Please make plans to join us on April 29, 2019 at a very special event! Open to all those who have Tourette, families impacted, and professionals who are interested in learning more about Tourette Syndrome and tic disorders, this will be an amazing day. Please check out the flier for more information and register on-line at: https://sites.wustl.edu/tics/tic-talk-2019/
Tourette Syndrome and Education
TS Video Program Available Online
Several thousand people have already requested free copies of the two-disk TSA video education program, “Tourette Syndrome in the Classroom, School, and Community.”
You can now watch the entire program online.
The content is designed to inform teachers, medical professionals, social workers, and others about TS, including ways to recognize and help those who have it.
An accompanying slideshow (in PDF) is available to download and print.
This excellent resource is made available through the professional education outreach partnership joining the Tourette Syndrome Association (TSA) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC.)
You can also obtain a physical copy of the DVDs by completing this online form.
There is no charge for this resource. Preference is given to TSA members. Orders limited to one per person, while supplies last.
Iowa TS Conference
The Iowa TSA Support Group is holding a regional conference on Saturday, March 31 in Cedar Rapids, with special guest Susan Conners.Ms. Conners has more than 30 years of experience in education and more than 25 years of experience working with children with TS, OCD, and associated disorders. She has presented workshops on TS in 48 states, four countries and two languages. Her past work includes publishing brochures, producing videos, and developing curricula on TS and education subjects. She and a anumber of her family members have TS.
At the March 31 conference, she will discuss topics ranging from classroom strategies and accommodations to behavioral issues and functional behavioral assessments for TS children.
This event is sponsored by the Brad Cohen Tourette Foundation. There is no registration fee; the confernce is free to parents, educators, and medical professionals interested in learning more about TS. A limited number of reduced-rate hotel rooms are availble on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, email: lisa@itsasupportgroup.org.
New TS Education DVDs
TSA’s newest educational resource is now available, free of charge. Filmed at a full-day, live presentation, “Tourette Syndrome in The Classroom, School & Community” features the TSA Education Committee addressing a wide range of related topics.
As the title suggests, the program is designed to inform teachers, school nurses, psychologists, social workers, clinicians, bus drivers, administrators, and others about TS and ways to recognize and address TS inside and outside the classroom.
There are 16 chapters on the two-disc set. Viewers have the choice of selecting individual chapters or watching the entire program in one sitting.
Parents may want to suggest that their children’s teachers watch the first chapter on the first disc, “An Introduction to Tourette Syndrome,” as well as the sections on ADHD and OCD, or other topics they deem appropriate.
This resource is made available through the professional education outreach partnership between the national Tourette Syndrome Association (TSA) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC).
To obtain a free copy, while supplies last, follow this link. Please allow up to six weeks for delivery and observe the limit of one set per household.
Bullying Prevention
A resource page on strategies for preventing bullying at school is available on the TSA website. This page collects current resources and background information on the subject. Additional resources will be added as they are developed.
Bullying Prevention
The national Tourette Syndrome Association (TSA) Education Committee is offering a new online audio conference on the subject of “Bullying Prevention.”
In this conference, Julie Hertzog — Bullying Prevention Project Director for PACER (Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights — talks about types of bullying, the increase in cyber-bullying, effective anti-bullying programs, and the need for communities to unite in their knowledge and response to the problem.
New Presentation: Executive Function
This new, 30-minute presentation explores the definition of “executive function” or EF — time management, organization, task completion — and some of the signs students exhibit when struggling with EF.
First-time college students with ADHD and executive function disorders are at high risk for failure, so early identification and intervention is critical.
Sarah Crowther, M.Ed., offers tips and techniques to help students develop EF skills. Ms. Crowther is Director of Student Success and First-Year Programming at Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri.
New Presentation: Tics and CBIT
The latest installment in the national TSA’s online information series is now available: “What are Tics and What is CBIT?”
This 31-minute presentation has information that may be of particular interest to school psychologists, parents, and educators.
School psychologists can play a key role in the identification of Tourette Syndrome (TS) and its symptoms. Some also work with parents and students to find ways to help manage both tic symptoms and the associated challenges, academic and social.
“Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics,” or CBIT, is a new, evidence-based, non-pharmacological treatment option for tic management, developed by members of the TSA Behavioral Sciences Consortium.
Douglas W. Woods, Ph.D, is the director of clinical training and a professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In this presentation, he reviews what tics are and provides an overview of the CBIT treatment intervention.
While CBIT may not be appropriate for all TS children, we hope you find this program informative.
New Presentation: ‘Helpful Tips for IEP Meetings’
The latest installment in the national TSA Education Committee’s information series is now available.
The new, 35-minute presentation — from Kathy Giordano, an education specialist with the national TSA — offers advice to parents and educators on how they can work together to develop an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) that best addresses the unique needs of each TS student.
The current and prior installments in this series are available here.
Joshua Center St. Louis Conference
Becky Ottinger, executive director of the Joshua Center for Neurological Disorders, and Mike Sumler, a counselor with that organization, will be the featured speakers at a one-day conference in the St. Louis area, March 10.
The conference aims to help participants learn how to recognize symptoms associated with various neurological disorders and develop effective interventions, accommodations, and strategies for children with those disorders, including Asperger syndrome, Tourette syndrome, high-functoning autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, OCD, bipolar, and pervasive development disorder.
The conference will emphasize information and instruction for teachers; however, parents, guardians, grandparents, and other independent caregivers and healthcare professionals also stand to benefit.
Greater Missouri TSA 