Independence or Autonomy? By Alexandra Ponsica One goal that is often the main focus of parents, caregivers, and instructors of individuals with special needs is achieving independence. On the surface, it sounds like a fantastic goal. As a mother of twin 10 year old nonspeakers and spellers, it is certainly something I want my children […]
Making the World a Place Where Spellers Thrive By: Divyesh Jain Being able to write this blog is something I have dreamed of my whole life. A lot of people doubt my intelligence, I now have the tools and confidence to prove them wrong and tell my story. My name is Divyesh Jain and I […]
College Bodies by: Anshil Kumar College is one of the most exciting and terrifying topics amongst the spelling community. We finally have an outlet of which we are able to display our intelligence, but we still are stuck in an impulsive body. Where is the balance between the two? What accommodations do we need to […]
Speech Mechanism Pt. 3 The Resonators: Shaping the Sound By Bryana Williams M.S. CCC-SLP Today starts part three of our series on the speech mechanism-we’ve discussed air flow from the lungs in Part 1 and creating voicing in the larynx in Part 2. This discussion focuses on a couple of new areas that many […]
Strategies for First Responders Interacting with Autistics and Nonspeakers By: Ian Nordling On a Saturday in August, and again in late October, I had the honor of presenting to a group of Fairfax County first responders. A few years ago, one of the individuals had been sent to Growing Kids Therapy Center (GKTC) to help […]
Thinking Through Dysregulation THIS GUIDE TO THINKING THROUGH DYSREGULATION WAS PREPARED FOR THE MOTORMORPHOSIS 2022 PARENT NETWORKING COFFEE BY LAKSHMI RAO SANKAR AND DEBBIE SPENGLER, I-ASC LEADERSHIP CADRE When a speller is becoming dysregulated, it’s important to remember the common thread that dysregulation holds for all of us. Because when it comes down to it, the […]
What Advocacy Means to a Late-in-Life Speller Everyone who knew me thought I was stupid because I couldn’t speak. The only things that came out of my mouth were nonsense, so I understand why people thought that. The fact is I was treated like a 4-year-old and denied an education because I was assumed to […]
Sexuality and Sex: Another Hard Conversation by Noah Seback Nonspeakers and sexuality. Nonspeakers and sex. Can these be mentioned in the same sentence? Is this an oxymoron? Did I read that correctly? Yes! I’m a nonspeaking autistic broaching the subject of sex and sexuality as it relates to our population. This topic is too rarely […]
Voting 101: Happy Disability Voting Rights Week! When it comes to voting, you ideally want to support a candidate who has the same morals and ideals as you. Voting for specific candidates will not be an overnight solution to the problems you see in legislation. Not only is it important to vote in both local […]
The Urgency of Inclusion I spent the last weekend in July wrestling with a torrent of strong emotions: unexpected optimism about the future, the deep sense of comfort and belonging that comes from being in a truly inclusive environment, and a profound sense that all of us, starting with me, need to participate more actively […]
