Two newsletters focus on alternatives for community living and approaches to teaching social skills to children and youth with disabilities. The first issue provides information on some family support services and community-based living arrangements that are currently available for children with severe and profound handicaps or chronic illnesses. Funding through federal and state governments is described along with private medical insurance and funding through private sources. Also discussed are types of respite care (such as parent cooperatives and group respite care residences) and such community based living arrangements as teaching homes and group homes. The newsletter on social skills introduces methods for changing children's behavior and helping them acquire interpersonal skills. Basic principles for changing behavior are listed, and three methods--the behavioral method, the modeling method, and the instruction and practice method--are explained. Techniques for encouraging nondisabled children to develop relationships with disabled peers are also noted. (CL)