Small Town Living, BIG Time Opportunities....FOR EVERYONE!

Stacy Stewart & Rachel Siffring and Arissa Bavari Author

04/10/2023 Added

42 Plays

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2023 Conference Session

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[00:00:00.090]Communication device to communicate.
[00:00:02.340]Rachel and her husband, Kevin Farm,
[00:00:05.040]and they live in rural Rising City.
[00:00:07.320]Rachel and Kevin, that's your ticket guy, guys.
[00:00:10.500]work to advocate for Braxton helping him be an active
[00:00:13.200]member in the community and school.
[00:00:15.030]He has been involved in many activities including 4-H,
[00:00:18.240]Band, FFA, VIP soccer, football, student manager,
[00:00:22.980]student council, and Unified Bowling.
[00:00:26.100]Next we have Erissa.
[00:00:27.007]Erissa is the Urban Youth and Sports Program manager
[00:00:30.600]and is involved in the Special Olympics of Nebraska.
[00:00:33.540]Please welcome your presenters, Stacy, Rachel, and Erissa.
[00:00:37.125](participant clapping)
[00:00:41.940]All right, did our mascot chopper, anybody else?
[00:00:44.790]The raffle tickets.
[00:00:46.350]I like to say that Chopper is involved
[00:00:48.420]in a lot of parts of my life.
[00:00:49.980]He's our mascot for the Unified Bowling team,
[00:00:52.440]that's what I call him.
[00:00:53.361](participant laughing)
[00:00:54.194]He is the dad that comes and helps at the coffee shop.
[00:00:55.980]He serves burritos, coffee he'll do about anything
[00:00:58.890]that we want him to do, so good job Chopper, thank you.
[00:01:01.939](participants clapping)
[00:01:04.740]All right, before we get started here, we have a raffle,
[00:01:08.940]some raffle items up here, so let's get this started.
[00:01:12.120]But before we start Special Olympics,
[00:01:14.460]Larissa brought some cool...
[00:01:15.690]There's T-shirts, there's notepads,
[00:01:18.660]we have some sensory stickers up here.
[00:01:21.630]We also have right here our Circle of Friends.
[00:01:24.540]My group created what's called The Kindness Bracelets
[00:01:26.820]through Piura Vita and it represents all disabilities
[00:01:29.670]that are within our school.
[00:01:30.720]So you can customize these,
[00:01:32.580]and so all of the colors together are autism.
[00:01:35.430]The teal is Pit Hopkins,
[00:01:37.530]the purple is Rett and the blue and yellow is down syndrome.
[00:01:42.540]So we have all disabilities
[00:01:44.640]within our school represented here.
[00:01:45.870]So that is up for grabs too,
[00:01:48.090]and that is a great fundraiser
[00:01:49.500]to get some programs started like Circle of Friends.
[00:01:52.800]So let's go ahead and draw the first number.
[00:01:55.890]We also wanna say thank you to all the people
[00:01:57.780]who are joining us on Zoom.
[00:01:59.340]We're sorry you're unable to win prizes,
[00:02:01.500]but we're hoping you can get some information from us today
[00:02:04.740]and that'll be your winnings that you'll go home with today.
[00:02:08.040]So, okay, the first winner is 7 3 8 4 3 7 6.
[00:02:13.602]Whoo
[00:02:14.435]Yeah, come on down.
[00:02:15.268]Yeah.
[00:02:16.101]Come choose a prize.
[00:02:18.240]Okay, should we do another one?
[00:02:19.470]Yes and also you guys,
[00:02:21.030]if educators or parents "You Are Enough",
[00:02:24.780]is an amazing book to have in your school library.
[00:02:28.470]All right, next winner is 7 3 8 4 3 5 4.
[00:02:34.350]Yeah all right.
[00:02:37.603]All right, we will get started.
[00:02:39.510]So when I say small town living, I mean small town living.
[00:02:44.070]We do not have a stoplight in Shelby, Nebraska.
[00:02:47.700]We have about 700 people in our town.
[00:02:52.140]We are a consolidated school with Rising City
[00:02:54.150]who brings about, what did we say, 300?
[00:02:56.090]300.
[00:02:56.923]300 people.
[00:02:58.080]Thank you Amy Slomad.
[00:02:59.728]342 is how many people are in Rising City.
[00:03:03.120]Yes and so we're about 25 miles from Columbus,
[00:03:09.270]so we have to bring the programs to us,
[00:03:11.880]and so we definitely feel like we have done that,
[00:03:14.400]and it's taken a lot of teamwork
[00:03:15.750]and a lot of thinking outside of the box,
[00:03:17.340]but it definitely can be done.
[00:03:21.570]So people may think living in a small community
[00:03:24.270]limits opportunities for students with disabilities.
[00:03:27.000]This is definitely not true
[00:03:28.320]and we are living this right now.
[00:03:29.580]We will share with you how our school
[00:03:31.710]has created many opportunities
[00:03:33.180]to include students with disabilities
[00:03:35.310]and events and activities both within school
[00:03:38.610]and also within our community,
[00:03:41.400]and I will start by talking about Circle of Friends.
[00:03:44.640]I started Circle of Friends probably about 10 years ago.
[00:03:48.360]Braxton, their son was my first student to start this
[00:03:52.260]and it is through the Autism Action Partnership Network
[00:03:57.000]and right up there is a contact.
[00:03:59.340]Mary is who you would want to reach out to.
[00:04:02.760]She also has a newsletter that every month they share ideas
[00:04:07.320]on things that you can implement
[00:04:09.450]within your Circle of Friends group,
[00:04:11.430]and 10 years ago when I started,
[00:04:13.830]this was something that was funded through a grant
[00:04:16.410]and that grant has faded.
[00:04:18.570]And so now we do fundraisers,
[00:04:21.090]like we sell those bracelets and t-shirts from year to year
[00:04:25.710]and also now, I believe it was last year,
[00:04:28.770]I went to my superintendent and I said,
[00:04:30.877]"Look, Circle of Friends is super beneficial for my students
[00:04:35.280]and actually for all students."
[00:04:36.630]And so they have started to fund Circle of Friends for us,
[00:04:40.110]so we don't have to do as much fundraising,
[00:04:41.940]which has been great.
[00:04:43.740]And through Circle of Friends, I also...
[00:04:46.110]It's an application process.
[00:04:47.370]I now start it in third grade just because
[00:04:49.230]I have so many students and parents who are like,
[00:04:51.517]"We want our kid to be in Circle of Friends."
[00:04:53.787]And so just to kind of limit my number
[00:04:56.370]so I can be successful in those groups,
[00:04:58.680]I start in third grade and it is an application process
[00:05:02.010]and so the students fill out an application
[00:05:05.190]and with the teachers, we work together to decide
[00:05:09.180]who would be the good role models for our target student
[00:05:12.270]and also who would benefit from Circle of Friends too.
[00:05:15.840]Also, some of our events that Circle of Friends does
[00:05:18.990]is we do outings from time to time.
[00:05:22.950]For example, we go bowling,
[00:05:24.480]we've gone to restaurants,
[00:05:26.700]had birthday celebrations for Braxton a few years.
[00:05:30.330]And so Circle of Friends just gives lots of opportunities
[00:05:33.270]and opens the door for students like Braxton
[00:05:35.820]who may not get invited to events like birthday parties
[00:05:41.130]or just going to social outings with his friends.
[00:05:45.390]There we go, all right.
[00:05:47.190]And also our Circle of Friends
[00:05:48.450]hosts an event called "No One Eats Alone",
[00:05:51.210]and it is through Beyond Differences.
[00:05:53.340]It is a free program and it is done during lunch.
[00:05:56.400]And so my Circle of Friends groups,
[00:05:58.140]I meet with them during lunchtime.
[00:06:00.060]So it's not outside of school,
[00:06:01.590]it's just within the regular day.
[00:06:03.058]I don't have to worry about transportation
[00:06:04.470]or anything like that.
[00:06:05.940]It's a lunch group and with "No one Eats alone",
[00:06:08.880]the kids go through the line,
[00:06:10.260]when they go through the line,
[00:06:11.093]I give them a colored paper
[00:06:12.720]and they go and sit at that table.
[00:06:14.640]The tables have conversation cards on them
[00:06:17.340]and our goal is just to meet new friends
[00:06:19.440]and form relationships.
[00:06:21.270]So a Circle of Friends is one of those things,
[00:06:22.800]now that I have the funds,
[00:06:24.270]I can make it as big as I want
[00:06:25.770]or I can make it as simple also.
[00:06:27.750]The kids during lunch,
[00:06:28.680]they also love to just come in and just play games,
[00:06:31.170]board games and just hang out.
[00:06:35.430]Also, 2 1/2 years ago, I started what's called "The Grind".
[00:06:39.270]It is a coffee shop for our school
[00:06:41.940]and it is ran out of my classroom.
[00:06:44.730]It's nothing fancy, but it is a huge hit,
[00:06:48.180]and it's open Fridays from 7:45 to 8:30 and on Thursday.
[00:06:54.240]So the day before these students,
[00:06:55.890]there's visual recipes and they will come in,
[00:06:59.550]during their speech times,
[00:07:00.810]they will make the coffee and set up the cart.
[00:07:03.450]They will count our inventory,
[00:07:05.730]they will get the money ready for that next day's event,
[00:07:09.450]and it is a huge success.
[00:07:13.170]My elementary Circle of Friends
[00:07:15.060]and my high school Circle of Friends that operate it.
[00:07:18.210]Actually, we've now have other kids
[00:07:20.250]who just wanna come to be kind
[00:07:22.230]and hang out because they love it.
[00:07:24.660]We also have really cool aprons up there, if you see 'em,
[00:07:27.310]we're pretty classy.
[00:07:28.530]We're fancy you guys and it's amazing,
[00:07:33.120]because we only charge $1.50 for a cup of coffee,
[00:07:35.940]and we have a lady from our school and from the community
[00:07:39.210]that donates the baked goods.
[00:07:40.500]We also reach out to like Hy-Vee and Starbucks.
[00:07:42.960]So we have not spent any money at all on this project.
[00:07:46.350]I also did a Donor's Choose and they bought the coffee cart
[00:07:49.530]and supplies to get us started
[00:07:50.700]and it has just kind of carried us through.
[00:07:53.520]Also in April,
[00:07:55.050]we have been working with Starbucks in Columbus
[00:07:58.590]and they are going to come in on April 21st
[00:08:01.470]to our pool and help us run The Grind.
[00:08:04.770]I know isn't that great?
[00:08:05.640]You'll have to be there that day.
[00:08:07.500]So they're bringing their equipment and cake pops
[00:08:10.440]and they're gonna help that day,
[00:08:12.750]and then our students are also going to go
[00:08:14.790]to Starbucks in Columbus and get to talk with them
[00:08:17.430]and meet them and see the process.
[00:08:19.200]So it's a great process all around.
[00:08:23.130]We donate our profit to Special Olympics, Nebraska.
[00:08:25.830]So last year we donated $2,000 and the Arc of Platte County,
[00:08:30.480]we donated $750.
