Archive for the ‘Special Needs Child’ Category

Dysgraphia is medical terminology that comes from the Greek. The prefix “dys” means ill or difficult. The root word “graph” means writing. The suffix “ia” means condition of.

Child care tips Dysgraphia

Dysgraphia is termed a neurological disorder affecting handwriting by the International Dyslexia Association. This is different from the classifications used by other organizations. Nonetheless, dysgraphia is usually thought of as a neurological disorder affecting the fine motor skills in general. Affected are the ability to recognize and understand the relationship between letters and sounds, letters themselves, written words and spoken words. Therefore, constructing words and spelling will be quite difficult.

Writing Disabilities and their Affects: Naturally, if a person has a writing disability, this will negatively impact his or her ability to write in a linear and tidy fashion. Handwriting might look strange and letter, numbers and signs might be wrong or mixed up. People with Dysgraphia may have problems with punctuation. This can cause confusion and difficulty in writing well and expressively.

A person with Dysgraphia might have problems explaining and translating ideas into writing. Similarly, since Dysgraphia is a processing disorder, it may also involve problems with the processing of all kinds of visual information, such as symbols and graphs. A person with Dysgraphia might experience problems ordering such information.

Dysgraphia is not linked to intelligence level. A person may be very intelligent and still have Dysgraphia. Be that as it may, Dysgraphia is a writing disability that can exist along with other learning disabilities. Being a neurological condition, Dysgraphia may manifest as a learning disability of mild to moderate proportions.

Dysgraphia

Children and Writing Disabilities: During the course of a person’s life, the level of difficulty experienced with this processing disorder may vary. Throughout the normal development stages of the life of a person with Dysgraphia, the level and severity of the disorder may fluctuate.

Dysgraphia is usually noticed in children when they begin learning how to write. It will generally persist throughout the school years. Even with specialized and focused tutoring, a person with Dysgraphia may have problems creating letters all of a similar size and spaced correctly. Handwriting may be messed up and unorganized, with misspelling or simply incorrect words.

Fortunately, because dysgraphia is a learning disability, there are alternate teaching methods that can offer strategies that enable the student to work around the problem. Each person with Dysgraphia needs a specialized program because the disorder can affect different people in different ways. Some may have problems with writing, some with fine motor skills in general, still others might have problems remembering the shapes of letters and how they work together to form words.

Nonetheless, for both instances, the technique of special needs support must be carried out every day to obtain good results. In a few situations, more specialized classroom help can be given through a learning aid. Some possibilities are computer use instead of handwriting, the use of Dictaphones, and for reading, raised or color coded text.

Kanner's or Classical Autistic Disorder

Kanner’s or Classical Autistic Disorder

This is the most familiar type of autism. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition Text Revision (American Psychiatric Association, 2000) states that, at this range, children with autism may experience mild to profound mental retardation. Here are the DSM-IV manual criteria for the diagnosis of Classical Autistic Disorder.

In order to be diagnosed with autism, a person must exhibit at least six symptoms from these 3 categories. Furthermore, these symptoms must be divided as follows: two symptoms from Section 1, a minimum of one symptom from Section 2, a minimum of one symptom from Section 3.

Section 1: Social Interaction (A minimum of two)

1. Difficulties with  non-verbal cues (e.g. eye contact and facial expression).
2. Difficulty conversing with people the same age.
3. Difficulty having shared interests with the same age group.
4. Lack of ability to display reciprocity socially or emotionally.

Section 2: Communication (A minimum of one)

1. Spoken language skills that are not normally developed.
2. A pronounced lack of conversational skills (unable to start or maintain conversations).
3. Repetitious language (e.g. constant repetition of a line from a song or movie or other phrase).

Kanner's or Classical Autistic Disorder

4. Repetitious and unvarying play.

Section 3: Repetition (A minimum of one)

1. Preoccupation with at least one interest in which the amount of concentration or focus is abnormally intense.
2. Is inflexible with routines.
3. Hand wringing, hand or finger flapping and other repetitious motor movements.
4. A constant obsession with specific items.

Additionally, the child exhibits delay in one or more of these areas:
• Creative play
• Social involvement
• Practical and spontaneous use of language.

What are the Physical Characteristics of People with Autism?

In his book, “Educating Exceptional Children: An Introduction to Special Education,” Mangal states that it is often not immediately apparent that a child is autistic based on physical appearance. This author maintains that autistic children do not differ physically from their non-disabled peers. Children with autism may exhibit very strong behavioral signs; however, they may simultaneously show no physical manifestations of the condition.

