Special Needs & Disabilities

NICHCY (The National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities is a referral center that provides information on disability-related issues for families, educators, and other professionals, with a special emphasis on birth to 22 years. This is the best website for general special needs information and is a good starting place for new parents of special needs children. It contains many Fact Sheets and papers that can be downloaded for free.)

Types of Childhood Disabilities and Other Special Needs (Here you will find resources, practical and current information about a wide range of childhood disorders and special needs, carefully described and researched by the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities. Most of the information is available in both English and Spanish.)

www.danieljvance.com (Daniel J. Vance and his wife are raising and homeschooling a 10-year-old daughter with spina bifida and a 9-year-old son. His self-syndicated weekly newspaper column, "Disabilities," has been published in more than 190 newspapers. If not in your local newspaper, you can receive it free each week via email by request, and you can also read the column on his website.)

Fisher Price Special Needs Guide (Fisher Price offers activities for helping your special needs child. Their recommendations for children with special needs emphasize play stages—not ages—because all children develop at different rates.)

Let's Play! Project (Play is how kids grow; it's what they do. All children need opportunities to discover and actively explore the world around them. However, for many young children with disabilities, play is often limited. The Let’s Play Project at the University of Buffalo, Center for Assistive Technology, provides tips on selecting toys for children with disabilities, and offers free downloadable resources.)

Parent Pals Special Education Resources (A special education community where parents and professionals share information and offer support.)

Family Village (A global community of disability-related information for persons with cognitive and other disabilities, for their families, and for those that provide services and support.)

Come-Unity (Articles and resources for parenting children with special needs or disabilities.)

Disabled Online (An online directory of resources to benefit people with disabilities including employment opportunities, recreational programs, and travel destinations. Also provides interactive tools, chat rooms and classifieds.)

www.SpecialNeeds.com (An online book store that specializes in books, videos, DVDs and related items about disabilities and special needs.)

www.nathhan.com (National Challenged Homeschoolers Associated Network - NATHHAN - the website for Christian Families Homeschooling Special Needs Children, equipping parents to confidently raise their children with special needs or disabilities.)

Homeschooling Special Needs (Ten Steps to Successfully Homeschool Children with Special Needs.)

Disability is Natural (Thought-provoking site on disabilities as a natural part of the human experience.)

From My Heart (Scroll down the left side to find poems about loving a special needs child. Includes Edna Massimilla’s beautiful poem, “Heaven’s Very Special Child,” a must-read for every special needs parent.)

See Also: Special Kids... Special Needs

Learning Disabilities

LD Online (The leading web site on learning disabilities, disorders and differences for parents, teachers, and other professionals. Authoritative guidance on attention deficit disorder, ADD / ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, dysnomia, reading difficulties, speech and related disorders.)

Dyslexia My Life (Informative website by Girard Sagmiller, author of the autobiographical book, Dyslexia My Life, giving inside knowledge on the various ways of coping with dyslexia and learning disabilities.)

The Bible's Way to Victory over ADHD and Other Childhood Challenges (A free online book, providing sound answers on preventing and overcoming behavioral, emotional and learning problems, including ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), ODD (Oppositional Defiant Disorder), Conduct Disorder and Tourette's Syndrome.)

www.thomasarmstrong.com (The website of Thomas Armstrong, Ph.D., a psychologist and educator. Read his articles on multiple intelligences, the natural genius of children, and the myth of ADD.)

Family Education (Get helpful information, expert advice, and tips from other parents on topics ranging from the signs of a learning disability to the best education options for a gifted learner.)

Learning Abled Kids (Seeks to provide information and tools to help parents circumvent their child's learning disabilities.)

Born to Explore: The Other Side of ADD (A Clearinghouse for Positive and Alternative Information.)

Carol's Speech and Language Disorders Professional Resources (A comprehensive website of sites that will give you information about specific speech and language disorders. Also, articles, lesson plans, and materials.)