[00:08:32.850]And then also to disability research,
[00:08:34.710]we have a student with Pit Hopkins
[00:08:36.510]and we were able to raise $400 one Friday for him.
[00:08:39.960]So it is amazing the morale lifter
[00:08:44.700]that The Grind brings on Fridays.
[00:08:47.580]We have staff who look forward to it,
[00:08:49.650]they get to interact with students
[00:08:51.420]that typically they don't get to see in action
[00:08:54.630]and these kids are rocking it.
[00:08:56.430]So we have like scripts for them for greetings
[00:08:59.280]and what to do when they are done with a transaction,
[00:09:02.640]and it's just been a really cool experience.
[00:09:05.610]Also, we've kind of gone like throughout the community,
[00:09:08.250]we're a big deal.
[00:09:09.510]We have businesses, the bank call
[00:09:12.540]and they will give us their orders
[00:09:14.040]and we will deliver to them.
[00:09:15.810]So it's been really cool.
[00:09:19.320]Also, we do Spring Sprints, if you've never heard of it,
[00:09:22.680]it is held in Wayne, Nebraska on May 5th.
[00:09:25.860]It's the first Friday of every May.
[00:09:28.380]It is a really cool inclusive track meet.
[00:09:31.320]And so Braxton and Zoe here,
[00:09:33.810]they are two of my students who do not participate in track,
[00:09:37.020]but they are able to participate in Spring Sprint.
[00:09:39.960]So it's a cool event.
[00:09:41.640]There's stations, the kids go from station to station
[00:09:44.190]and they're successful
[00:09:46.530]and everybody leaves that day a winner.
[00:09:49.170]And it's really neat as parents because they get to come
[00:09:51.390]and join and cheer on their kids too,
[00:09:54.510]and it's exhausting as an SLP
[00:09:56.130]when I have to run the 400 with them so,
[00:09:58.072](participants laughing)
[00:09:58.905]Good Lord, but also to prepare them for that,
[00:10:02.430]like a few days before the Spring Sprints,
[00:10:04.110]we had a few track practices at our school too.
[00:10:06.780]So just kind of to join the track team.
[00:10:08.910]It was really neat.
[00:10:11.130]Another program that we have
[00:10:12.510]at Shelby Rising City is Unified Bowling.
[00:10:15.630]We believe that's like the seventh year.
[00:10:19.236]I'm not a bowler you guys at all,
[00:10:21.330]but I always tell my team our goal is to spread kindness
[00:10:24.930]and to knock down pins and to sometimes bring home,
[00:10:28.710]we're kind of competitive.
[00:10:30.054](participants laughing)
[00:10:31.410]So Unified Bowling, it is an NSAA recognized sports.
[00:10:35.070]Unified Sports are a special Olympic event
[00:10:37.620]that is a fast growing initiative.
[00:10:39.300]The mission of a unified sports team is to bring people with
[00:10:42.270]and without intellectual disabilities together
[00:10:44.940]on the same team to compete and promote social inclusion
[00:10:47.670]and build friendships, and that's exactly what it does.
[00:10:51.030]When these kids are walking down the hall,
[00:10:52.950]they now are approached by their peers
[00:10:55.170]talking about sports, bowling, asking 'em how they are,
[00:10:58.710]cheering 'em on is just a really cool thing
[00:11:00.750]to see within the hallways.
[00:11:03.180]Also, our bowling program has grown
[00:11:06.270]and our students are included for various awards
[00:11:10.320]such as Academic Allstate, and yesterday my AD approached me
[00:11:14.640]and wanted to know the letter winners
[00:11:16.920]for this year's Unified Bowling.
[00:11:18.480]So Braxton is a letter winner, but don't tell him
[00:11:21.360]and yeah it's really cool.
[00:11:26.520]Is there anything else with the Unified Bowling?
[00:11:28.530]the letter winners, Academic Allstate,
[00:11:30.390]also like Senior Night,
[00:11:32.945]all of our other sports have Senior Night,
[00:11:35.130]so now Unified Bowling gets to join Senior Night.
[00:11:37.950]So at a basketball game our seniors are recognized
[00:11:41.010]and then we also have a banquet at the end of the year,
[00:11:44.610]an activities banquet and Unified Bowling,
[00:11:47.190]we get a page in the booklet
[00:11:48.510]and our students get to go to that banquet.
[00:11:51.180]So like for Braxton that's a banquet
[00:11:53.610]he would not otherwise be recognized at so.
[00:11:57.175](Rachel speaking indistinctly)
[00:11:58.530]Oh yeah.
[00:11:59.460]One of the really cool events was for Unified Bowling.
[00:12:03.120]We bowl what's called Baker's Format.
[00:12:05.310]I had no idea what it was until I started
[00:12:08.550]as the coach for Unified Bowling.
[00:12:10.170]And so to teach our staff more about Baker's Format
[00:12:14.250]and what Unified Bowling looks like,
[00:12:16.110]we hosted a staff verse Unified Bowling team tournament,
[00:12:21.570]and it was huge, it was a huge success.
[00:12:25.500]And who was the person that had the most gutter balls?
[00:12:28.320]Right there, that mama.
[00:12:29.415](participants laughing)
[00:12:30.330]And who was the person that had the most strikes?
[00:12:32.430]My son.
[00:12:33.263]Yep.
[00:12:34.096]But it was really neat for the teachers
[00:12:35.850]to see these kids excel at something
[00:12:38.130]and also see the joy in it,
[00:12:40.110]because they don't always get to see that,
[00:12:41.670]so it was super fun.
[00:12:43.440]It was super fun.
[00:12:46.260]And also another partnership that we have,
[00:12:48.990]to bringing inclusion within our school
[00:12:51.420]is with the Special Olympics of Nebraska.
[00:12:55.590]This is something that probably three years ago
[00:12:58.110]I found out about.
[00:12:59.130]I didn't really know a whole lot about
[00:13:00.330]Special Olympics before that,
[00:13:01.950]but since then it has been an amazing,
[00:13:05.520]yeah, collaboration amongst us
[00:13:07.320]and through Special Olympics here are some events
[00:13:09.450]that we have been able to host.
[00:13:11.460]The Little Feet Meet is a preschool
[00:13:14.850]through fifth grade event
[00:13:16.560]and every student gets a shirt for free
[00:13:19.050]and they bring the equipment
[00:13:21.030]and we have different stations
[00:13:22.560]and the kids just go from station to station.
[00:13:24.690]It's like a activity day, sports day.
[00:13:27.720]It's really cool and the Winter Fitness Challenge,
[00:13:31.050]we just ended with that.
[00:13:32.280]So every week we would submit and these are great,
[00:13:35.460]because these are activities
[00:13:36.660]that I can implement within my Circle of Friends
[00:13:39.120]and they don't cost me anything,
[00:13:40.770]but they are still fun for the kids
[00:13:43.230]and there's something different to do.
[00:13:44.940]So the Winter Fitness Challenge,
[00:13:46.380]every week Special Olympics would send us a new challenge.
[00:13:50.070]So we would be doing planks during Circle of Friends
[00:13:52.200]and wall sits and then we'd submit those times
[00:13:54.900]and hopefully those results will come out
[00:13:56.520]like in the next week or two on the top leaderboard.
[00:13:59.280]And I hope to see Shelby Rising City on there.
[00:14:01.755]Erissa.
[00:14:03.494](Erissa speaking indistinctly)
[00:14:04.327]Okay, all right.
[00:14:05.160](participants laughing)
[00:14:05.993]We're pretty competitive.
[00:14:06.826]Last year we won, so we'll see.
[00:14:08.970]And then the Unified Reading Club,
[00:14:12.510]I signed up for that and that was one of those books
[00:14:14.100]that we gave away.
[00:14:15.090]They send free books about kindness
[00:14:17.490]and you just read the books during Circle of Friends,
[00:14:19.680]do a short summary and submit it.
[00:14:21.870]Spread the Word Inclusion was another initiative
[00:14:24.450]that we did at SRC and Special Olympics sent us a poster,
[00:14:28.860]stickers and coffee cups, which said "Choose to Include",
[00:14:34.380]so we used them at The Grind and that was a huge hit.
[00:14:37.680]And then Adapted PE and Adapted Art.
[00:14:40.080]Anytime we need supplies for any of our students
[00:14:43.470]who can't participate within the regular PE class,
[00:14:46.380]they're wonderful to help with ideas and funding.
[00:14:49.710]And then also one of our coolest things right now
[00:14:53.220]is the National Banner School.
[00:14:54.630]Last year I filled out applications for our elementary,
[00:14:57.330]middle school and high school and we were accepted
[00:15:00.930]through the boards and we are now going to have
[00:15:04.440]a big ceremony in May.
[00:15:07.260]So it's pretty cool.
[00:15:13.770]Great we'll do a drawing, yep.
[00:15:15.360]Cool.
[00:15:16.440]Pull out your tickets,
[00:15:17.970]We'll give another prize 7 3 8 4 3 2 5.
[00:15:28.980]Got a winner?
[00:15:29.813]All right.
[00:15:30.646]Come on down and get a prize.
[00:15:32.970]All right and how about 7 3 8 4 3 8 3,
[00:15:39.690]oh, come on down.
[00:15:42.990]Oh, there you go.
[00:15:44.077](Rachel laughing)
[00:15:44.910]What's your number, Tony?
[00:15:45.743]All right, last one this time.
[00:15:47.850]7 3 8 4 3 5 5.
[00:15:52.740]Good thing you got it off the floor.
[00:15:54.150](Rachel and participants laughing)
[00:15:56.719](participants speaking indistinctly)
[00:15:58.350]All right, go ahead Erissa.
[00:16:00.660]Oh, this one's different.
[00:16:04.980]Okay, great.
[00:16:07.110]We used a different remote
[00:16:08.730]and so you have to press the downer
[00:16:10.860]and this one's the sideways one, so apologize for that.
[00:16:13.710]Also, I don't know how to follow Stacy,
[00:16:16.800]because first of all,
[00:16:18.180]she made it seem like getting a banner is super easy
[00:16:22.710]and it's really not.
[00:16:24.690]All of our school liaisons put so much work
[00:16:28.320]into what they do
[00:16:29.940]really to promote an inclusive environment.
[00:16:33.450]You fill out an application and it's pretty lengthy.
[00:16:36.300]There are 10 standards that aren't set by us,
[00:16:39.900]they're set by national.
[00:16:41.430]So Special Olympics is not only Nebraska,
[00:16:44.400]it's all over the US and it's global too.
[00:16:47.610]So really promoting inclusion in wherever students are.
[00:16:51.510]So the application goes through Nebraska
[00:16:53.370]and then it goes through a certifying body
[00:16:55.410]of six to eight individuals
[00:16:57.240]who independently read the applications.
[00:17:00.540]So she made it seem like it was really easy.
[00:17:03.664](Erissa laughing)
[00:17:05.100]That's a lot of paperwork. I will say that.
[00:17:06.780]It is a lot of paperwork and we provide a lot of resources
[00:17:11.610]and toolkits and sometimes what we do
[00:17:14.340]can be a little overwhelming.
