Multi Sensory Conference in Alabama

The following was posted on a forum I am a member of:

"Conference on helping individuals with special needs
On October 1-3, 2010, the best and brightest involved in multi sensory stimulation research and practice will convene in Birmingham, Alabama for the International Multi Sensory Environment (Snoezelen) Symposium (www.isna2010.org) . This 8th annual event which is being held for the first time in the USA will be hosted by the Christopher Douglas Hidden Angel Foundation (www.cdhaf.org).

The conference will bring together experts from over 12 countries featuring more than 30 renowned speakers who will offer thought-provoking lectures and workshops concerning the use of Multi Sensory Environments (MSE) and sensory enrichment. For the first time a large section of the program will be devoted to the brain, its development, plasticity and the impact of the environment.

Multi Sensory Environments have been used to improve learning, health, quality of life and increased human potential in people with Autism, Alzheimer, Cerebral Palsy and many other similar conditions so this is an event not to be missed."


I went to the ISNA2010.org site, and was amazed at what I saw. This conference looks like it will be great. I would love to attend, but the cost of just the conference is $325 for non-members. If you can afford to attend this conference, and decide to attend, please let me know. I would love to write about your experience at the conference.

Autism Training Conference Gives Autism Education an Extreme Makeover

Autism Training Conference Gives Autism Education an Extreme Makeover

Autism Conference for teachers and parents gives traditional philosophy of handling children with Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders in the education setting an Extreme Makeover.

Grand Rapids, MI (PRWEB) June 23, 2010 -- Autism was added as a special education exceptionality in 1991 and is now the sixth most commonly classified disability in the United States. While it is evident that more children are getting special education services for autism than ever before, traditional treatment for autism has not changed in the past 30 years.


Teachers and other educators in the school system often seek solutions to the challenges they face daily with children in the Autism Spectrum. The team of clinicians and educators at Horizons Developmental Remediation Center created the Extreme Makeover Autism Education Conference in response to this need for answers. The autism training conference outlines that what needs to change for improved communication is not just the child, but how teachers and parents respond to and guide him or her through experiences.

Nicole Beurkens, founder and director of the Horizons Developmental Remediation Center, developed the conference to share the research-based discoveries she has made since experiencing frustration as a classroom teacher. "I was tired of other people telling me how wonderful it was that my students were talking, behaving in the cafeteria, and getting A's on their spelling tests. What I longed for were students who could think, communicate, flexibly adapt, and have true friendships."

The 2010 Extreme Makeover Autism Conference will be held in Grand Rapids, Michigan on August 4-6, 2010 at the Hilton Grand Rapids Airport Hotel. This is a hands-on CEU applicable training that offers to save education professionals time, energy and money by addressing how to approach each day with their students, simplifying the writing of IEPs, involving parents in the course of action, reducing ineffective use of resources, and most importantly, minimizing frustrations and feelings of incompetence when it comes to working with these students.

While the workshop is geared toward serving students in educational settings, parents of children with autism are also welcome to attend. Professionals who have attended this workshop previously indicated that they benefited greatly from the perspective of the parents in attendance, and parents commented about the benefits of insights of the professionals.

Parent and teacher Donna Goyette said this about the Extreme Makeover Autism Conference, "I've been living with autism for 15 years and thought I was doing everything I could possibly be doing right - until I attended your seminar. The concrete examples you gave for every message you were trying to convey to us were awesome, including the videos so we could see it working in action. This information needs to be shouted from the mountaintops, and I would recommend this seminar to parents and educators."

To register for the Autism Conference, visit www.horizonsdrc.com or call (616) 698-0306. Group and early-bird discounts available.

About Horizons
The Horizons Developmental Remediation Center in greater Grand Rapids, Michigan provides family-focused treatment for developmental disabilities, including autism, Asperger's, communication issues, speech and language problems, feeding concerns, sensory-motor struggles, behavior problems, and learning difficulties. Using the RDI® Program, Horizons treats the core problems that impact functioning and involves parents in the treatment process. Through the use of web-based programs, Internet and phone conferencing, video reviews, and other communication formats, the treatment program is available to families wherever they are located in the world. For more information, visit www.horizonsdrc.com or call (616) 698-0306.

