Latest Developmental Disabilities Articles


Lesson Planning For Students With Developmental Disabilities

Developmental disabilities are certain mental or physical disabilities that create impairments in a person’s learning, language, mobility, self-care and other much-needed areas of living. These disabilities can be either mild or severe. Students suffering from developmental disabilities can show many characteristics, sometimes unusual strengths and sometimes difficulties. Among the usual characteristics are learning slowly, failing to take into account what is being taught, not demonstrating learned skills, not generalizing information, struggling with complex information and having memory deficits. However, students with mild disabilities can learn tasks like reading, writing and mathematics. By the end of high school they can even achieve up to the sixth grade level.

Integration For People With Developmental Disabilities

It needs all-round efforts on part of all of us, including governments, to make possible integration for people with developmental disabilities with society at large. Thankfully, things have improved now and people with developmental disabilities are not only earning money from jobs, but also improving their social skills and the quality of their lives, thereby enriching society as a whole. A healthy society definitely needs social integration of such people.

Developmental Disabilities And Decision Making

Developmental disability is a phrase used to describe life-long disabilities that attributes mainly to mental and or physical or combination of both mental and physical defects, manifested before the age of 18. A person can be considered a case of such a situation when his or her disabilities affect daily functioning in three or more of the following areas such as capacity for an independent living or learning or self care or receptive or expressive language or economic self sufficiency or even mobility.

Define Developmental Disabilities

The lay man has always referred to individuals suffering from developmental disabilities as mentally retarded. Developmentally disabled individuals possess lower-than-normal intelligence and limited ability to perform everyday duties. Such problems can be visible right from birth or may develop later during adolescence. The disability usually occurs before the age of 18 and remains throughout one’s life. When measured by standard tests for Intelligent Quotient or IQ, the intellectual level of a developmentally disabled person is found below average. Mentally retarded people have often being called ‘idiot’ or ‘imbecile’ by the general populace. The term ‘mentally retarded’ thus got changed to ‘mentally challenged’ due to such insulting terms.

Grants For Developmental Disabilities

Grants are funds or aid given by someone, usually a foundation or a trust or a government department, to a recipient who can be a non-profit entity, an educational institution or even a business. Developmental disability describes life-long physical or mental impairments. People who are mentally challenged and have cerebral palsy, autism and various genetic and chromosomal disorders like Down’s Syndrome or Fragile X-syndrome are said to be suffering from some form of developmental disability. They are usually looked down upon as incompetent and incapable of doing any work. Earlier, they were often removed from their families and kept in separate institutions.

Define Developmental Disabilities Mental Retardation

The developmental disability termed mental retardation is marked by limited daily skills and lower-than-normal intelligence. It may be present at birth or grow later during adolescence, before the age of 18. The disease, once set, usually remains throughout adulthood. The intellectual level of such a person, measured by standard tests for IQ or Intelligent Quotient, is below average. ‘Mental retardation’ is a diagnostic term used for people usually referred to as ‘imbecile’ or ‘idiot.’ Such insulting connotations led to the change of the term ‘mental retardation’ to ‘mentally challenged.’ Among the disabled community, developmental disability is also an acceptable term.

Aging And People With Developmental Disabilities

Developmental disabilities usually involve a problem with how a part of the body or body system is able to function. Such developmental disabilities impact a number of body parts or systems. Developmental disabilities include nervous system disabilities, sensory related disabilities, metabolic disorders and degenerative disorders. With aging, these disabilities affect people in a different way that needs some special care and attention. If aging people with developmental disabilities are given a chance, they too can have a nice life.

Teaching Toddlers With Developmental Disabilities

Children with developmental disabilities should have explicit skills-training in deficit areas as a central component in their curriculum. It is very important to teach these children in a very skilled manner so that they can grasp whatever has been taught to them. For these children there should be more than a normal classroom environment.

Dual Diagnosis Developmental Disabilities

Dual diagnosis developmental disability is often related to mental illness. Mental retardation is a thought, a condition, a syndrome, a symptom, and a source of pain for many families. The thought of mental retardation can be found as far back in history as the therapeutic papyri of Thebes (Luxor), Egypt, around 1500 B.C. though somewhat vague due to difficulties in translation, these documents clearly refer to disabilities of the mind and body due to brain damage. Mental retardation is also a condition or syndrome defined by an anthology of symptoms, traits, and/or characteristics. It has been defined and renamed many times all through history. For instance, feeblemindedness and mental deficiency were used as labels during the later part of the last century and in the early part of this century. Constant across all definitions are difficulties in learning, social skills, everyday functioning, and age of onset (during childhood). Mental retardation has also been used as a defining attribute or symptom of other disorders such as Down syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome. Finally, mental retardation is a confront and potential source of stress to the family of an individual with this disorder. From detection through treatment or education, families struggle with question about cause and prognosis, as well as guilt, a sense of loss, and disillusionment about the potential outlook.

