News You Can Use, Early Childhood Edition

Transcription

1 News You Can Use, May 2006 Southwest Florida Professional Development Partnership at Florida Gulf Coast University SAVE THE DATE Positive Beginnings Training Institute The Positive Beginnings Training Institute will be held the last week of June. Watch for more information regarding this Institute on learning how to support young children with challenging behavior. ECA of FL 51st Conference September 28-30, 2006 Double Tree Hotel, Orlando, FL September 28: Watch for our information on the Professional Development Day! September 29: Keynote Speakers: Music with Peter and Ellen Allard September 30th: Keynote Speaker: Dr. Jerlean Daniels. Download the Exhibitor Packet in Word or PDF. Download the Presenter Proposal Form (in PDF). Fill out the Presenter Proposal Form online. For more information, regarding upcoming events contact us at (239) or online on the website- coe.fgcu.edu/cspd/index.asp

2 Page 2 News You Can Use, Special News Greetings from NICHCY, the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities! We are very pleased to announce the launching of our new Research Center, designed to connect you with the research evidence on a wide range of educational practices. Come visit! The Research Center is located at: While you're there, try out the brand-new Research-to-Practice database, where studies are placed in context and practical examples of the research in action are given. And please do come back for more, more, more, because this collection of summaries and analyses will be growing all the time. So that you won't miss a thing, you can even sign up to be notified when new research analyses are added! The National Organization for Rare Disorders sponsors a searchable database of disorders and disorder specific organizations that may be helpful to professionals and families. Check it out on the web at FGCU College of Education has made FCTE Elementary Education K-6 test preparation materials available on-line for a nominal fee of $ For more information please go to the link below: Hope this helps with the highly qualified crunch! Call For Presentations - Florida Council for Exceptional Children 2006 Annual Conference POSTMARK DEADLINE: June 1, 2006 The Florida Council for Exceptional Children (FFCEC) invites all interested persons to submit proposals for the 60 th Annual FCEC Conference, hosted by Chapter 243, to be held at the Marriott Bay Point Resort-Panama City Beach, Florida, October 12-14, The Conference will continue the collaborative efforts with family organizations in Florida and the Florida Association Student CEC. Together they will celebrate their mutual commitment to children and youth with special needs. There will be five (5) strands highlighted this year. We encourage that all presentations submitted target the specified topics listed under each strand. Presentations shall be in one of the following formats: DEMONSTRATION/LECTURE & POSTER SESSIONS For more information and descriptions of each strand go to and click on the Call for Papers Link on the top right corner of the website.

3 May 2006 Page 3 Diversity Resources for Faculty and Trainers Are you interested in resources that address key areas of *early childhood* or *early intervention* content AND *diversity*? Would you like to find videos, articles, syllabi and other resources for increasing how you emphasize cultural and linguistic diversity in your work? The Crosswalks Toolbox, an interactive database designed to connect faculty and trainers with resources that address both content and diversity, is now available to support your work at The Crosswalks Toolbox is made possible through an outreach grant from the US Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (H324R030072). Additional resources will continue to be added on an ongoing basis for the duration of that project. Schools Receive Parent/Staff Libraries for Students with Disabilities Ten area schools were the recipients of an extensive parent and staff resource library on topics related to students with disabilities. To qualify for the library, which was funded through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part B, Discretionary Grant, each school hosted or will be hosting a parent information session on topics of interest including: It s a Great IDEA; Individualized Education Plan (IEP); Positive Behavior Support; Transition ; and Collaborative Communication. The workshops and libraries are provided through the Collier County Public Schools Exceptional Student Education Department s parent advisory, Sharing the Commitment. The advisory is a collaborative partnership with the District s Exceptional Student Education Department, Family Network on Disabilities of Florida, Florida Diagnostic and Learning Resources System, Florida Gulf Coast University and the Florida Inclusion Network to facilitate communication; training; technical assistance and information dissemination to parents. Workshops have been presented in English and Spanish. Our goal is to establish an additional ten libraries next year to provide site based information to parents of children with disabilities and the professionals that work with them. Information on presentations can be found at the Sharing the Commitment web page: Library recipients for this school year are as follows: Shadowlawn Elementary School Osceola Elementary School Poinciana Elementary School Lake Park Elementary School Corkscrew Elementary School Immokalee Charter School Vineyards Elementary School Naples Park Elementary School Sabal Palm Elementary School Everglades Elementary School