Per Thomas L. Whitman, who wrote: “The Development of Autism – A Self-Regulatory Perspective,” autistic children are quite often unusually attractive. However, there are children with autism who have some small variations in their physical characteristics and physique.

Large Head Size

One distinguishing feature of children with autism is a large head size. Children with autism may have a normal-sized head when born; however, it may increase in size at a rapid rate later on. According to research, autistic children typically possess a head measurement that is ten percent greater than that of their non-disabled peers

Kanner's or Classical Autistic Disorder

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Excessive Hand Gestures

Children with autism may exhibit more hand gestures than normal. It is speculated that this may be because of a lack of verbal skills. Children with autism often use physical prompts such as pointing and gesturing rather than vocalizing their needs. Often they may act out with tantrums due to frustration at being unable to verbalize thoughts and needs.

Extremes in Activity Levels

Children with autism may exhibit extremes of activity levels from excessive activity to very low levels of activity. In her book, “Scientists Reveal that Autism and Hyperactivity have the Same Cause,” Dr. Angelica Ronald states that one-third of children with autism are hyperactive and inattentive.
In “Autism Is Not a Life Sentence,” by Lynley Summers and Jessica Summers, we learn that children with autism may experience periods of very low activity. It is quite common to observe a child with autism pacing, running to and fro, or running in circles for hours on end followed by hours of sitting still and staring.

Inconsistency in Motor Skills

Some children with autism are unable to perform simple tasks such as getting dressed, using eating utensils, balancing or hopping on one leg. Simultaneously, these children may also have talents such as playing music, drawing, or simply arranging their toys in a very complex manner that seem to be in the gifted range. There is no specific developmental pattern that can be applied to the development of motor skills in children with autism. They may perform at an extremely high level in some areas while being completely incapable of normal performance in other areas.

Additional Physical Characteristics

The physical characteristics of children with autism include:

• An apparent lack of interest in people
• Avoidance of eye contact
• An apparent lack of interest in toys
• Over-sized eyes and ears
• Pale skin tone
• Repetitious behavior such as head shaking and/or banging and hand-flapping
• Low muscle tone and an uneven gait
• Emotional outbursts and aggression

An orofacial cleft is a birth defect in which an opening is present in the lip and/or roof of the mouth (palate). This condition is due to incomplete development during the early formation of the fetus.
In the US, one or two in every thousand babies are born with cleft lip or cleft palate every year. It is a very common birth defect. The rate of clefts’ occurrence is higher in children of Asian, Latino, or Native American descent.

Hints for childcare workers and parents

The positive side is that both the cleft lip and cleft palate can be treated. Usually, a child born with cleft lip or palate can successfully have corrective surgery within the first year and a half of his or her life.

What you should know about oral clefting: During the first trimester of pregnancy, the palate and/or lip of the fetus may fail to fuse completely. This is the cause of an orofacial cleft. A cleft lip might look like a tiny nick in the edge of the lip only or go all the way to the nose. It can possibly go to the gums.

There are variations in the degree of cleft palate. It may consist of a soft palate defect only, or it may extend as a cleft through the hard palate. Palate and lip develop separately; therefore, a child may be born with one or the other cleft or both.

There are three general categories of cleft defects:
1/ Cleft lip alone.
2/ Cleft palate alone.
3/ A combination of cleft lip and cleft palate.

Clefts may be one-sided (unilateral) or two-sided (bilateral). Boys will more typically have cleft lip without cleft palate. Girls will more typically have cleft palate without cleft lip.

Generally speaking, it is much easier to identify a cleft lip because it can be seen; whereas, a cleft palate cannot. Cleft lips are normally found during a prenatal ultrasound, but it is more difficult to discover a cleft palate, since it may not show up in an ultrasound.

Cleft condition may be identified in-utero; however, it cannot be treated until after the baby is born and a physician has examined and diagnosed the condition.

Infants who have only a cleft lip will generally have fewer problems eating than those who have a cleft palate. A newly born infant may have feeding difficulty if it suffers from a cleft palate. Usually, the palate keeps food and liquids from going into the nose. When a baby has a cleft palate that has not been repaired, it can cause problems sucking on a standard nipple. In this case, it is necessary to provide a special nipple and bottle and position the baby properly for feeding. The caregiver learns how to feed the baby using these techniques before going home from the hospital. The child’s physician will keep a close eye on how much the child weighs.

