DSE has announced that a new reading and language intervention for children with Down syndrome will be available from the end of November.
The Reading and Language Intervention for Children with Down Syndrome (RLI) teaches language and literacy skills following evidence-based principles adapted to meet the specific learning needs of children with Down syndrome aged 5 to 11 years. To coincide with the launch, they have published a web site offering detailed information about the intervention and its evaluation.
They have also launched an email discussion forum for families and educators interested in the teaching program and are hosting a series of online information events.
A new sports club for young people with disabilities (14+) started on Saturday 27 October at the Deighton Sports Arena offering two hours of sports activities from 12noon -2pm.
The Flame Club will offer young people aged 14 years and over the chance to try out a variety of sports including boccia, athletics, cricket and basketball and will be free to take part until Christmas. The club will run each week apart from the first Saturday in the month.
The idea for the Flame Club became a reality after the highly successful Paralympic Flame Celebration Event in the summer which saw the Paralympic Flame arrive at Leeds Road Sports Complex in Huddersfield where young people were taking part in a host of sports activities.
Cllr Jean Calvert, Kirklees Council Cabinet Member, said: “The Flame Club is a great opportunity for teenagers with a disability to come together and enjoy taking part in sports activities. We found huge enthusiasm from those who attended the Paralympic Flame Celebration Event for a regular sports club where the young people can try different sports and develop new skills.”
Booking for the Flame Club is essential. Please book by phoning Ashley Lucas on 01484 234094 or email Ashley.lucas@kirklees.gov.uk
Young swimmers with learning difficulties will taste life as Olympic athletes next year.
A seven strong team from the Borough of Kirklees Special Needs Club Squad is taking part in the Special Olympics National Games in Bath.
It is a big opportunity for the young swimmers, and the group has applied to the Examiner’s Wish Campaign to help with travel and accommodation costs.
If you treat yourself to a therapy with Joan at Serenity she will donate 50% of all treatment bookings taken during October and November towards the squad. Click here for treatments & prices: Winter Pamper Offers
HDSSG is also helping them raise funds by hosting a Body Shop Party and raffle on Friday November 30th at the Watershed, Bridge Street, Slaithwaite. Raffle prizes include a spa experience for 2 at Titanic Spa, a 2 month gym membership for 2 courtesy of Kirklees Active Leisure and hampers from Costa Coffee and WH Smith!
The swimmers taking part are Joanne Kempley, Jack Drennen, Ruben Reuter, Aisling Connelly, Zoe Rank, Rebekah Hill and Ben Sweeney.
The squad will be accompanied by two volunteers and the trip will cost a minimum of £375 per person.
Team manager Christine Kempley, mum of Joanne, 22, said “This is a great opportunity for the swimmers to be independent and be part of a bigger team. hopefully they will give Kirklees something to celebrate”
The squad have operated for about 10 years and helps young people with learning difficulties to keep fit and healthy, learn about competition and team spirit and meet new people.
“They celebrate each other’s successes and commiserate if things don’t go as well as they hoped” said Christine.
For some of our members it’s their only experience of being ‘first’ at something. It gives them a tremendous feeling of self worth and self confidence.
Shabang! are thrilled to launch a 2013 calendar with a difference. The full colour calendar features children and young people from Shabang projects. Each month depicts a witty seasonal theme and together with signs and symbols to aid communication the calendar is an exciting new educational tool for families and schools alike.
More importantly we see the children featured in the calendar as much more than models – they are role models. Images of people with additional learning needs are few and far between in the media or in educational resources. So we thought it was about time a positive, happy collection of photographs was produced and a calendar seemed to be the ideal vehicle to bring a series of images together.
Working alongside photographer Mike Barratt from Frogs Design, we have created rich backdrops which tell seasonal stories – from Felix’s declaration of love for February’s Valentine Day to Archie’s summer picnic in July.
The calendar celebrates a range of models from 8 month old Ella to 18 year old Max.
Local Huddersfield print firm Brooke and Learoyd have generously donated a proportion of their fee towards the costs.
The Calendars are A3 size, full colour and cost £9.99 + p&p
Here is an inspirational story about a wonderful young lady as told by her mum, Christine Kempley.
What a day! Watching our daughter, Joanne, carrying the Olympic Torch in West Yorkshire on a sunny day in June it was difficult to remember back to the time shortly after she was born, when we were delivered the crushing news she had a major heart problem. Joanne was diagnosed with Tetralogy of Fallot when she was three months old, and underwent surgery to fit a shunt at six months, followed by successful open heart surgery at six years old. This transformed the life of our blue and out of breath little girl. From being unable to walk any distance, she learnt to enjoy exercise and took up swimming lessons which then led on to swimming in competitions.
She now leads a full and varied life. She is ladies captain of the Great Britain Down’s Syndrome swimming squad and has recently competed in Taiwan at the World Championships. Joanne gained a silver and two bronze medals in the ladies relay team. She will shortly be travelling to Italy for her next World Championship competition.
Joanne is an actor with the Dark Horse Theatre Company in Huddersfield and has appeared in local productions and also in an episode of the TV programme Shameless.
