|
January 31, 2014
Issue 5, Volume 7 It's All About the Choices!
Happy Friday. Enough already with the cold rain and snow!
Please enjoy this week's newsletter from wherever it's warm and cozy.
News Items:
- On the Lighter Side: From the Desk of the School Psychologist
- Music Therapy Improves Coping Skills in Young Cancer Patients
- Using Whole Body Movement to Help with Knowledge Retention
- Surprising Research Results Reveal Brain Regions Thought to be Uniquely Human Share Many Similarities with Monkey
- In Rett Syndrome, Permanent Changes in Brain Genes May Not Be so Permanent After All
PediaStaff News
- Upcoming Events: It's TSHA Time!
- Featured Job of the Week: School Psychologist - Columbia River Gorge
Therapy Activities, Tips and Resources
- Book Review: Learn to Have Fun with Your Senses: The Sensory Avoider's Survival Guide
- Button Fine Motor Projects/Activities
- Resource of the Week: The 200 Best Educational Websites
Articles and Special Features
- Vision Corner: Visual Development - Birth to Age Two
- SLP Corner: Ask the Expert on Stuttering - An SLP talks to Parents
- Pediatric Therapy Corner: Autism in Children and Adults with Down Syndrome
- Physical Therapy Corner: Adapted Yoga for Children and Youth with Cerebral Palsy
- Thoughts from the Editor's Desk
- Worth Repeating: 10 Stages in the Emergence of Speaking at School
- Also Worth Repeating: Brief Ideas for Speech Therapy for Children with Apraxia of Speech
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
|
|
|
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.
To further narrow your search by state, setting, bilingual, or term, use the check boxes drop down menus.
If a particular search is returning no hits it is possible that we do not currently have new openings for you with that selection criteria.
To see ALL our openings click HERE and further narrow your search.
|
|
|
|
On the Lighter Side: From the Desk of the School Psychologist
|
We saw this meme on Pinterest and thought our School Psychologist friends might enjoy it for their offices/desks. Enjoy "Everyone Asks, "What Does the Fox Say?"....
|
Music Therapy in the News: Music Therapy Improves Coping Skills in Young Cancer Patients
|
[Source: Medical News Today]
A new study has found that a form of music therapy, which involves writing song lyrics and producing videos, is beneficial in helping young cancer patients develop coping skills.
Being diagnosed with and undergoing treatment for cancer can be a very traumatic experience, especially for young people. But fighting to maintain a positive outlook and having strong family and social relationships is known to have a beneficial effect on treatment.
So it is important that distressed adolescents and young adults are able to access support that can promote coping strategies and enhance social interactions while undergoing cancer treatment.
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
Movement for Learning in the News: Using Whole Body Movement to Help with Knowledge Retention
|
[Source: Your Therapy Source]
At the University of Arizona there is the Embodied Games for Learning Lab. The lab is creating games for K-12 classrooms that include movement with learning. The researchers have found that students retain information better when they use their whole body to learn the information.
One of the lead researchers, Mina Johnson-Glenberg, states that
"Our controlled studies are showing that whenever students use gestures to learn, they actually are remembering information longer...Often, our immediate post-tests show results with no significant differences associated
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
Comparative Neurobiology in the News: Surprising Research Results Reveal Brain Regions Thought to be Uniquely Human Share Many Similarities with Monkeys
| [Source: Medical News Today]
New research suggests a surprising degree of similarity in the organization of regions of the brain that control language and complex thought processes in humans and monkeys. The study, published online January 28 in the Cell Press journal Neuron, also revealed some key differences. The findings may provide valuable insights into the evolutionary processes that established our ties to other primates but also made us distinctly human. The research concerns the ventrolateral frontal cortex, a region of the brain known for more than 150 years to be important for cognitive processes including language, cognitive flexibility, and decision-making. "It has been argued that to develop these abilities, humans had to evolve a completely new neural apparatus; however others have suggested precursors to these specialized brain systems might have existed in other primates," explains lead author Dr. Franz-Xaver Neubert of the University of Oxford, in the UK. Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
Rett Syndrome in the News: Rett Syndrome, Permanent Changes in Brain Genes May Not Be so Permanent After All
|
[Source: Medical News Today]
In normal development, all cells turn off genes they don't need, often by attaching a chemical methyl group to the DNA, a process called methylation. Historically, scientists believed methyl groups could only stick to a particular DNA sequence: a cytosine followed by a guanine, called CpG. But in recent years, they have been found on other sequences, and so-called non-CpG methylation has been found in stem cells, and in neurons in the brain.
Now, a team of researchers at Johns Hopkins has discovered that non-CpG methylation occurs later and more dynamically in neurons than previously appreciated, and that it acts as a system of gene regulation, which can be independent of traditional CpG methylation.
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link our Blog |
Upcoming Events: It's TSHA Time!
|
It's that time of year! TSHA (the Texas Speech-Language Hearing Association) Convention and Exhibition is just around the corner - February 27 - March 1, 2014 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas.
I remember a few years ago the Texas Tourism Bureau had a marketing campaign - "Texas, its Like a Whole 'Nother Country." It's so true. We love going to TSHA, because it's so big it might as well be a national show! They are expecting over 5000 attendees. This year, the theme is, "Preserving the Past and Embracing the Future"
|
Featured Job of the Week: School Psychologist - Columbia River Gorge
|
PediaStaff is searching for a contract School Psychologist to work full time starting ASAP through June 2014. Location is on the Columbia River east of Portland. You'll work in schools, K-12. Excellent hourly rates from $36/hr and higher based on experience. This is a beautiful area - if you're into outdoor adventures this is a dream location. More details available to qualified and interested candidates.
