"Wisdom is by far the greatest part of joy, and reverence toward the gods must be safeguarded. The mighty words of the proud are paid in full with mighty blows of fate, and at long last those blows will teach us wisdom."
I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud
I wandered lonely as a cloud
Continuous as the stars that shine
The waves beside them danced; but they
For oft, when on my couch I lie
(1804;1807)
A new discussion board is now open for Partners in PolicyMaking to use and enjoy. This board is meant as an easy meeting point for anyone who would like to discuss an issue, give an opinion (please remain polite), get back in touch with a friend from a past class, other reasons, or announcements to everyone. My name is Ida Sue Barrow, and I graduated from the 1999-00 class in Partners. I created this link as a part of my page by a request of Partners in Policymaking administrator. Please feel free to use it. The link is at the bottom of the page. Give it a try.
I found myself saying to myself...I can't live where I want to ...I can't go where I want to ...I can't do what I want to do. I can't even say what I want to. I decided I was a very stupid fool not to at least paint as I wanted to ...that seemed to be the only thing I could do that didn't concern anybody but myself."
Georgia O' Keeffe--
I read these words and was taken back. Of course, what she painted did concern others. Everything we do affects others. It is a popular belief, but we should be learning better. If you do not believe that, look back at history. What Napoleon did and considered affected the lives of the French people and the countries he conquered. What Hitler did and considered affected the lives of the Jewish population in Europe and the whole world. These examples are not meant to compare Mrs. O' Keeffe to a conquering and malicious spirit, but these people left their footsteps of personal choice and beliefs forever imprinted in world history.
What every person does affects what happens to another person. The effect ripples out and touches all who are around them. However, does this deal with the world of disabilities and the real world of human differences and lives?
In earlier disabilities history, people that were born different or were disabled later on in life were placed in hiding or even left to die. It was believed that these were faulty people, and that they had no rights and no reason to live. Things did not improve quickly and it took several great movements for civil and personal rights before a group of citizens with disabilities had representation.
The adoption of the Americans with Disabilities Act started an awakening in our country concerning the citizens with disabilities. The returning soldiers that came home with disabilities from serving our country made the issue even more important. In marches to the White House and the new issues now being lobbied in our state capitals, our national Capitol was encouraged to bring these issues into the daylight.
In addition, a new language, "People First Language," is now being incorporated into the language of laws and is replacing older language. The general public is learning a new way to speak about our citizens with disabilities in the world and the United States. This language is now reaching the smaller communities and areas. This change is represented in the changing of "handicapped parking" signs to "Accessible Parking."
New concepts of independence and integration are also being formed. This concept comprises the ideas behind statements such as: "I want to live at home," or " I know I need wider doors and different dimensions in certain areas of my home. I know I may need help, but I am able and still want to live in my own home."
This sentiment is also being expressed in simple but emphatic ways like- - "I want to go shopping" - "I want to go to church" - "I want to go where I want to, like you do." To increase the chances that these wishes become fact, laws have been passed to allow access to all public buildings.
The need for health care is also being addressed: "Why can't I get these services at home, instead of being confined to a specific living space in an institution. I don't need to live in a small space. I need a certain amount of room like people without disabilities to thrive and prosper. I need my privacy and my private places to live."
The hope has now grown into - "I want to work. I want to get up in the morning, get dressed, and go to work. I want a chance to make my own contribution to the world. I have something to contribute, and I have talents, too. I don't mean to cause anyone an inconvenience, but I hope that accommodations can enable me to feel like a real person in a real world. I want to make a living or at least help to make my living if that is possible."
I have heard all these statements in my Partners in PolicyMaking training.
To refer back to Mrs. O'Keeffe's statement at the beginning, all people whether they have a disability or not should have the opportunity to pick their home. All people should have the opportunity to say or not say what we think in measured words. We all might not go where we want to go, but we need to make that decision on our own. O'Keeffe said” we could not do what we want to do,” but everyone has that problem. A lot of what a person does deals with priorities, and what is deemed important.
Mrs. O'Keeffe could and did paint the way she wanted. She was a great painter, and I have enjoyed her paintings myself. She put herself in her paintings, and she made a difference in the world each time a completed work left her easel, whether she realized it or not.