[00:17:16.350]So if you have any questions about anything
[00:17:18.330]regarding our programming, just let us know afterwards.
[00:17:23.040]But Unified Champion Schools,
[00:17:24.240]how many of you heard of Unified Champion schools?
[00:17:26.927]Let me engage the room.
[00:17:29.790]Awesome.
[00:17:31.020]So Unified Champion Schools is really a strategy
[00:17:33.990]to promote meaningful social inclusion
[00:17:37.740]and meaningful meaning, intentional social inclusion.
[00:17:41.400]So a Circle of Friends, lunch buddies,
[00:17:44.280]really allowing those with intellectual disabilities
[00:17:47.460]to be a part of the school.
[00:17:51.210]And one of my favorite examples is looking at the lunchroom,
[00:17:54.750]so seeing if you were to walk into your lunchroom,
[00:17:57.510]where would those students
[00:17:58.590]with intellectual disabilities be?
[00:18:00.780]Would they be not even there?
[00:18:03.270]Would they be kind of in a corner alone?
[00:18:05.760]Would they be a little bit intermingled?
[00:18:07.860]But some of the peers might be, you know,
[00:18:09.600]a little hesitant or maybe cautious with their words
[00:18:13.170]or are they like the varsity jock football player,
[00:18:17.550]everyone knows 'em, everyone's super excited to see them?
[00:18:21.270]We want that in every school.
[00:18:23.490]We want inclusion and we push it
[00:18:25.980]and we do this through Unified Champion Schools.
[00:18:29.040]In the middle of the diagram on the right
[00:18:33.660]is a red kind of triangle,
[00:18:35.820]and we found that that's a secret sauce
[00:18:37.560]when you incorporate three components.
[00:18:40.110]The first one is a whole school engagement.
[00:18:41.940]So how can you engage the whole school
[00:18:45.000]to create a norm of inclusion?
[00:18:47.910]And it really starts when they're little,
[00:18:50.160]elementary schools are very naturally inclusive.
[00:18:53.220]So how can we really foster that inclusion
[00:18:56.130]to when they go into middle school and high school
[00:18:58.740]and there's a whole bunch of change going on,
[00:19:01.800]you know, just overall, but they can rely on, okay,
[00:19:05.880]I'm gonna have this spread the word inclusion day
[00:19:08.670]or I'm gonna have a rivalry game,
[00:19:10.950]which we'll go on in a little bit later.
[00:19:14.040]Next one is an inclusive youth leadership.
[00:19:16.290]So how can we incorporate leadership components
[00:19:20.550]for those with intellectual disabilities?
[00:19:22.290]It could be a kindness cub, could be a Circle of Friends,
[00:19:25.230]it could be, okay, you have a student counselor,
[00:19:28.080]student government, let's have someone
[00:19:30.030]with an intellectual disability be in there,
[00:19:33.480]being advocates not only for themselves
[00:19:35.880]but for their peers.
[00:19:38.250]And then unified sports like Unified PE,
[00:19:41.550]Adaptive PE and Unified Bowling.
[00:19:46.050]So just some unified champion school terms, UCS for short,
[00:19:50.460]an athlete is someone with an intellectual disability
[00:19:53.910]and really we look at IEPs.
[00:19:56.310]So if on their IEP it's says intellectual, cognitive,
[00:20:00.330]they're a Special Olympics athlete,
[00:20:01.920]a partner is someone without an intellectual disability
[00:20:06.360]and then a teammate,
[00:20:08.070]raise your hand if you know what a teammate is.
[00:20:11.340]A teammate, we want them to be included,
[00:20:13.230]we want them to be citizens of the world,
[00:20:17.640]and it's our unified generation.
[00:20:19.980]It really starts when they're young.
[00:20:21.480]We have programming at the age of two to seven
[00:20:24.330]through our young athletes.
[00:20:26.310]They'll go through a camp.
[00:20:27.990]It can even be integrated within your PE class
[00:20:30.900]for those little ones where they focus on
[00:20:33.450]those fine motor skills and those developmental milestones.
[00:20:38.250]Our Unified Champion Schools programming
[00:20:39.960]really starts at elementary school,
[00:20:41.700]incorporating those three components
[00:20:43.800]all the way through college and even transition age.
[00:20:46.770]We also have community events too.
[00:20:48.510]So at the age of eight they can participate
[00:20:50.190]in our state competitions.
[00:20:53.880]We offer both traditional and unified sports.
[00:20:57.600]Unified sports has athletes and partners.
[00:21:01.290]So those with and without intellectual disabilities
[00:21:03.600]on the playing field that is equitable,
[00:21:07.530]and we partner with
[00:21:08.550]the Nebraska Athletic Sports Association
[00:21:12.810]to ensure that eligibility is met
[00:21:15.630]and for Unified Bowling and track and field
[00:21:18.690]and there's a lot more to come 'cause Unified Sports
[00:21:20.940]is growing, but everything in red is unified.
[00:21:24.750]Everything in black is traditional.
[00:21:28.860]So we have a lot of different sports.
[00:21:30.300]We're all across Nebraska.
[00:21:31.830]We're in over 240 schools, which is a lot.
[00:21:36.630]In February we have students compete
[00:21:40.290]in the Nebraska Cheer Association,
[00:21:42.960]that cheer competition that's in February
[00:21:45.120]where they perform a sideline routine,
[00:21:47.820]and it's awesome to see people get so stoked
[00:21:50.910]and it's super competitive,
[00:21:53.220]but all of the athletes
[00:21:54.660]can letter in Unified Bowling and Unified Track.
[00:21:59.340]At the middle school level we offer unified leagues.
[00:22:02.550]We have a middle school soccer league going on
[00:22:05.460]and we have school-based events too,
[00:22:08.190]so sporting events that occurr during the day
[00:22:10.620]and then for elementary school there's Little Feet meets
[00:22:13.410]and unified athletic days too
[00:22:15.720]where they can go through different stations.
[00:22:19.620]So this is something that I touched on earlier.
[00:22:21.810]I think images are great.
[00:22:23.760]A rivalry game can really comprise of two different schools
[00:22:28.020]having unified teams and you know,
[00:22:31.020]competing against one another, it gets rowdy.
[00:22:34.740]I went to a unified rivalry basketball game,
[00:22:38.550]two very rival schools on opposite sides of the gym
[00:22:43.260]and they did a chant like one side would chant,
[00:22:47.730]the other side would chant,
[00:22:48.750]see who could be the loudest and it's awesome.
[00:22:52.380]Rivalry games can also consist of staff versus students.
[00:22:55.710]It really hits in the middle school.
[00:22:58.290]Middle schoolers love
[00:22:59.880]staff versus students, yeah, I don't know why,
[00:23:05.130]but it's a really big hit and they love it,
[00:23:08.160]and this is a great way to really engage those students
[00:23:12.390]with intellectual disabilities
[00:23:14.160]and your admin and parents as well.
[00:23:16.680]It is like a Friday night in that court, it is awesome.
[00:23:23.580]Unified PE is endorsed
[00:23:27.540]by the Nebraska Department of Education.
[00:23:30.540]It is not a walk in the park as a lot of people would think.
[00:23:34.200]We have athletes and partners having very similar,
[00:23:38.490]if not the same curriculum as a traditional PE course.
[00:23:42.780]We help to provide equipment.
[00:23:45.000]There is a whole playbook associated
[00:23:47.910]with specifically unified PE that goes over
[00:23:51.450]maybe a basketball unit or a soccer unit,
[00:23:54.810]and so they'll learn the foundational skills
[00:23:56.940]like they would in a traditional PE class,
[00:23:59.460]but really they're working with their peers.
[00:24:01.680]They're getting that social emotional learning,
[00:24:04.140]that problem solving and all of those important skills
[00:24:07.230]that if they didn't have these opportunities,
[00:24:09.450]they might not know they could have,
[00:24:11.970]like they might not know,
[00:24:13.170]oh I'm really competitive when it comes to pickle ball,
[00:24:15.600]also I'm really into pickle ball.
[00:24:18.210]So they might not know that they would be super good
[00:24:20.730]at those, you know, different PE skills
[00:24:23.280]if it wasn't for their peers.
[00:24:26.610]Just different examples of whole school engagement
[00:24:29.100]and really what it does,
[00:24:30.180]it creates a norm of inclusion
[00:24:32.760]that we want to foster throughout a lifespan.
[00:24:38.010]Our fans in the stands is another way
[00:24:39.780]of just engaging the whole school.
[00:24:41.220]This is for a T-ball event.
[00:24:43.860]So if you have softball at your elementary school,
[00:24:47.850]you can incorporate it or take time outta your PE class
[00:24:51.690]or out of recess to do a softball game.
[00:24:57.090]Other ones are full school engagements,
[00:24:58.500]we have Little Feet meets where they go through
[00:25:01.320]different activities and stations throughout the day
[00:25:04.860]or throughout their time.
[00:25:07.080]Spread the Word is one of
[00:25:07.950]the biggest campaigns that we have.
[00:25:10.200]It's nationally recognized.
[00:25:12.030]It's the day where students just promote inclusion
[00:25:15.300]and it could be a tabling event during lunch.
[00:25:18.360]It could be a morning announcement,
[00:25:19.920]because schools are already doing morning announcements.
[00:25:22.650]Let's include an inclusive morning announcements
[00:25:25.200]and then some of our resources too,
[00:25:28.230]it outlines different morning announcements
[00:25:29.910]that you could do for each month
[00:25:33.630]and other examples of some unified activities.
[00:25:37.920]So we have a ton of different resources
[00:25:39.480]depending on your grade level.
[00:25:42.300]We offer toolkits, playbooks,
[00:25:45.360]equipment if you're interested, and then books as well
[00:25:52.230]and it really happens all over.
[00:25:54.360]Granted Unified Champion Schools is within schools,
[00:25:57.450]but it really happens with the community
[00:26:00.330]and at home as well.
[00:26:04.560]And again, we take a lifelong approach
[00:26:06.270]starting from the age of two and onward.
[00:26:08.790]So once they're age of eight,
[00:26:09.900]they can compete in our state competitions
[00:26:12.180]and regional competitions as well.
[00:26:14.310]We have community-based delegations
[00:26:16.500]or teams where they will have a coach,
[00:26:19.770]they will go to their practices
[00:26:21.180]and they will compete as well.
[00:26:22.560]So students can do both school-based activities
[00:26:25.830]and community-based activities.
[00:26:27.480]So really we're focusing on the overall athlete,
[00:26:30.750]especially when it comes to health,
[00:26:32.340]because we know health disparities and inequities
[00:26:35.190]are very relevant and prevalent
[00:26:37.260]among those with intellectual disabilities.
[00:26:40.200]Special Olympics as a whole organization
[00:26:44.280]is the largest healthcare service
[00:26:48.210]for those with intellectual disabilities.
[00:26:50.430]So during our summer games,
[00:26:52.530]which happens normally in middle of May,
[00:26:55.320]athletes and partners can go
[00:26:57.900]and go through eight different disciplines.
