Sunday Morning Shout Out

This week, I would like to shift gears and discuss young adults with autism and autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Perhaps you have or you know someone who has an adult child who is graduating from high school or college, who comes under this category.  According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest numbers, 1 in 88 kids have been diagnosed with autism.  Young adult life both in and out of college can be particularly daunting for individuals with ASD.

A recent study that came out in the journal Pediatrics underlines this point. As a long running study, it looked at how a population of 600 individuals with ASD compared to 400 individuals with such diagnoses as:  learning disabilities, mental retardation, and impaired language or speech.  All individuals were receiving special education services. It found that only a little more than one third of individuals previously diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder had gone on to college and only 55 percent had held paying jobs, within their sample study. Additionally, the same study found  that the first two years post high school experience were particularly hard, with less than half of the young people with ASD in the study having had any work experience. Compared to their counterparts, individuals with ASD fared better than individuals with mental retardation, but not as well as individuals with the other above mentioned disabilities, when it came to going to college.

One of the study’s chief conclusions was that individuals with ASD needed increased assistance with transitioning out of school and into college life and/or with gaining employment. In Western New York, we are fortunate to have many agencies dedicated to working with individuals with ASD and other developmental disabilities. One such agency is the Parent Network of Western New York. They are a local hub for advocacy, education, empowerment, and service linkage for individuals with ASD and other developmental disabilities. The Autism Society of Western New York and Summit Educational Resources are two other agencies within the area that specifically focus on ASD. They provide everything from case management and parent support groups to assistance with educational advocacy, the transitional years, and independent living. Individuals with ASD and their families can face many challenges, with their opportunities. But they can certainly be empowered by such formal supports in their community.  As the old adage goes, sometimes it takes a village.

Happy Father’s Day!

Career Education

One of my biggest complaints about the education system in America today is the lack of career education. As someone who is entering the job market after nearly 20 years of education, I still feel uncertain about what jobs I am qualified for, and what jobs I would be interested in. Better career education in high schools would mean that students could focus on relevant courses in high school and beyond. If subject teachers gave more information about potential careers for students interested in those fields, there would be fewer students who feel lost in college.

Sure, choosing a career should be a combination of what a person is passionate about as well as the skills they have, but the demands of the job market should also be taken into account. Increased career education can also help people to specialize in fields they are interested in. For example, students interested in medicine don’t have to necessarily become doctors or nurses. They could become medical researchers, pharmacists, patient advocates, or a plethora of other careers in the medical field.

Strawberry Summer

I never really enjoyed strawberry picking as a kid. My memories of strawberry fields are of being hunched low to the ground, engaged in the repetitive motion of picking berries off the low bushes and putting them into a basket, eating too many berries and getting a stomachache, being too hot under the sun, and then having to spend lots of time washing the berries and taking off their stems. Then again, I loved the things that you could do with strawberries. I loved eating them plain, or as part of a simple strawberry shortcake, or mixed with fresh rhubarb to make a delicious strawberry rhubarb pie. I loved how my grammy could take the berries and make them last for years by turning them into jams. I guess what I’m trying to say is that the pay-off was worth the labor.

Picking one isn’t a challenge…the real challenge is getting more in the basket than you put in your mouth! (Image Credit:http://singleparents.about.com/od/havingfu1/ss/fun_ten_weeks_2.htm)

Now, the role of accompanying my dad to the u-pick strawberry fields has fallen to my little sister, who admits to loving strawberries but claims her favorite berry is currently “cherries,” although I’m not sure if those are technically berries at all. Tonight, we sat down and ate angel food cake with strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream, and I felt a pang as I realized that I hadn’t helped in the process of the dish in any way. Suddenly, the idea of being hunched over in the heat of the sun repetitively picking berries and eating as many as I put into the basket was incredibly appealing.

My moment of reminiscing, bittersweet as it was, was sweetened not only by the dessert I was eating, but also by the idea that the tradition of being a strawberry picking family was continuing in my sister. Someday, she’ll sit at a kitchen table and realize that she misses those hot summer afternoons that she once, as an irritable preteen, loathed. Strawberry season doesn’t last for long, but it just serves as a reminder that nothing does. So take some time and give your children wonder, horrible memories of enforced labor by visiting a u-pick farm near you.

