Posts by savedbytyping
Book Review: We’ve Been Here All Along: Autistics Over 35 Speak Out in Poetry and Prose
We’ve Been Here All Along: Autistics Over 35 Speak Out in Poetry and Prose, a new anthology published in September of 2012, showcases the work of autistic writers throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. The book is available as a download for Kindle on Amazon.com. 5-Star Reviews for We’ve Been Here…
Read MoreMark Utter: “I am in here.” – A Facilitated Communication Documentary
For more information about the movie, or to purchase the “I am in here.” DVD, click here. Mark Utter’s Story 49 year old Mark Utter would probably be diagnosed today as autistic, although no one is quite sure what his original diagnosis as a child was. Many children born in the 1960s with similar neurological…
Read MoreThe Arc of Indiana: Services and Advocacy for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Established in 1956 by parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities, The Arc of Indiana is a resource for families and people with disabilities to come together and advocate for a better life for their children and for themselves. The Arc provides services and advocacy to Hoosiers with developmental disabilities to help them realize…
Read MoreFacilitated Communication: Tracy Thresher & John Smyth at 2011 ICI Summer Institute
Supported typers Tracy Thresher, co-star of the documentary Wretches & Jabberers, and John Smyth use supported typing to have a conversation at Syracuse University’s 2011 Institute of Communication and Inclusion Summer Institute: Connection, Communication, and Creativity. A true example of Facilitated Communication in action! This is the first time Tracy and John had an opportunity…
Read MoreTodd Washburne: Joining the Real World as an Adult Typer
I was raised as being retarded because I could not communicate. My frustration level was off the charts throughout my school years. The many times I got in trouble were driving me crazy and I couldn’t even be a tattletale so I was teased a lot. However, I did learn stuff like speed reading and…
Read MoreAutistic Typer’s Poetry Reviewed by Bestselling Author Don Mann
John Smyth is a nonverbal autistic who, until recently, had no ability to communicate with anyone – parents, doctors, educators, siblings. As with many similarly afflicted individuals, John, a highly intelligent young man, was diagnosed as having a 3 year old’s mind and warehoused by his local school system in “life-skills” training until he was…
Read MoreThe Ember, a poem by John Smyth
The Ember by John Smyth When all I could lamely autistically do was open my mouth and make sounds that made no sense and behave in ways that were inconsistent with what a normal person would think or do, my autism looked as if it was what defined me and was all I might ever…
Read MoreThe Path to Independence: Introduction to Facilitated Communication
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.Lao Tzu, 6th Century B.C. For thousands of children and adults on the Autism Disorder Spectrum (ADS), the ability to talk or communicate has been disrupted, or virtually eliminated in many cases, by the neurological disorder that affects 1 in every 88 children in the…
Read MoreStarting Down the Path to Independent Typing
“I believe we cannot isolate physical independence from the other two elements of facilitated communication – communication and emotional support. Although I am called an independent typer because I no longer need physical touch, I cannot walk into a room, and type without a facilitator. The facilitator must still provide communication and emotional support to…
Read MoreThe Path to Independence: Step 1 – Facilitator Training
"(Facilitated Communication is) …strongest therapy for people with no means of expression is sensational, controversial, revolutionary, technically subtle FC. It involves understanding movement lapses of people and providing physical support to help overcome them. Plastic nature of users of FC requires topnotch weaning of support towards ultimate goal of independence." Larry Bissonnette, Independent Typer Facilitated…
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