Looking for somewhere good to surf? Stop by this Site of the Day listing for a daily destination of interest to parents of children with special needs. Images indicate the topic under which the site falls. Listed here are the sites or pages featured each day in September, 2008. For more sites, visit the index.
1. The Kids Are All Right
Image by Terri Mauro
"The Kids Are All Right is a half-hour documentary about a renegade Jerry's Kid named Mike Ervin. A Muscular Dystrophy Association poster child in the 1960s, today Mike is an outspoken disability rights activist who challenges the MDA's representation of people with disabilities in its Labor Day telethon through his activist group, Jerry's Orphans." From the site, you can read a synopsis and view a clip.
2. Everybody Has a Story
The Today Show is looking for tales about an event that changed your life, and became part of your "story." Sounds like a contest made for parents of children with special needs, who have been changed by our children. If you've got a good one, you can learn more about the contest on this page and put in your entry.
3. Think Differently About Autism
Image by Terri Mauro
Adults with autism and their families can feel invisible among all the debate and advocacy over children with autism. This site from the U.K.'s National Autistic Society seeks to remedy that with an "I Exist" campaign that includes a creativity contest, a Be Counted wall, blogs, and ideas for activism.
4. Down Syndrome Research and Treatment Foundation
Image by Terri Mauro
"The mission of DSRTF is to stimulate biomedical research that will accelerate the development of treatments to significantly improve cognition for individuals with Down syndrome." From the site, you can learn more about current research and contribute to it.
5. Patient Advocate Foundation
Image by Terri Mauro
The site includes "the National Financial Resources Guidebook for Patients: A State by State Directory of information for patients seeking financial relief for a broad range of needs including housing, utilities, food, transportation to medical treatment, and children's resources." Search it and see what's available in your area.
6. Fun Things to Do
Image by Terri Mauro
Your Saturday super-sized listing of amusements, including a family activity, a site for the kids, a shopping site, a site offering humor or inspiration about parenting children with special needs, and a site that's just silly or fun.
7. Weekly Round-Up
Catch up with everything you missed this week on the About.com Parenting Special Needs site.8. Paralympics Online
Image by Terri Mauro
The Universal Sports site is home to articles, photos, and videos of the 2008 Paralympic Games, which started in Beijing on September 6 and features the world's top athletes with disabilities. If you have Windows Media Player, you can view videos of the opening ceremony and daily event highlights. If not, there are still plenty of news stories to help you follow the athletic feats.
9. FASD Awareness Day
Image by Terri Mauro
Since 1999, the ninth day of the ninth month has been a day for raising awareness of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. Read here of how the day was established by three parents of children with FASD, and follow the links to learn more.
10. Healing Thresholds
Image by Terri Mauro
Overwhelmed by the number of therapies you've heard about for helping kids with autism? Healing Thresholds can help you sort them out with definitions, scientific evidence, news, and a forum for comparing notes with other parents.