BloGHer 2010 Preliminary Schedule to Include Autism

If you think the BlogHer 2010 will be all fun and games, think again. The conference organizers have put up the preliminary schedule for the conference and it is full of great sessions designed to help bloggers improve their blog. Here are some of the classes scheduled for the 2010 conference:

“Change Agents: Feeding the Conversation: How to Build A Community Around Your Cause
Passions: Reserved for Room of Your Own
Personal: Blogging Autism: Shattering Myths, Opening Eyes and Finding Your Tribe
Professional: The FTC Guidelines: After A Year, Has Anything Changed?
Geek Lab: Usability for Beginning Bloggers (Beginning Level)
Writing Lab: Writing Inspiration: Stoke Your Creativity
Job Lab: Self-Marketing: Resume and Social Network Profile Writing Clinic”

Did you notice the one on Autism? Here is the description for the Autism session:

“Personal: Blogging Autism: Shattering Myths, Opening Eyes and Finding Your Tribe
Autism is both more out in the open than it has ever been before and more shrouded in myths and mystery. Come learn and share your stories about how blogging contributes to the autism community as a source of support and outlet for parents, as a way for those not dealing directly with autism to gain more insight and sensitivity and as a tool for advocacy and activism.”

The description of this session describes what I aim to do with my blog. I am looking forward to sitting in on this session, learning how I can approve my particular blog niche, and interact with others that blog about autism. I am excited that BlogHer has scheduled an Autism blogger session and I applaud them for doing so.

If you plan on attending this year’s conference, I suggest that you go read the new conference guidelines. Last year, there were a lot of bloggers attending the conference and having sponsors pick up the cost. This is something that I am doing this year. Jones Dairy Farm is one of my partial sponsors, and I am looking for more to cover the rest of my conference expenses.

BlogHer has made changes to their conference guidelines as they pertain to bloggers handing out their sponsor’s promotional materials. You can read the exact details on their website. Basically, it means that you can not hand out a sponsor’s promotional materials within the conference space. You can still wear clothing with your sponsor’s information on it and you can have your sponsors listed on your blog’s promotional materials, i.e. business cards.

Businesses that want to have their promotional materials distributed at the conference can contact the organizers and arrange to become a BlogHer Conference sponsor. Businesses that sponsor bloggers to attend can still benefit with advertising space on your bloggers site, posts written that include a mention of your business (like I did in this one with Jones Dairy Farm), and having the blogger wear a shirt with your companies information on it. Bloggers with sponsorship can devote their time to attending the sessions offered at the conference, instead of trying to hand out boxes of swag. I consider this a win/win situation for everyone involved. I look forward to attending this year’s conference, and if you are a company looking to sponsor a blogger, please consider me.

BlogHer 2010 Conference for Bloggers

There are several good blogger conferences each year that I would love to attend. Currently, the buzz is on the Disney Social Media Moms Conference. I received an invitation to attend, but can not afford to. Even if I could raise the money on short notice, I would also have to consider the fact that I would have to bring my husband and kids.

This would be great, except that it is impossible for me to attend the conference activities and leave the kids with my husband to manage. Since my son is autistic, it really takes two of us together to do things in public.

The conference that I am working on attending this year is the BlogHer 2010 Conference in New York. This will be a huge event that will allow bloggers to get together and learn from one another. I am really looking forward to it.

I am trying to get sponsors to cover the expense of going. I would like my husband to go with me. This will only work if my parents will be able to watch the kids. My father would be alone with them while my mom is at work for two of the days. This may be too difficult for him. If push comes to shove, I may have to make it a family trip and my husband will have to entertain the kids in the hotel room when I was doing things that they could not participate in.

So far, I have one sponsor that has covered my event ticket and hotel deposit. Jones Dairy Farm has been supportive of my blog and is sympathetic with families raising an autistic child. Their reaction to the new autism rates is just one of the reasons that I am proud to have them as a sponsor. “The recent autism figures released by the CDC really help shed light on the increasing number of families who are struggling with this disorder,” said Philip Jones, president of Jones Dairy Farm, a six generation family business best known for all natural breakfast sausage. “If our gluten-free certified products help parents in even a small way, then we couldn’t be more pleased. Jones Dairy Farm is glad to be able to provide protein-rich foods that both kids and adults love to eat.”

I am in need of more sponsors to make attending this conference possible. If you are a company that would be interested in sponsoring me, please feel free to email me at tammy@learningfelt.com. No amount is too small or too big. By sponsoring me for the BlogHer 2010 Conference, your company will benefit in advertisement on my site and having me as a representative at the conference. New BlogHer guidelines prevent me from being able to hand out your promotional information, but I am allowed to wear clothing with your company info on it.