[00:27:00.330]So they can get their eyes checked,
[00:27:02.070]they can get a pair of glasses,
[00:27:03.750]they can get their ears checked,
[00:27:05.070]they can get a sports physical,
[00:27:06.810]which for us lasts three years,
[00:27:09.090]they can get their feet checked.
[00:27:10.830]So we're really focusing on the overall athlete
[00:27:13.680]and how can we improve their health as well.
[00:27:17.700]So we do health screenings too,
[00:27:20.070]and we've actually caught several individuals
[00:27:23.610]who if they had not gone to these health screenings,
[00:27:26.310]they would not have known that they were
[00:27:27.660]at an increased risk for diabetes or heart disease.
[00:27:35.190]Our young athletes is a part of our preventative measures.
[00:27:39.180]If we can catch 'em while they're young
[00:27:43.020]through our young athletes.
[00:27:44.970]So there is a coach involved.
[00:27:47.190]The program can be six to eight weeks,
[00:27:49.110]but we recommend a minimum of six weeks
[00:27:51.390]where they learn a lot of foundational skills
[00:27:54.030]like jumping, throwing, running, skipping,
[00:27:56.760]and you can incorporate a unified young readers.
[00:27:59.370]We do this with some libraries that we partner with,
[00:28:02.340]where they'll read a book about inclusion
[00:28:05.220]or just how to be a good friend
[00:28:07.020]and then they'll do week one of Young Athletes.
[00:28:12.450]You are provided with curriculum and resources
[00:28:15.210]and we are just here as a support system
[00:28:18.270]to further enhance what you all are already doing,
[00:28:22.260]as administrators, as teachers, as coaches, as parents,
[00:28:26.280]we're here to help support you.
[00:28:28.740]So even if sports is not your thing, we have done music,
[00:28:32.850]we have done arts, we can be very creative.
[00:28:36.480]As long as you know, you let us know,
[00:28:39.390]we'd be more than happy to help support,
[00:28:42.840]and again, we have a ton of different resources.
[00:28:47.520]All right should we do another prize?
[00:28:48.750]Sure.
[00:28:49.620]All right, time for another prize.
[00:28:53.160]Let's see there you are.
[00:28:54.300]You are miked.
[00:28:55.140]Am I on now?
[00:28:56.711]It's there.
[00:29:03.360]How's that?
[00:29:04.193]Okay, next winner is 7 3 8 4 3 2 3.
[00:29:10.890]Come on down, you're the next winner on the Price is Right.
[00:29:15.690]How about 7 3 8 4 3 2 4.
[00:29:22.201]Okay and then we'll do one more
[00:29:24.750]and then we forgot to...
[00:29:26.970]7 3 8 4 3 2 7.
[00:29:31.620]Come on down.
[00:29:33.180]And then we didn't ask earlier,
[00:29:35.400]but tell me who do we have in the room?
[00:29:38.160]Raise your hand if your parents like me,
[00:29:40.800]okay and raise a hand if you're educators, paras, teachers.
[00:29:44.970]Okay it's a lot of educators and some parents.
[00:29:47.580]Okay.
[00:29:49.020]So I get the fun part.
[00:29:50.190]I get talk about my son Braxton and our experience
[00:29:54.630]and kind of how we have used all those programs
[00:29:57.870]and how we've implemented that
[00:29:59.760]and how Braxton as a non-verbal student,
[00:30:06.570]non-verbal yeah, non-verbal student,
[00:30:09.030]probably one of the most
[00:30:10.080]outgoing active students you'll see.
[00:30:12.885](Rachel laughing)
[00:30:13.800]So he's 15, we live on a farm.
[00:30:17.280]So actually her thing I need to update the ages.
[00:30:20.490]Aubrey's now 17 and Braxton is 15 and we live on a farm
[00:30:24.810]so he loves the outdoors and things like that.
[00:30:27.540]So he is on the spectrum.
[00:30:30.690]Apraxia of speech, sensory processing.
[00:30:33.390]He's nonverbal, uses an iPad to communicate,
[00:30:36.540]but he loves all things outside and active.
[00:30:39.630]He loves to swing, swim, fish, loves animals,
[00:30:43.230]loves to help on the farm and loves to be active.
[00:30:46.380]And when he started out school,
[00:30:48.600]you know as all parents who...
[00:30:50.340]Tell me if I'm in the wrong spot,
[00:30:52.020]were, you know, how is school gonna go?
[00:30:54.570]What's it gonna look like for him?
[00:30:56.550]And, you know, we had our rough moments,
[00:31:00.630]but I would say in the last 10 years...
[00:31:03.000]Like I mean it's obviously why
[00:31:04.470]we're in all inclusion banner school,
[00:31:06.480]because our school has come so far
[00:31:10.710]and a lot of it is because of the staff,
[00:31:13.200]because of Stacy or who has been Braxton's SLP
[00:31:16.846]since he's been in kindergarten.
[00:31:17.940]Now I'm gonna make you all turn in the back of the room
[00:31:20.190]and his teacher is back here
[00:31:23.670]and she has been by his side
[00:31:26.040]and because of them advocating for not only him,
[00:31:29.430]but all of our students,
[00:31:31.230]they do just an amazing job
[00:31:33.150]of not only including them in the classroom,
[00:31:35.460]but providing all of these opportunities
[00:31:37.560]for them either after school
[00:31:39.570]or in the community or anything.
[00:31:42.030]And it can be, you know,
[00:31:43.920]not just what Braxton is interested in
[00:31:45.750]and not these outdoor activities,
[00:31:47.700]but other activities that other students
[00:31:49.530]are involved in as well and he's come so far,
[00:31:52.470]you know, this year starting high school
[00:31:54.540]we didn't know how it was gonna go.
[00:31:55.830]You know, high school's tough, right?
[00:31:57.990]So in December,
[00:31:59.190]Braxton was chosen as the student of the month.
[00:32:01.920]So that was just really cool to see
[00:32:04.080]that it's not just his special education teachers
[00:32:07.380]or staff that see you know,
[00:32:09.480]how far he's come and what he's attaining,
[00:32:11.850]but the regular staff and everyone else has been as well,
[00:32:15.450]so he was very excited for that.
[00:32:18.600]So he is involved in a lot of school activities.
[00:32:21.690]So he does FFA, Unified Bowling, Student Council,
[00:32:26.670]he was the football student manager this year.
[00:32:28.980]He's participated in football camp,
[00:32:30.870]done summer weights and band.
[00:32:33.510]Student council was nice because you know,
[00:32:35.760]they don't do a lot of things,
[00:32:37.410]just go to meetings and help with things,
[00:32:39.210]and it's great 'cuase he loves to help with things.
[00:32:41.460]So like they're helping with the Easter egg hunt
[00:32:44.040]and so he gets to go there and do that,
[00:32:46.560]and it keeps him active and is a part of an organization.
[00:32:50.640]Band, you know, when we had to take music class,
[00:32:54.030]never into music 'cause couldn't sing, you know,
[00:32:56.490]hated all that, but we thought
[00:32:58.057]"Well let's see how band goes."
[00:33:00.060]He absolutely loves it.
[00:33:02.520]We decided to do percussion so he'll either play the drums
[00:33:05.880]or play the cowbell.
[00:33:07.470]Sometimes he just runs the drumstick through the cowbell,
[00:33:11.850]but whatever works, it's fun.
[00:33:14.940]So he really likes it and it's been a good thing for him
[00:33:19.050]to participate in.
[00:33:22.560]And then summer weights are great.
[00:33:26.970]It kind of started out in the summer
[00:33:28.890]as Stacy decided when he would have
[00:33:30.780]his summer services for speech,
[00:33:32.580]let's do it during weight class.
[00:33:34.590]So he can not only, you know, lift, which is good for him
[00:33:38.820]but he can also communicate with his peers
[00:33:41.700]and just a way for him to be, you know,
[00:33:43.740]still maintain contact with them in the summer.
[00:33:46.922](Erissa speaking indistinctly)
[00:34:07.612]And then he would say next exercise
[00:34:09.300]and then it would go to the next.
[00:34:10.530]So it was really cool.
[00:34:13.321]And his parents don't love that he has to be to school
[00:34:15.120]at 6:30 but we do it 'cause we know it's good for him,
[00:34:19.170]and there's so many benefits to school activities.
[00:34:22.380]So it helps the kids feel involved
[00:34:24.240]in the school and community.
[00:34:25.640]It helps students and peers build relationships,
[00:34:29.040]and I think it mostly just helps the peers
[00:34:31.980]see another side of the student
[00:34:33.780]and realize what they're capable of,
[00:34:36.120]you know, realize, hey they can lift weights,
[00:34:38.010]they can do exercises and do as much as I can.
[00:34:41.280]So the top picture is just him with some peers,
[00:34:43.800]kind of waiting there during weights time
[00:34:46.800]and then these bottom two pictures,
[00:34:48.930]when Braxton was in sixth grade,
[00:34:51.180]the fourth through sixth graders
[00:34:52.950]had a Double Dogs football team.
[00:34:55.350]So it was football pads and stuff
[00:34:57.150]and they asked if he wanted to be the student manager.
[00:34:59.610]Well one day these boys came to school
[00:35:01.440]and they were so excited.
[00:35:03.150]They said they had got Braxton a jersey with his name on it
[00:35:05.760]and they actually at one game announced him.
[00:35:10.290]So when they announced everybody else,
[00:35:11.610]they announced him and he ran out on the field with them
[00:35:13.830]and he absolutely loved it,
[00:35:15.180]and it was just great to see him active
[00:35:17.610]and they, you know, include him
[00:35:19.410]and his peers are wonderful were-
[00:35:21.393]I would also say that this has helped our school staff too
[00:35:24.870]because they see the potential that Braxton has,
[00:35:28.080]that he can be amongst his peers
[00:35:29.790]and do things just like them.
[00:35:31.860]When we started this journey with Braxton,
[00:35:33.630]I would say that inclusion
[00:35:36.120]was kind of within SRC but not really
[00:35:38.160]and so we had to advocate hard for Braxton.
[00:35:43.110]Yeah, lots of time, lots of tears,
[00:35:45.930]but he has helped to open the door
[00:35:48.390]for many of our other students
[00:35:49.830]as they've come into elementary.
[00:35:51.180]It's been really neat and this family has also helped too.
[00:35:55.380]They're amazing advocates for their son.
[00:35:59.040]How many of your schools have FFA programs?
[00:36:02.370]A lot?
[00:36:03.203]Okay and there's a couple people in the room
[00:36:04.560]that I know could speak to FFA a lot better than I can,
[00:36:08.250]but it's a great organization
[00:36:10.680]and especially for our students,
[00:36:13.080]because there's so many options,
[00:36:15.450]so many work-based learning opportunities
[00:36:17.790]and career technical education,
[00:36:19.652]CTE opportunities for these students.
[00:36:22.470]So for Braxton, I'll give an example.
[00:36:24.780]Like this summer, he during summer services
[00:36:27.930]started watering plants
[00:36:29.880]and did like a horticulture program through FFA.
