Parenting Special Needs Magazine • May/June 2016 • Did You Know?

Ten years ago Jack Viorel, moved his family to Wilmington, North Carolina, and opened a surf school as a means to reach children and open their minds.

The new inclusive camp is the first on a summer-long schedule of charity outreach surf camps that will serve, at no cost to the campers. Visually impaired, autistic, and hearing impaired individuals, as well as boys and girls club members, wounded soldiers, cancer survivors, and participants with developmental and intellectual challenges.

James and William are part of the Belleville District 118 program that pairs students in regular education with students on the autism spectrum. Their mentors coach the students with autism in social skills. Students who are interested in becoming peer mentors begin by hanging out with the students who have autism a day or two each week at lunch. From there, they are paired for the next year, after the mentor undergoes training over the summer. (source: www.ewww.bnd.com/news/local/education)

It's easy for kids to get sucked into the T.V., Ipads or cell phones this summer because there is so much free time. This is not always the best though for our children. Dr. Jean Moorjani a pediatrician at Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando, Florida, created easy ways for you to minimize the amount of screen time your children get this summer with these easy tips: One, do more than set time limits. Dr. Jean Moorjani says, "It's not just how much time your child spends on their devices, it's the content they're consuming"; two, remember that not all screen time is bad; three set up media-free zones in your house and lastly, don't leave kids to their own devices.

Children's Specialized Hospital launched their Healthier Me - the first and only mobile app that promotes health, nutrition, fitness, and safety for children and teens with autism called Parent PAL (Progress Activity Log). The Parent PAL app makes tracking a child's unique developmental journey a little easier to manage. Between visits to the physician or therapist, a parent or caregiver can track the child's speech and feeding progress, gauge behavior and independence and gather other helpful information for the child's medical care team.

The Harvey & Ellen Weisenberg Special Needs Resource App is a groundbreaking, multifaceted resource that caregivers and families of our special people can turn to in a multitude of ways. The App includes information about the rights of our citizens with special needs as well as about educational programs, agencies, organizations and other resources that serve people with special needs. Families may find comfort in the first personal videotaped stories of others of like experience. (source: ww.specialneedsapp.org)