4 Page 4 News You Can Use, WE ARE CONTINUING THE CONVERSATIONS BEGUN AT THE REGIONAL SUM- MIT ON CHILDREN S EMOTIONAL, BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL HEALTH. PEASE JOIN US! May 2, :00a.m.-3:00p.m. At Florida Gulf Coast University Ben Hill Griffin Hall Room 107 FREE Call to RSVP Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: Diagnosis, Intervention, and Family Supports By Kathryn Shea, LCSW Chief Operating Officer The Florida Center for Child and Family Development th Street Sarasota, FL And Discovering your Internal Job Description By Jack Pause, Coordinator of Southwest Florida Tech Prep Consortium A partnership of Edison College, Florida Gulf Coast University, and the school districts of Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee Counties Michigan Avenue, Ft Myers, FL Sponsored by SEDNET And SW Florida Professional Development Partnership In cooperation with Central Florida Behavioral Health Network, Inc. And Lee County Safe and Drug Free Schools Grant

5 May 2006 Page 5 Professional Development Opportunities Interpreter Preparation Initiative No cost professional development events for educational interpreters employed by Florida Public school districts and pre-service interpreting students. May-August, Introduction to Interpreting - 3 credit online course Directed Independent Study - topics will include prep for national written test, interpreting/translating, and sign to voice. Earn 3 credit hours - work at home and attend the 1-week summer institute. July 14-19, 2006 Educational Interpreter Institute Location: University of North Florida Register by 5/15 For more information contact Shannon Simon at or (904) Register online at: register.htm Quality Initiative: Creating Florida s Network of Infant Toddler Specialist Register for this training to become part of Florida s new Network of Infant Toddler Specialist! 10 Components of Quality Childcare for Infants & Toddlers Where: Fort Lauderdale When: May 16-19, 2006 To Register: Go online to 1. From menu on left, select Training. 2. Choose Infant Toddler Specialist Network. 3. Select the Region for the group you want to join. 4. Complete the registration process. If you have any questions contact Sarah Mullane (smullane@fsu.edu) One Goal: Building The Future Together Putting Families And Children First Hyatt Regency, Tampa, Florida July 19-21, 2006

6 Page 6 News You Can Use, Teaching Students with Autism and Related Disabilities: Teachers Receive Resources Without Leaving the Classroom A new website developed by the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities at the University of South Florida is bringing resources directly into the classroom for teachers of students with autism and related disabilities. The CARD Learning Curve website at provides interactive stories, ideas, resources and materials for teachers who often have little time and opportunity to learn from and share experiences with other educators. The website serves as a resource for teachers in our 14 county service area, said CARD staff member Mary Reed, who initiated the website development. Mary, as well as other CARD staff, provides training, technical assistance, and consultation for school personnel and families. She also facilitates the CARD ESE workgroup, which brings together the Exceptional Student Education Specialists from the CARD-USF 14 county catchment area. The idea for the website resulted from Believe in One; Believe in All, a multi-media presentation Mary developed, which illustrated the school experiences of one child with autism included in third grade. I wanted to capture his success along with that of his peers and the teams that supported him, said Mary. We decided to put together a multi-media presentation using still photography and adding voice-over personal perspectives of Matthew s inclusion team members, family and peers. Matthew s story told through the presentation conveyed something that s hard to teach, added Mary. It influences beliefs and values and shows that team work creates success for everyone involved. As a result of that project, and Mary s desire for all educators to see the success of Matthew s experience, Mary started thinking of training development activities and new ways to provide teachers with resources without leaving the classroom. With all the counties we serve, it makes perfect sense to have a website dedicated for teachers, specific to their issues and needs, said Mary. We wanted to have a way to put teachers in touch with one another so they could showcase the positive things they are doing and are proud of. Resources included on the website include feature stories that recognize classroom innovations and successes, illustrated with photos and/or audio/video clips, interactive tutorials, printable materials to use in the classroom, FAQ's from teachers posted with responses from CARD staff and school district resource personnel, summaries of new materials, links for learning, and schedules for upcoming training events. For additional information, contact Mary Reed at CARD-USF at reed@fmhi.usf.edu or (813)

7 Southwest Florida Professional Development FGCU Blvd S. Fort Myers, FL Phone: (239) Fax: (239) An ESE Personnel Development Partnership The Southwest Florida Professional Development Partnership supports an array of programs, projects, activities, and events to support the recruitment, retention, and specialized training of the ESE workforce. Our Staff: Peg Sullivan, Project Coordinator Dana Bennett, Assistant Project Coordinator Keiana Desmore, Program Assistant Berlina Tena Mora, Student Assistant Brittany Lewis, Student Assistant We re on the Web! Upcoming Meetings: Grant Planning Retreat - May 1, a - 12p, FGCU Library Room 220. Please RSVP by calling (239) to ensure adequate number of lunches available. SW FL PDP does not endorse any of the information or events. This is only a voluntary posting of information for persons interested in exceptional student education and children served under the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Distribution is made possible by grants from the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) Florida Department of Education. If you would like to unsubscribe from this monthly e-distribution list please contact: kdesmore@fgcu.edu Keiana Desmore Program Assistant, SW FL Professional Development Partnership FGCU Blvd. South Fort Myers, Fl (239)