[00:36:32.550]There's so many, you know, plant science things
[00:36:34.620]and so he studied water or studied plants
[00:36:37.800]and how much water they needed
[00:36:39.480]and how the environments they grew in and stuff like that.
[00:36:42.630]Students that like animals.
[00:36:44.010]So our kids actually both show sheep,
[00:36:46.350]and so they do that for FFA and that's been exciting.
[00:36:50.250]They've learned about sheep
[00:36:51.900]and it kind of started with 4-H, which I also talk about,
[00:36:54.690]but they can do it for FFA now
[00:36:56.280]and just get more knowledge about animals,
[00:36:59.790]and here I have a video.
[00:37:01.170]So our school every year does a petting zoo
[00:37:04.440]and so they usually have a lamb there.
[00:37:06.090]So I program in Braxton's device about the lamb
[00:37:09.180]and he tells students about the lamb.
[00:37:11.940]So we'll see if we can...
[00:37:16.080]It's a little loud.
[00:37:17.252](people in video speaking indistinctly)
[00:37:36.193]tell him what her name is,
[00:37:38.153]walk in and tell him what her name is.
[00:37:40.502](people in video speaking indistinctly)
[00:37:48.510]Good job.
[00:37:50.160]So I apologize in all these videos
[00:37:51.780]you hear mom chirping in the background of course.
[00:37:54.808]So it was really neat because
[00:37:59.309]all he says is, you know,
[00:38:00.367]"Baby sheep is called the lamb and lamb grow grows wool."
[00:38:05.790]But then it was really neat
[00:38:06.800]'cause you see all those elementary students
[00:38:08.370]that are there listening to him
[00:38:09.657]and so they're seeing like,
[00:38:10.957]"Oh Braxton knows what's going on,
[00:38:12.780]Braxton can communicate with me."
[00:38:14.520]You know, and that really is through our whole school system
[00:38:18.510]that we try to create those opportunities for everyone
[00:38:22.830]to see, not just Braxton but all of our students
[00:38:25.350]as communicators, as worthy members, you know,
[00:38:28.950]of our school and of their grade and stuff.
[00:38:31.650]So like one of the things that Stacy did with Braxton
[00:38:34.680]when he was younger was take him into the classroom
[00:38:37.110]even as I remember like kindergarten or first grade,
[00:38:40.140]go into like high school classrooms at the very end,
[00:38:42.750]you know, last few minutes
[00:38:43.830]everyone's just kinda sitting around
[00:38:45.090]and have a joke programmed in his device.
[00:38:47.940]So he would say a joke to the classroom
[00:38:50.490]and the kids loved it but they also saw like,
[00:38:53.107]"Oh it's more than just carrying around an iPad.
[00:38:57.210]Like there's a purpose for it and he can communicate."
[00:38:59.910]And then they might not make fun of him
[00:39:01.350]or they might not, you know, ask more questions
[00:39:03.420]or they understand him better.
[00:39:05.217]And so here it was even for like elementary school,
[00:39:08.220]we try to see those kids so they know
[00:39:09.900]and understand him a little bit better.
[00:39:12.330]So SAE is a Supervised Agriculture Experience,
[00:39:16.950]which again our kids both do in sheep,
[00:39:19.230]but there's so many things you can do.
[00:39:21.180]So if you have FFA and have kids that are interested in...
[00:39:24.690]I know someone that did it with ducks,
[00:39:26.490]there's can be business opportunities
[00:39:28.500]and when you go to do it,
[00:39:29.610]you'll see there's money skills you need for it.
[00:39:31.830]There's hours, there's time,
[00:39:33.660]there's so much learning opportunities in there
[00:39:36.930]for them to do with that.
[00:39:37.950]So I highly recommend looking into that
[00:39:39.990]and just thinking what would my student be interested in?
[00:39:42.360]And you probably could find something for it.
[00:39:45.120]Okay, so Braxton's big exciting thing this year
[00:39:48.567]and it is really great too now,
[00:39:50.100]because our teachers, you know, like she said,
[00:39:52.830]used to always have to maybe, I don't wanna say push,
[00:39:55.200]but encourage or ask, you know or beg,
[00:39:57.900]and now the teachers are coming to us
[00:40:00.270]and oh my gosh I thought of this for Braxton or I saw this.
[00:40:03.330]So our Ag teacher came to me this fall and said
[00:40:05.497]"I'm so excited our district
[00:40:08.100]is opening up a thing for the LDEs."
[00:40:11.790]Which is leadership development, thank you,
[00:40:15.840]Leadership Development Events
[00:40:17.670]and so Braxton can participate.
[00:40:20.340]Oh wow, okay, you know what's he gonna do?
[00:40:22.800]Give a speech?
[00:40:23.820]Well how about the creed?
[00:40:25.050]So we programmed the creed into his device
[00:40:28.830]and it's pretty long.
[00:40:29.730]There's like six good sessions
[00:40:32.040]and they practiced it for a long time.
[00:40:34.560]Like every day he would practice it.
[00:40:36.570]Well then we had a jacket ceremony where he got his jacket
[00:40:40.110]and we thought this would be perfect opportunity
[00:40:42.180]for him to practice.
[00:40:43.590]Well he'd gotten his jacket,
[00:40:44.820]which we'd kind of practiced that jacket a little bit.
[00:40:47.700]Well we didn't practice them together.
[00:40:50.100]So by the time he was supposed to give this speech...
[00:40:53.329]And he had the jacket on, he was kind of over it.
[00:40:55.140]So we thought okay, you know,
[00:40:56.610]we're gonna have to put more time into this.
[00:40:58.620]So then he would take the jacket to school,
[00:41:00.870]put the jacket on, then practice it.
[00:41:03.360]Then he got more used to that.
[00:41:05.130]So I was judging, sorry,
[00:41:08.430]so I wasn't able to be in the room,
[00:41:10.590]but my daughter was in there,
[00:41:11.790]and she recorded it and Amy was in there
[00:41:14.100]and he was so proud of himself.
[00:41:16.260]He did the whole thing.
[00:41:17.640]He kind of shook a little bit, you know,
[00:41:19.380]but he presented it
[00:41:20.550]and then they started asking him the questions
[00:41:22.680]and you could see his face and he looked...
[00:41:24.180]And thank you 'cause he had to add thank you at the end.
[00:41:27.570]And then they asked him the questions
[00:41:29.610]and at the very end he starts clapping,
[00:41:31.860]because you're supposed to clap for him
[00:41:33.360]'cause he was proud of himself.
[00:41:34.358](participants laughing)
[00:41:35.191]He knew he did a good job and he got a blue ribbon,
[00:41:38.010]which he was very, very proud of so.
[00:41:40.527]And I will also say one thing that helped prepare him
[00:41:43.170]for giving that speech is our teachers at SRC and paras too.
[00:41:48.270]Tony is up here, Tony's one of his paras.
[00:41:50.730]Oh yeah.
[00:41:51.563]They really pushed to get him in the classroom.
[00:41:53.790]And so Braxton had just finished a speech class,
[00:41:57.090]was that a quarterly class semester?
[00:41:58.918]Semester.
[00:41:59.751]Semester class and so in that class
[00:42:01.020]he learned how to present to people
[00:42:03.180]what presentation looks like
[00:42:05.130]and he gave speeches just like the other kids,
[00:42:07.380]obviously they looked different,
[00:42:08.460]they were on his device,
[00:42:09.600]we practiced them a lot but he was able to participate.
[00:42:13.230]One of the things the speech teacher has him do is
[00:42:15.720]go into elementary classroom and read a book.
[00:42:18.270]So they programmed in Braxton's device
[00:42:20.550]and he went into an elementary classroom
[00:42:22.140]and read a book as well,
[00:42:23.910]but I highly recommend looking into the opportunities
[00:42:27.420]that FFA has to offer.
[00:42:29.610]Oops, sorry.
[00:42:33.960]Okay football student manager.
[00:42:35.730]So I guess go back to, you know as a parent
[00:42:40.560]when Braxton is first young
[00:42:42.900]and you realize that you know
[00:42:44.730]he's not gonna be able to participate in football
[00:42:48.390]or baseball, you know, wrestling
[00:42:51.210]some of the other sports that other kids do.
[00:42:53.640]And it's tough because you know,
[00:42:56.067]you realize that's kind of a bummer
[00:42:58.080]'cause that's what all parents
[00:42:59.160]and everyone looks forward to,
[00:43:00.870]but as he has gotten older we realized, you know,
[00:43:05.580]our school has been so great
[00:43:06.750]about including him in things.
[00:43:10.410]He loves the outdoors and he loves to help with things.
[00:43:13.110]So we thought well what about
[00:43:14.160]being a football student manager?
[00:43:16.410]So it's so great because even though he can't participate,
[00:43:19.500]he's part of the team and he has made these connections
[00:43:22.320]with these peers, either the other players on the team
[00:43:25.560]or even the other student managers
[00:43:27.720]or middle school kids that are so great with him.
[00:43:30.720]So the football coach gave him one job
[00:43:33.150]and you're supposed to, you know,
[00:43:34.320]fill the water bottle and do this.
[00:43:36.270]Well now he said he's done so good,
[00:43:37.710]next year he gets two jobs, you know,
[00:43:41.220]and sometimes when they go out on the field for a huddle
[00:43:43.800]and he'll take his water and then everyone will run back
[00:43:46.170]and I'll be watching, mom will be watching,
[00:43:48.318]"Don't forget Braxton."
[00:43:50.130]And some of the younger kids are great about
[00:43:51.960]come on Braxton, you know,
[00:43:53.370]and just following along
[00:43:54.600]and he walks through with them when they all give
[00:43:56.670]the other team high five and everything
[00:43:58.980]and it's been a really great way for him
[00:44:01.380]to be a part of the football team
[00:44:02.970]and be a part of a high school activity.
[00:44:06.990]And I also would recommend, you know,
[00:44:08.700]as you're looking at these things
[00:44:09.930]and it can be whatever your student's interested in,
[00:44:11.790]maybe it's you know, wrestling student manager
[00:44:13.890]or basketball or whatever, but like for us we knew
[00:44:17.100]okay, every day practice it can be hot,
[00:44:19.890]it can be long and you know all those games.
[00:44:22.290]So this year we started out with,
[00:44:24.090]he went to two practices a week
[00:44:26.040]and helped with the home games.
[00:44:27.960]So you know, next year we'll see what that brings,
[00:44:29.970]if you'll do more or do the same
[00:44:31.740]and it kind of like eases into whatever works for you
[00:44:34.880]in your specific situation.
[00:44:37.320]One of the things Braxton has gotten to do also,
[00:44:39.840]before was attend football camps
[00:44:41.400]and Mrs. Stewart can tell you about that,
[00:44:42.917]'cause she went with him.
[00:44:45.240]Yes, I learned more about football than I'd ever known.
[00:44:47.520](participants laughing)
[00:44:48.353]So yeah, I went two summers with him.
[00:44:51.270]It was super cool he got to do the activities with them
[00:44:54.240]and obviously some of them were altered or accommodated,
[00:44:57.570]but it was a huge success and it was neat to see again
[00:45:01.590]the social piece, the friendships that were built from that.
