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MORE INFORMATION ON FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME & FETAL ALCOHOL EFFECT |
National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome - is an absolute must for anyone seeking information.
Minnesota Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome- The MOFAS website continually reminds us that people with FAS/FAE tend to be behind in social development, even compared to others with the same IQ. Leaving home at age 18 may not be a reasonable expectation for an individual who has difficulty understanding social boundaries - when it is okay to touch someone, for example. Rather than being continually frustrated that a person is always late or misses appointments, it is necessary to provide constant reminders. If you catch yourself often telling your family member to "Act your age", you really need to spend some time reading the web pages on this site. I don't like it as well as I used to because now most of the information is in files you have to download to read. Other than this minor inconvenience, it is still good. Here is a link to one of those files, on issues related to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome at different ages.
And you absolutely must go to this file on "Eight magic keys" to success for students with FAS. So much of what we read has to do with problems and statistics it is a breath of fresh air to find guidelines on what works for students with FAS.
Supporting FAMILIES whose children have Fetal Alchohol Syndrome is a page that gives some good advice on working with birth mothers and foster parents. I found this quote from their site very interesting, particularly since our family at one point applied to adopt a baby with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. "When it is necessary to place children with FAS in foster care, there are certain characteristics to look for in foster homes. Giunta and Streissguth recommend placing these children in homes of parents "who are calm and low-key individuals, secure and comfortable with themselves, and who live stable and predictable lives" (p. 457). The authors found that parents who led busy, complex lives were more inclined to be dissatisfied with FAS children's slow development (Giunta & Streissguth, 1987)."
American Indian Rehabilitation Research and Training Center has a good basic fact sheet on FAS for vocational rehabilitation staff.
This 62-page guide on assessment of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome from the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities is long and very full of technical jargon for the first thirty pages or so. If you are interested in the medical field, you should read the whole thing - although not all in the middle of this workshop, of course. Around page 32, they start discussing risk factors, protective factors and what works for people with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome to reduce their chances of dropping out of school, ending up in jail and other serious life problems.
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Commons Area virtual field trip on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome |
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Information on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in the Virtual Library |