The Longest Walk of Your Life

I’ve had three semi-official graduations in my life. I say semi-official because to me, a graduation isn’t a graduation without one of those hideous mortar board caps, and my first graduation, a moving-up day from the intermediate school to the high school, was cap and gown free. From my vague memories of sixth-grade graduation, I remember singing a song that had been written by former students about transitioning and growing-up, and I remember receiving a few awards and shaking hands with some adults. Overall, the experience has not proved particularly memorable.

(Image Credit:http://www.palisadespreschooldc.org/2012/05/graduation-day-is-coming/)

My second graduation came six years later, as I sat in the front row of my high school graduation. At this graduation, everyone wore caps and gowns. In a display of what I consider sexism, the boys wore forest green caps and gowns, while the girls wore white. Before you freak out and decide that I’m just a crazy feminist, I would like to point out that the girl’s gowns were entirely see-through, so while the boys could wear whatever they liked under their gowns, the girls were more limited if they didn’t want to look ridiculous. My gown, however, wasn’t even my biggest problem. That dubious honor went to the cap and my giant head. I had shown up to graduation with my hair wet, and between my lack of hair clips and the humidity, my hair quickly puffed into an unmanageable halo that resisted every attempt made at keeping my cap steady. Most of the pictures from the day involve my cap half-off my head, or my head held at an awkward angle in a desperate attempt to retain some dignity.

My third graduation was from college. This time, all the gowns were the same, and my cap actually managed to stay on my head. (As an interesting and depressing side note, when I had gotten my head measured for the cap it was confirmed that I had one of the largest heads in my class of over 100 people. Talk about a boost for your esteem). I hadn’t cried at my first two graduation ceremonies, but at this ceremony I bawled from beginning to end. The commencement address is something that I will probably remember for the rest of my life, whereas what was said at my sixth-grade graduation or even my high school graduation has entirely left my memories.

I like to think that the reason I cried at my college graduation was that I had grown-up in those four years, and I realized that time is not something that you can get back. As a child, you spend so much of your time waiting to grow-up and be older and be able to drive or stay out past 10 or cross the street without holding an adult’s hand that you miss out on the simple joy of being a child. For the first time, as I walked down to the rows of chairs on that May afternoon in 2011, I realized all of these things. You can’t go back, and the future isn’t always exciting. Sometimes, the future is uncertain and terrifying, and a diploma and a bunch of flowers wasn’t enough to stop my own breakdown.

My little sister will probably have triple the amount of graduations I had. Today, she had her pre-kindergarten graduation. They played the graduation march as she and her 15 classmates trooped through the gymnasium doors and filed onto the stage. They wore tiny graduation robes, all in matching white, with tiny graduation caps with tiny tassels on their heads. As they sang their songs up on stage, I watched their tiny faces. Some of the kids were ecstatic at the attention, swaying back and forth and screeching the lyrics at the top of their lungs. Other kids, like my sister, were more subdued. But it was the kids who seemed the most uncertain that I empathized with. The pageantry of graduation is, in many ways, a celebration, but it is more the celebration of an ending than a beginning. In spite of the many promises to “see you next year in kindergarten,” the diplomas being given were for the year that had passed. My sister will never be in that place in her life again. And that is both joyful and incredibly sad. I watched my sister and her classmates walk across the stage where they shook hands with the school administrators and their teacher, and they walked alone. Nobody held their hand. The steps that they took were independent, though the shoes that they wore seemed impossibly small.

So enjoy the graduation season. There will undoubtedly be parties and festivities and there is plenty to be glad about. Just don’t look for me…I’ll be the one crying in the corner over my slice of cake.

 

Why Green Schools?

Green schools are an increasingly popular choice for students and parents who are concerned for the environment. The benefits of green schools extend way beyond protecting the surrounding environment; they are of enormous health benefits to students, they promote better academic achievements and save money. Green schools are a safe, sustainable and profitable choice.

