way. Teachers, I would suggest getting this for a student who might be going through a hard time. That's all I have to say about this! Can't wait til next time!

Kaitlin in her younger years!

Fine Motor Skill Deficits – Starting Early Counts

When we think of fine motor skills the word dexterity often comes to mind. These skills are the coordination of small muscle movements, such as in the fingers and hands, (also toes, lips, tongue, etc.) along with the eyes. Often a child with a fine motor skill deficit may have difficulty with handwriting, painting, using scissors, and even dressing themselves or tying shoes. You may even be surprised to know that fine motor deficits can affect facial expressions and eating.

A Doctor can make a referral to an Occupational Therapist who can do an evaluation to see if there are fine motor skill deficits and recommend specific interventions for your child/student. This may also happen within a school setting as well. If you already have that information, or just want to encourage those skills in your child/student, there are lots of activities that are done everyday that work on those fine motor skills. For example, just passing an object from one hand to the other is a wonderful activity that works on fine motor skills. Picking up those little o-shaped cereal pieces are great for the pincer grasp. Building towers with blocks and cutting with scissors, not to mention learning how to tie shoes, all work on fine motor skills. Plus they are all so much fun!!

Do2Learn has a Fine Motor SkillsActivity Book available that is designed to improve fine motor skills. It contains activities that provide positive sensory feedback and enhances hand-eye coordination. These activities also exercise the muscles needed to manipulate a pencil in a mature tripod grasp. Work on this grasp is needed to prevent fatigue during handwriting activities.

For more information on fine motor skills development and activities be sure to check out this page.

Support – Who is Holding You Up?

When you have a loved one with special needs you need support! Some days more than others, of course. Those early days right after finding out about a diagnosis may feel like a blur, but that is the time to begin to reach out and locate resources for support for you, your family and your loved one.

WHO—Who can offer support? Hopefully the professionals giving you the diagnosis will give you information on local resources in your area. Look to them for support. Perhaps there is a local, state, or national organization related to your loved one's disability or special need that you can connect with. Churches or other religious organizations offer support. Look to your friends and family, though they may be struggling themselves to understand what is happening with your loved one, they can still be a great source of encouragement. In fact, it would be very helpful to get them involved with your support search. There are professionals such as counselors, social workers, psychologists, etc. and you should never hesitate at any point to involve them in your search for support for yourself, or any member of your family! There are sibling groups, Father's groups, Mother's groups, and even Grandparent support groups for varying disabilities these days.  We now have the Internet and there are vast resources for support there, but be cautious about how and what you share unless you “know” the group in real life.

WHAT—What does support look like? Well it can be as simple as another person just listening to your story and offering encouragement. Support can be in the form of a group made up of people who have been through, or are going through and can relate to what you are going through and keep you from feeling like you are alone. It can be your loved one's teacher sending a note home telling you what a great job your loved one is doing! Sharing your moments that only someone “in the know” could laugh along with you, on Facebook at 1 AM is wonderfully supportive.

WHY—Why do we need support? Support is our foundation when we have our low points. Loving someone who has special needs is more than a full-time job and is like a roller coaster. There will be ups and downs and we need a strong foundation and lots of props to lean upon during those moments when we stumble.

No matter where you are on your journey with your loved one with special needs know that support is a vital part of that journey. You may be at the beginning stages or pretty far into the journey, but know that we are all in this together. Supporting one another is how we share information on coping strategies, medical interventions, public policy and financial information, camps, and loads more.

So go share, go support and be supported!

Labels – For Kids or Cans?

It's an ongoing debate, the one about labels and Autism. If you have a loved one who is on the Autism Spectrum you know exactly what I am talking about. Everyday there is something new written about it. Don't believe me? Go ahead and do a search each morning for the next week and check. You will be astounded at what you find and read. That's not what I am going to write about here today though. I want to share my experience with the Autism label.

Seventeen years ago when my daughter was diagnosed we were told she was “Autistic”. Not very person centered, but that was the times back then. Thank goodness the world has moved forward and now I would be told that she has “Autism”. What's the difference? Well, being told that she has Autism is telling me that she is still my dear, sweet, smart, beautiful, loving daughter who just so happens to have Autism. Being told that she is Autistic is telling me that my daughter is not at all who I thought she was and that she is now defined by this new label. My daughter happens to have Autism and she is fabulous.

Autism is a spectrum disorder and if you have seen one person with Autism you have seen just that! One person with Autism. Everyone is as different as the snowflakes that fall from a winter sky. No square pegs in rounds holes here, that is for certain. What does amaze me is the number of parents who like to add “very high functioning” to the explanation that their child has Autism. Oh you know them! They are the ones that stand up at conferences and introduce themselves by saying they have a child who has very, very, very, very, very, very, HIGH Functioning Autism (so HIGH you wonder why they even have to come to the conference to begin with) and then ask a question that leads you to think otherwise.

Well, I would like to leave off the “highs” and the “lows” when we get together to talk about advocating and supporting our loved ones with Autism. You may be asking yourself why, when they have such different needs. Not really! Our loved ones need the same type of services and supports. The level and delivery of those services and supports will be different depending on the individual of course. Autism is defined as a social and communication disorder. Those two difficulties are displayed in varying degrees throughout the Autism spectrum and therefore the support would be just as different, as would the delivery of services needed to offer support.

So keep it person centered when you are describing anyone who happens to have any type of special need. We need to stick together and leave those “sticky” labels for the cans!

Happy New Year and IEP Review

Happy 2012 from Do2Learn! Time to take a deep breath and look towards what you hope to accomplish in this new year. I have always liked this time of year to go over my child's IEP to see if her goals are still appropriate and perhaps plan for her IEP team to have a meeting to review this together.

Being the mother of a daughter (who is almost 19 now) who has Autism, I did not always feel as much a part of the IEP team as I should have. The more I learned, the more confidant I became as a member of this valuable educational team. Who knew my daughter the best in those meetings? Me, of course!

I hope that you will feel confidant as a member of your child's IEP Team. Learning about the process is very important to not feeling so lost in what can feel like a jungle of acronyms at times. Do2learn has several areas to help you begin learning about IEP's and other information to build your confidence when advocating for your child educationally.

Check under the RED, Disabilities box on our website. There is a lot of information under this box, but specifically related to the IEP, is within the Parents & Teachers section of the drop-down. You will also notice areas for Terms and Acronyms here too. Please enjoy exploring this area of our website and I hope you find that the information empowers you as you review your child's IEP for the new year.

All of this information in the Disabilities area is a FREE area of Do2Learn. Don't forget you can follow us on Facebook too.

Parents' Frustrations and Confusion: Where do I Begin?

Entering into the world of disabilities is like entering into a country where you don't speak the language and don't understand the people who live there. This new land is full of signs and road maps and, worst of all, acronyms...but you don't know what they mean and you aren't sure who to trust for help.

Do2Learn has developed some content that can be helpful as a cross cultural guide into the world of disabilities. Our Disabilities section includes:

• definitions of disabilities as written under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
• information on the evaluation and identification process

• characteristics and strategies for twelve different disabilities.

A screenshot for just some of the info on strategies for individuals who are Twice Exceptional



• Individualized Education Plan (IEP) development tips
• Acronyms and Terms defined in a way that makes sense
• Teacher Toolbox including Classroom Management, Learning Strategies, and Education Resources

These are just some of the resources available under the Disabilities tab on our home page at Do2Learn. Tell us...what did you find most confusing about navigating the new world of disabilities? Is there anything else you think we should add?