She enjoys working as a volunteer with a local Special Needs Toddler Group and has a lovely boyfriend whom she met through swimming. And so, it was with enormous pride that we watched our daughter carry the Olympic Torch in front of friends, family and supporters who have helped her throughout her 22 years. In her words she has an “awesome” life.
HDSSG are proud to have some amazing swimmers in our group. They swim with the Borough Of Kirklees (BOK) disability squad and have their sights set on the Special Olympics in Bath next year. The squad have to raise a substantial amount of funds to get them there, and here’s how you can help! –
Collect tokens from the Huddersfied Examiner newspaper for the Wish Campaign to help the BOK squad receive a share of £25,000…
Pop your green token for reusing your own bags from Asda Huddersfield into their collection box behind the checkouts, the ‘winning’ organisation will receive a cash donation!
Come along to our Body Shop Party at the Watershed, Slaithwaite, on November 30th. Where you can spoil yourself to some fantastic products and maybe get lucky on our raffle too! Top prize is a spa break for 2 at Huddersfield’s Eco Spa – Titanic Spa! woooo!
Ambitions is committed to empowering young people with learning difficulties, helping them to develop skills for work and independent living through practical experiences and supported work placements within their own local community and culture. They are based in Mirfield, North Kirklees.
Set up in 2008 by Liz Feeny and Bev Sisssons, Ambitions work with people who have left school and college. They provide mini enterprises which clients help to run, thereby increasing their own skills and confidence. Sessions are planned by their enthusiastic and dedicated staff. Ambitions work with other local projects and businesses as well as schools, universities and the local community to highlight the ability not the disability.
Ambitions operates an ‘open door policy’ and are happy to see prospective clients and their parent/carer. They are available from Monday to Friday 9.30am – 3.30pm
Also look out for the OPEN DAYS coming up on the following dates:
Monday 8th October, Friday 12th October, Thursday 25th October
HDSSG would like to say a great big THANK YOU! to two gentlemen that ran the Bupa Great North Run to raise money for our group.
The Bupa Great North Run, the world’s biggest half marathon, starts in Newcastle on Tyne, concludes in South Shields, and comprises 54,000 runners. The Great North Run is a hugely popular event for all types of runner. Runners come from all over the world to experience this iconic event.
Tim Heyes and Andy Proctor completed the 13.1 miles in fabulous times and have so far raised a very healthy £230.00 for Huddersfield Down Syndrome Support Group. There is still time to add to this total – if you would like to, just click here!
HDSSG has lots of exciting projects and opportunities that will benefit greatly from your donations. Including helping 7 of our amazing swimmers reach the Special Olympics in Bath next year – you can read more here, and funding our Tiny Talkers targeted speech & language sessions for our early years members – find out more here.
So a huge thank you to everyone that has very kindly donated and to Tim & Andy. We are very grateful.
Thank you to the Huddersfield Examiner for another lovely article. As part of their ‘Wish 2012’ campaign they will feature all the charities and organisations in Huddersfield that have joined up in the hope of receiving a share of £25,000. Today our very own HDSSG got their chance to shine:
FAMILIES who have children with Down Syndrome in Huddersfield have access to a parents’ network of advice and support.
The Huddersfield Down Syndrome Support Group has harnessed the latest technology to ensure they are constantly in touch.
An easy-to-use website, Facebook page and Twitter feed mean friendly help and advice is only a click away.
The group, which has some 40 members, is open to all Huddersfield parents with children from birth age to 21 years.
Communications officer Leanne Davies, whose six-year-old son Jack has Down Syndrome, said the group was run by parents for parents and always welcomed new members.
The group regularly holds social events and gatherings aimed at all the family including brothers and sisters.
Days at the seaside, impromptu picnics, trips to the zoo, swimming sessions and the much-anticipated annual panto visit are loved by the children.
The group, though, offers a great deal of practical help and advice for parents.
Leanne said: “The idea is that we can all share our experiences with each other.
“We all have different areas of expertise. For example some of us work in schools and can help with issues involving schooling.
“There are some great services available locally and we can help people access them.”
This weekend the group will launch Tiny Talkers, a six-week speech and language therapy programme.
The Sunday morning sessions will take place at The Watershed in Slaithwaite.
Due to demand from parents, the group has invested in training for one of their number, Bernie Egan, a mum of two children with Down Syndrome.
Bernie trained with Symbol UK and will deliver the programme to younger children first.
Leanne, 32, who lives in Oakes, said: “This is something that has come from parents.
“As we all know resources are stretched in the area and communication for our children is absolutely vital.
“Hopefully we will be able to continue to develop the programme as we go along.”
While the accent is on fun, the group is about so much more than that.
“It’s not just about days out,” said Leanne. “It’s about educating and empowering parents.”
To contact the group go to: www.hdssg.org.
Down Syndrome is a genetic condition which results in some level of learning disability and a characteristic range of physical features.
Learning disability significantly affects a child’s ability to learn compared with other children of their age.
It does not mean, however, that a child cannot learn at all.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO DISPLAY ONE OF OUR POSTERS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO COPY & PRINT THIS PDF – HDSSG token poster
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