by Lyn Waldeck Recently I ran across a study from 2006 that presented what was labeled as “new” and exciting findings. Let me start by explaining why I placed the word “new” in quotations. I began as a parent on program and quickly moved into being a volunteer and then on to being a staff…
Understanding the Relevance and Significance of Cognitive Function by Bob Doman The key to understanding and improving global function in children and adults with Down syndrome is determining and developing their cognitive function. Whether we are looking at a two-year-old or an adult with Down syndrome, their level of function, their ability to learn, think,…
by Melody DeLuca Bread for Life. It has a catchy tune, doesn’t it? This was the name of the bread business where I was co-owner and partner with my older sister, Jennifer. We started this business when I was ten years old, and she was twelve. Little did we know we would spend the next…
by Bob Doman What do you remember from last month, last year, a decade ago, or five decades ago? I still have some vivid memories from college over fifty years ago, and none of them have anything to do with what occurred in a classroom. I take every chance I get to speak with young…
I have been working with the Allman family for several years now. As NACD staff, we often talk amongst ourselves about how fortunate we are to work with what we consider to be the cream of the crop parents. Ken and Julie Allman are fine examples as to the level of dedication that we see every day in…
by Melody DeLuca Quite a few of you know my story and journey with NACD, but for those of you who do not here it is in brief: We started our journey with NACD in December 2008. At the time my son Grant, who was five years old, was completely non-verbal, developmentally delayed, a flight…
As told by her parents Our daughter Sanjana was diagnosed with a rare chromosome disorder at five. At around two and half years she took her first steps, and her first words were only after she turned 5. Despite intensive Speech/ OT/ PT, her milestones came painfully slow. In the following years, she went through…
Bob Doman and some of our US staff, Sara Erling and Lyn Waldeck, have just returned from joining our Eastern European staff, Teodora Pop and Romina Varsandan, for our two week annual event in Transylvania. This is our 5th year meeting in Transylvania and something our families and staff look forward to each year. This…
From Lyn Waldeck, Stella’s NACD Neurodevelopmentalist I never tire of hearing stories like the one we are sharing with you today. This family worked together and totally transformed their daughter’s confidence through opening up all new abilities. When I first started with Stella, only a short while ago, it was apparent that we were working…
One of the greatest gifts you, Mom and Dad, can give your children is your attention. Face to face talking to your children, particularly your young children, is vitaI. A child’s first and hopefully best and most influential teachers are their parents. Today parents tend to rate their parenting on how nice their house is,…