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Facebook: www.facebook.com/AutismSupportSoMD !Families helping families.!

April 2014 Newsletter Volume 3, Issue 8

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ !Calendar of Events

!April 2, 2014 — St. Mary’s County Partners for Success Workshop: "Understanding the New State Assessments (PARCC and NCSC) Accessibility Features and Accommodations Overview," 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Board of Education Meeting Room, 23160 Moakley St., Leonardtown, MD 20650. SMCPS Supervisors for Special Education Honora Batelka and Debra Pearce will present information regarding the new state assessments PARCC and NCSC. PARCC is replacing the MSA and NCSC is replacing the Alt-MSA. This workshop is free, but registration is required. To register, please contact Susan Shannon at 301-863-4069 or email partnersforsuccess@smcps.org. !April 3, 2014 — Calvert County Autism Support Group Meeting, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the Hunting Creek Annex, 4105 Old Town Rd., Huntingtown, MD 20639. Please RSVP: 410-535-7387 or parentconnections@calvertnet.k12.md.us. !April 5 2014 — Tattoos for Tuition, 10 a.m. - 9 p.m., at Chronic Ink Tattoo, 29025 Three Notch Rd., B, Mechanicsville, MD 20658. Southern Maryland Roller Derby is proud to partner with Chronic Ink Tattoo and the Autism Spectrum Support Group of Southern Maryland for Tattoos for Tuition! The proceeds from this event will help Southern Maryland children on the autism spectrum attend therapeutic summer camps. See the story below. !April 7, 2014 — [Change of Date] Citizens’ Advisory Committee For Special Education Support Group Meeting, 5:45-6:30 p.m. at the Board of Education Building, Leonardtown. The purpose of the Support Group is "to allow people to openly ask each other questions, share stories and information together." Next meetings are May 12 and June 9, 2014. !April 7, 2014 — [Change of Date] Citizens’ Advisory Committee For Special Education Meeting, 6:30-8:00 p.m. at the Board of Education Building, Leonardtown. Next meetings are May 12 and June 9, 2014. !April 8, 2014 — Calvert County SECAC Meeting, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. at the Board Room at the Brooks Administration Building. !April 10, 2014 — “How Will I Know If My Child Is Making Progress?” 7:00-9:00 p.m. at the F.B. Gwynn Center, 5998 Radio Station Rd., La Plata, MD 20646. Children go to school to learn, of course, but parents of children with disabilities often ask, “How will I know my child is learning and making progress? Is their IEP or 504 Plan working?” Parents can answer that question by looking at a variety of data, including information from special education and general education sources and information from outside the school. This workshop will help you answer that question and help you learn what information to gather from special education and general education sources to help your child. To register, contact Debbie or Allysa at 301-934-7456 or at pfs@ccboe.com. !April 16, 2014 — Autism Spectrum Support Group of Southern Maryland Meeting, 6:30-8:00 p.m. at the Coffee Quarter, California, MD. !April 16, 2014 — Charles County Autism Support Group Meeting, 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the La Plata Panera in Charles County. The mission of the Charles County Autism Support Group is to increase community awareness of autism and ADHD and provide support to families living with autism and ADHD. The group does not endorse or dismiss any specific treatment, profession or services. !April 24, 2014 — Section 504 Plan Clinic: Is It Working? 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the F.B. Gwynn Center, 5998 Radio Station Rd., La Plata, MD 20646. Presented by Missy Alexander, Parent Educator. Does your child receive accommodations under a Section 504 Plan? If so, how is it working to help your child succeed? Do you have questions about the plan? What procedural safeguards do you have when things don’t go well, or you disagree with what the school team advises you? This workshop will consider: What is a 504 Plan? Who qualifies for a 504 Plan? What is contained in a meaningful 504 !Autism Spectrum Support Group of SoMD! p. � ! April 20141

