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Celebrate Deaf Awareness Day - Great Falls - Sept. 18, 2010

When:
Saturday, September 18, 2010
11:00 am to 4:00 pm

Where:
MSDB Mustang Center
3911 Central Avenue
Great Falls, MT 59405

What:
Activities and Games
Storytelling of MAD/MSDB History

Includes:
Lunch/Beverage/Door Prizes

Ticket Prices:
Adult: $8.00 (No Lunch)
Children 6-11: $5.00 (Lunch and Beverage)

Please RSVP by Sept. 12
Ed Van Tighem: TTY: 406-761-0769 or VP: 406-564-4896
Brenda LeMieux: Text: 571-276-3985

Proceeds go to MAD/MSDB 2012 Gala Fund
Sponsored by MAD

Montana School for the Deaf and the Blind (MSDB) - Great Falls - Sept. 23-24, 2010

Click here to download the registration form for this event (DOC)

Untangling the Dots 
September 23-24, 2010
MSDB campus - Great Falls

Topics this year include:

• Direct observations of braille students reading and writing braille at MSDB
• Pre-braille for the young learner
• Pre-braille for the adventitiously blind or MIVI student
• Formatting using Literary braille and the Perkins braille writer
• Transcribing and the use of Technology
• Functional Braille
• Creating Efficient braille readers
• Complex braille issues
• Review of the Braille Bill
• Concept Development
• The Use of Braille Curricula

Please return form by September 13, 2010 to:
Kerri Norick 145 N. Pheasant Dr. Bozeman, MT 59718 or knorick@msdb.mt.gov

Big Sky Interpreting Conference - Great Falls - July 22 & 23, 2010

Click here to download the full flyer (PDF)

Montana Association of the Deaf: Calendar of Events - Multiple Dates/Locations

May

May 15: Great Falls Club of the Deaf meeting
May 22: Missoula Club of the Deaf annual picnic - Southside Lions Park

June

June 5: Gallatin Association of the Deaf Spring Crafts & Yard Sale
June 17-19: Big Sky Recreation Association of the Deaf - 23rd annual campout @ Kim's Marina & R.V. Resort in Helena, MT

July

No scheduled social evenst during the month of July

Visit http://mtdeaf.org for more information on these events on the new MAD website.

Please note: All specified dates of all deaf club chapters may be rescheduled, depending upon any special circumstances. Please contact either def club presidents or secretaries for more information.

Bal-A-Vis-X Workshop - Helena - June 24-25, 2010

Click here to download the full Brochure for this event (PDF)

Bal-A-Vis-X is a series of more than 200 Balance/Auditory/Vision exercises, of varied complexity, most of which are deeply rooted in rhythm.  These exercises require full-body coordination and focused attention.  The program utilizes beanbags, racquetballs, balance boards, and multiple principles and activities from Educational Kinesiology for crossing midline.  It demands cooperation, promotes self-challenge and fosters self-esteem….and it is FUN!

This is a hands-on workshop and you will be moving and learning.  Participants will complete Levels 1, 2, and Adaptive Bal-a-Vis-X instruction.

For more information, research and video demonstrations visit their website at www.bal-a-vis-x.com

Blind/Deaf Athlete Clears Different Hurdles On The Track

Link: Athlete  Alfredo Castaneda reaches out with both hands and grabs a baton. He studies it with his fingers, learning its weight, its texture, its shape. "Is it hollow?" he asks softly. "Yes it is," comes the reply. "How do you pass it?" Castaneda asks. Two Glencoe High School runners search for the words to explain what they are unable to demonstrate for their teammate. Castaneda is blind and hears only with hearing aids. Assistant track coach John Carter steps in to describe the technique for one runner passing a baton to another. Castaneda tilts his head and smiles. He gets it. "Do you see?" Carter asks, recognizing that Castaneda has made a mental picture of the movement he has described. "Yeah." Castaneda, a 15-year-old freshman, came out for Glencoe's track team this spring. The 5-foot-4-inch 100-pounder runs and throws the discus. Teammates and coaches marvel at his outsized determination to be like everyone else.

Web Resource For Hearing Impaired (Provides Health Information in ASL)

Link: DeafMD.org  DeafMD is an innovative website providing accurate, concise, and valuable health information in American Sign Language to the Deaf & Hard of Hearing population. Using health information created by two trustworthy and unbiased government sources—the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health, our team of healthcare providers, linguists, and educators translates this complex information into ASL.

Special Easter Egg Hunt at School for Deaf & Blind

Link: Easter Egg Hunt Easter is now just a few days away and the Montana School for the Deaf and Blind held their annual egg hunt this morning (4/7). All of the students that participated in today’s event live with either a visual or hearing impairment. But the kids didn’t let their disability stop them from having fun. Follow the link to read the complete story and watch a video of the event.

Deaf actress moves Seattle crowd with message of courage

Link: Deaf Actress For some people, the tears came during the story of a deaf girl who hit the big time in Hollywood. Others grabbed for tissues as teachers were thanked for speaking up on behalf of those who can't speak themselves. A few got choked up just seeing Marlee Matlin, the Academy Award-winning actress who was the keynote speaker Wednesday night at the Council for Exceptional Children Convention and Expo. Her speech gathered about half of the roughly 4,700 educators expected this week at the convention, which runs through Sunday at the State Convention and Trade Center. Most are from school districts across the nation.

sciencedaily.com: Deaf Children Use Hands To Invent Own Way Of Communicating

Link: sciencedaily.com
ScienceDaily (Feb. 15, 2009) — Deaf children are able to develop a language-like gesture system by making up hand signs and using homemade systems to increase their communication as they grow, just as children with conventional spoken language, research at the University of Chicago shows.