What are Green Schools?
Buildings are responsible for nearly 40% of carbon dioxide emissions in the US, a major contributor to global warming and climate change. Green schools are environmentally friendly buildings which reduce energy consumption, are constructed with sustainable materials and provide measurable benefits for both students and the financial bottom line.
On average, schools that are built using green materials and construction methods cost 2% more regular schools, but can reduce energy consumption by up to 50%. Schools that adopt renewable energy measures, such as installing a solar panel system or geothermal energy, can reduce their energy consumption to nearly nothing.
Rainwater collection systems and the utilization of grey water for things like flushing toilets can seriously reduce water consumption ̶ growing concern in a world where fresh water has become a valuable commodity.

The Benefits of Green Schools
Green schools are establishments that utilize sustainable materials in construction. This minimizes the environmental impact of the building and reduces the number of chemicals released by building materials. These chemicals reduce air quality in a process known as off-gassing. Poor indoor air quality leads to a plethora of ailments like asthma, respiratory disorders, hyperactivity and lack of concentration.
According to the US Green Building Council: ” Green schools can save $100,000 per year – enough to hire two new teachers, buy 150 new computers, or purchase 5,000 new textbooks. It costs less than 2% more to build a green school than to build a conventional school – and that the financial benefits are 20 times as large. If all new school construction and school renovations went green starting today, energy savings alone would total $20 billion over the next 10 years. When you factor in water savings, the economic savings are enormous.”
Having great natural light is another asset enjoyed by students in green schools. Where 20% of wall space is devoted to windows, classrooms can save energy on heating. In recent studies, students who enjoy good natural lighting in classrooms showed test score improvements of 26% in mathematics and 20% in reading.
Sunlight, and its ready supply of vitamin D, helps prevent the following diseased in students:
• Type one and two diabetes
• Learning and behavioral disorders
• Heart disease and obesity
• Adrenal malfunctions and autoimmune disorders including multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis
• Colon cancers, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
• Allergies
• Depression and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
• Cavities, osteoporosis and psoriasis

If you have the choice, send your child to a green school for a healthier experience that Mother Nature loves too!

(This post is originally from the Tutor Doctor Corporate blog  dated 6/4/2012 http://www.tutordoctor.com/tutor-doctor-blog)

Summer Job

I still remember my first summer job. Actually, it was my first real job, ever. I had spent my sophomore year of high school babysitting for one of my parent’s neighbors, who was a teacher herself, but that was only for a few hours on school nights, and playing video games and running around outside didn’t really feel like work. My first job came that summer, in fact. One of my friends at school, who was two years ahead of me, worked at a local state park and got me an application. “You’d love it,” she enthused, “and wouldn’t it be fun to work together?”

Try looking at local businesses for work, and put the word out to family and friends that your child is looking for work! (Image Credit:http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/archives/19768/)

In hindsight, working together would eventually be the end of our friendship, but at the time, it sounded like a good plan. My mom was pressuring me to find a summer job, in any case, constantly regaling me with stories of her own summer jobs, that ranged from picking strawberries to waiting tables at a pizza restaurant. I didn’t really want a job, and so when I wasn’t hired it didn’t seem like that big of a loss. After all, I had only just turned 15, and I wanted another summer of childhood before I committed to what I considered “the real world,” which was a world where I didn’t get to do whatever I wanted all summer long. Unfortunately, or fortunately, halfway through June I got a call from the park offering me a position. One of their other workers had been let go, and there was an opening.

I almost deleted the message before I told my mom about it, because I was so hesitant to get a job. Fortunately, or unfortunately, my friend had also heard the news about my job offer and was already making plans for us to carpool to work. The first day of work I was a nervous wreck. My shift started at 8 am, but my friend was coming to pick me up at 7 so we would have plenty of time to go over opening procedures. The day went by in a total blur. I learned how to open the safe, learned how to answer the phone, learned how to work the computer system, learned how to use the radio, learned how to deal with money, learned how to deal with customers, learned how much campsites cost, learned how to deal with day use tickets…well, I say learned, but few of these things stuck with me for the next day. Mostly, I was a scared teenager who felt as though I had gotten in way over my head.