Plan? What needs to be considered when developing a meaningful 504 Plan? What is the parent’s role in developing a 504 Plan? Bring your child’s 504 Plan with you to review it in real time. To register, contact Debbie or Allysa at 301-934-7456 or at pfs@ccboe.com. !April 26, 2014 — Personalized Therapy’s 7th Annual Autism Awareness Day, 12:00-5:00 p.m. at the Olde Town Pub in Leonardtown. This event raises money to support LOCAL organizations that help families dealing with Autism Spectrum Disorders, including this Support Group. The theme this year is LEGOs. There will be activities for children, music, information tables, and a silent auction as well as food and drinks for purchase. !May 17, 2014 — Southern Maryland Collaborative for Families of Children with Disabilities presents: "IEP 101"/"They Say, You Say," an interactive workshop by the founders of Your Special Education Rights, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. (Registration begins at 9 a.m.) at the Southern Maryland Higher Education Center, 44219 Airport Rd., California, MD 20619. Presented by Jennifer Laviano, Special Education Attorney, and Julie Swanson, Special Education Parent Advocate. Laviano and Swanson will share their expertise in two interactive presentations: "IEPs 101" followed by "They Say, You Say," during which they will role-play what school administrators might say at an IEP meeting and how parents could respond. The presenters will answer individual questions as time allows. Registration information is included at the end of this newsletter. !May 20, 2014, 2014 — The Charles County Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee (SECAC), 6:30 p.m. in the Board Room at the Jesse Starkey Administration Building, 5980 Radio Station Road, La Plata, MD 20646. The Charles County SECAC is in need of parent and community participation. This group enables the Director of Special Education to seek meaningful input from parents, community partners, service providers, and school administrators on local issues relative to the provision of a free appropriate public education and the achievement of students with disabilities. Join SECAC now and make your voice heard. !June 22, 2014 — Autism Awareness Event with the Blue Crabs. Save the date! !

OpEd!Community must help protect, teach those with autism

Autism Spectrum Support Group of Southern Maryland’s Letter to the Editor in The Enterprise, March 26, 2014 !

Members of the Autism Spectrum Support Group of Southern Maryland are deeply saddened by and concerned about the news of a young person in St. Mary’s County allegedly having been bullied and assaulted. It was difficult enough to read the details of his months-long ordeal; it was anguishing to learn that the 16-year-old boy has an autism spectrum disorder. Additionally, we are concerned by the nature of many of the comments about the boy’s lack of understanding that these “games” were wrong as well as questions about the culpability of the boy’s parents.

Parents in this support group are sure in our knowledge that this boy could be our children — our sons and daughters just as oblivious as the victim to the heinous nature of the “games” the two accused girls were allegedly “playing.” We also imagine that we would face the same misconceptions and questions if our children were in a similar situation.Members of the Autism Spectrum Support Group of Southern Maryland are deeply saddened by

and concerned about the news of a young person in St. Mary’s County allegedly having been bullied and assaulted. It was difficult enough to read the details of his months-long ordeal; it was anguishing to learn that the 16-year-old boy has an autism spectrum disorder. Additionally, we are concerned by the nature of many of the comments about the boy’s lack of understanding that these “games” were wrong as well as questions about the culpability of the boy’s parents.

Children with disabilities, especially those with hidden disabilities such as ADHD, learning disabilities or autism, are bullied in greater numbers than nondisabled children, according to special education advocacy professionals. Children with autism are particularly vulnerable to victimization, from bullying and teasing to harassment and assault, because they lack social skills, social understanding and language to communicate effectively. According to the diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorders, people with autism exhibit “deficits in developing, maintaining and understanding !

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relationships, ranging, for example, from difficulties adjusting behavior to suit various social contexts; to difficulties in sharing imaginative play or in making friends; to absence of interest in peers.”

