Have you ever stopped to think about this world we live in?

'Isn't it a beautiful place?

Don't you think that we often forget about that?

We take it for granted that it is there.

But will it always be?

Take care of it...

Have a paceful day...' By Edd

People with disabilities deserve respect...and every opportunity

"It is a lonely existence to be a child with a disability which no-one can see or understand, you exasperate your teachers, you disappoint your parents, and worst of all you know that you are not just stupid."
-- Susan Hampshire

But let’s go further... if one is a child or an adult with a visible disability one is still precious, unique, and lovable and has much to live for and to contribute to the world.

"Disability is a matter of perception. If you can do just one thing well, you're needed by someone."
-- Martina Navratilova




References:

Special Olympics Virginia: http://www.specialolympicsva.com/
http://www.specialolympicsva.com/View/Page/Success-Stories


About Susan Hampshire:

Susan Hampshire chronicled her own battle with dyslexia in her book titled 'Susan's Story'. She has five honorary degrees at the City University London, St Andrews Scotland, Exeter University, Kingston University Surrey and in Boston USA. She was awarded an OBE in 1995. Susan Hampshire was President of the Dyslexia Institute, Staines.

Susan's Story: tp://www.antiqbook.co.uk/boox/lbw/016753.shtml

Martina Navratilova : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martina_Navratilova

Note: Photo of Susan Hampshire's from Google Images

If you are looking for some adventures and fun in the snow during the winter holidays

For everyone both with and without disabilities MAD MAX SKIBIKE TANDEMM.
When I received an e-mail from Stalmach in May they promised that for the winter season 2009/2010 they will develop a special therapy skibike for people whose lives are affected by cerebral palsy! I couldn't find any further information about this promise, but one of our boys enjoyed at first a rather scary, but soon a very enjoyable and an exhilaratingly fabulous experience using one of the already existing Mad Max Skibike Tandemm.
So I guess it is worth to give it a try.




Reference: http://www.stalmach.com/htm/news-seiten/news-madmax-en.htm

Note: Photo from the Stalmach website

Conductive Education Petö Furniture

I stumbled upon a website, which was published on 22nd October 2009 offering original Petö furniture. I thought that my readers might be interested to know about it.

Quote from the site:

“ This furniture was originally from Hungary and still bears the motto of the world famous Petö Institute it was used for rehabilitation of children with cerebral palsy.

There are many items, approximately 200, which include plinths of varying heights, ladder backed chairs, small chairs, stool boxes, special chairs, mobiles, foot boxes, wooden wedges etc.

These items would be more than sufficient for a small school or new group setting out, the original value of this equipment new was £10-£25000.

It can be collected or delivery can be arranged at extra cost anywhere in Europe.

This furniture is intended to be used with the method of Conductive Education and can be used in the rehabilitation of cerebral palsy children.”

There is no information about where the furniture is at the moment, but at the bottom of each page there is a lovely quotation from William A. Foster:


‘Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skilful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.’

If you know anything about this new venture please let us know.

Reference:Petö Furniture
http://paypel.info/Peto_Furniture/

Note: Photo from the photo album of the Petö furniture site.

Every Disabled Child Matters

"Disabled Children’s Manifesto for Change

Every Disabled Child Matters Policy Recommendations

Summary

Disabled children and young people have made their priorities for the next election clear
in the Disabled Children’s Manifesto for Change.

The Every Disabled Child Matters campaign has put together this paper to recommend policies that your party might create to address these priorities.

Disabled children have set the following challenge to the next Government:

• Make people understand and respect disabled young people and children.
• Support us to take part in our communities, doing the things that all other children and young people do.

• Make a commitment that you will make sure the services we use can support us to live ordinary lives.
• Help us to get the education, jobs and training we want.

Every Disabled Child Matters priority recommendations Party Election Manifesto Commitment:

Every political party should include a commitment in their party manifesto to ‘ensure that services meet the additional needs of disabled children and their families’.

