HisKidz Training Module 3

HisKidz Training Module 3

Building a Frame of Reference for the most common disabilities within the congregation at Venture

What Children with Special Needs Wish You Knew

What are the most common disabilities within Venture’s Congregation?

Health: You can’t catch a disability

Can you remember the first time you saw and individual in a wheel chair or someone who grunted or drooled and had an unusual appearance? Do you remember your response to that person? If you were a child at the time, you might have wondered if that condition could happen to you. You may have felt fear.

One of the roles as a buddy is to help dispel children’s fears towards children and adults with disabilities.

It’s a FACT!

If Disabilities are not communicable how do you get them?

The only way to get Down syndrome, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy or spine bifida is to be born with the condition.

Other disabilities are the result of spinal cord injuries, serious accidents or severe illnesses.

Maternal alcohol and substance abuse are contributors to other impairments.

Researchers are still working to find the causes of many disabilities, such as multiple sclerosis and autism.

The most common disabilities within Venture Church’s congregation are:

• Autism Spectrum

• ADHD/ADD

• Down Syndrome

• Hearing impairment

• Visual Impairment

• Medically Fragile

• Developmentally delayed

Down Syndrome Students with Down syndrome can

have a range of abilities, and there's no way to tell at birth what they will be capable of as they grow. Students with DS continue to learn and develop new skills throughout their lives. They simply reach goals at a different pace. Remember to focus on the individual and learn firsthand about his or her capabilities and special needs.

Be aware of any medical concerns associated with Down syndrome that are specific to your student.

Realize that you can make a big difference in your student's life. Learn the student's interests so you can create opportunities for success.

Down syndrome (DS), is a chromosomal condition in which extra genetic material causes delays in the way a child develops, both mentally and physically. It affects about 1 in every 800 babies born in the United States.

Kids and teens with Down syndrome tend to share certain physical features such as a flat facial profile, an upward slant to the eyes, small ears, and a protruding tongue. They tend to grow at a slower rate and remain shorter than their peers.

Cognitively, DS can affect learning abilities in different ways, but most kids and teens with DS have mild to moderate intellectual impairment. Children with Down syndrome have delays in speech and motor skills, and may need assistance with self-care, such as dressing and grooming.

What is ADD & ADHD? Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most

common childhood disorders with an estimated 5.4 million diagnosed children in the U.S.

Known as both ADD and ADHD, both terms refer to the same condition.

While any child can be fidgety or have trouble paying attention, when these symptoms become a distraction at home or in the classroom, some extra therapy may be needed to control the child.

ADHD presents itself with persistent pattern of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, or a combination or all three.

Common symptoms include: distracted easily, forgetful even in daily activities, ignores speaker when being spoken to directly, has trouble with organization, loses vital things needs for tasks, talks excessively, has trouble waiting his/her turn, in constant motion.

Medically Fragile:What is Brittle Bone Disease?

Brittle bone disease is caused by a genetic defect that affects the production and formation of type 01 collagen, a protein used to create bone. The defective gene is usually inherited, but in some cases the defect occurs due to a spontaneous mutation. There are 4 types of brittle bone disease ranging from mild to severe symptoms.

Type 1 is the mildest and most common form of brittle bone disease and a child’s body can produces the normal quality of collagen, however the quantity of collagen is insufficient. Children with this type 01 experience mild fractures due to mild traumas. More serious types can cause underdeveloped lungs and that break easily. Common symptoms include loose joints, multiple broken bones, hearing loss.

What is Visual Impairment?

Many people have some type of visual problem at some point in their lives. Some can no longer see objects far away. Others have problems reading small print. These types of conditions are often easily treated with eyeglasses or contact lenses.

But when one or more parts of the eye or brain that are needed to process images become diseased or damaged, severe or total loss of vision can occur. In these cases, vision can't be fully restored with medical treatment, surgery, or corrective lenses like glasses or contacts.

Visual impairment is a term experts use to describe any kind of vision loss, whether it's someone who cannot see at all or someone who has partial vision loss.