[00:45:05.040]The kids loved being able to see him enjoy
[00:45:08.220]what he was doing
[00:45:09.060]and enjoy their sport and their thing as well.
[00:45:13.920]So our team made state playoffs this year
[00:45:16.560]so then we get shirts,
[00:45:18.060]which we were so proud if you see in the bottom,
[00:45:20.490]Braxton made the shirt.
[00:45:21.630]So student manager so his name is on there.
[00:45:23.820]So that's exciting and been fun
[00:45:25.740]and then also our team's when you make state event,
[00:45:29.640]we do a walk of fame and so Braxton got to walk
[00:45:32.190]with the football team and do the walk of fame,
[00:45:34.320]so that was fun as well.
[00:45:35.550]Just another way that he was included in something.
[00:45:39.150]Okay Unified Bowling was one of the best things
[00:45:42.360]that our school has gotten.
[00:45:43.920]Braxton is in love with bowling now
[00:45:46.530]and it was a great intro to it,
[00:45:49.830]because Mrs. Stewart invited him to be the student manager
[00:45:53.700]when he was in middle school.
[00:45:54.990]So it was great because he kind of got a feel for it.
[00:45:57.450]He understood, you know, how the bowling worked
[00:45:59.670]and it was kind of loud in there and everything.
[00:46:01.710]Well this year, his freshman year, it didn't phase him.
[00:46:04.530]I mean every time he knew where his ball was.
[00:46:06.960]There was one time even where the lanes
[00:46:08.820]were kind of having problems and he had to wait
[00:46:11.310]and it's like,
[00:46:12.483]"Oh no, he's standing there for a long time
[00:46:13.680]in front of everyone.
[00:46:14.570]Is he gonna get frustrated?"
[00:46:16.170]Nope just waited very patiently and knew what was going on
[00:46:19.470]and he loves to bowl.
[00:46:21.060]And the thing is again like having a kid that's younger,
[00:46:24.900]you want him to be able to do all these things,
[00:46:28.050]and our family's very competitive.
[00:46:29.340]My daughter's in softball and you know,
[00:46:31.650]we're all very competitive.
[00:46:32.700]My parents were very competitive.
[00:46:34.140]So to have Unified Bowling is a sport
[00:46:36.322]that he can not just participate in but compete in.
[00:46:41.070]The very first meet they got fifth out of 30 17s.
[00:46:44.940]We were pretty excited about that,
[00:46:47.460]and my dad who's very competitive...
[00:46:50.610]Braxton's team got to go to districts
[00:46:52.530]and they had all the kids listed in the grades.
[00:46:54.480]Well he was only one of five freshmen that got to compete.
[00:46:57.300]So that was exciting for him.
[00:46:59.190]And then as she mentioned, they get letters
[00:47:01.740]and so we do know Braxton got his letters,
[00:47:03.690]so my parents got him a letter jacket already,
[00:47:06.210]so he's just waiting for the letter
[00:47:08.250]to come at the spring activities banquet,
[00:47:11.250]but also, you can see here Braxton has made connections with
[00:47:15.480]like seniors and some of the older students
[00:47:18.360]that he normally wouldn't have
[00:47:19.647]and every time he would throw a ball
[00:47:22.230]they would give him a high five on the way back.
[00:47:24.240]And also if he gets a strike he turns around and claps
[00:47:27.000]to make sure you know, you're supposed to clap for him,
[00:47:29.580]but I highly recommend Unified Sports.
[00:47:33.030]It's just wonderful the things that it's done.
[00:47:35.370]Our daughter has been able to participate also as a peer
[00:47:39.030]and she liked it.
[00:47:40.020]And also with that Unified Bowling one,
[00:47:43.020]his peers that were there, his teammates,
[00:47:45.690]there were times where Braxton was getting
[00:47:47.520]just a little bit like fidgety
[00:47:48.930]and the peers said,
[00:47:50.587]"Well maybe it's just both of us were too much
[00:47:52.920]so maybe just one of us should give them a high five
[00:47:54.870]and not both of us."
[00:47:55.703]So it's just making others aware and it's just really cool
[00:47:58.890]to see them in the moment change their actions
[00:48:01.620]without being directed by an adult.
[00:48:03.390]So it's really cool.
[00:48:04.980]Also with the Unified Bowling, I highly recommend it,
[00:48:09.540]like prob probably one of my favorite parts about my job,
[00:48:12.360]but Braxton uses a rack or a ramp, excuse me, when he bowls
[00:48:16.650]and so for that I just had to go through
[00:48:18.780]an accommodations hearing with an SAA Dan Masters
[00:48:22.080]and it was super quick and easy.
[00:48:24.060]So really Unified Bowling is for anyone.
[00:48:29.250]And so aside from just all the school activities,
[00:48:31.920]Braxton actually also participates
[00:48:34.080]in a lot of outside school activities.
[00:48:35.850]4-H is what he really kind of got going
[00:48:38.520]and got started on
[00:48:39.780]and then he did VIP soccer, one year I'll talk about
[00:48:43.140]and the Arc and a few other things.
[00:48:45.390]So 4-H has been wonderful.
[00:48:47.850]My husband and I both participated in 4-H
[00:48:50.460]and so our daughter right away,
[00:48:51.870]you know, started that she wanted to
[00:48:53.760]and so Braxton would tag along with us and help her animals.
[00:48:56.910]Well he would come to the fair
[00:48:58.140]and I remember when he was pretty little yet
[00:49:00.810]we were at the fair but you know, go get the water buckets
[00:49:04.500]and help feed and brush the animals.
[00:49:06.420]And I thought,
[00:49:07.253]"Hmm, I wonder if Braxton will be able
[00:49:09.180]to participate in 4-H."
[00:49:10.800]Well everyone else kind of saw that too,
[00:49:12.690]and the fair board even came to us and said,
[00:49:14.767]"Hey, we wanna make sure you know Braxton
[00:49:16.890]can participate in 4-H
[00:49:18.240]and we'll make these accommodations, whatever he needs."
[00:49:21.630]So like when we show sheep,
[00:49:23.670]most people just use two hands
[00:49:25.590]and don't use a chain, well Braxton uses a chain,
[00:49:28.380]and he's actually gone down...
[00:49:30.300]He used to use just like a regular lead rope.
[00:49:32.100]Well now we found one that's kind of closer
[00:49:34.050]and he used to not brace, well now he kind of braces.
[00:49:36.600]So I'll show you a couple videos
[00:49:44.400]And you can see,
[00:49:45.233]and I don't know if you're familiar with 4-H,
[00:49:47.280]you're like supposed to look at the judge
[00:49:48.780]and be more intense and that's not really Braxton.
[00:49:51.600]So we're kind of working on some of those things.
[00:49:54.600]So he used to just kind of stand there.
[00:49:56.880]Well now we at least get him to brace.
[00:49:59.250]So you'll see here.
[00:50:01.500]There you go.
[00:50:02.940]So he's improved a lot.
[00:50:04.650]That's a lot better than what he used to.
[00:50:06.840]And actually, so this year was our daughter's first year
[00:50:09.900]showing at the state fair
[00:50:11.640]and we have a friend who's on the board there
[00:50:14.850]for the sheep board and she says,
[00:50:16.297]"You know, we all want Braxton to show next year,
[00:50:18.840]we're gonna make it possible
[00:50:19.920]so he can show at the state fair."
[00:50:21.480]Well I don't know if mom's quite ready for that
[00:50:23.190]but we'll see.
[00:50:24.870]But there's so much more to 4-H,
[00:50:26.460]I mean animals is wonderful.
[00:50:28.770]That's what our kids do
[00:50:30.060]and from there he is learned daily chores,
[00:50:32.610]caring for animals, feeding and watering,
[00:50:35.130]you know, measuring the feed.
[00:50:36.750]He loves to walk 'em every day.
[00:50:37.920]I've always said Braxton's favorite part of 4-H
[00:50:40.170]is just taking care of the animals on a daily basis,
[00:50:42.750]which most people don't like that part.
[00:50:44.640]Most kids wanna show, you know,
[00:50:46.060]be in the ring, get the trophies.
[00:50:48.570]He likes to get the trophies
[00:50:50.070]but he likes to do the daily work
[00:50:52.410]and there's so much they can learn from that.
[00:50:54.510]And then there's so many other opportunities though.
[00:50:57.660]There's baking, there's making crafts.
[00:51:00.270]One year they did a rocket.
[00:51:02.790]There's so many other projects,
[00:51:04.260]like if you have students that are interested in robotics
[00:51:07.260]or Legos or anything and then you know, as far as 4-H,
[00:51:11.037]a lot of 'em have clubs.
[00:51:11.880]So you find a club and that's a good way
[00:51:13.890]for them to interact with other people in the club,
[00:51:16.110]you know, and they go to meetings
[00:51:17.730]and then also there's 4-H fun days
[00:51:20.190]and workshops where you can learn how to do things.
[00:51:23.370]Actually Aubrey is going on Saturday
[00:51:25.260]to learn how to do an aerial egg thing
[00:51:27.900]and she's gonna teach that to a bunch of other kids.
[00:51:30.420]So kids that are interested in aerial things,
[00:51:33.480]they can learn that,
[00:51:34.740]and actually I was thinking about this too, cats and dogs,
[00:51:38.550]like people that have dogs or have cats,
[00:51:40.860]they can show those in 4-H too.
[00:51:42.633]It's just the opportunities are endless.
[00:51:45.000]So I definitely recommend looking into 4-H
[00:51:48.600]or recommend to your parents to look into 4-H
[00:51:51.360]and it can just bring 'em so much joy.
[00:51:53.160]Here's just a fun video for you,
[00:51:55.320]because this will make you smile.
[00:51:59.340]Amy knows this one.
[00:52:01.015](people in video speaking indistinctly)
[00:52:05.945](kids laughing)
[00:52:09.685]She kissing your breath.
[00:52:11.034](kids laughing)
[00:52:13.634](people in video speaking indistinctly)
[00:52:22.200]He's not afraid to get muddy, that's for sure.
[00:52:24.840]So we don't show pigs anymore, but that was when we did,
[00:52:28.230]he's not afraid.
[00:52:29.460]It's made him kind of not fearful
[00:52:31.410]of those things either, which is fun.
[00:52:34.394]Okay, there we go.
[00:52:40.590]Okay.
[00:52:41.580]Okay, we're like she said, about 25 miles away from Columbus
[00:52:45.810]and Braxton only did this for a couple years,
[00:52:48.450]but they're AYSO program had a,
[00:52:51.360]and I believe they still do,
[00:52:52.530]it just doesn't work in our schedule a VIP soccer program.
[00:52:56.040]And so again, not being able to participate
[00:52:58.470]in T-ball or other regular sports,
[00:53:01.770]they paired up the individuals with peers,
[00:53:05.880]one or two of 'em
[00:53:06.900]and they kind of just played soccer together
[00:53:09.000]and they had kids with different abilities
[00:53:11.880]and like one girl had some visual problems,
[00:53:14.430]so they used the big soccer ball for part of the time
[00:53:17.820]for her and stuff.
