September 2, 2016
Issue 35, Volume 9
It's All About the Choices!     
          
Please enjoy our weekly newsletter.   
 
News Items:
  • Evidence of Changes to Children's Brain Rhythms Following 'Brain Training'
  • Playing Sports With Concussion Doubles Recovery Time
  • Brazil's Finances Prove To Be A Hurdle For Paralympics, Too
  • New iPad Game Could Help Diagnose Autism in Children
  • Autism Symptoms Wash Away At Surf Camp
PediaStaff News and Hot Jobs 
  • Hot Job: School-Based Occupational Therapist - Auburn, NY
  • Hot Job! School Psychologist - Vancouver, WA (Greater Portland, OR) 
  • Hot Job: Pediatric Outpatient and/or EI Occupational Therapist - Idaho Falls, ID
Therapy Activities, Tips and Resources
  • My Self-Esteem Free Printable
  • Visual Perception Find and Color - School
  • Fall Themed Freebies at Speaking of Speech
  • A 'Gift to the Profession': 'Spanish Phrasing for SLPs'
Articles and Special Features 
  • OT Corner: Cursive Law Writes New Chapter For Handwriting In Alabama's Schools
  • SLP Corner - Video Edition: Articulation Mini Objects Box
  • Pediatric Therapy Corner: 25 Organization Hacks for the Therapy Room
  • Literacy Corner: The Role of Early Oral Language in Reading
Feel free to contact us with any questions about our openings or items in these pages. Have you discovered our RSS feed? Click on the orange button below to subscribe to all our openings and have them delivered to your Feed Reader!  Don't have an RSS Feed Reader set up? Sign up at Blogtrottr and have our blog posts delivered right to your email.

Have a great weekend and Take Care!

Heidi Kay and the PediaStaff Team
8

The Career Center

The links to the right are "live" and reflect the most recent SLP, OT, PT and related assistant jobs, and ALL our Bilingual and School Psychology Jobs. 
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Recent Occupational Therapist and COTA Jobs 

Evidence of Changes to Kid's Brain Rhythms After 'Brain Training
Editor's Note:  Small sample size, but interesting none-the-less
 
[Source:  Science Daily]
 
New research questions the strong claims that have been made about the benefits of 'brain training' - enhanced mental skills, a boost to education, improved clinical outcomes and sharper everyday functioning. This new study found evidence that 'brain training' changed brain signalling but no indication of other benefits.
 
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog 
Playing Sports With Concussion Doubles Recovery Time
[Source Medical X-Press]
 
Continuing to play despite a concussion doubles recovery time for teen athletes and leads to worse short-term mental function than in those immediately removed from action, a study found.
It's billed as the first to compare recovery outcomes for athletes removed from a game or practice compared with those who aren't. The study was small, involving 69 teens treated at a University of Pittsburgh Medical Center concussion clinic, but the results bolster evidence supporting the growing number of return-to-play laws and policies nationwide

The study was published Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

Read the Rest of This Article Through a Link on our Blog
Brazil's Finances Prove To Be A Hurdle For Paralympics, Too
[Source:  Disability Scoop]

With the Olympic Games ended, Brazil immediately faces another crisis as it tries to keep the financial promises it made to the world as host of the fast-approaching Paralympic Games.

Even before the curtain went down Sunday night on the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil was slashing what it intended to spend on the Paralympic Games, the international sports competition for athletes with disabilities.
 
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog
New iPad Game Could Help Diagnose Autism in Children
[Source:  Science Daily]

Autism could be diagnosed by allowing children to play games on smart phones and tablets, a study involving the University of Strathclyde has found.

Dr Jonathan Delafield-Butt, of Strathclyde's Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, and colleagues at start-up company Harimata, used fun iPad games to track players' hand movements - gathering information that can help identify autism.

Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog
Autism Symptoms Wash Away At Surf Camp
[Article and Image Source:: Disability Scoop]

Editor's Note:  So nice to see that this organization is still going strong after all these years.
LA JOLLA, Calif. - William Cary said he's learned to appreciate small victories with his 17-year-old son Ben.

The Del Cerro teen has autism, epilepsy, ataxia and he doesn't speak, so Cary choked up while describing how proud he was this summer when Ben buttoned his pants for the very first time after going to the bathroom. But one victory that Ben achieved long ago was surfing. Since the age of 6, he has been participating in Surfers Healing surf camps for children with autism.

Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog
PediaStaff is searching for an Occupational Therapist to work in a school based setting near the beautiful Finger Lake Region of New York.  The position is based in Auburn.  You will have the opportunity to work with children in grades K-12.  Part time and full time caseload schedules are available on either a contract or direct hire basis.  The schedules are flexible and you may consider short or long term assignments.  The opportunity to work in other pediatric settings may be an option over time.

