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Visual Perception Problems in Children with AD/HD, Autism, and Other Learning Disabilities

Visual Perception Problems in Children with AD/HD, Autism, and Other Learning Disabilities

Lisa A. Kurtz

(2006)

Abstract

This book provides a comprehensive overview of vision problems in children with developmental disabilities such as AD/HD, autism spectrum disorders, and specific learning disabilities.

Written in a very accessible style, it is appropriate for parents and professionals alike and offers non-technical explanations of how vision difficulties are screened for and advice on where to seek appropriate professional care. Lisa Kurtz outlines a range of activities for strengthening children's functional vision and perceptual skills using simple, homemade materials that are readily available in the home or classroom.

This is an excellent practical companion for parents of children with visual perception problems and the professionals who work with them.


`an excellent resource for any parent, teacher or professional whose child is presenting with subtle vision difficulties as it contains quite a few gems (eg explanations, screening tests, addresses and activities) which adds to the knowledge of the reader.'
Good Autism Practice
`Lisa Kurtz writes in an open and informative way which holds your attention giving an easy to understand description of the problem experienced by many of the children that we see in `Special Times'
Play Therapy UK
`This short book is a reliable introduction to a complex area of need which is all too often masked by a child's other, more obvious difficulties. The practical suggestions provide useful starting points for both specific visual difficulties and general visual development…This book is a good reminder that it is crucial for parents and practitioners to promote alternative activities that provide opportunities for children to practice and develop their visual skills.'
Support for Learning (NASEN)
`This book is exceptionally practical. Kurtz keeps parents in mind throughout by providing the medical lingo to necessary inform, but not to confuse. She provides a list of organizations that offer vision therapy (both inside and outside the U.S.), suggested questions to ask an eye professional before making an appointment, an explanation of the terminology a parent might find in a medical report, and a list of organizations, along with their web addresses and a one- to two-sentence description of the content at that web site.'
ForeWord
Lisa A. Kurtz is a pediatric occupational therapist at Jameson Primary School in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, and has worked with children with special needs for over 31 years. Lisa was formerly Director of Occupational Therapy for the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Children's Seashore House. She also served as the Director of Training for post-professional Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disorders in affiliation with the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Lisa is a Fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association, and was awarded the Recognition of Achievement Award for training others about developmental disorders. She has published extensively, and is the author of How to Help a Clumsy Child, also published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Table of Contents

Section Title Page Action Price
Foreword
About this publication
Acknowledgments
Introduction 1
Ch. 1 Especially Difficult Circumstances 7
Street girls 8
Urban girls at work 12
Commercial sexual exploitation 17
Teenage mothers 21
Identifying needs and programme responses 25
Ch. 2 Income Generation and Vocational Training 29
Case study: Youth Skills Enterprise Initiative (YSEI), Street Kids International (SKI); Zambia 30
Case history: Profile of three participants of the Youth Skills Enterprise Initiative 34
Model programme: Servol Life Centres: Education for life and work; Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies 36
Model programme: Child Welfare Society of Kenya: Empowering domestic workers 38
Model programme: The SIMMA Vocational Training Institute and the WACAR Foundation: Empowerment of women for better prospects and sustainable development; The Gambia 40
Elements of success: Income generation and vocational training 42
Ch. 3 Formal and Non-formal Education 45
Cause study: Adolescent Mothers Programme of the Women's Centre of Jamaica Foundation: A second change for education 46
Case history: Ellorine, from teen mother to nurse: Jamaica 49
Model programme: Enda: Literacy for domestic workers; Dakar, Senegal 50
Model programme: Paaralang Pantao; Children's Laboratory for Drama in Education and The People's School; Manila, The Philippines 51
Elements of success: Formal and non-formal education 54
Ch. 4 Health and Mental Wellbeing 57
Case study: Casa de Passagem: Health outreach by and for girls; Recife, Brazil 58
Case history: Betania, form street girl to mother; Brazil 61
Model programme: Kabalikat, Philippines: Health education for street children and bar workers; Manila, the Philippines 62
Model programme: Undugu Society of Kenya: 'Outward bound' for street girls; Nairobi, Kenya 64
Elements of success: Health and mental wellbeing 65
Ch. 5 Culture 67
Case study: Sasha Bruce Teen Mothers Programme: Rites of passage for African-American girls; Washington, DC, USA 68
Model programme: FACT: AIDS education through art; Bangkok, Thailand 72
Model programme: African Culture International: Theatre of change, theatre of tradition; Dakar, Senegal 74
Model programme: Kapatiran-Kaunlaran Foundation: Linking the elderly and youth; Manila, the Philippines 75
Elements of success: Culture 76
Ch. 6 Advocacy and Protecting Girls' and Young Women's Rights 79
Model programme: The Kamla Project: Preventing sexual exploitation of girls; Thailand 81
Model programme: ECPAT: Legislation against cross-border sexual exploitation of children; Worldwide network 83
Model programme: Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children: Confronting harmful traditions 85
Model programme: Heart-to-Heart: Preventing sexual abuse among adolescent mothers and their children; Chicago, USA 86
Elements of success: Advocacy and rights 88
Ch. 7 Involving Boys and Men in Efforts to Improve Young Women's Lives 91
Reflections on working with adolescent boys in the reproductive-health field 92
Reflections on involving men in the prevention of domestic violence 94
Programme examples in working with adolescent boys 95
Case study: The experience of SIDH in India 95
Case study: ECOS's experience in Brazil 95
Case study: The experience of the Ounce of Prevention Fund in the USA 96
Lessons learned from work with adolescent males in gender equity 97
Ch. 8 Conclusions 101
Advocacy recommendations 101
Service recommendations 103
Looking to the future 106
References and Bibliography 107
Consortium for Street Children-Profile 119
CSC members working with at-risk girls and young women 120