Consider This...
Things to Consider in September 2021 from RTSC
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In this Month:
- August Articles
- Useful Tips and Resources
- Upcoming Federation Events
Click titles for links
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News and information about education, research, and support for SESPs; adoptive, foster, and kinship caregivers; and child welfare and education professionals helping children with trauma and other special needs get the most from their education. |
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Registration is Open
10th Annual Making a Difference Conference!
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We are so excited to announce that Registration is open for our 10th annual Making a Difference Conference! The Making a Difference conference provides a wonderful opportunity for Special Education Surrogate Parents (SESPs), Foster/Adoptive and Kinship Caregivers, Educators, Child Welfare Providers, Community Partners and Others to experience a full day of high-quality education and networking. Attendees will come away with information and resources to assist them with supporting the students they serve. We will have full day of workshops and opportunities with a great line up of speakers!
Register now and start engaging with others to earn points to win a Lenovo Chromebook, Fitbit Inspire 2, or tickets to the 2022 Visions of Community Conference
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Date
Tuesday, November 16, 2021
8:00AM - 4:00PM
Pre-Conference Events on Wednesday, November 10, 2021 (coming soon!)
Location
Whova Conference Platform
Cost
Free for all attendees!
CEUs:
Application for social work continuing education credits has been submitted. Please contact us at rtsc@fcsn.org or (617) 399-8342 for the status of social work CE accreditation.
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Anxiety in children is on the rise in the United States, with a 7.1% rate of diagnosed anxiety in children aged 3-17 years. At the same time, mental health awareness is becoming more of a priority in schools. However, anxiety can be difficult to identify in children. In this article, Brita Hammer discusses signs of anxiety in children and how it can impact educational performance. She then provides helpful strategies for educators to support students with anxiety in their classrooms. |
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In this article, Brandee Blocker Anderson breaks down the ways in which colorblindness causes harm for people of color and acts to perpetuate racism. When we avoid talking about race or calling out racial bias, "children internalize these messages" and "they learn that race is a bad thing and that we should deny reminders of its existence-especially examples of racism. While white children learn to deny race and racism, children of color learn to change themselves to aid in this denial." In order to be an antiracist educator, instead of avoiding discussions about race and racism, teachers must help their students understand the beauty in our differences. |
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In dealing with the Pandemic over the past year and a half, we've all had to learn a thing or two about resilience. But how do you foster resilience in your kids? "Thankfully," says Erik Vance "most experts say resiliency is something that can be fostered, nurtured, and developed in children from a very young age." This article outlines the important steps for building resiliency in kids, starting with building a safe foundation, that will help them learn to bounce back from challenges and thrive. |
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When kids seem to be having a hard time focusing in class, ADHD tends to be the primary suspect. However there are several other reasons why a child might have attention problems, including anxiety, OCD, trauma, and learning disorders. To avoid a misdiagnosis, it is important that that these possibilities be examined and considered. Read this article to learn about how to make sure children with attention difficulty get the right diagnosis. |
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While its normal for everyone to have occasional feelings of self-consciousness or experience low self-confidence, continued low self-esteem is not a natural or healthy state of being. In fact, it can significantly impact your "relationships, sense of self-worth, how you express yourself, and how you navigate life." But what does low self-esteem look like? And how do we build our self-confidence and feel better? This article from PsychCentral outlines signs of low self-esteem, including people pleasing, negative self-talk, and self-doubt, and provides strategies to build your self-confidence, such as practicing self-love, setting small goals for yourself, and seeing a therapist. |
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Useful Tools, Media and Resources
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Check out this resource from CPI to help you respond to difficult behavior using safe, effective strategies
Do you or someone you know experience anxiety? See this list by PsychCentral which provides strategies to calm down quickly and manage long-term anxiety.
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U.S. Department of Education Releases New Resources on Trauma-informed Practices
The U.S. Department of Education recently released three new briefs dedicated to helping educators become trauma-informed and incorporate trauma-informed (TI) practices into their work:
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TIPS: Transition Information for Parents and Students with IEPs (Ages 14-22) Brochures
A series produced by the LINK Center- a project of FCSN and DESE
For the next few months, we will be highlighting brochures from our TIPS Series! The second brochure in the series is "Transition Assessment." Click on the image on the right to view the full brochure or click HERE to see all of the brochures in this series!
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Upcoming Federation Events |
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Liza Hirsch, Esq. is a Senior Attorney who represents families in school discipline and special education matters. She specializes in advocacy on behalf of children with autism and emotional/behavioral disabilities, and has expertise in inclusion and poverty-related barriers to education. She previously worked as a manager in the Holyoke Public Schools and as a Staff Attorney at Massachusetts Law Reform Institute and at Medical-Legal Partnership Boston. Liza is the recipient of a 2011 Skadden Fellowship. During law school, she completed internships in juvenile justice advocacy and civil legal services, focusing on housing and family homelessness. Prior to law school, Liza worked as a Care Coordinator at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, providing advocacy on behalf of children with special health needs. Liza is a graduate of Northeastern University School of Law.
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Eileen Sandberg, PhD. coordinates the Pathways for Parents program at FCSN, and is a Recruitment, Training and Support specialist for Special Education Surrogate Parents. The Pathways program provides support on special education issues to programs funded by the Department of Children and Families, including the 27 Massachusetts Family Resource Centers, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, and the Family Advisory Committee to DCF. Eileen has five young adult children, all of whom had IEPs in their school years.
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Transition Planning:
This presentation provides an understanding of the transition planning process, including why transition planning is important, services that could be included, who is eligible, student and parent/SESP roles in transition planning, and the role of student’s vision. We will discuss how to prepare for a transition planning meeting, using the transition planning form, the age of majority, the anticipated graduation date, and the options when the Team does not agree, including procedural due process rights.
Trauma Training:
This training will offer a systematic approach to looking at Developmental Childhood Trauma as it impacts our students in the child welfare system. This interactive training will study trauma’s effects on the academic and social/emotional learning of a student and the impact on their IEP.
Discipline and Suspension:
This training describes different types of disciplinary offenses, the school responsibilities for discipline, range of consequences for rule violations, the difference between suspensions, expulsions, and emergency removals, different categories of suspensions, procedures for out of school suspensions and expulsions, and legal protections for students on IEPs.
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Free Upcoming Online Orientations
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For more information on becoming a Special Education Surrogate Parent
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Federation for Children with Special Needs
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