Learn About / Apply for This Job on our Blog
PediaStaff has a wonderful opportunity for a School Psychologist!
 
* Great location in Vancouver, WA
* Easy commute from Portland - or live in WA where there's no state income tax
* Vision to fully implement the Comprehensive Service Delivery Model
* Super team of School Psychs and you'll enjoy working here
* Excellent pay rates based on experience
* New graduates - earn a high income now with option to convert to a District employee later
 
Qualifications: Must hold at least a Master's or Specialty Degree in School Psychology and be eligible for certification in Washington.  NCSP makes cert easy.

Learn About / Apply for This Job on our Blog
You visit places like this on vacation - why not live here?

Recreational opportunities are endless with world class biking, river sports, skiing, and snowboarding.  Local lakes, mountains and National Parks offer destinations for hiking and camping.  A thriving local restaurant scene, regional shopping, arts and music venues offer time for relaxation.  The Idaho Falls Regional Airport offers easy access to any city in the world.  Idaho Falls is the regional medical hub for Idaho, Western Wyoming and Southwest Montana.  A low cost of living, affordable housing and strong sense of community all contribute to this being your dream job.

Learn About / Apply for This Job on our Blog
Freebie of the Week: 
My Self-Esteem Free Printable
[Source: Squarehead Teachers via We Are Teachers]
 
It's important that kids have positive self-esteem that encourages them to try new things, overcome challenges and be happy. I don't think every kid needs a trophy for everything or that all kids deserve the same trophies, but that's a different conversation. This page is a quick self-esteem builder that helps kids build a positive view of themselves by evaluating specific areas.
 
Download this Freebie Through a Link onour Blog 
[Source:  Your Therapy Source]

Here is a visual perceptual freebie Find and Color for back to school from the School Doodle Find packet.   Challenge your student's visual scanning and visual motor skills with this activity.  Can you find and color the 7 different school items?

Download this Freebie Through a Link on our Blog
Fall Themed Freebies:   at Speaking of Speech
[Source: Speaking of Speech]

Good collection of "fall themed" speech activities. At last visit, resources included sequencing cards, lotto for vocabulary development, a "Trip to the Pumpkin Patch" interactive book, and a whole lot more!

Check out this Great Colleciton Through a Link on our Blog
A 'Gift to the Profession': 'Spanish Phrasing for SLPs'
Editor's Note:  Every so often I am compelled to re-share this gem.   Enjoy.

Here is a very exciting resource to share. Back in January, we featured a chapter of a book by Dorothy Miranda Esckelson and Adulfa Aguirre Morales, called 'Spanish Phrasing for SLPs.' 

The authors had given Judith Kuster of MSU  permission to post one chapter of stuttering phrases on her website. We featured that chapter HERE for  our Resource of the Week.

OT Corner:  Cursive Law Writes New Chapter For Handwriting In AL Schools
[Article and Image Source: NPR]
 
Second-grader Caedmon Craig is attempting to write in cursive and he's being helped by his mom. But a lot of erasing is happening at this kitchen table in Prattville, Ala. This school year Caedmon will be writing in cursive for the first time. For now he's only required to write his cursive letters separately, but he's ready for more.
 
"I think joining them is easier than separate," he says. "Because you don't have to do that much."
 
Read the Rest of This Article Through a Link on our Blog

SLP Corner - Video Edition:  Articulation Mini Objects Box
[Source:  The Speech Room News]

One of my favorite ways to do articulation therapy is to use mini objects. I got myself organized this year so I can take them with me daily into the classrooms I work in. Check out my Vlog below!


Pediatric Tx Corner: 25 Organization Hacks for the Therapy Room
[Source:  The Inspired Treehouse]

Many people cringe a little bit when they hear back-to-school talk at the end of the summer.  But we therapists have a little Type A place in our hearts that squeals with delight when we start to see those colorful, pretty school supplies appearing on store shelves!  We tend to be organizers, savers, labelers, and fixer uppers.  We just can't help ourselves!

Whether you're a school based therapist or you work in another setting, the ideas below are great for keeping therapy materials and equipment neat and organized all year long!

Read the Rest of This Article on our Blog

Literacy Corner: The Role of Early Oral Language in Reading
[Image and Article Source:  Reading Rockets and Language Magazine]

by Timothy Shanahan

When I was 18 years old, I was a volunteer tutor in an inner-city school. I wasn't an education major - that came later - but I was intent on saving the world. I was excited about the idea of going into the city and working with elementary school kids who were growing up in poverty.
But I was also nervous about it. I didn't know a damn thing about working with kids, the inner city, or reading. A trifecta of ignorance.

I decided to school myself the evening before my first day of tutoring, so I went to the university library and looked for some books on the teaching of reading. I found two that seemed pertinent and I checked them out.

Did You Get This From a Friend?

 

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