Learn From Sam Archives - Page 2 of 2

Psychiatric Disorders and Intellectual Disability Diagnosis

January 3, 2020February 4, 2020 by Mark JohnsonNo Comments

“The prevalence of psychiatric disorders is higher in patients with ID. And psychiatric disorders in this population are typically more severe and more difficult to diagnose than in the general population; the degree of disability varies greatly." Read the article...

Life Skills Checklist for Special Needs Teens and Young Adults

July 11, 2018July 11, 2018 by Mark JohnsonNo Comments

This is a list we started working on for all of our kids to set goals for attempting to learn these life skills. Of course each individual living with special needs has different capacities and levels of comprehension. Our special needs son will need help in many areas to achieve this, so in some ways it's a list for us now - caregivers in the future. Maintain relationships - faith in God, home, church, family, friends, co-workers, community Maintain good hygiene Sexual health Caring for clothes - what you wear (washing, drying, ironing, storing, organizing) Using technology for communication (smartphone, email, tablets, desktops) Tie a necktie Self protection (call for help, hand-to-hand, weapon safety) Vaccinations House cleaning, maintenance and organization House emergency prep Kitchen use Technology maintainence Car maintainence Auto emergency prep Personal finance management (accounts, investing, saving, taxes, budgeting, credit score, protection) Personal insurances Personal document management (certificates, passport, records, social security) Career and Work (interviews, job search) Life...

Context of Play

July 3, 2018July 3, 2018 by Mark JohnsonNo Comments

When our son was diagnosed with autism and behavior & intellectual challenges several years ago, one of the main points the doctor (who had 20+ years experience of working with children) made to us was that everything we wanted our son to truly and meaningfully understand should be wrapped in the context of “play”. That advice has proved consistently true as our son has grown. Successful communication with a special needs child, preteen, teen, young adult, or adult who deals with autism and behavior & intellectual challenges is naturally and sincerely playful. It receives the most notable response. I believe it makes the strongest connections and gains trust with the child you love and you want he or she to know that you love them....

North Texas CPS To Fix Broken System

May 18, 2016May 27, 2016 by Mark JohnsonNo Comments

Since 2005, we have known there were gaps which were failing children in North Texas. An report released today, Child Protective Services Dallas County Management Review, confirmed it's time for change. It stated, "much of the crisis facing Dallas County is self-inflicted." Click here to read more. Robert T. Garrett reported, "CPS has been publicly reeling for months. Turnover has skyrocketed as overwhelmed, low-paid caseworkers flee the agency. Cases of suspected abuse and neglect have lingered, leading to missed signs that could have helped rescue children much sooner. And a federal judge has ruled that a key portion of the state’s child-protection work, foster care, is broken and in need of long-term oversight and repair." Click here to read his article....