June 19, 2018, Annapolis (MD) Capital Gazette: Point Pleasant Elementary School's autism class experiences pup therapy http://www.capitalgazette.com/neighborhoods/ac-cn-glen-burnie-0620-story.html …She said for the remainder of the day, behavior was affected. Zelenz-Dale said as with any other classroom, there was a lot of excitement about the visitors. Most of the 13 kids were interested in petting the dogs…. Some of the students’ Individualized Education Program, or IEP, goals were practiced, such as taking turns, social interaction with peers or using expressive language and choices. Zelenz-Dale said as with a general education classroom, her autistic students have varying degrees of abilities. Some are verbal and some are non-verbal, and use a device to communicate. The students are incorporated into the general education population as much as their abilities will allow…. “There is no better evidence for this than the incredible effect dogs can have on children with autism, the presence of a dog changes their whole dynamic — helping them learn skills in a fun way, decreasing ... anxiety, and so much more. Zelenz-Dale said the dogs are trained not to react to noises, such as a child yelling out. Calm personalities among the canines is a must. Although this was the first visit of the therapy dogs to the autism classroom, Zelenz-Dale said the group does have experience with Alternate Curriculum Classes (ACC)….
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Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism
http://www.ageofautism.com/media/
(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)
What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless.
John Stone,
UK media editor, Age of Autism
The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
It seemed to me that with rising autism prevalence, you’d also see rising autism costs to society, and it turns out, the costs are catastrophic.
They calculated that in 2015 autism cost the United States $268 billion and they projected that if autism continues at its current rate, we’re looking at one trillion dollars a year in autism costs by 2025, so within five years.
Toby Rogers, PhD, Political economist
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