This should include specific commitments to:

• Sustain investment in improving services that meet the additional needs of disabled
children and their families
• Improve social mobility for disabled children and their families
• Embed the rights of disabled children in policy and legislation

Respect: The next government must ensure that health, education, leisure and social
care professionals receive training on working with disabled children and young people.
We also want the forthcoming Equality Bill to put pressure on public bodies to address
discrimination against disabled children and young people.

Community: The next government has to invest in accessible and inclusive participation structures, so that disabled children and young people can enjoy the same opportunities as their peers. We want forums for disabled children and young people to influence issues around disability.

Education and training: The next government needs to push schools, colleges and apprenticeship schemes to promote opportunities for disabled children and young people.

By doing this the disproportionate number of disabled young people who are NEET will be addressed.

Recommendations in detail

Respect

Attitudes

Disabled children asked you:

• We want the next Government to make sure all disabled people are full members of society and can take part alongside everyone else.
• We want the next Government to ensure services promote equality for disabled children and young people.
• We want policies and laws to include disabled children and young people, so they can do the same things as other people.

Every Disabled Child Matters recommendations
All parties should commit to embedding the rights of disabled children and their families throughout all relevant Government policy and legislation.

The next Government should proactively promote inclusion and equality for disabled
children and young people, with a specific focus on ensuring that mainstream services
meet their needs.

In order to do this, they should commit to ensuring that the forthcoming Public Sector Equality Duty requires public bodies to provide specific information on how they are proactively addressing discrimination against disabled children and young people.

The next government must require sector skills agencies to ensure that early years and
childcare, education, health, welfare and social care professionals receive training, and
are continually assessed, on the way they work with disabled children and young people
and the way they proactively promote an inclusive approach to the services they deliver.

We would welcome commitments to ensure that sector skills agencies develop common
core competency frameworks and that every statutory Children’s Trust Board will be
required to use when creating a joint training strategy..."

To read full manifesto please visit:
http://www.edcm.org.uk/ypmanifesto/disabled_childrens_manifesto_edcm_policy_recommendations.pdf

References:

http://www.edcm.org.uk/dcmanifesto/film.html

http://www.edcm.org.uk/Page.asp?originx_3869pu_6923476562580e68j_20095181136d

Notes: Photo and logo from Google Images and from the Every disabled child matters website.

The Legacy Rainbow House Newsletter

Yesterday morning I received The Legacy Rainbow House' first ever newsletter with a message from the Founder and CEO Joe Mawdsley.

The work of Joe and her team is undeniably inspirational to us all who have been and still are working on establishing Conductive Education on a stronger footage in our contemporary Britain… to help more children and adults towards a better future in life.

Joe and her sons

“A message from the Founder & CEO

Welcome to our first ever e-Newsletter.

Firstly I would like to thank you all for your support. We started this financial year in deficit and launched an appeal for support, which is what you have given us. We are very grateful to all our supporters, companies and partners.
Thanks also go to friends, volunteers and staff and not forgetting the parents and children who use our services.

Thank you to you all. Joe Mawdsley”

To read the complete newsletter, please follow this link:

http://rainbowhouse.msgfocus.com/q/1p5zYHShwq1HV/wv

For further information about The Legacy Rainbow House, please follow these links:

http://www.thelegacy-rainbowhouse.com/

http://thelegacy-rainbowhouse.blogspot.com/

Note:

Logo and photo are from The Legacy Rainbowhouse' website and newsletter.

'Rising Star... A Brighter Approach to Teaching Children with Motor Disabilities'

A clip just arrived in my e-mail box from a colleague this morning. I would like to share their joy and determination with you. I went to work with a smiling heart…what a lovely bunch of Stars! Enjoy.

Thank you Gabika!


For further details please contact:
Erin DeCarlo,
Rising Star Learning Center Inc. 8090 Broadmoor Road. Mentor. Ohio. 44094. United States.
Phone: (440)454-2898

http://www.risingstarlc.org/

It's time to take a look at your own reflection in the pond, and make a move to break out of whatever you have been conditioned by others...

