Newcomers to Canada may initially resist learning through the arts, but it may be an ideal entry point as they begin to learn English and adjust to a new culture. The authors explored the value of learning through the arts in three settings: a settlement agency, Welcome Center and elementary school. Making art with adults was shown to overcome…

Objectives: This report presents national estimates of difficulties in functioning for children ages 2-17. Methods: 2021-2023 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data were used to assess difficulties in functioning among children. NHIS has included the Child Functioning Module, developed jointly by UNICEF and the Washington Group on Disability…

The participation of children with disabilities in leisure activities is more limited than that of their peers without disabilities, despite the recognised social and emotional benefits derived from leisure activities. The aim of this study was to understand the difficulties encountered by organisational staff responsible for such activities and…

Adults and children around the world are experiencing unhealthy levels of stress. More specifically, the stress levels that children report can have detrimental effects on their social-emotional, physical and academic well-being. Schools are in a unique position to not only address the causes of stress in children's lives, but to also provide…

This study explored the perceptions of disability from the perspectives of Ethiopian immigrant parents who have children with disabilities. The study was guided by the research question: How do Ethiopian immigrant parents from the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, who have children between the ages of 7-17 identified with disabilities and…

This paper describes the FAB (Functionally Alert Behavior) Strategies approach to improve behavior in children and adolescents with complex behavioral challenges. FAB Strategies include evidence-based environmental adaptations, sensory modulation, positive behavioral support, and physical self-regulation strategies. FAB Strategies can be used by…

This article presents an interview on Kevin Eggers, a 19-year-old college student from Seattle, Washington, who was diagnosed with epilepsy but had not let it prevent him from accomplishing his goals. As an Epilepsy Advocate, Kevin helps other teens and young adults realize that having a disability does not mean not living a normal and fulfilling…

In this article, the author talks about the Connections Camp, an innovative therapeutic social skill development program designed to meet the unique needs of youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). For six weeks each summer, youth ages 5-18 have fun while developing skills that lead to improved communication, better coping strategies, and…

The essays in this collection discuss multicultural issues in children's and adolescent literature, focusing particularly on African and African American cultures. They challenge everyone's understanding of what, in an age of globalization, multicultural texts really are. Cumulatively, these essays illustrate multicultural literature's power to…

Runaway behavior is a national epidemic that affects many school-aged youths. Although there are no definitive numbers, it has been estimated that between 1.3 and 2.8 million youths run away each year, and youths with disabilities are more at risk for engaging in runaway behavior than their nondisabled peers. Considering the high number of youths…

Ongoing traumatising life events can often cause a person to the have physical or emotional characteristics of one who is mentally disabled or autistic, making it easy to form a wrong first impression. This article presents the story of one such person in a Positive Peer Culture program in a group treatment facility in Germany. In Positive Peer…

Now in a revised and expanded third edition, this popular clinical reference and text provides a multisystems perspective on childhood disability and its effects on family life. The volume examines how child, family, ecological, and sociocultural variables intertwine to shape the ways families respond to disability, and how professionals can…

Parents with children with cognitive disabilities may rely on organized religion and/or spiritual beliefs as coping strategies in their lives. Fifteen parents of adolescents with cognitive disabilities were administered the Support From Religious Organizational and Personal Beliefs Scale-Revised to test this hypothesis. The results indicated that…

The impact of childhood chronic health conditions like spina bifida (SB) is a shared family experience. However, the lived experience of siblings is not well known. One hundred and fifty-five brothers and sisters of a child with SB responded to an open-ended question included in an anonymous self-administered mail questionnaire designed to enhance…

Discusses findings of a survey of siblings who have brothers or sisters with disabilities, and the development of support meetings, a resource library, and "Sibling Day" to help siblings. The responses of siblings to various scenarios and a staff worksheet for activities for Sibling Day are provided. (CR)