The following resources have been developed for parents, teachers and other health professionals to use whilst a child is waiting to see an occupational therapist. Each one contains helpful strategies and activities to help a child improve at an activivity or action.
Thanks to Catherine Wells from Southside Dyspraxia Support  and Valerie-Bradshaw Cullen for info .
 

www.northumberlandcaretrust.nhs.uk








 Other Useful Links

The Special Educational Needs Advice Centre (SENAC) Northern Ireland

SENAC operates an Advice Line on 028 9079 5779. Further information can be obtained from our website  www.senac.co.uk

Click Here for Info Leaflet 

Check this great new site out from the Dyscovery Centre for lots of free information and downloads.
http://www.boxofideas.org/

Spectrum Alliance is an umbrella network of disability groups which was established to help promote the work of the organisations involved. The organisations are:

• Aspire - The Asperger Syndrome Association of Ireland
• Dyslexia Association of Ireland
• Dyspraxia Association of Ireland
• HADD Family Support Group

The Dyspraxia Association of Ireland is a voluntary organisation and unfortunately does not have the resources to respond in any detail to overseas enquiries.

The following are national associations or groups that we have identified with web sites:

• America: Apraxia Kids is an American-based self-help group. This web site has the stated
  intention of collecting links to other websites of interest. It has links to the full text of some
  interesting articles.
• Alternative American website is www.dyspraxiausa.org
• Australia: The Australian Dyspraxia Support Group and Resource Centre
• Canada: Speechweb is site run by a Canadian-based Speech-Language Pathologist, John
  Valiquette. The aim of the site is to provide access to information for those affected by
  communication disorders and also for professionals. This site includes links to professionals based in: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Scotland, Singapore and the USA. There are full text articles at the end of some of the trails of links.
• France: Regroupement des parents d'enfants dyspraxiques. A group established in early 2003, but already with a useful web site.
• New Zealand: The Dyspraxia Support Group of New Zealand.
• UK: The Dyspraxia Foundation(UK) links to reading lists, events, etc. in the UK.
• The Dyspraxia Connection is the Nottingham branch of the Dyspraxia Foundation.

Useful Web Links and General Sites

• Association of Occupational Therapists Ireland Contact them for list of Occupational Therapists.
• Irish Association of Speech and Language Therapists Contact them for list of Speech and Language Therapists.
• Children's Speach Sound Disorders is a useful series of articles by Caroline Bowen, a Speech-Language Pathologist, working in Australia. This web site is worth exploring for a wide range of useful links on Speech-Language issues and on related general medical and health matters.
• The Dyscovery Centre, Cardiff promotes greater understanding and awareness of Dyspraxia and Learning Difiiculties through the provision of educational and practical tools. Dr. Amanda Kirby who is the Medical Director will be the main speaker at our 2003 Conference.
• Madeleine Portwood is a UK-based professional who has written widely on Dyspraxia and therapies.
• As the Irish Government is on the web, we can see when 'dyspraxia' is mentioned in the Oireachtas debates. [Since the reports are quite long passages, you may need to use the 'find in page' command on your browser.]
• AHEAD - The Association for Higher Education Access and Disability. An independent voluntary organisation working to promote full access to, participation in, benefit from and contribution to third level education by people with disabilities in Ireland, North and South.
• A discussion list for adults is available which currently generates up to 400 emails per month between adults e xchanging their experiences and personal strategies for coping.
• The National Library of Medicine in the US offers free searching of the PubMed database of millions of medical journal articles - no direct information, but you can get full references to published articles, some of which have the full text available online.
• Ask Eric is a free gateway to the ERIC database of educational journals and publications.
  The ERIC database is similar to PubMed in that you just get references to published
  articles.
• Do2Learn is a commercial web site providing activities to promote independence in children and adults with special learning needs. However, there are several free downloadable resources to help with sequencing issues (in the bathroom, dressing, etc.), and other useful posters for use at home and in schools.
• Parent-plus aims to provide practical advice for those supporting children as they grow up and to provide practical guidance.

Two specialist topics that generate interest are:

The role of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in early nutrition on the development of the central nervious system.

To see some of the latest references on this topic, use a web search engine such as

• Google with the topic: LCPUFA
• The Weschler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)

Dyscovery Centre websites

www.dyscovery.org – links to research and clinical materials and work from The Dyscovery Centre

www.adhdtransitions.co.uk- all about ADHD

www.mscdevelopmentaldisorders.org – the site for training in the field

www.spldtransitions.co.uk- information site on all stages of transition

www.move627.org- free games, resources for parents and professionals from primary to secondary school

www.dcd-uk.org – website with information on DCD

www.boxofideas.org- 1000s of practical ideas for all ages and stages

Other useful resource sites

www.isr-dcd.org.uk - this contains a wide range of references for further research  

www.dcdpack.ca – this is a Canadian site and contains useful information for training health professionals (user name: dcdpack.ca and password: dcdchild)

Another site is www.canchild.ca which has a wide range of information from Canada

www.dyspraxiafoundation.org – is the UK parent organisation site

www.learnerprofiler.co.uk- this site provides a screening and profiling tool, plus free links and papers on specific learning difficulties and using ICT.

http://giftedhomeschoolers.org/articles/organizational.html
There are useful organisational tips on this site especially for children who learn best through seeing things

http://www.danda.org.uk/
This is an adult support organisation for adults with specific learning difficulties

www.do2learn.com useful free icons

www.embeddyslexia.eu- information and tools for supporting individuals with Dyslexia

www.isheds.eu- study skills resources and information on Dyslexia

www.myadhd.com  – useful practical tools to help be organised- you need to pay a nominal charge- these include timetables, help with behaviour management, assessments.

http://nationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/seal-SEAL- emotional support materials

http://www.nha-handwriting.org.uk/- handwriting guidance- national handwriting association.

Free resources

Maths

1. Maths paper and other resources
2. Maths resources
3. Maths sheets
4. Downloads of pictures for visual timetables.

Study skills

1. Study skills training page
2. Essay planner
3. Study guides in different languages
4. Free ruler
5. Desk top organiser
6. Mind mapping programmes www.ikonmap.com & www.webspiration.com
7. http://www.mycorkboard.com This is freely downloadable software. It is a personal organisation screensaver where post-it notes can be written as reminders. It also has a to-do list and a digital or analogue clock.
8. This also contains useful tips on how to teach organisational skills to children.
9. Free games/resources site for primary school
10. Post it notes
11. Writing frames