[00:53:18.960]And it was super fun because again,
[00:53:20.880]he had never competed in the sport before.
[00:53:22.500]So it was fun to see him, you know, compete.
[00:53:25.200]He made a bunch of goals one time,
[00:53:27.780]but it was more exciting...
[00:53:29.730]I wish I would've got a video of him running back
[00:53:32.580]to the sidelines in his victory after he would score a goal
[00:53:35.580]and then run to the sideline to sit in the chair
[00:53:37.710]and take a drink.
[00:53:38.611](participants laughing)
[00:53:39.444]So here's a fun quick video of him making a goal.
[00:53:48.630]Oh, maybe.
[00:53:50.868]Go Brax.
[00:53:51.840]Kick it in, kick it in, use your feet, kick it in,
[00:53:54.818]Go Braxton.
[00:53:55.800](spectators cheering)
[00:53:56.633]Kick it in.
[00:53:58.064](spectators cheering)
[00:53:59.870]So I recommend looking at your local AYSO
[00:54:03.360]and see if they have the VIP soccer program.
[00:54:06.390]My favorite part of that video is you.
[00:54:08.130]Oh, I know
[00:54:08.963]The competitive mama.
[00:54:09.796]Don't you love the voice?
[00:54:10.740]The voice.
[00:54:11.573]Yep.
[00:54:12.690]Okay and again, you know,
[00:54:14.061]when Brax is young and can't always compete in things
[00:54:17.100]or look for different opportunities.
[00:54:18.900]We found the Arc
[00:54:19.860]and the ARC has been a great resource for us
[00:54:23.400]and our families,
[00:54:24.233]started out with like pals and play respite days.
[00:54:26.850]And so for our area,
[00:54:29.070]what they would do would be like
[00:54:30.300]about an 1 1/2 or two hours once a quarter or so,
[00:54:35.700]they would have like play days at a gym or at the local Y.
[00:54:40.260]And so Braxton and his sister could go
[00:54:42.690]and do things according to the season and stuff
[00:54:45.839]and then we could go out for dinner
[00:54:47.190]or go shopping or something like that.
[00:54:49.110]And it's just a fun little thing to meet people and play
[00:54:52.770]and then also the Summer Friends Special Needs Camp,
[00:54:55.980]which has been awesome.
[00:54:57.600]We have that every summer in Columbus and it's three days
[00:55:00.630]and you can see there they're riding horses,
[00:55:02.910]they have different themes, they do crafts, play games,
[00:55:06.270]do a lot of fun things.
[00:55:07.350]We've actually taken our sheep, so that's been fun
[00:55:09.960]and then they always end the last day...
[00:55:13.110]Like Wednesday's the last day
[00:55:14.520]and then that night they'll have a talent show
[00:55:16.170]because everyone has a talent.
[00:55:17.430]Everyone can do something
[00:55:19.050]and so to bring it out of the kids is really fun.
[00:55:21.810]So some will sing, Braxton has danced and he's told jokes.
[00:55:26.670]We programmed jokes in his iPad and he is done that.
[00:55:29.610]And we've brought the sheep before and he's done the sheep.
[00:55:33.420]This year he played drums to the school song.
[00:55:37.200]So here's him at the talent show this year.
[00:55:39.726](upbeat music)
[00:55:42.198](audience clapping along to the song)
[00:55:52.977]So it's really fun to see these kids thrive and have joy
[00:55:56.610]and do things that they're good at,
[00:55:57.960]so that's been really neat.
[00:56:02.460]Okay another program that our Arc has now
[00:56:05.100]is called the Cloud 9 Dance,
[00:56:06.990]and you might be familiar with if you've heard
[00:56:08.610]The Night to Shine in our area,
[00:56:10.620]now we've changed it and we do the Cloud 9.
[00:56:12.750]So ours is actually tomorrow night,
[00:56:14.460]so we're gonna have to get back
[00:56:16.140]so we can take breaths into that.
[00:56:17.850]I got his tux yesterday,
[00:56:19.530]so it's actually for people who are 14 and up
[00:56:22.530]and it's a big area.
[00:56:23.790]It's wherever you wanna come from with disabilities
[00:56:26.610]and they pair you up with someone if you want them to
[00:56:29.730]or if you can go on your own, they're okay with that too.
[00:56:32.670]And the guys get tuxes,
[00:56:34.620]go to the local tux shop and get fitted
[00:56:37.020]and have a tux and the girls have dress days
[00:56:39.780]where they go and you try on and choose your dress.
[00:56:42.120]I forgot to say last time,
[00:56:43.440]I think also, the girls go
[00:56:45.330]and get their hair and makeup done too,
[00:56:47.400]so they really do everybody up.
[00:56:49.260]And then you walk the red carpet and then they have a limo
[00:56:52.440]and they have a dinner and a dance.
[00:56:54.480]So it's super fun.
[00:56:56.280]Here is Braxton walking the red carpet last year.
[00:56:59.795](people in video cheering)
[00:57:05.293](people in video cheering)
[00:57:09.043]And you'll see that was his buddy.
[00:57:11.580]She wanted him to go by himself,
[00:57:13.350]but he didn't want to, he wanted her to go with him.
[00:57:16.230]So he grabbed her and said, "You're coming with me."
[00:57:18.733](participants laughing)
[00:57:19.893](students in video cheering)
[00:57:23.760]But it's a very cool thing.
[00:57:27.840]It's a very cool dance and fun
[00:57:29.310]and I recommend looking into it
[00:57:31.200]if you know anyone that's interested.
[00:57:32.730]How many of you have heard of Operations Shine Camp?
[00:57:36.030]Ooh only a few?
[00:57:36.870]Okay, it's a very cool camp.
[00:57:40.080]Kids and Dreams Foundation,
[00:57:41.520]Erin and Carrie Bly and they started it,
[00:57:44.310]I'm not sure how many years ago,
[00:57:45.960]but it's an overnight camp,
[00:57:47.370]now they have two weekend camps and one day camp
[00:57:50.580]and I believe they probably still fill that up,
[00:57:52.950]but they match up every student that wants to come
[00:57:56.070]with at least two volunteers
[00:57:58.110]and they do swimming, archery, horseback riding,
[00:58:03.150]there's a zip line, lots of fun activities and events.
[00:58:08.280]So I remember when someone first told us about it,
[00:58:11.520]Braxton was maybe eight or so and they said,
[00:58:13.837]"This is really neat, this overnight camp for the weekend."
[00:58:17.190]And I looked at him and I said,
[00:58:18.907]"You want me to do what?
[00:58:20.310]You want me to send my kid who can't talk
[00:58:22.620]away for the weekend and trust these people?"
[00:58:25.740]And oh my gosh, it's been the best experience.
[00:58:28.440]He absolutely loved it
[00:58:29.910]and it made him so much more independent, he just shined.
[00:58:35.910]And one of the last times he went,
[00:58:38.580]because it only goes to age 12, that we picked him up,
[00:58:40.950]he like cried because he didn't wanna go home
[00:58:43.470]and they do a graduation, you know, after they go,
[00:58:46.230]but they just make so many friends
[00:58:49.110]and around people that are like them and similar to them
[00:58:52.860]and it's been amazing.
[00:58:54.540]So I definitely recommend looking into that
[00:58:57.330]or recommending it for your students and also volunteers,
[00:59:00.810]they need volunteers.
[00:59:02.190]My daughter volunteered a couple times.
[00:59:04.500]I was lucky enough I got to be Braxton's volunteer
[00:59:07.020]when they had a one day one and that was fun
[00:59:10.230]and if it ever works out again,
[00:59:12.060]I would like to volunteer even for the weekend,
[00:59:14.370]'cause it's a great experience.
[00:59:18.240]So how to help get kids involved in activities.
[00:59:21.270]I would just say, you know,
[00:59:23.010]find out what your student is interested in,
[00:59:24.750]whether it's your child or a child you work with.
[00:59:27.180]Just start looking at, you know, they like water,
[00:59:30.260]or they like plants or they like robotics, they like gaming,
[00:59:34.560]'cause even some bigger schools have like gaming clubs
[00:59:37.470]and different things and just kind of start there
[00:59:40.830]and then don't be afraid to ask.
[00:59:42.900]A lot of Braxton's team is here and they'll tell you,
[00:59:44.970]I'm not afraid to ask, just start there, you know?
[00:59:48.840]And people are usually willing and open
[00:59:51.120]to help teach about your child
[00:59:53.430]and how to help get them involved.
[00:59:55.140]Like for Braxton,
[00:59:56.280]we would have to program the device
[00:59:58.230]and so, you know, if you ask questions,
[01:00:01.740]he'll answer you with a device, you know,
[01:00:03.450]but he's not gonna start something on his own
[01:00:05.730]and just teach that and then communicate.
[01:00:07.950]Communicate with parents,
[01:00:09.360]communicate with staff and work together
[01:00:14.730]and the possibilities are endless.
[01:00:16.860]I think possibilities really are.
[01:00:19.860]So, okay, maybe we'll draw for another prize
[01:00:23.670]and then we'll open it up for questions.
[01:00:28.260]I don't know if we have any online, okay,
[01:00:30.450]next prize is 7 3 8 4 3 6 0.
[01:00:35.250]Yes oh good, come on up, I'll get to see you.
[01:00:38.069](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:00:38.902]Yeah, you won the million dollars
[01:00:41.220]'cause you get to see me every day.
[01:00:42.951](Rachel laughing)
[01:00:50.550]Speaking to parents quick,
[01:00:51.900]having an advocate in your child's corner
[01:00:54.090]and at school is what really is important
[01:00:56.850]to build those relationships
[01:00:58.680]and we are blessed that we have so many people
[01:01:01.590]and as educators, I wanna tell you all thank you.
[01:01:04.740]Thank you for being those advocates for our children,
[01:01:07.560]because it just means the world.
[01:01:10.380]So, all right, next winner.
[01:01:11.910]7 3 8 4, 3, 6, 9.
[01:01:19.020]All right.
[01:01:20.190]7 3 8 4 3 3 7.
[01:01:26.640]Nope no.
[01:01:28.530]7 3 8 4 3 3 7.
[01:01:30.270]Did you win?
[01:01:32.533]Good job.
[01:01:33.366](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:01:36.180]All right do we have any questions?
[01:01:37.830]Is there anything I missed first Mrs. Stewart?
[01:01:40.470]Okay, any questions?
[01:01:43.710]Yes, go ahead.
[01:01:45.580](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:01:49.110]Okay.
[01:01:52.080]Yeah, sorry.
[01:01:52.920]So the question is where can they find out more information
[01:01:55.830]about the Cloud 9 dance?
[01:01:57.660]And they have a group on Facebook
[01:01:59.910]and I believe they also created a website on Facebook.
[01:02:03.150]I believe it's called Cloud 9 celebrations,
[01:02:07.500]and if they can't find it,
[01:02:08.760]send me an email and I can help,
[01:02:10.887]and I believe what I saw is
[01:02:13.710]they're still taking registration.