Of course, things got better. I ended up having that summer job for six summers, and I can safely say that everything that led me to that job was fortunate. While making money was an obvious benefit that allowed me to buy gas for my car and hang out with friends and also start my own savings, there were also many other benefits that were less obvious at the time. When I applied for my work-study position in college, while most of my freshmen peers ended up working in the dining hall washing trays and silverware and dishes, I was placed in the Alumni Relations Department, where I got office experience and a much fancier sounding job title. My customer service experience at the park allowed me to work the Phon-a-thon. Even now, almost eight years after that first summer, I have used my experiences at the park in job interviews when asked about my experiences dealing with diverse people.

While I like to think that eventually I would have been motivated enough to find a summer job myself, in retrospect I appreciate the push I got from my friend and my parents. Encouraging your child to find something to do over the summer isn’t just about gaining money, it’s also about gaining valuable experience.

What was your best (or worst) summer job experience?

Sunday Morning Shout Out

Gardening is also a fun learning experience for children. Image source: http://garden-designs.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/garden-tools-for-kids.jpg

The nice weather is here and with the nice weather my thoughts turn towards food. While my thoughts did not have to go too far (I am always thinking of food it seems), I am currently thinking a lot of about gardening and families whose food situation is less than ideal.

Perhaps you are aware of First Lady Michelle Obama’s initiatives with healthy eating and exercise if not NPR has a recent report. Shortly after moving into the White House, she had the formal, manicured South Lawn dug up, and planted a vegetable garden. As the garden has produced vegetables for her family, White House dinners, and others in the community, she has hoped to encourage Americans and particularly young people who are facing an obesity epidemic to eat better and live healthier lifestyles. Her current book called American Grown chronicles the garden throughout the seasons and examines the history of American gardening. You can also visit the ‘Let’s Move’ Web Site. Perhaps you are into the whole locavore or eating local food movement. Perhaps you are trying to save money by planting a garden.  We all seem to want our children to eat healthier. We all want more quality time as a family. Perhaps this book with its interesting anecdotes and ruminations can act as a springboard for your own family garden.

On a related, but different note, more families than ever are struggling to simply feed their children. During the school year, millions of American children rely on the federally funded free and reduced school lunch program to help meet some of their nutrition needs. Come summer, this need is more likely to go unfilled.  While there are summer food programs offered through the Dept. of Agriculture, such things as stigma; bringing children to the school building during summer; and the price of transportation and gasoline have been factors keeping children away from them. A new pilot program being offered in select states often with the United Way has been somewhat of a solution as reported in an NPR story. It is a food truck that brings lunches to children within their communities.  If you are interested in seeing if there is a food truck or simply a summer lunch program in your area,  you can call The National Hunger Hotline at 1-866-3- Hungry. Pass the number along to others you feel might benefit if you are lucky enough not to need assistance.

What To Do With Your Diploma

I have two diplomas. The first, my high school diploma, is hiding out somewhere. I assume it’s in the box where the rest of my mementos are (crammed in between the playbill from The Producers on Broadway and my “Teacher’s Pet” senior personality sash, maybe), but I’m not 100 percent sure. That diploma didn’t mean much to me. I had always KNOWN that I was going to get a high school diploma. It wasn’t a question in my family. Life without a high school diploma was unimaginable. Of course, my high school graduation ceremony was rather dull. Although I sat in the front row, eight chairs from the left due to my ranking as 8th highest average in the class, I hadn’t ranked high enough academically to merit giving a speech, nor had I ranked low enough that my graduating was any sort of surprise. Instead, I sat sullenly in the front row, trying unsuccessfully to keep my awkward graduation cap on my head.

In many ways, my Bachelor’s degree diploma is similar to my high school diploma. They both have my full name written out, they both have signatures by important people, and they both signify the fact that I successfully jumped enough academic hurdles to warrant their existence. However, I know exactly where my undergraduate diploma is. In fact, I can see it from where I type now. As a graduation gift, my parents bought a frame for this diploma, and so it has become not only a tangible reminder that I did make it through four years of college but also a rather attractive piece of art. I’ve always admired offices where diplomas decorate the walls, and maybe that explains my desire to gain another diploma even though academia has lost much of its luster for me over the past year.

