Here's my weekly gathering of products, events, and stories of interest that have landed in my e-mail queue or otherwise caught my attention this week:
+ It was my RSS queue rather than my e-mail inbox that called my attention to controversy over tweets by the rapper 50 Cent. His joke to a friend that "fool you look autistic" and subsequent tweet that he didn't want any "special ed kids" on his timeline brought angry responses from actress Holly Robinson Peete and a number of bloggers protesting the use of "autistic" as a new kind of "R-Word." He's since apologized, claiming he didn't mean to offend (though isn't offending sort of his thing?). I've linked to some blog posts on the topic in the section of the forum dedicated to demanding respect. If you've seen other responses, or want to make one, add on there.
+ If you're more worried about disrespect from your school district than from tweeting rappers, check out the list of conferences being given by special-education experts Wrightslaw. The material is also available on CD-ROM, in case they're not coming to a location near you.
+ Word of three new books from Jessica Kingsley Publishers came to me by e-mail: Life Story Therapy with Traumatized Children: A Model for Practice, A Practical Guide for Teachers of Students with an Autism Spectrum Disorder in Secondary Education, and Building Happiness, Resilience and Motivation in Adolescents: A Positive Psychology Curriculum for Well-Being. They don't look to have been written for parents, but if you like to poke around in professional books from time to time to see if you can learn something or pass something on, you may be interested in following the links and checking these out.
Do you have good books, apps, sites, or products to call to our attention? Write a book or app review, submit a site or blog, and post in the marketplace section of the forum.
Photo by Terri Mauro