The typical age period for repair of a cleft lip is between three and six months. If a child has a very wide cleft in the lip, s/he may need a procedure known as lip adhesion or it may be necessary to utilize a device known as a molding plate, which will draw the parts of the lip closer so that they can be repaired. When a child has a cleft lip that has been repaired, there will be a scar on the lip beneath the nose. Surgery is completed while under general anesthesia and in a hospital.

The normal age at which a cleft palate is repaired is in the range of nine months to one year. In repairing the palate, soft palate muscles on either side are connected. This creates the normal barrier between the nose and the mouth. The patient is hospitalized for two nights after cleft palate surgery, which is done using general anesthesia.

Aspergers Disorder is a lifelong condition that is usually not diagnosed until a child attends school. Usually the child does not exhibit a cognitive delay of any kind and can actually have above normal intelligence. This is the primary reason that a child remains undiagnosed until he or she attends school and is expected to socialize. Social inadequacy characterizes this disorder, as opposed to mental retardation, which is present in other kinds of autism.

Aspergers Disorder

The following criteria are utilized in order to make the diagnosis of Asperger’s Disorder, per the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition Text Revision (American Psychiatric Association, 2000):

Social Interaction Impairment (A minimum of two):

1. Inability to understand non-verbal cues, such as facial expressions, or maintaining eye contact.
2. Difficulty in establishing social relationships with others of the same age.
3. Lack of ability to enjoy interests that others of the same age enjoy.
4. Lack of ability to demonstrate social or emotional reciprocity.

Repetition (A minimum of one):

1. An intense involvement with one or more interests, the focus or concentration of which is not normal.
2. Is inflexible when it comes to routines.
3. Repetitive motor movements, such as hand or finger flapping and hand wringing.
4. Continual involvement with certain items.

Social, academic, or occupational dysfunction can occur as a result of this disorder. Language and cognitive abilities are not delayed, and self help skills develop normally.

Child Disintegrative Disorder

Info about Aspergers Disorder in Children

Severe mental retardation is present with this kind of autism, and up to age of two, the child develops normally. The child exhibits age-appropriate development in such areas as verbal communication, non-verbal communication, social relationships, play, and adaptive behavior (American Psychiatric Association, 2000).

Prior to the age of 10, the child will exhibit a loss of these developed areas in a minimum of two of the following areas:

1. Language that is meaningful or friendly
2. Social Skills
3. Toilet control (bladder and bowels)
4. Play
5. Motor Skills

In addition, the child will exhibit impairment in a minimum of two of the following areas:

1. Social Interactions (for example with nonverbal behaviors)
2. Communication (for example with spoken language)
3. Repetitive behavior (interests and motor gestures that are limited in scope)

This kind of autism is less prevalent than Classical Autistic Disorder and is noted more frequently in males (American Psychiatric Association, 2000).

All infomation for this article gathered By Tessa Bishop Invercargill New Zealand

A number of abilities are affected by cerebral palsy, which is why this condition is sometimes described as a group of disorders. The constellation of symptoms it presents may affect thinking, seeing, hearing, learning, movement, and other brain and nervous system functions.

Bunnie in a cup, babysitter graphic

Spastic,  ataxic,  dyskinetic, hypotonic, and mixed are among the possible varieties of cerebral palsy.

Both injuries and abnormalities of the brain can result in cerebral palsy. The majority of these issues manifest as the baby develops in the uterus, but they can occur at any time before a child turns two, a time during which the child’s brain is still developing.

Some people with cerebral palsy have low levels of oxygen (hypoxia) in some parts of the brain. The reason that this happens is unknown.

Babies born prematurely are slightly more likely to develop cerebral palsy.

There are several conditions that may cause the onset of cerebral palsy in early infancy. They include:
• Severe jaundice
• Head injury
• Bleeding in the brain
• Infections in the mother during pregnancy (e.g. rubella)
• Brain infections, such as encephalitis, meningitis, herpes simplex infections

Sometimes the cause of cerebral palsy remains a mystery.

People with cerebral palsy may exhibit a variety of symptoms, and each case is different.

Symptoms Vary
• They may be quite mild or severe
• They might involve only one side of the body or both
• It is possible for symptoms to be more pronounced in either the arms or legs.

Alternately, symptoms may involve both the arms and legs. It is typical for symptoms to be seen before a child reaches the age of two. Sometimes symptoms manifest as early as 3 months. Developmental stages such as rolling, sitting, crawling and walking may be delayed, and this may give parents a clue to problems. Cerebral palsy can take many forms. Occasionally, a patient will present with multiple symptoms.

