Lifelong Inclusion: Still Learning
Bookmark the Northwest Down Syndrome Association (NWSDA) website now before you forget. I'll wait. Done? Good because
each year, NWSDA, along with a multitude of sponsors and volunteers, holds the annual All Born "In" Inclusion Conference. I attended it yesterday (the purpose of my trip to Portland per yesterday's blog), and I walked away both more motivated and introspective. Excellent keynote speakers Dr. Jeff Strully, Kathie Snow, and Dr. Paula Stanovich provided the big picture and perspective. Individual sessions helped us focus on specific topics of interest in our families' lives. See my links at the end of the blog for some resources I have found particularly useful and inspiring.
The Conference also left me introspective about my own family's chaotic life. At moments, listening to a speaker, I'd pat myself on the back: yeah, we're doing that! We got it! Janette and I practice what we preach regarding inclusion at home well. Then another topic would come up, and I would realize, yeah, well, there we could improve. Hmmm... that's a different way to look at that. Etc..
Today was a good example of a poor inclusion day, actually. Hannah has been sick since Thursday. I talked with her nurse this morning, seeing if she and Hannah felt up to going with us to lunch, Toys R Us, and the mall. We both agreed Hannah wasn't quite there yet, so Janette, Gabriel, and I headed out with my brother and his son to a rambling, four-and-a-half hour shopping venture. We had a great time, but Hannah didn't get to share it with us.
When we returned home, we all bounced between rooms and activities: sometimes together; often, not. Hannah wanted my undivided attention, but she got it only in fragments. I went to our bedroom to relax. I joined her outside and sang to her. I went back inside to catch up on the news. Hannah got frustrated that I wouldn't pick her up at times. We negotiated some of that, but in the end, I needed some down time, and she got less of my time than she wanted.
As I write now, she is recovering from her bath (always a little traumatic - she doesn't like them) in her bedroom next door and fighting the sleepies brought on by a lack of a nap this afternoon. We both are getting our down time, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. We ate together at the table tonight, but all of our routines seem short & unsatisfying to both Hannah (I suspect) and me.
And we go on. Tomorrow may be a better day: one of those "wow, that was a great family night" kind of moments where we can just feel everything "click" in those two-to-three post-work hours we share together at night. And having some space, some down time, is okay and necessary, too, but today just feels a little incomplete & unexperienced.
***
Now for two, quick inclusion-related links (and I'll recharge a bit with them myself, thank you very much 
):
Kathie Snow's website is a must-visit. If you get an opportunity to hear her speak, I highly recommend her. Yesterday's conference was my second time listening to her speak, and it still "wowed" me. You will also want to browse and read her articles while visiting the site.
Richard Villa's book Creating An Inclusive School is amazing. I'm on my second copy because I gave my first one away to a family member who runs a preschool in Denver, CO. The chapters involving inclusion in education theory and practice are well-written, but take some time to read and digest. The real inspiration, to me, are the case studies: inclusion-in-practice stories that just take your breath away. Buy this book both for inspiration from the case studies and implementation ideas in general. If you get a chance to see Dr. Villa speak, I will encourage you there as well!
Have more inclusion resources and ideas? Post a comment and let us know! We are just at the beginning of our journey (though I'll write more about it as we go along), so I'll appreciate the tips along the way.
-- Dad
