Information and Links Related to Particular Special Needs
The National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (NICHCY) serves as a central source of information on disabilities in infants, toddlers, children, and youth. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the law authorizing special education. Here you'll find research-based information on effective educational practices in both English and Spanish.
BellaOnline, the Voice of Women, is a resource for congregations that want to start a “families with special needs children” support group and open it to the community. Start a group or find one already established in your area.
Look for new studies at The Family Village Forum Index. This site is used by parents and caregivers and also provides a list of other websites to visit.
Deaf or Hard of Hearing
Hearing loss ranges from mild (hard of hearing) to profound (deaf). It can be caused by disease or injury, or can be congenital. The terms "deaf,” "Deaf," "deafened," and "hard of hearing" reflect the preferred terms of individuals rather than actual degrees of hearing loss.
When you see deaf with a capital “D,” as in Deaf or Deaf culture, it refers to a person or the population that uses sign language. Deaf culture also has its own social customs, schools, and folk lore. People in the United States who describe themselves as members of the Deaf culture use American Sign Language (ASL). Deaf, deafened, and hard of hearing individuals may use hearing aids, cochlear implants, or other assistive listening devices and may or may not be members of the Deaf culture.
Environmental Illnesses
New buildings or new carpets emit formaldehyde, which is known to cause symptoms such as nausea, respiratory problems, dry or inflamed skin, and eye irritation. Buildings can also harbor bacteria, molds, or viruses that have built up in heating and cooling ducts or in carpets, ceiling tiles, or insulation. These can cause fever, chills, muscle aches, cough, and other respiratory symptoms.
Our air, food, water, homes, and schools are polluted with more than 70,000 chemicals. Fragrances are found in a wide variety of products including perfume, cologne, soap, candles, cosmetics, skin lotions, and foods. Any of these 70,000 chemicals can cause irritation or allergic reactions in sensitive people.
Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) is a subset of environmental illness. Learn more about living toxin free.
Learning disabilities
People with learning disabilities have difficulty acquiring and demonstrating knowledge or understanding. It is important to note that learning disabilities are not correlated with low intelligence. Students with learning disabilities demonstrate a lack of achievement for their age and ability levels.
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), and dyslexia are examples of learning disabilities.
While 67% of high school graduates with learning disabilities were rated “not qualified” to enter a four-year college, compared with 37% of non-disabled graduates (Students with Disabilities in Postsecondary Education: A Profile of Preparation, Participation, and Outcomes, NCES, 1999), there is opportunity. Shepherds College in Union Grove, Wis., is a Christian post-secondary school for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Life skills training, basic academic instruction, and spiritual growth classes are integral components of this three-year program. Two major fields of study are horticulture and culinary arts.
Mental Retardation
Mental retardation is a developmental disability in which a person’s intellectual functioning level is well below average with significant limitations in daily living skills (adaptive functioning). You can find out how prevalent this disability is, in both English and Spanish.
Intellectual functioning level is defined by standardized tests that measure the ability to reason in terms of mental age (intelligence quotient or IQ). Mental retardation is defined as an IQ score below 70-75. A diagnosis of mental retardation is made if an individual has an intellectual functioning level well below average and significant limitations in two or more adaptive skill areas.
Mobility impairments
Mobility impairments can limit a person’s range of movement or not allow any movement, and can be either congenital or the result of an accident. Physical disabilities can be permanent or temporary (such as having a broken leg).
Permanent orthopedic or neuromuscular impairments include amputations, paralysis, cerebral palsy, stroke, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, arthritis, and spinal cord injury.
People with such disabilities may use canes, walkers, braces, wheelchairs, artificial limbs, or a combination of assisting devices.
People with physical disabilities are often confronted with handicapping situations such as a lack of ramps or elevators. Access is a significant issue.
Neurological Disorders
Neurological disorders include epilepsy, alternating hemiplegia, and autism. Autism (sometimes called “classical autism”) is the most common condition in a group of disorders known as the autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).
Autism is defined by a certain set of behaviors and is a “spectrum disorder” that affects individuals differently. Autism is characterized by impaired social interaction, problems with verbal and nonverbal communication, and unusual, repetitive, or severely limited activities and interests.
Both of the following sites have publications in Spanish: The Autism Society of America and The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
Psychiatric or Mental Health Impairments
There are many kinds of mental disorders, and not all of them are psychiatric in nature. In addition, not all mental disorders are diagnosed as serious. Commonly recognized disorders include depression, moodiness, and anxiety as well as chronic disorders such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Also under this heading are clinical disorders, cognitive disorders, and personality disorders.
Visual Impairments
People with visual impairments are blind, have low vision, or have color blindness.
A person is legally blind when his or her visual acuity is 20/200 or worse after correction, or when the field of vision is less than 20 degrees in the best eye after correction. Low vision ranges from mild to severe. Low vision is a medical term describing a chronic visual impairment that does not improve with the use of eyeglasses, contact lenses, medicine, or surgery.
Most people who consider themselves blind fit within the broad term “low vision.” Low vision also can be temporary, such as when medications induce low vision that disappears once the medication is no longer taken.
Individuals with color-blindness face barriers when having to distinguish between colors in order to successfully navigate Web sites or understand specific content.
Other Special Needs
In special needs adoption, special needs children range from children of a certain age to children with disabilities to children that are considered “at risk.” (The phrase “at risk” covers a range of determinants.)
If you are an adoptive family working through Lutheran Social Service, check with them for resources for families adopting children with special needs. For general information about a specific special need, visit Lutheran Services in America. Another helpful link is this page from Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota.
Homelessness, early childhood abuse, and other failure to thrive issues such as fetal alcohol syndrome can cross over into emotional or mental health areas and would be addressed under Psychiatric and Mental Health Impairments.
If you are seeking assistance for a specific issue, you may wish to do an Internet search for that specific issue if you are unable to find it through the links provided here.