Learn Differently (Helping Struggling Learners and Their Parents.)

See Also: Learning Disabilities... or Not!

See Also: Review: An Inspired Idea

Technology

Access Watch
This website continually reviews computer access products of all sorts and keeps tabs on the accessibility of main stream software as well.

Duxbury Systems
Braille translation software. Supports grade 1 and grade 2 translation in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Arabic, Malaysian, Swedish, and other languages.

Freedom Scientific
Assistive and adaptive technology products including Braille note takers, screen readers, screen enlargement programs and other adaptive products for computers.

GW Micro
Computer company that sells screen readers and speech synthesizers.

Human Ware
Digital tools, braille note takers and other adaptive computer equipment.

Kurzweil Educational Systems Inc.
Developer of reading technology for people with learning difficulties, people who are blind or visually impaired.

PCS Games
Computer games for people who are blind.

Serotek
Producer of screen reading and specialized web browsing software, and host for an on-line community of blind people.

Additional Resources

American Council of the Blind

American Foundation for the Blind

National Federation of the Blind

American Printing House for the Blind
Commercial Braille production house and source for adapted educational and daily living products - since 1858.

American Thermoform Corporation
Printers, embossers, translation software and other Braille supplies.

Howe Press
Manufacturer of the Perkins Brailler. A private non-profit organization serving the needs of people who are blind, deafblind and visually handicapped.

Independent Living Aids
Low vision aids for independent living, including talking watches.

LS and S
Specializes in products for the blind, visually impaired, deaf, and hard of hearing.

Optelec
Specializing in electronic equipment for the blind and partially sighted.

MaxiAids
Leading provider of adaptive products, products for independent living and products designed to enhance your lifestyle.

View Finder
Special low vision eyeglasses and custom microscopic and telescopic low vision aids.

Hadley School for the Blind
Offers more than 100 distance education courses free of charge to those who are blind, their families or blindness professionals.

Ability Culture
Arts, entertainment and news for people living with disabilities.

Artability
A bridge between arts organizations and individuals with disabilities by promoting accessible programming in the arts and facilitating connections to services and resources.

Media Access Group at WGBH - Descriptive Video Service
Delivering accessible media through captioning and audio descriptions. Their website contains a wealth of information including educational uses for captions.

Book Share
Online service that gives print disabled people in the United States legal access to more than 32,600 books and 150 periodicals that are converted to Braille, large print or text to speech audio files.

National Braille Press
A nonprofit braille printer and publisher offering braille books, magazines, textbooks, tests, and customized embossing services.

National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped
A national network of cooperating libraries providing a free braille and audio materials circulated to eligible borrowers in the United States by postage-free mail.

Seedlings Braille Books for Children
More than 800 low-cost children's books in braille.

Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic
On demand educatonal recordings of books.

ACB Radio
A web-based radio station for people who are blind.

International Association of Audio Information Services (IAAIS)
An association of independently operated, volunteer-driven services that use audio technology to transform print into speech. Includes a listing of Radio Reading Services around the globe. Sun Sounds of Arizona is a proud member.

Narrative Television Network.
A web site containing Narrated movies with audio description for blind people.

NFB-Newsline
Toll-free call-in center providing audio access to more than 200 newspapers in English and Spanish.

Eye Dog Foundation for the Blind, Inc.
Dedicated to giving guide dogs to the blind and the visually impaired at absolutely no cost. Their German Shepherd dogs have been assisting individuals all over the world.

Guide Dogs for the Blind
Campus training services and extensive follow-up support for graduates. Services are provided to students from the United States and Canada at no cost to them.

Guiding Eyes for the Blind
A non-profit, charitable organization providing trained guide dogs for the visually impaired throughout the world.

Seeing Eye, Inc.
An organization located in New Jersey that provides guide dogs to blind people for orientation and mobility.

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Copyright © 2000- by Teri Ann Berg Olsen
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