Sunday lesson...Advent begins...

...now the waiting, waiting, waiting for the birth of Jesus on Christmas!

Advent is getting ready for Jesus to come. There are 4 weeks in advent. mary is jesus' mother.

We are being watched...

...this morning we had a visitor.  He is observing our family interactions as part of his  URLEND training.  URLEND stands for Utah Regional Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities....yes, that is a mouthful...I have put more about this project down below.  Also, you can click on the link above and go to their website.  IF you want more information, let me know...I would be happy to share.

Mark did well despite being "watched".  We got started a little late because I was busy talking with URLEND trainee.  I did not ask to use their name so I am going to leave it out for now...

am 
I am happy. 
three went did pleases
Shells are at the beach. A refrigerator i...

Welcome to the URLEND Program

The Utah Regional LEND, or URLEND, is a LEND (Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities) training program that covers five states: Utah, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota. Our program uses state-of-the-art technology to connect groups of trainees across our partner states. Professionals are trained to move beyond discipline boundaries to provide optimal services to child and adolescents with special health care needs. Because families are essential to well-being, this program emphasizes the role of family-centered care in all we do.

Their is a LEND program in most states.  When I went to Washington DC last spring, I spoke to my Congressmen about the importance of supporting the LEND program.  If I remember correctly, funding for the LEND program is linked to the Combating Autism Act (which I think has been re-named...)  

The name of the program that we are participating is the Family Mentorship Project:

The Family Mentorship Project is designed to provide URLEND trainees with a better understanding of the impact of a child with special health care needs on his or her family’s life.

Through completion of the Family Mentorship Project, URLEND trainees will:

v  Experience the day-to-day life of a family who has a child with special health care needs

v  Gain a better understanding of how children with special health care needs and their families function at home and in the community

v  Understand the impact a child with special healthcare needs may have on the entire family

v  Recognize similarities between families with and without special health care needs

v  Hear about a family’s successes and challenges in accessing community resources, partnering with professionals, and advocating for their child within educational, health, and other service and support systems

v  Acknowledge the importance of cultural and linguistic competence

v  Gain increased knowledge of the principles of interdisciplinary, family-centered, and culturally-competent care

v  Reflect on how he or she can be a better professional based on experiences gleaned from observations and perspectives shared by families

Mark leads Pledge of Allegiance at school

The moon is in the sky. A cow lives on a farm. Two is a number. An airplane flies in the air.

Today was a crazy day...we started our session a little early because I had to go to the school and meet with Mark's teacher about his IEP at 8:15.  So, we tried to start a little early so we could get some work completed before we went to school.  I was planning on working until 8:15 and then heading over to the school.  However, the phone rang and it was his teacher.  She said that Mark was to lead the Pledge of Allegiance at 8:15.  She called at 8:08!  So, we threw our coats on and ran over to the school and got their just in time!  I tried to record Mark but he talks so softly that I am not sure you can hear all of it...enjoy!

Happy 42nd Anniversary to my parents!
Dennis and Terry Klenda

Answering "Which" questions

A bee is an insect. A square is a shape.a tiger is an animals. A flower is a plant. 
zero who
Who is here?
help
Mark asked for help. 
here
Here we are.
jump


Mark did a great job answering "Which" questions today...also, did good with spelling words and writing sentences about the spelling words.

Sunday lesson: Jesus shows us how to love...

jesus shows us how to love. Jesus wants us to feed the hungry. jesus wants us to give drink to the thirsty. jesus wants us to give clothes to the naked. jesus wants us to visit the sick.

Talked about the Corporal Works of Mercy today...did good once we got focused.

Mark received his First Communion this past summer.  We are so happy!  He is now saying "Amen" independently when offered "The body of Christ" and when I ask him "who do we receive at communion?", he answers "Jesus"...

Pope to meet with autistic kids to end stigma

Click on picture to learn more

Typed an independent sentence...

...with lots of prodding!  Mark and I were both feeling sluggish for some reason today.  I started by asking Mark what he wanted to talk about...he said "gummy bears".  So, I asked him to type it and he typed out "i like gummy bears"  It took lots of prompting to get him to complete the sentence but I am happy to say that this was definitely his own first, free thought that he had and communicated to me though typing!!!

i like gummy bears.
three went  our out please 
A doctor helps me i am sick. 

Then, when we were going through the spelling words...I was thinking that we would start to write simple words with the spelling words..to give them more context...I will try and remember to incorporate this next week.

Silly day...

orange two new well what 
A dentist ceans your teeth. A bus driver drives a bus. a policeman keeps us safe.

Mark worked well today.  I am starting to cover some words so he has to think about how to spell the words more...it is just WAY too easy for him to rote copy and I am not sure that is really making him "think" enough...did great on spelling words today!