Philosophy Of Developmental Disabilities Services

Developmental disabilities services follow a certain philosophy which helps an affected person to live a better life. Broadly speaking, the philosophy of developmental disabilities services is generally consistent with a set of governing principles and the guiding principles of service. Among the governing principles of most such services is one which says that persons with developmental disabilities will be able to relate to their families, friends and communities according to their choice.

History Of Developmental Disabilities

The history of all kinds of developmental disabilities goes back to childhood causes for some people and for some these problems could have been caused when they were a fetus. The body and the mind are greatly affected by these developmental disabilities and thus it is vital to get the right treatment for them. It should be remembered that these developmental disabilities can happen without warning but with the help of information and general awareness you can combat these problems much better.

Federal Grants For Developmental Disabilities

Federal grants for developmental disabilities are provided to the people who have been suffering from such health problems and these grants are provided for giving them aid and helping those lead independent lives. It has been seen that most of the people who are suffering from these developmental disabilities can avail options like insurance and other related benefits so that they can get better facilities while suffering from these disorders. This money provided through grants and insurance is ideal for treating a lot of symptoms related to these diseases and get apt health care.

Types Of Developmental Disabilities

When we talk of developmental disabilities, we mean birth defects that involve a problem with how a part of the body or body system functions. Known also as functional birth defects, developmental disabilities affect several body parts or systems. Developmental disabilities can be of many types including nervous system disabilities, sensory related disabilities, metabolic disorders and degenerative disorders.

Glossary Of Developmental Disabilities

The types of developmental disabilities are congenital disorders related to a problem with how a body part or body system works. These types of disorders may also be known as functional birth defects. Most of these disabled conditions affect multiple body parts or systems. There are a number of developmental disabilities have been reported so far.

Function Levels For People With Developmental Disabilities

There are a lot of people suffering from various kinds of developmental disabilities but unfortunately, their treatments and awareness is still very restricted. There are various kinds of function levels also for the people who are suffering from these kinds of developmental disabilities. It should be remembered that these developmental disabilities can happen without warning. However the people who are aware about various facts and guidelines on these kinds of disabilities then you can avoid various kinds of health problems.

A List Of Developmental Disabilities

Developmental disabilities can be occurring from the time of beginning through an extended period of rapid brain growth and development during pregnancy, infancy, and childhood. The developmental disabilities may have their early on sets in the genetic makeup of the parents, in the nutritional status of the mother throughout her life cycle, in psychic or maternal health conditions and environmental exposure during pregnancy, or in an early or abnormal birth process. The developmental disabilities may be the consequence of adaptation difficulties soon after birth; poor nutrition, infections, and injuries in infancy and childhood; or the complex and pervasive effects of adverse social and environmental conditions in impoverished communities.

Who Regulates Services For Developmental Disabilities

Most direct developmental disability support professionals did not know that they were actually right for the job. The fact is that most of the never even thought of working with individuals with various developmental disabilities. People just eventually happened upon it. People who provide direct support to the developmental disability services have done many different things. Some people have been healthcare workers, carpenters, computer operators, teachers, retail clerks, waitresses, bartenders, and construction workers.

Arizona Department Of Developmental Disabilities

Any Arizona resident who has a chronic developmental disability which is attributable to mental retardation, epilepsy, cerebral palsy or autism that was manifested before the age of 18 may be eligible. Children below the age of six may be eligible for disability services if there is a strongly demonstrated potential that the child has, or will have, a developmental disability.

Developmental Disabilities Act

Originally authorized in the year of 1963, the Developmental Disability Act focused primarily on the establishment of University Affiliated Facilities (UAFS). These University Affiliated Facilities were charged with expanding the number of professionals to address the requirements of persons with developmental disabilities. Reauthorization established funding for Developmental Disabilities Councils in the year of 1970, to coordinate and integrate the provision of services for persons with developmental disabilities in the least restrictive environment.

Requirements For Providing Developmental Disabilities

A number of children with developmental disability problems are receiving extra help through tutoring or have been placed in special education classes, as well as, being placed on medication. These remedies often are not actually producing the permanent results that parents and teachers had expected. Time is enemy for these disordered children who are struggling and discouraged. Millions of parents, each and every day, are told their child has a learning disability.

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