"In all ages, in all lands, there have been those who seek truth. This seeking is an individual's search for something more than self, and much more than the confines of this worldly system. It is the seeker, who understands there is more than what meets the eye, who is not afraid and makes the choice to go into the unknown. The process of awaking has begun, the discovery is underway." A Watt

Think about it!

"When a well-packaged web of lies has been sold gradually to the masses over generations, the truth will seem utterly preposterous and its speaker a raving lunatic." D James

"Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff." Harvey Pekar

"When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing.”
Enrique Jardiel Poncela

"If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it."
Toni Morrison

"The purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself." Albert Camus

I remembered when I was invited to the home of Professor Alexander Russell in London.

After I put up my previous posting about green roofs I went to our local farm shop to gather some locally grown vegetables for my Sunday lunch and to take a nice walk in the forest.
These walks help me to relax, to ground me, help me to contemplate on my projects and they also give me inspirations. The sky was clear; the forest was glowing with all the beautiful colours of the autumn.
During the walk a gentle thought form entered my heart from the past. I remembered when I was invited to the home of Professor Alexander Russell in London. I was introduced to him at the Hornsey Centre for Conductive Education where he worked closely with Ester Cotton. He took me to his study because he wanted to show me a model of the idea of a building he had planned with others for a children centre to be built in Jerusalem. In the middle of the room there was a huge table with the model of the building. The building looked like a beehive. If I wanted to show you the design it looked similar to Buckminster Fuller’s Geodesic dome…these dome shapes were somehow connected to one another. He was so excited about it and he spent a long time explaining to me where each services will be located.
I don’t know whether this project ever came to fruition or not, but he writes about the concept in the book titled The Petö System and its Evolution in Britain.
He wrote the following: “Our holistic priority goes beyond excellence in overcoming or alleviating weakness or defects towards a progressive fostering of strengths or talent of the “ whole” child, whilst optimally integrating him with his normal peers as soon as is practicable. Ultimate realisation of his full potential must remain the ongoing target from the outset. The extensive floor is designed for integrative classes of handicapped with non handicapped infants and toddlers, starting from one and a half years of age, and extending within its opposite wing for ages three and a half to seven….”
Page 353. 6.A comprehensive Integration Floor
If you are contemplating on designing your new centre you might find some inspiration from this posting.


Geodesic Dome











Professor Alexander Russell

"Paediatrician who published the first descriptions of many metabolic and neurodegenerative diseases
Alexander Russell, emeritus professor of paediatrics and childcare Hebrew University of Jerusalem (b Newcastle upon Tyne 1914; q Durham 1936), died from heart failure resulting from ischaemic heart disease on 4 March 2003.

Professor Alex Russell had three outstanding strands to his career and a single one of them could have marked him as a distinguished contributor to the science and practice of medicine. He was house physician to Professor Sir James Spence, from whom he acquired the hallmarks of rigour in scientific research and care of the sick child by supporting the family. During his war service in the Royal Air Force he defined the syndrome of carbon monoxide poisoning in the gun cockpits at the rear of Whitley bombers, where space was confined. He showed that the poisoning accounted for air sickness that had previously been ascribed to "weakness of moral fibre" in veteran gunners. For this discovery and his field research in malaria and hepatitis he was mentioned twice in dispatches and was awarded the OBE.

In 1950 he became assistant to Professor Sir Alan Moncrieff, working at both the Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street, and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Hackney Road, where he founded the UK’s first paediatric endocrine, growth, and metabolic unit in 1951. He was appointed consultant paediatrician at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for Children in 1954 and during the next 12 years published first descriptions of many metabolic and neurodegenerative diseases. Several of these syndromes are known throughout the world as the Russell syndromes. Alex was the first to describe an inborn enzymatic defect of the urea cycle (hyperammonaemia), which led to descriptions of patients with defects in every step of the cycle. His scientific research did not prevent him from listening to the parents of children with many disabilities and his welcoming smile, gentle voice, and polite manner helped them in their darkest hours.