Autism comes in many forms, from classically autistic (having an intellectual disability, limited language and visible signs of impairment) to high functioning (having high IQs, strong language skills, and few, if any, visible signs of impairment). In those who are on the higher-functioning end of the autism spectrum, deficits in social understanding are hard for people to see and even harder for them to understand. In fact, all children with a diagnosis of autism have some degree of social impairment; that’s how they get the diagnosis.

Though our children will always have autism, they can learn the social skills and understanding that they need to survive life. We need to reach them, we need to teach them, and it has to begin early and continue for years. It starts with identifying the problem areas that make them vulnerable. These could be social deficits, language deficits, or even grooming and hygiene problems.

Once identified, the deficits must be addressed, including making sure our children are taught how to recognize when they are being bullied, what it means to be a friend and how to advocate for themselves. They need to be taught these skills in ways that they can understand — directly, literally and repeatedly — because unlike typically developing children, they don’t learn how to interact with people by observation.

The incident in St. Mary’s County serves as a wakeup call to all in our region. How autism impacts individuals as well as their families is not understood. However, it will take more than awareness to protect our children.

Our hope is that our school systems will review their social skills and safety awareness

programs for children with autism spectrum disorders to identify any gaps and to strengthen the programs. We also hope that Individualized Education Plans will be reviewed to address deficits that lead to increased vulnerability to bullying. Additionally, we hope that professional training on signs of bullying as well as on appropriate interventions for children on the autism spectrum will be reviewed for appropriateness and effectiveness.

Interventions should also come from the psychologists, pediatricians and therapists who work with our children frequently; they, too, should be appropriately trained in the signs of bullying and interventions as well as how to teach safety awareness. Parents need training in the same areas in order to generalize the skills our children are learning to all environments. Additionally, parents need to know how to proceed when they suspect their children are being victimized, including when to take the matter to school and when to involve the authorities.

As parents of children with autism, we need to be careful in how we present safety awareness and social skills. We walk a fine line between ensuring that our children have the knowledge they need to successfully navigate through the social world and scaring them into distrusting or fearing everyone. We also know that we can’t assume they understand because they are intelligent, nor can we miss any opportunities to teach them. It is our job to protect and teach them; it will take everyone in our community to make it happen.

Terri Griest, Tracie Chandler, Toni Sieg, June Nicholas, Missy Alexander

The writers are members of the board of directors of the Autism Spectrum Support Group of Southern Maryland.

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Around and About!

Tattoos for Tuition April 5, 2014, 10 am - 9 pm

Chronic Ink Tattoo, 29025 Three Notch Rd., B, Mechanicsville, MD 20658

Southern Maryland Roller Derby is proud to partner with Chronic Ink Tattoo and the Autism Spectrum

Support Group of Southern Maryland for Tattoos for Tuition!

The proceeds from this event will help Southern Maryland children on the autism spectrum attend

therapeutic summer camps. These camps are not covered by insurance and can cost as much as $300

a week, but they are an enriching and fun social experience for the children lucky enough to attend. We

want to make that happen for more SoMD kids and we need your help!

There are three set tattoo designs for this fundraiser: The puzzle piece tattoo costs $20.

(You pick the color and placement.) The sparrow (You choose the colors and the

placement.) costs $40. The third tattoo is a set of steampunk cogs and gears and will cost

$60. (Photo to follow.) We will also have temporary tattoos with the same designs and one

with the Southern Maryland Roller Derby logo available with a donation, for those not

quite ready to go under the needle! And, if you don't want a real or temporary tattoo, you

can always make your way to the shop anyway for some sweet Southern Maryland Roller

Derby merchandise (t-shirts, stickers and more)!

Please join us for this worthy cause and fun event! Come on down, get some ink, meet some roller derby

girls and support this amazing cause!

If you have questions or want to know more, email marketing@somdrollerderby.org or

visit the Tattoos for Tuition Facebook event.

See you at the tattoo shop! !!◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Autism Support Group Meetings held in St. Mary’s, Charles,

and Calvert Counties

(See the Calendar of Events for details.)

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