[01:02:15.270]So I mean, if a person still wanted to go tomorrow night,
[01:02:18.570]I believe if they got registered they could,
[01:02:20.490]they wouldn't be able to get a tux or a dress,
[01:02:22.860]but I believe they still could.
[01:02:25.290]So, all right, yes.
[01:02:27.343](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:02:29.370]Okay, okay.
[01:02:31.370](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:02:41.880]All right so the question was
[01:02:42.960]she has a five-year-old non-verbal son
[01:02:45.180]and she is wanting ideas on how to get him
[01:02:47.970]to go outside more correct?
[01:02:49.390](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:02:54.780]All right so to get him some other ideas
[01:02:57.570]rather than just the iPad.
[01:03:02.260]Do you take the iPad out with you?
[01:03:03.093]Does he use the iPad to communicate
[01:03:04.740]or he just likes to watch videos?
[01:03:06.558]Both.
[01:03:07.590]Okay both, okay.
[01:03:10.577]Go ahead.
[01:03:11.410]I believe when Braxton was younger
[01:03:12.810]we had to change the settings-
[01:03:14.880]Yes.
[01:03:15.713]On his iPad.
[01:03:16.546]So it was only for a communication device,
[01:03:19.200]that was its only purpose, otherwise he was into...
[01:03:22.800]Or maybe that was my other student
[01:03:23.910]who was into watching YouTube videos also
[01:03:26.190]on the communication device and we ran into problems
[01:03:28.980]and so we turned off the internet on it
[01:03:31.574]and made it solely a communication device.
[01:03:34.290]And use it as a...
[01:03:36.676]Not the communication device part of it,
[01:03:38.070]but the watching videos as a reinforcer.
[01:03:41.430]So like, "Hey, let's go play this, then you get this."
[01:03:44.190]You know, first then I would say maybe.
[01:03:46.633](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:03:49.050]oh yeah.
[01:03:50.134](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:03:51.889]Yeah.
[01:03:52.870](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:04:09.000]Thank you.
[01:04:09.833]I forgot to ask you,
[01:04:10.666]did you have anything else you wanted to add?
[01:04:13.050]Also, If you have like a local ARC
[01:04:17.610]or anything like that,
[01:04:18.990]no where are you from?
[01:04:20.052]Hall City
[01:04:21.150]Hall City okay.
[01:04:24.512]Yes.
[01:04:25.411](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:04:32.460]Who do you need to contact to set up a special Olympics?
[01:04:35.010]Like the Little Feet Meet?
[01:04:36.060]Is that what you're talking about?
[01:04:37.385](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:04:38.880]Okay, so I would say probably two years ago
[01:04:42.120]is when I became familiar with Special Olympics.
[01:04:44.610]We had been doing Unified Bowling for years.
[01:04:46.950]I just didn't know a lot about the Special Olympics portion
[01:04:49.590]and I signed up for their newsletter
[01:04:52.560]and through the newsletter they provide
[01:04:55.260]all the like opportunities, challenges,
[01:04:58.110]programs that they're offering at that point,
[01:04:59.820]and you just sign up for it
[01:05:01.170]and it like just rolls from there.
[01:05:03.540]Erissa is the best way to get in contact
[01:05:06.150]with the newsletter is to contact Stephanie?
[01:05:14.430]What do you think?
[01:05:19.590]It depends on how you'd like to get involved.
[01:05:21.750]So we have school staff,
[01:05:22.920]sports staff and then we also have people specific
[01:05:26.250]for community delegations and running programming there.
[01:05:31.830]So if you'd like to get in contact
[01:05:33.510]Special Olympics through your schools,
[01:05:35.460]you can contact your PE teacher,
[01:05:37.260]your special education ACP teacher.
[01:05:40.080]All of our emails are on the website.
[01:05:42.870]You can contact myself.
[01:05:45.540]We have someone new on staff,
[01:05:47.070]she's listening in, her name Stephanie Hansen.
[01:05:49.740]She'll be doing Unified Champion Schools
[01:05:52.440]throughout the whole state,
[01:05:53.640]depending on who your region is and where you're located
[01:05:57.060]might determine who you'll contact for a regional manager
[01:06:00.480]and all of that is online.
[01:06:01.680]If you'd like, I can walk you through it.
[01:06:07.800]Yes.
[01:06:08.904](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:06:16.650]So the question is when Braxton would go to practice
[01:06:19.140]for football, who would go with him?
[01:06:21.570]And at what our school did was a para,
[01:06:24.180]because Braxton does have a one-on-one para
[01:06:25.950]with him all the time.
[01:06:27.060]So our administrator said, you know,
[01:06:30.007]"We offer these activities.
[01:06:31.320]If Braxton wants to be a part of them, he can
[01:06:33.750]and they have the para go with him."
[01:06:36.330]So like I said,
[01:06:37.163]we started out small just two days a week.
[01:06:40.320]So what I usually do is just like I said, communicate,
[01:06:43.410]I'll email and say these are the days
[01:06:45.240]that Braxton is looking at helping with practice this week,
[01:06:49.020]or these are the days that Braxton is going
[01:06:51.000]to afterschool weights this week
[01:06:52.620]and I communicate with the teachers and the SPED coordinator
[01:06:56.160]and the para and they say,
[01:06:57.427]"Okay, yep, that works for us, or we're busy that day,
[01:07:00.210]can we do Wednesday instead of Thursday?"
[01:07:02.670]And they're pretty flexible when they line that up.
[01:07:04.470]Yeah.
[01:07:06.360]And also just part of our IEP process now for Braxton
[01:07:09.660]is when we have those meetings we say,
[01:07:11.497]"Okay, looking at the next year what activities
[01:07:14.700]or possibilities that you as a parent
[01:07:17.190]and as a team we would want him to be involved in."
[01:07:19.350]And then we also go from there too.
[01:07:21.570]So at that IEP meeting we create those ideas.
[01:07:26.040]And I also wanna say our school is great about
[01:07:28.140]letting him also go with the clubs and things to events.
[01:07:32.130]So yesterday he got to go to state FFA.
[01:07:35.040]How was state FFA Tony?
[01:07:36.390]Was it fun?
[01:07:37.223]It was fun.
[01:07:38.130]So they sent Tony and Braxton
[01:07:40.290]and they got to go experience state FFA
[01:07:42.720]and he loves that.
[01:07:43.710]He loves to be on the go, to go to Husker Harvest days,
[01:07:49.170]and he just appreciates going with his peers
[01:07:52.590]and enjoying that
[01:07:53.423]and our school is really great about doing that.
[01:07:56.430]So Amy, you have anything you wanna add?
[01:08:02.100]Oh, yes and we have talked about that before, thank you.
[01:08:05.100]Amy Slama is our transition coordinator.
[01:08:07.170]So now that Braxton is 15,
[01:08:09.060]we are working with her on transition and next steps
[01:08:12.660]and she's also very familiar with 4-H
[01:08:14.850]and your school can become a 4-H club.
[01:08:17.700]So if you're a teacher and you have so many kids...
[01:08:20.220]I mean we've talked about before too,
[01:08:21.780]you can do 4-H projects in class.
[01:08:24.180]Like if you have, you know, four students and hey,
[01:08:26.370]we're gonna make some cookies
[01:08:27.540]and you can throw 'em in the freezer
[01:08:28.920]and then, you know, take 'em to the fair.
[01:08:31.800]So yes, talk to your extension office
[01:08:33.690]and our extension office is really great
[01:08:35.310]about coming into this school and doing things as well.
[01:08:38.280]So they would be happy to partner with you
[01:08:40.110]and give you information about that as well.
[01:08:43.410]Yep all right, anything else on Zoom?
[01:08:45.690]Thank you everyone for joining us.
[01:08:47.160]Yes, go ahead.
[01:08:48.152](participant speaking indistinctly)
[01:08:52.230]Okay suggestions on getting school buy-in?
[01:08:55.470]So I substitute at school but otherwise I am a parent.
[01:09:00.330]So yes, from the outside I'm not afraid to ask questions
[01:09:03.840]and I would say our school
[01:09:06.030]has seen the positive outcomes of it,
[01:09:10.140]I mean it did take some encouraging
[01:09:11.760]and we had some tough times,
[01:09:13.530]but having the strong advocates between the people here
[01:09:18.390]and then also parents speaking up for your students
[01:09:21.900]and you know, showing the benefits of it,
[01:09:24.510]that the teachers and administration kind of see
[01:09:27.720]that it's necessary and you know,
[01:09:31.350]the peers are great and the peers enjoy it too.
[01:09:33.900]So when the peers offer to help,
[01:09:36.000]and I've talked to some of Braxton's classmates, you know,
[01:09:39.150]before their parents and I always say
[01:09:40.687]"Thank you for having your kids be so kind.
[01:09:43.290]And they're like,
[01:09:44.123]"We're so thankful that he's in their class
[01:09:45.570]and he's teaching them so much."
[01:09:46.920]And I just think what these kids are gonna do
[01:09:49.140]as they grow forward when they're in high school
[01:09:51.450]and when they're adults,
[01:09:52.440]all the things that they're gonna accomplish.
[01:09:54.360]So I think it's just showing itself
[01:09:56.130]to be such a positive thing that communicate with the staff
[01:10:00.810]would be my recommendation, Stacy?
[01:10:03.360]Yes, I also feel like start small
[01:10:05.970]in a lot of these programs,
[01:10:06.930]they don't cost a lot,
[01:10:08.070]to get rolling, definitely takes a lot of time,
[01:10:11.010]but money-wise I would just go to our superintendent
[01:10:14.190]and do a proposal and sometimes he said yes
[01:10:16.890]and sometimes he said no but it was worth a try.
[01:10:20.460]I also would recommend,
[01:10:21.780]don't be afraid to ask the parents to help.
[01:10:23.970]Like we're always willing,
[01:10:25.680]maybe more than they would like to be there and be helpful.
[01:10:29.790]When she talked about The Grind,
[01:10:31.380]like we make breakfast burritos for it sometimes.
[01:10:34.080]And I mean we're happy and, you know,
[01:10:37.080]for him to participate,
[01:10:38.100]I think maybe that's partially why they let him participate
[01:10:40.680]and send a pair with them,
[01:10:42.120]'cause if they would say
[01:10:43.207]"No we don't have anyone that could go."
[01:10:45.240]I'd say, "Oh I'll go."
[01:10:46.870](Rachel laughing)
[01:10:47.703]So I think maybe we've encouraged them to buy into it.
[01:10:54.570]All right any other questions?
[01:10:56.760]Thank you so much.
[01:10:58.401](participants clapping)
[01:10:59.511]Thank you.
[01:11:00.344](participants clapping)
[01:11:06.837]Thank you so much for coming,
[01:11:08.850]and let us know if you have any questions
[01:11:10.740]and we hope you are able to find something
[01:11:12.930]that you can take back to your students or children at home.
[01:11:16.830]So we appreciate you.
[01:11:20.753](indistinct chattering)
[01:11:33.060]Can I take a picture?
[01:11:35.825](indistinct chattering)
[01:12:11.621](indistinct chattering)

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Small Town Living, BIG Time Opportunities....FOR EVERYONE!

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