Some people are completely blind, but many others have what's called legal blindness. They haven't lost their sight completely but have lost enough vision that they'd have to stand 20 feet from an object to see it as well as someone with perfect vision could from 200 feet away.

What does it mean to be Developmentally Delayed?

A child’s growth is more than just physical. Children grow, develop and learn throughout their lives. A child’s development is measured in how they play, learn, speak, move and behave. Skills such as taking a first step, smiling for the first time, and waving "bye-bye" are called developmental milestones. Children reach milestones in playing, learning, speaking, behaving, and moving (crawling, walking, etc.). A developmental delay happens when your child is slow to reach these milestones.

Developmental delays can be caused by premature birth, health problems, or an inherited genetic component. Often no cause can be found.

It is not likely that a child will outgrow a developmental problem on his or her own. But, with help, a child could reach his or her full potential.

Hearing Impairments

Some people are born with hearing impairment — and kids and teens can lose their hearing for many reasons. IThe causes of hearing impairment are varied from genetic disorders, to injuries of the head or ear, illnesses or are caused by medical therapies like chemotherapy. Hearing impairment occurs when there's a problem with or damage to one or more parts of the ear. The degree of hearing impairment can vary widely from person to person.

Some people have:

Partial hearing loss: meaning that the ear can pick up some sounds;

Complete hearing loss, meaning that the ear cannot hear at all (people with complete hearing loss are considered deaf).

Background noise hearing impairment: a person can have much more trouble when there is background noise. One or both ears may be affected, and the impairment may be worse in one ear than in the other.

Etiquette For Serving Children With Hearing Impairments

To get a child’s attention,

What are the causes of Visual Impairment in children?

People rarely lose their eyesight during their childhood. When they do, it's usually caused by an injury like getting hit in the eye or head with a baseball or having an some kind of trauma to the vision center in the or eye area. More often you will find a child with visual impairments will have partial sight, low vision or will be classified as legally blind.

Some babies have congenital blindness, which means they are visually impaired at birth. Congenital blindness can be caused by a number of things — it can be inherited, or caused by an infection (like German measles) that's transmitted from the mother to the developing baby during pregnancy.

Amblyopia(lazy eye) : reduced vision where the brain suppress images from a weaker aye causing the weaker eye to stop developing normally. Cataracts are cloudy areas in part or all of the lens of the eye that prevent light from easily passing through the lens, and this causes loss of vision. Sometimes babies are born with this condition, however it is usually found in older adults.

Extra assistance for the visually impaired may include: Guide dogs, white canes personal navigation devices or use of other senses.

Etiquette for serving Children with Visual Impairments

Speak in a normal voice, directly to the child.

Greet children by name, so they will know your are speaking to them.

Identify yourself especially in group settings. Say the name of other students while speaking to them, so everyone understands whom you are addressing.

Never grab a child, offer your arm if he or she desires assistance, walking a bit in front.

Use verbal and audible cues when giving direction instructions. For example. “ here is the chair”; and then pat the chair seat several times.

Tell students when the room has been rearranged. Leave doors completely shut or open to avoid injury.

As you interact with children in the classroom you may be asked to answer Children’s Questions.

Below are some questions that you as a buddy may hear and some examples of meaningful responses:

Why can’t Charlie walk? Charlie’s muscles are not as strong as yours.

Why can’t Sammy talk?

The part of Tommy’s brain that helps him to make words doesn’t work quite right. He shows us what he wants in a different way than you an me. He uses sign language to tell me what he wants.

More Answering Children’s Questions

Is Sherry still a baby because she wears diapers?

Sherry can do some things like a big girl, but that one area gives her a little extra trouble.

Is Joey crazy?

No, Joey has autism. His brain doesn’t work exactly like yours or mine, which makes him act different from other people. But Joey does many things well…you should see how well he plays music and builds with blocks.

A good rule is to:

Talk with parents and ask about how they explain their child’s disability, and find out what their child prefers to tell others.