In the most common type of cerebral palsy (spastic type), the muscles are quite tight and incapable of stretching. Additional tightening may occur over time.

• Abnormal walk (gait): arms tucked in toward the sides, knees crossed or touching, legs make “scissors” movements, walk on the toes
• Joints are tight and do not open up all the way (called joint contracture)
• Muscle weakness or loss of movement in a group of muscles (paralysis)
• The symptoms may affect one arm or leg, one side of the body, both legs, or both arms and legs

The following symptoms may occur in other types of cerebral palsy:
• Abnormal movements (twisting, jerking, or writhing) of the hands, feet, arms, or legs while awake, which gets worse during periods of stress
• Tremors
• Unsteady gait
• Loss of coordination
• Floppy muscles, particularly at rest, and joints that move around too much

Other brain and nervous system symptoms:
• Reduced intelligence or learning disabilities are common; however, intelligence can be normal
• Speech problems (dysarthria)
• Hearing or vision problems
• Seizures
• Pain, especially in adults (which can be difficult to manage)

Eating and digestive symptoms:
• Difficulty sucking or feeding in infants, or chewing and swallowing in older children and adults
• Problems swallowing (at all ages)
• Vomiting or constipation

Other symptoms:
• Increased drooling
• Slower than normal growth
• Irregular breathing
• Urinary incontinence

Complications:
• Bone thinning or osteoporosis
• Bowel obstruction
• Hip dislocation and arthritis in the hip joint
• Injuries from falls
• Joint contractures
• Pneumonia caused by choking
• Poor nutrition
• Decreased communication skills (sometimes)
• Decreased intellect (sometimes)
• Scoliosis
• Seizures (in about fifty percent of patients)
• Social stigma

Hey, I’m Lara. I live in Mt Albert,  Auckland New Zealand.

I’m an honest, bubbly and reliable person, currently freshly-graduated from secondary school and living at home with my parents/family. Looking for any type of babysitting jobs.

Being the 6th child of 9, I’m used to being surrounded with kids, as well as having to babysit them.

I currently have a part-time job coaching recreational gymnastics to 5-10 year old children, and love it! I’ve also volunteered as a leader at my church’s children programme – on Sundays as well as during their holiday programmes (40+kids).

I’m a very artsy fartsy person and in my spare time enjoy knitting, painting, sewing, photography and baking (not the best cook, but I try my best!)

My Usual Rate is: $13 per hour

As well as babysitting I’m also happy to discuss your need in the following areas.
Daytime Help
Elderly Care
House sitter
Home Help
Special Needs Care
Pet sitting

Babysitter Mt Albert, Auckland to view my profile and get my contact details

http://babysitme.co.nz/profile.php?ID=1172

Babysitme.co.nz offers a service for people looking for a babysitter or caregiver NZ where they pay $4.95 and have full access for 1 hour, they view as many profiles with contact details as they can in that time.

If you are a babysitme babysitter, you can register for free here and if you would like to write a blog post, and supply me with the url to your babysitter profile url at www.babysitme.co.nz your babysitter profile it will look something like

http://www.babysitme.co.nz/profile.php?ID=3010

Read the rest of this entry »

I am 22 years old, have recently returned from the UK and hold a degree in English and Women’s Studies. I am starting teacher training next year.

I have been babysitting, on and off, since I was 15 but lost contact with most referees while in the UK.

I love kids and I’m both playful and responsible. I am able to cook for kids, anything from after-school snacks, lunch packing to healthy dinners (including vegetarian, vegan and allergies).

I have a basic first aid cert but need to do my renewal course. I am also available to do homework help and tutoring. I am experienced with dyslexic and autistic children.

Rates are negotiable for long term, overnight and repeat clients. I look forward to hearing from you soon.,

Babysitting
Daytime Help
Petsitter
Special Needs Care
First Aid Certificate

Babysitter & Special Needs Care + Ponsonby, Auckland to view my profile and get my contact details

http://babysitme.co.nz/profile.php?ID=1071

Babysitme.co.nz offers a service for people looking for a Special Needs Care,  home help, babysitters etc  in NZ where they pay $4.95 and have full access for 1 hour, they view as many profiles with contact details as they can in that time.

Parents who have children with disabilities usually have a difficult time locating babysitters to watch their children. Babysitters fear looking after these children and some teenager’s parents don’t want their children to take on this type of challenge. This is the beginning part in an article series about caring for children who have special needs.

