Good morning!

Today is World Autism Awareness Day. I’ve included a short informative video for you to watch when you have a moment.

(And let’s be honest, who doesn’t love an Australian accent!)

If you want to learn more about Autism (own your own learning) feel free to check out Autism Speaks Canada. It’s filled with incredible information and resources. Happy reading!

https://www.autismspeaks.ca/

Have a great day! Light it up blue.

Sharon

For some students school is easy and a fun, safe, exciting place to be. That’s what we hope all students feel when they walk through our doors. But the reality is, that for some students, school is stressful. For some, it’s coupled with feelings of anxiety, a lack of confidence and a social world that can feel overwhelming and complex. It’s our job as educators to pay attention to these real feelings and to try and unravel what the underlying issue is triggering some of these big feelings. When a child is dysregulated, there is always a reason, but sometimes it’s tricky to figure out what those reasons are. For students who have difficulty regulating their emotions, building a toolbox is a critical step. Validating a student’s feelings, naming the discomfort and then brainstorming together what tools might be beneficial in helping the student feel more settled are essential strategies to uncovering the deeper issues. Here is an example of the beginning of a toolbox being built.

The zones of regulation is also an amazing tool that students are using in our school to help to own their own learning and understand when they feel dysregulated. Students learn what each of the zones mean, start to recognize what their body feels like in each of the zones, and then are coached through strategies to help move back into the green zone. When teachers, students and parents all speak the same language and these tools are used regularly, we see huge success in helping students regulate their own emotions.

Paying attention, validating feelings and working collaboratively with students in order to help regulate big emotions is the key to success. Our number one goal is that all students walk through our doors feeling excited, supported and ready to be the best versions of themselves throughout their day. If you want more information about self-regulation, building a toolbox or supporting a child who feels worried about school, feel free to be in touch with our resource department.

One of the most frustrating things as a parent is when you have a child who dislikes reading. Most of us understand and see the value of raising a child, who loves books, enjoys reading and appreciates literature. For some children, however, reading is simply not an enjoyable task. I think it’s important to understand why a child dislikes reading. Is it because they haven’t found books that interest them or is it because they find reading a challenging task?  Here are some tips to encourage reluctant readers to read.

• Read to Children: A great way to start the love of reading is by reading to your child (any age – even 10 year olds love being read to). Find a book you really think will capture their interest and read it to them. The first step to getting a child engaged in reading is to gain their attention with a captivating book.
• Read a Variety of Material: Reading a variety of material is important to find out what interests your child. Reading can come from reading newspapers, magazines, taking quizzes, on-line stories, comics, graphic novels, video game instructions and so much more. Try and be mindful to encourage reading in all of these different formats.
• Choose Books at the Right Level: Be really careful to help your child choose books at their reading level. The fastest way to turn a child off reading is by encouraging them to read materials that are too difficult for them. Always be supportive and always help a struggling reading. Do not get frustrated with your child if they are having difficulty. It is NOT their fault. Our teachers are in the process of learning a new Reading Program that helps students pick books at their reading level – ask your child’s teacher for more information.
• Audio Books: Sometimes we just don’t have time to read to our children but audio books serve the same purpose. It allows struggling readers to have access to books that are too difficult for them to read on their own.
• Make it Part of a Routine: Try and make reading part of a household routine that is not optional. Just like brushing teeth happens naturally as part of getting ready for bed, so should reading time. Try and make it positive and rewarding and something that everyone in the house simply does at the same time every day. Be role models – if you don’t read, your child will likely not see it as a priority or something you value, and likely neither will they.
• Genre Bingo: For children who are struggling to find books they like, you can create a Genre Bingo game. You can put different Genres of books on a bingo card and encourage your child to pick a different Genre of book each time they choose a new book. This is a great way to expose children to different types of reading material. When your child gets a “BINGO”, a prize is always fun. Some Genres to include on your Bingo Card could be: Humour, Adventure, Mystery, Fiction, Non-Fiction, News Article, Historical, Comic, Graphic Novel, Science Fiction, Drama, Biographies, and Action.

Happy Reading!!!

With Our Diversity, Comes Our Strength

Dr. Madelaine Werier, DVM, BScAg

“Acceptance is based on two key concepts. First, each one of us has something to contribute to our communities and our world, and second, our communities are not whole until all of us belong.” -Shelly Christensen

February is Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance and Inclusion Month (JDAIM), a worldwide initiative to raise disability awareness and to support inclusion in Jewish communities. As co-founder of the Jewish Ottawa Inclusion Network (JOIN) and an autism mom, this is an exciting month! A highlight so far was participating in the CIJA delegation on parliament hill for the annual Jewish Disability Advocacy Day. JDAIM events will be taking place all over North America and worldwide. It is also my pleasure to announce some upcoming events right here in Ottawa!