In any case, my college graduation was very different from my high school graduation, primarily in the fact that I sobbed almost uncontrollably during the two hour commencement ceremony last May whereas my high school graduation was met with cool dismissal. Maybe part of my emotional response was that at 21, I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, whereas at 18 I felt certain and sure and still thought my potential was boundless. Age brings caution and humility and I was terrified. When I see my undergraduate diploma, then, I feel both proud and scared.

Is it tacky to hang your diplomas if your profession doesn’t require it? Maybe. But I know that I will always want the reminder of that time in my life.

What have you done with your diplomas?

The Transit of Venus

I’m usually the kind of person who is fairly skeptical about the hype surrounding astronomical phenomenon. Sure, eclipses and shooting stars and the like are cool, but with special effects in the movies now, I feel like I’ve seen sights that far outweigh anything nature can provide. Luckily, a few days ago, my perceptions were drastically challenged with the transit of Venus.

Seriously? All this fuss over a spot on the sun? (Image Credit:https://www.facebook.com/AmeliaSegalWIVB)

When my dad called and invited me to go to The Williamsville Space Lab Planetarium to see the once-in-a-lifetime (because obviously I missed its last occurrence in 2004, and probably won’t be alive in 2117) event, I was a little bit hesitant. However, considering that I hadn’t had the opportunity to leave the house that day, I figured the opportunity might be valuable. So I agreed. When we first pulled up, the parking lot was nearly full and there was a gaggle of people out by the athletic fields, but we assumed they were there for a sports event. As we drew closer, it became clear that the hundreds of people milling about were not watching a game, but were waiting for a distant planet to make a small speck on the sun.

Talk about an event for all ages. (Image Credit:http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/local/transit-of-venus-once-in-a-lifetime)

I still didn’t really see the appeal. The cool NASA space glasses that let you look at the sun were maybe the first indication that the event wasn’t going to be as lame as I had initially thought. The second hint was the sheer number of attendants. There was something old-fashioned about this many people gathered together in order to see something that we could easily have stayed home to see on television, and I started to feel like I was part of something. When the tiny dot first became visible on the many telescopes and binoculars at the (free!) event, the feeling only intensified. Sure, it looked like someone had simply drawn a small dot on the lens of the telescope. It wasn’t as impressive as the Hollywood special effects that have shaped my view of space. But it was a community of people, outside, enjoying a natural phenomenon. I was hooked.

And by the time the sun went down, I had looked through over a dozen telescopes, and decided that the speck of Venus was far more impressive than any studio could create.

Trophies and Medals and Certificates, Oh My!

Regrettably, I also never received a crown, although I may have a sash or two around here somewhere. (Image Credit:http://www.caller.com/news/2011/oct/27/calallen-girl-mom-filmed-for-toddlers-tiaras/)

One of my favorite guilty pleasures that Netflix has introduced me to over the past few weeks has been TLC’s reality show Toddlers & Tiaras. One of the things that stands out to me most about the families featured on the show are the fact that the children’s rooms are overflowing with trophies and sashes. Growing up, I never felt like I was the kind of person who got a lot of trophies or similar awards. To be fair, I did get some forms of recognition. From school, there were academic awards printed on nice paper signed by my teacher and the principal. A local storytelling festival handed out medals to the chosen participants. For winning third-place in my fourth-grade science fair I received my only trophy, one which I have to admit is significantly smaller and less-sparkly than the ones handed out at pageants.

All this thinking about awards made me realize how much I’ve valued these visible tokens of recognition. Today, as I glanced around my room, I realized that I have four prominently displayed, and many more piled up in my closet. While it’s nice to think that people are motivated by factors other than gaining recognition, sometimes getting recognition is nice. These tokens of appreciation make me feel valued, and when I’m feeling blue they remind me that I have been of some value in my life.

What are your thoughts on trophies, medals, and certificates? Are they worthwhile for kids or not?