His appointment to the chair of paediatrics and childcare at the Hadassah-Hebrew University of Jerusalem gave Professor Russell opportunities to continue his previous work as well as influence the provision of heath care to whole populations. He founded and became director of the Jerusalem Community Centre for Child and Family Development and the Children’s Hospital in Ramallah. His extensive clinical experience is reflected in his monumental books The Cerebral Palsy Entities and The Peto System. He continued to write original articles—the last in 2001 on the 4q-syndrome—and to advise colleagues throughout the world long after his official retirement."

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/326/7399/1149/DC1

Early 1980’s
"Dr. Alexander Russell, a pediatrician working in London and Jerusalem brought Spastic Society publications by Ester Cotton to the USA and presented them to the International College of Pediatrics."

http://www.google.com/search?q=www.conductiveedconsulting.com%2F...%2Fconductive_history.doc&rls=com.microsoft:en-gb:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7




Reference:

The Petö System and its Evolution in Britain Book II.
Philosophy, Principles & Practice
Edited by Alexander Russell & Ester Cotton.
1994 Acorn Fundation Publication
ISBN 1-899091 009

Note: Geodesic dome picture from Google images

A bit of inspiration…Green Roofs.

School of Art and Design, Singapore
Photo: Sidonie Carpenter http://greenrooffellowship.blogspot.com/
See more at http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/green-living/8-incredible-green-roofs/10914





•Hunderwasser’s village model, on display at Kunsthaus in Vienna via ecogeek.



http://www.ecogeek.org/content/view/902/








Building in Milano, from Sally in Italia website.






Garden shed roof, from North Carolina Green Technology Building.
http://www.ncgreenbuilding.org/site/ncg/public/show_project.cfm?project_id=238

"He who knows what sweets and virtues are in the ground, the waters, the plants, the heavens, and how to come at these enchantments, is the rich and royal man." - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), Essays, Second Series, 1844


"Until man duplicates a blade of grass, nature can laugh at his so-called scientific knowledge." - Thomas Edison

"The Wilderness and the idea of wilderness is one of the permanent homes of the human spirit." - Joseph Wood Krutch (1893-1970), Today and All Its Yesterdays, 1958.

Wake up call!

It was November 2005 when I gave a presentation at the Rehabilitation International Conference about Conductive Education in Bahrain.
After the conference, I was sitting in my room on my own. All of the delegates left who I travelled with as there were no seats available for me on the plane, they were all over booked after the conference.
I was quietly contemplating about my experience of the conference when the phone rang… I answered and the person on the other end of the line amongst other things kept telling me ‘Wake Up! Wake Up!’ Wake Up!

Maybe this clip will help to wake something up inside you as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W61Q-EZ8R7M

Notes:
Picture of Gulf Hotel entrance in Bahrain where I stayed and where the conference took place.

Wake Up! ♥

An Education

“Change is the only constant” proverb

"Fairness, justice and freedom are more than words they are perspectives." V for Vendetta







Photo from Worth 1000 http://www.worth1000.com/

“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life:

it goes on.”♥



Robert Frost

'Leadership has it’s own responsibility…use your common sense'

I wanted to share this clip with you. I know that you will understand the message, which is addressed to you each personally, both through your consciences and subconscious mind… and through your heart…
Since I started running training courses in Conductive Education I always talked about the responsibility about ‘creating’ for the seventh generation to come.

Well, he has got a message to deliver… all I am doing is to give it a platform on my blog for the Conductive Community or for any one who reads my postings.

Are we doing things in a way that could benefit the seventh generation to come?

We have been given this great gift of understanding and working with Petö’s philosophy and practice. Are we doing enough to preserve and further his concepts, which provide endless opportunities, hope and possibilities for people with neurological problems?