Public Health Insurance Programs in Indiana

Got questions about public health insurance for children with special healthcare needs? The folks at About Special Kids (ASK) will provide a training in Bloomington on May 20, 2011, to help answer those questions. This training will provide parents and professionals with information about public health insurance programs that can be accessed by families caring for children with special needs. It will also include information on Medicaid (Part A, B, C, D & E), Medicaid Disability, Medicaid Waivers, Children’s Special Healthcare Services, Hoosier Healthwise and SSI (Supplemental Security Income).

Training Cost: $40 for family members or $75 for professionals

Location: St. Mark’s United Methodist Church,

100 N. State Road 46 Bypass

(Just north of East 3rd Street on the Bypass)

To register, go to: http://www.aboutspecialkids.org/Contact-Form.aspx?Training=yes

For more information, email: asktraining@aboutspecialkids.org

Technology and Disability

Interested in technology and how it relates to people with disabilities? The Family Center on Technology and Disability has an online monthly newsletter, Technology Voices, full of news, tips, reviews, and resources. The March 2011 edition details events at January's ATIA conference in Orlando and looks at the future "morphing" of assistive technology on the horizon.

Last month's 16 page newsletter, entitled "Glancing Backward, Gazing Forward: AT Trends in an Era of Flux," can be read at: http://fctd.info/assets/newsletters/pdfs/288/FCTD-TechVoices-Mar11.pdf?1302711915

Voting Accessibility

The May 3rd primary is fast approaching! While Monroe County officials are aware that not all of its polling places are HAVA (Help America Vote Act of 2002) compliant, new machines designed for people with vision impairments have been purchased and one is already in use at the county's early voting center. The early voting center is located at the Curry Building at Seventh and Morton streets and is open from 10 am to 6 pm Tuesdays through Fridays (except Good Friday) and from 9 am to 4 pm Saturdays, as well as from 8 am to noon on May 2.

My sister, Alicia May

Looking for a beautiful picture book to help kids understand that people with Down syndrome are not so different from everyone else? Check out My sister, Alicia May. Told from an older sibling's point of view, this lovely book describes Alicia May's daily activities in honest, positive terms from counting the number of steps at the library to her first school bus ride to her nighttime routine. Learn about Alicia May's likes and dislikes and her older sister's love for Alicia May.

Want to check it out? Send us a message at cedir@indiana.edu. You can also try using worldcat.org to find this title in a library near you.

Mobile App Monday - Rewards

It's Mobile App Monday here at CeDIR, and today's post is about iReward--a fun little app that can help motivate a child's positive behavior with the incentive of rewards. Rewarding positive behavior can help parents of typically developing children, children with autism, developmental delays, ADHD, and anxiety disorders. You choose what behavior you want to see and the number of times the behavior must be repeated before being rewarded. You also get to set the reward that will be offered when the behavior has been repeated often enough. The screen shot above shows the reward of watching television after 5 stars have been earned for cleaning up a child's room.

Want to know more? Check out this app at: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ireward/id324643198?mt=8#