JOIN is honoured to partner with Tamir, Jewish Federation of Ottawa, and Jewish Family Services of Ottawa to present Pushing the Boundaries: Disability, Inclusion and Jewish Community at the SJCC on April 3, 2019. This will be a day of learning for lay leadership, community professionals, front line staff and volunteers and all are welcome to attend. Shelly Christensen, author of From Longing to Belonging: A Practical Guide to Including People with Disabilities in Faith Communities and Jewish Community Guide to Inclusion of People with Disabilities will be our keynote speaker. Shelly is a leader in the field of disability inclusion and spirituality, co-founded JDAIM in 2009, and serves as its organizer.

On the evening of April 2, the community is invited to join us at Kehillat Beth Israel for conversations with inclusion expert Shelly Christensen and Daniel Tammet, an essayist, novelist, poet, translator, autistic savant, and New York Times best-selling author. It will be a fascinating and inspiring evening and is not to be missed.

Community inclusion for persons with disabilities has become a passion and a mission for myself and others in our community. As parents of children with exceptionalities we have united in friendship, effort, and solidarity to break through some of the barriers we experience with our children. Adults and children with visible and invisible disabilities make up 22% of the population (Statistics Canada, Canadian Survey on Disability 2017). Do you look around your synagogue, community centre, simcha or school and wonder, where are they? Some of these adults and children are right here at our school! Many children at OJCS have diagnosed physical, developmental, or learning disabilities. The benefits of including all types of learners at our community school extends well beyond the individual child. The entire school is strengthened by the diversity of talent, learning style, and unique perspective. The culture is also shifted as the attitudes and actions of the next generation are shaped by the examples set in the classroom. Interacting with peers that communicate or learn differently fosters advanced and adaptive communication and cooperation skills. When children get an opportunity to give and receive support from one another, their sense of community and responsibility leads way to meaningful friendships, empathy, and moral stewardship. We learn better together #northstars.

What does inclusion at OJCS mean for a family like mine? To put it simply, it is everything! My children will be invited to parties, grow up with Jewish friends, find support in their own faith community, and feel confident in their Jewish identity. In return the school and community will benefit from their unique talents and offerings (which as their Mom I have to say are pretty amazing!). My delight in my children’s inclusion is bittersweet knowing that others in our community cannot attend OJCS for reasons directly related to their disability. Although the reasons can vary, the primary hindrance is a lack of necessary resources. Our community needs more training, equipment, expertise, and knowledge of the fundamentals of inclusion. Parents are responsible for providing all kinds of private supports, special equipment, missed work days for never ending appointments and assessments. From personal experience the financial and energy costs are beyond staggering and realistically not accessible for most. There are many strategies that we can utilize as a community to reduce some of these strains that get transferred onto the individual or their family.

What can we as a community do? Whenever possible, choose inclusion! Inclusion is a spectrum, a journey. It is not black and white and can always be tweaked and improved upon. We can use our voices, influence, votes, and donation dollars to show that inclusion of all Jewish children in our day schools is not optional. We can teach ourselves to do different work not necessarily more work to foster inclusion. We can support the board members and administrators of our school in helping them create the inclusive future they envision. We can applaud them for what they are already doing, help fundraise, volunteer, and collaborate. We can reach out to people who are shut out of community involvement and ask them how we can facilitate their inclusion. We can make new friends and lead by example for our children. We can enjoy the diversity of one another.

Throughout February as we recognize #JDAIM19, think about ways you can promote inclusivity in our community. It could start in your home, at your Shabbat table, in your business, in your synagogue, and in your child’s school. We will all be better for it.

Hope to see you at Pushing the Boundaries on April 2 and 3!

One of the Workshops I offer through my personal consulting business, is how to sneak math into everyday living. The intent is to think about Math through the context of everyday living and through the context of an isolating subject being taught or learned at school. Math is everywhere and it’s one of the easiest subjects taught in school to reinforce at home, without little ones even having a clue they are doing Math!

One word of caution is to be mindful of your own personal biases toward your own feelings about Math. It tends to be that subject that you we either love and feel comfortable and confident with, or it’s a subject that evokes stressful memories and a subject that perhaps we struggled with ourselves in school. It’s important to keep those feelings neutral. Help your child discover a love for Math without calling it Math.

I’m attaching a “How to Sneak Math into Daily Living” PDF document. These tips follow the five strands of the Ontario Curriculum but shown in a way that you can implement at home with everyday activities and conversations. Make it fun!!

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Some students struggle with reading. Some students love books, but what they are capable of reading doesn’t necessarily match their reading ability. Some students are great readers, but find reading less engaging than other activities. Whatever the reason, if you have a reluctant reader at home, why not try audio books to spark a love of literature. This is NOT cheating. This is READING in a different way!

We are glad you came for a visit. At the OJCS we are committed to individualized learning and ensuring that each students gets what they need to be their very best. We believe that understanding each student’s learning style helps differentiate programming.

We are excited for the year to come. Please feel free to send us a message if you have any questions, comments or concerns about the Special Education department at the OJCS.