Autism Awareness Day

Today is Autism Awareness Day. Although I don't have anyone in my immediate family who has been affected by this, I have a friend with 2 young boys who has been. She is a wonderful mother, who homeschools her sons so that they get the style and attention they need with their schooling. Homeschooling allows her to focus on their learning styles, and not have them get lost in the educational system of a Public school! Her boys are so lucky to have her, and to be in their family.
We have a lady at our Church who minored in Autism Education in College. She's helped a young boy who used to attend our Church, by giving helpful advice to the other Nursery workers assigned to him, so that we could understand better what worked and didn't work in regards to dealing with him.
The more educated people are in regards to things that are "different" to them, the better off they'll be. I have taught my girls, that Jesus just made people who are "different", extra Special. People seem to be afraid of what they don't understand, so hopefully, many people today will learn something new, and get rid of their fear.

Watch for the Red Flags of Autism(The following red flags may indicate a child is at risk for atypical development, and is in need of an immediate evaluation.) In clinical terms, there are a few “absolute indicators,” often referred to as “red flags,” that indicate that a child should be evaluated. For a parent, these are the “red flags” that your child should be screened to ensure that he/she is on the right developmental path.

If your baby shows any of these signs, please ask your pediatrician or family practitioner for an immediate evaluation:
No big smiles or other warm, joyful expressions by six months or thereafter
No back-and-forth sharing of sounds, smiles, or other facial expressions by nine months or thereafter
No babbling by 12 months
No back-and-forth gestures, such as pointing, showing, reaching, or waving by 12 months
No words by 16 months
No two-word meaningful phrases (without imitating or repeating) by 24 months
Any loss of speech or babbling or social skills at any age

*This information has been provided by First Signs, Inc. ©2001-2005. Reprinted with permission. For more information about recognizing the early signs of developmental and behavioral disorders, please visit http://www.firstsigns.org or the Centers for Disease Control at www.cdc.gov/actearly.

This information was copied from Melanie's blog: http://travandmel.blogspot.com/

If you'd like to see a Video about Autism by Alicia Keys, make sure you check there. If you have any questions or need help, I'm sure she'd be able to help you also.

Prov. 3:5 & 6

Enjoy your day!

Dawn