mortiz092

SNAILS is looking for guest bloggers!   This is a great opportunity for you to contribute to the group and to share important information with our member libraries and beyond.   Guest posts can offer information on issues related to serving children with special needs in libraries.   Bloggers may write about a wide variety of topics, including but not limited to: Programming School Outreach Community Partnerships Collection Development Staff Training Sensory Strategies Inclusion/Making Accommodations Technology and Apps Parent Workshops Local Events and Programs If you are interested in contributing to the SNAILS blog, contact SNAILS using the "Contact Us" section on the bottom right hand side of the screen.  Please be sure to include the following information.  We look forward to your contributions! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Name: Library: Email address: Please check one.   I am interes...

"Thank you so much for visiting my class today and creating such interesting lessons. Every student asked me when you’ll be coming back! We appreciate all your time and effort.  You are awesome! It is so wonderful that you and the library are making a clear effort to our students that they are welcome and wanted. When can we schedule another visit?" I received this lovely message from a teacher after I visited her class. As part of the School Outreach team, I visit classrooms frequently over the course of a school year. However, this instance was particularly rewarding because it was one of my first visits with our local high school’s special education department. Since then, I’ve been back many times and have formed wonderful connections with teachers and students. Every school and every group of students are different and you’ll want to adjust your plan to best fit their needs, but here are a few things I keep in mind before a school visit.      ...

SNAILS member Sarah Okner of Vernon Area Public Library invites you to the following program this August: Using iPads with Children with Special Needs (For Parents and Teachers) Monday, August 11, 2014, 7:00pm Vernon Area Public Library 300 Olde Half Day Road Lincolnshire, IL 60069 Explore multiple strategies for using iPads to enhance communication and relationships for children with special needs. This workshop - designed for parents, teachers, and caregivers - demonstrates early literacy apps as well as those that build play skills. There will be time for questions. This program is free and open to all adults, but registration is required. Register online , by telephone at 224-543-1486, or in person at any service desk in the library.

Vernon Hills Public Library hosted our spring meeting on Wednesday, April 23, 2014 in their beautifully redesigned library. We covered a lot of ground in a few short hours, so if you weren't able to attend, please take some time to soak in this recap. Leap into Literacy Rita Angelini, founder of Leap into Literacy, shared the history and mission of her organization as well as the process of creating an adaptive book by translating the text into Boardmaker ™  symbols, laminating the pages, and adding page fluffers. About a dozen suburban libraries have already received a donation of these books, and Rita is working with volunteers and SNAILS to provide them to many more libraries. To see which libraries already carry Rita's books, as well as the books' titles, visit the new Leap into Literacy  website .  After Rita's presentation, a conversation ensued about the extra time it takes for Technical Services to catalog and process adaptive books. Due to the books' modif...

I'm so excited --  Temple Grandin is going to be in Chicago this month, and there's no charge to see her!!  Thanks to Family Action Network , she will be making two presentations in the near north suburbs on May 21, 2014: "Autism and My Sensory-Based World" 4:00pm (educator focus) New Trier High School,  Winnetka Campus Gaffney Auditorium 385 Winnetka Ave., Winnetka, IL 60093 "Different Kinds of Minds"   With her mother,  Eustacia Cutler Moderated by Molly Losh, Ph.D.,  Northwestern University 7:30pm (general public) Welsh-Ryan Arena, Northwestern University 2705 Ashland Ave., Evanston, IL 60208 Registration requested for evening event. Believe me, you don't want to miss this opportunity! Temple Grandin is an incredible woman who has redesigned the livestock industry and redefined Autism in America. She is  a Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University and the author of many books, including her most recent,  The Autistic Brain: Thi...

Our winter meeting was held on Wednesday, February 12 at the Glenside Public Library.  Thank you to our hosts and to all of those who attended for your contributions to our discussions that day.  It was great to see you!  Here’s the meeting recap, with a video of JJ’s presentation: JJs's List JJ Hanley from JJ’s List spoke to the group about Disability Awareness.  JJ’s List is a website that collects reviews for people with disabilities, similar to Yelp.  Visitors can post information and reviews.  It’s a resource for people to use to find out how disability aware a business is.  The Directory includes at least 23 industry sectors, including libraries.  JJ encouraged the group to post our own reviews of area businesses as well as to add our libraries to the directory.  Contact Sarah Armour (sarah(at)jjslist.com) to help you manage your profile.  JJ’s List will also work with you to help your library get a Disability-Aware Business Seal...

Library services for children with disabilities are continuing to expand by leaps and bounds.  In the last year alone, three separate professional resources have been published specifically targeting this exact topic.  Each of these three books has something incredibly meaningful to contribute to our profession, and all of them are worthwhile purchases for your library's professional collection or your own bookshelf.  Check them out! Programming for Children and Teens with Autism Spectrum Disorder  Written by Barbara Klipper Purchase a copy HERE at the ALA Store Programming for Children and Teens with Autism Spectrum Disorder is unlike anything else I have even seen in professional library literature thus far.  Not only does it contain in-depth background info about autism and suggests methods for securing funding, it features step-by-step program models from librarians across the country.  These detailed program models are complete with lists of books, r...