You must learn something about the child and the disability he has, first.

Request a visit with the parents before you are first employed as a babysitter. Take some time educating yourself about the child’s disability, and some time playing with the child or establishing the necessary skills.

You have to find out how the parent defines the disability. Typically they don’t use the term handicap anymore, since many people consider this term to mean helpless. The terms used by some people are disabled, challenged, or special needs. Say whichever one the parent prefers. Also learn what term is used to define the child’s actual disability. For example, some parents use the term deaf, some use the term hearing impaired, but some use the term hearing challenged. I actually heard someone say “sound challenged” at one time! Say this word over and over so you will remember this.

When you become acquainted with the parent, ask them what the child is able to do and what kind of help is needed. Is there something you should be instructing him to do ? If a child is beginning to learn how to lace up his shoes, he might need assistance, however you should allow him to try as much as possible. What does this disability consist of, anyhow? What kind of warning signs should you look for?

Babysit Me is has lists of people in New Zealand offering their services in all area’s of caring for people, from newborn babies, to elderly care, there’s the usual list of

Babysitters, Daytime Help, Elderly Carers, Au Pairs, Nanny’s, House Sitters, Pet Sitters, Home Help, Special Needs Carers

but it doesn’t stop there, many of the NZ carers listed in the directory also offer things like Homework Help, Tutoring, before and/or after school pick-ups and care, Emergency Care Respite Care, Help with Birthday Parties, Short Stay Care in their Own Homes.

The carers in the carer directory range in ages from 14 to 60+ so offer a downloadable CV’s , most will do housework, or generally anything that’s required, although the odd carer states quite clearly “I won’t do your housework.” lol.

I’m going to add some new searchable categories one of which will be of interest to people from overseas… Carers looking at AuPair out of New Zealand.

So if you are a

Babysitter, Daytime Help, Elderly Carer, Au Pair, Nanny, House Sitter, Pet Sitter, Home Help, Special Need Carer and might also offer

Homework Help, Tutoring, before and/or after school pick-ups and care, Emergency Care Respite Care, Help with Birthday Parties, Short Stay Care in their Own Homes, or any other way of taking care of a certain or any age group,

and looking for the

best ways to promote yourself as a babysitting join up here

http://babysitme.co.nz/join.php

Find out how to refer to the child when you first agree to babysit a hearing-impaired child. Some say hearing challenged or hearing impaired, while others use the term deaf. In every situation, deaf and dumb is the wrong term to use.

Eventually, these children will learn to speak even if they can’t now. Some can hear a little, and many of them have some hearing and hearing aids to help them hear well.

Usually, hearing impaired kids learn to communicate by lip-reading or sign language. Learning to speak is something that most deaf children accomplish. Sign language comes in several different types. ASL has its own grammar, and it is the 4th most common language in the US. Pictures and meaning were used to create the language. In sign language, you may notice SEE or several other methods in English. ASL does a better job of helping deaf children fit into the deaf culture, and SEE does a better job of helping kids learn to communicate with hearing people. They only know of a hearing world if they aren’t taught how to sign.

If the child uses sign language to communicate, any babysitter should learn to use it as well. Arrange for the parents to teach you the most important signs if this will be a steady customer. Learn sign language on the Internet or buy a sign language book with your babysitting money. How well you can take care of the child is measured by how much you can sign. The child will know that you care if you accomplish this. Have the parents show you what signs the baby uses because they don’t always sign like adults.

Look him in the eye and speak clearly as you sign to a deaf child. Your lip movements should never be exaggerated. The normal way that lip movements occur is how he learned to read them. Don’t look away or put your hand in front of your face. They may understand lip-reading, signs, and listening; many children use a combination.
Plan games and activities that don’t require much communication until you are better at signing. Look at picture books, do crafts, or play tag. Writing notes back and forth might work for older children. Teaching you to sign might be something that children enjoy.

Be sure that younger children don’t turn off their hearing aid; make sure you keep an eye on them to prevent this from happening.

To escape you, they may do this sometimes. Keep a close eye on them because they might take them off and hide or lose them. To replace them, it will require a lot of money. To make sure it doesn’t go down the drain, take off the hearing aid and put it in a safe place before you give the child a bath. While the child is taking a bath, sleeping or swimming, ask the parents what to do with the hearing aids.

Deaf children are just regular kids in most ways, and that is the most important thing of all to remember. Just like you would any child, treat them as if they are no different. Feeling special and important is something they long for.