Qualifications - Must hold at least a Master's or Specialty Degree in School Psychology, Oregon license or eligible.
Learn About / Apply for This Job on our Blog |
Book Review: Learn to Have Fun with Your Senses: The Sensory Avoider's Survival Guide
| By: John Taylor, PhD; Illustrations by: Lynda Farrington Wilson Reviewed By: Susan N. Schriber Orloff, OTR/L
This is a wonderful book for children with sensory avoiding issues. Not only is this book applicable to children, it is also helpful for parents and practitioners working with children who struggle with sensory processing disorder. The book simplifies sensory problems in a way that gives children a way to understand what is happening in their brains and bodies. Most children are unaware that their brain is not processing senses the way it needs to, but instead just feel different. This book provides a simplified explanation children can understand and helps them realize there are many people who feel the way they do. Read the Rest of this Book Review on our Blog |
Fine Motor Ideas of the Week: Button Fine Motor Projects/Activities
| If you need to work on fine motor, visual motor or button practice why not try some of these activity ideas?
Watch Video of These Activities on Our Blog |
Resource of the Week: The 200 Best Educational Websites
| Special Thanks to Smart Apps for Special Needs for sharing word of this excellent list
Access this List of Websites Through a Link on our Blog |
|
|
|
Vision Corner: Vision Development: Birth - Two Months
|
by: Lynn Hellerstein, Developmental Optometrist
Babies often don't focus on you or other targets, as nerve cells in their retina and brain are not fully developed. The infant cannot accommodate (focus on near objects) very well. However, within a few days after birth, infants prefer looking at an image of their mother's face to that of a stranger. Visual acuity is estimated to be approximately 20/400.
Your child's eyes may look huge! Your baby's eyes are approximately 65% of their adult size. They "grow into" their large eyes, as the head develops over time.
Read the Rest of This Article on our Blog
|
SLP Corner: Ask the Expert on Stuttering - An SLP talks to Parents
|
By: Nancy E. Hall, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
What is my role as a parent? There is an old adage in clinical and educational fields that goes something like this: Parents know their children best. This notion is borne out in recent research on language development in children, in which investigators have found that parent report of overall communication capability is predictive of a child's later academic achievement. It is believed that parents bring a global perspective on their youngsters' communication skills that cannot be captured
Read the Rest of This Article on our Blog
|
Pediatric Therapy Corner: Autism in Children and Adults with Down Syndrome
|
By: Colin ReillyFor many, the perceived typical personality profile of Down syndrome (i.e., that of an individual who is affectionate and outgoing) seems to go against the typical personality profile associated with Autism (also known as Autism Spectrum Disorder). While people with Down syndrome have been traditionally described as friendly, affectionate, and extroverted, not all individuals with Down syndrome possess these personality characteristics. Some have significant difficulties in the triad of impairments associated with Autism. All children and adults with Autism have difficulties in three areas known as the triad of impairments. These areas are social interaction, social Read the Rest of This Article on our Blog
|
Physical Therapy Corner: Adapted Yoga for Children and Youth with Cerebral Palsy
|
by: The National Center on Physical Activity and Disability
Introduction: Yoga is an ancient Indian practice which involves moving the body and training the mind to achieve balance and well-being. The purpose of traditional yoga is for each individual to be healthy, both physically and mentally, and able to reach his or her highest potential as a person. Practicing yoga as a lifestyle can be beneficial for individuals with disabilities or chronic health conditions through both the physical postures and breathwork. Each pose can be modified or adapted to meet the needs of the student.
Read the Rest of This Article on our Blog
|
Thoughts: From the Editor's Desk
|
by Heidi Kay
As pediatric clinicians, I know you are talking to parents every day who are beating themselves up for what they "didn't know" or "did wrong" regarding their children.
Today, I was talking to a friend whose daughter (who is one of my daughter's best friends) is
Read the Rest of This Article on our Blog
|
Worth Repeating: 10 Stages in the Emergence of Speaking at School
|
The following outlines the stages through which children with selective mutism typically move as they become more comfortable speaking across settings.
|
Also Worth Repeating: Brief Ideas for Speech Therapy for Children with Apraxia of Speech
|
By: David Hammer, M.A., CCC-SLP
Just as communication therapy for children with apraxia of speech presents unique challenges, it certainly is a challenge to present my views on treatment in a few paragraphs. There are many complexities involved when we discuss therapy strategies due to the wide range of children whom we service. These include, but certainly are not limited to, the maturation level of the child, the child's general cognitive abilities, possible dual diagnoses, other deficit areas such as fine motor
Read the Rest of this Article Through a Link on our Blog
|
Did You Get This From a Friend?
Sign Up For Your Copy of This Newsletter!
| Would you like pediatric and school-based therapy tips, resources, articles, and news delivered to your computer once a week? Sign up here for our newsletter!
Sign up HERE
|
Quick Links to PediaStaff
|
|
If you would like to opt out of receiving this newsletter, there is a link located in the footer below. However, please note that once you've opted out, we will be unable to send you any future correspondence via newsletter. |
Please Note: The views and advice expressed in articles, videos and other pieces published in this newsletter are not necessarily the views and advice of PediaStaff or its employees but rather that of the author. PediaStaff is not endorsing or implying agreement with the views or advice contained therein, rather presenting them for the independent analysis and information of its readers.
|
|
|