I hope that one day that I too will make a difference to someone. I hope that one day my goals of where I want to be, how I choose to go there, and what I set goals to do will be possible. But I also know that the paths I choose will affect all who are around me and that I do will have an influence now-- and as long as I live.
What I paint in my life is a choice that I exercise everyday! The image I chose to portray to the world is also for me to decide. How people without disabilities look at look at the citizens with disabilities is reflected in how we chose to support them in everyday situations. As with me, people with disabilities have their own pictures to paint.
I do not do, live, say, or go anywhere I wish, but I do know that I make the choices for me. No one else decides for me, even if they intend it to be for my good. I am a person, and every person should make these decisions on their own terms with life. If help is needed, they need to be included in the making of the decision, not excluded.
The paths we chose for ourselves and what choices we make have an affect on our outcome. The journey is where the affects are made, though. Not when we reach our goal, but on the way to it. When we do reach our goal, a sigh of relief is there, and a chance to rest as onward we go. We can choose to sit and not move further, or keep on heading after a new goal.
Cause and Effect will always shape our world. The ability to chose is not a question of is it a right, but why can't I choose when I see others who do. No disability should remove or change this part of anyone’s life. The ability to choose is not a question of is it right, but why don’t I have the choice when others do.
Learning disabilities affect one in seven people according to the National Institute of Health. Such statistics behooves parents to become familiar with the early indicators of learning disabilities and various developmental complications at or before the birth of their child.
1. late talking
Any early intervention would allow the following statement from a web site:
A growing body of research indicates that typical kids in a well-supported inclusive environments get richer, more individualized and personalized education than in a single-teacher, homogeneous classroom.
Criteria for Diagnosis According to the American Psychiatric Association: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)
Fails to see details which leads to simple mistakes
Attention Deficit Disorder does not mean
that the child cannot learn!
It just means that the child is an “exceptional
learner” which will make you an “exceptional
ADHD often occurs accompanied by other behavioral
and or learning problems, such as LD, emotional or
behavioral disorders, Tourette’s syndrome and run a higher
chance risk of substance abuse.
Antigone, Sophocles
I found my favorite poem from my teenage years. I can remember being touched deeply by these words, and the rediscovery was just as touching. I want to add them to my page so that people can see that the soul needs beauty as much as the eye.
The person with a disability has a soul. The person with a disability needs beauty placed in that soul and beauty to reflect upon when solitude should appear.
William Wordsworth said it much better than I ever could.
by: William Wordsworth
That floatss on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
And twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
Outdid the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed-and gazed- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
.
Also, there is no promise that a healthy child will not be affected by his environment after birth that could also cause diverse consequences for the family. Groups who address traumatic head injuries, associations for the blind, and associations for many common injuries known about today address such consequences.
One of the best ways to ensure that the child receives the needed help at birth is recognition of the warning signs. The early detection of a learning disability can improve the success chances for a child in school and life.
Many signs can appear as early as pre-school. Present statistics show that the child can reach average or above average skills with the needed accommodations in childhood.
When the signs are ignored because the parents do not want to accept the disability, LD can become a hidden difficulty.Environment can lessen to affects and change the hidden difficulty to a disability with different severities, yet early identification could have made more of a difference. The results of ignorance are poor self-esteem, failure or struggles in school, and difficulty holding a job or finding one initially.
The warning signs to look for as the child grows is as listed:
2. pronunciation problems
3. difficulty rhyming words
4. trouble learning numbers, alphabet, and days of the week
5. restlessness and distraction,
6. difficulty in following directions
This recognition of LDs affect allows for transition plans, parental training, and IDEA. The most important issue is that students with LD must know that the expectations held for them are the same as those for regular students. The self-determination issues for the child will be the main influence in how far the child will be able to assimilate into society as an adult.
Difficulty paying attention to tasks
Does not listen when spoken to directly
Undone tasks:problems following instructions
Lack of organization
Avoids tedious tasks
Loses things frequently
Distracted by surrounding stimuli
Forgetful in daily activities
Fidgets in seat or with hands and feet
Has trouble sitting still
Inappropriate or restless behavior(pacing, running, jumping, climbing)
Difficulty playing or engaging in quiet activity
“Driven by a motor” or constant movement
Excessive talking
Hard to wait for turn
Interrupts others often
teacher”!
