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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don't have a special needs child, but what I've found that works for us, is to explain disabilities in a general sense.  Oh dogs can do useful things, like help rescue people, help the police and also act as guide dogs to help people who can't see .  Oh look did you notice these bumps on the elevator bumps, that's Braille, people who can't see still read using their fingers.  Oh look the hospital provides wheelchairs, people use them when they have problems walking.  I used one after I gave birth. Some people can't walk at all and they use them all the time.  That is a handicap spot, people who have a more difficult time getting to the store get to use those spaces.  There's a ramp, there's handrails, some people have trouble moving and this helps them.  Look at the interpreter (on tv), she's using sign language for people who can't hear.

I prefer to avoid specific people as examples, so far just pointing out things we see everyday is enough to get across to my kids general idea that all people are not the same and everyone has a different range of abilities.  One of my kids has a friend that has a baby sister with DS, they don't notice it now, but I will make sure to explain DS to them in more detail as time goes on.

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I hope you do this in private.  Do you have any idea how painful and uncomfortable it is listening to you do your teaching moment?  It doesn't matter if my child is with me or not, but somethings you want to tell someone to be more sensitive given the person they are talking about is right there.[/quote]

You're a nut.  I'm a NP, and it is evident that the PP is explaining these things to her kid as they see them, likely when no one else is around.  Even if you are around, how in the world is it "painful" to hear that the bumps on the elevator are braille for people who can't see?  That dogs are there to help people cross the street??  How is "uncomfortable" to hear that ramps help people who have difficulty with stairs?[/quote]

Here's my perspective.

I don't have a problem with kids needing explanations of wheelchairs and disabilities but at the same time it doesn't seem to build any bridges to seeing my child as a friend or more approachable or more included or more human.  That's what I don't get.  Why not have your kids stick around after getting their curiosity satisfied about the disability and swim/play/eat/interact/moviego with my child?  Why is it always a case of hitting up me and my child for explanations of "What's wrong with her?" and then dashing off to your fun and your friends, as if we are some tourist attraction you needed to get the goods on?

If you want to know more about my kid, great, but then you can stick around to really get to know her.  Like she does ballet, horsebackriding, is going into second grade, loves certain tv shows.  Not just what caused her condition and what her hardware is about.

You clearly don't have to live the life of a special needs child or family member.  You get tired of hearing about it and living it 24/7.  When you get it, please let us know.[/quote]

So educate me.  Seriously.  Why is it painful to overhear an educated explanation to a child about the ways in which society attempts to assist people with disabilities?  Why should a discussion about the existence of Braille be hushed until no one is around?  Being blind/deaf/on a respirator/&lt;fill in the blank&gt; isn't shameful, and I don't think it should be treated as such.[/quote][/quote]

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