Ollibean Think Tank

Ollibean Baseball Camp

Cool camp for kids with Special Needs. It's free and everybody plays. July 16th through August 2, Monday through Thursday,8am to 10 am, at Palma Ceia Little League, Field C, Tampa Fl.

Ollibean Spotlight: Renee Salas

" Talk to people with disabilities. As many as you can: Adults, adolescents, kids. These people are the real experts on disabilities. These are the people that can tell you what life with a disability is like." Renee Salas

Inclusive Educational Practices for Students with Special Needs

Studies have shown when kids with disabilities are educated in inclusive settings, the classrooms are better for all of the students.

Amy Sequenzia : Friendship and Respect

It is a mistaken idea that we, autistics, lack empathy. It is also a myth that we are not social. My friends and I, we understand and respect differences. And we understand that we all have a lot to contribute, in a diversity of manners.

Amy Sequenzia:Dear Mainstream Media

I am an autistic woman, non-speaking and I have many needs.Yes, dear mainstream media, I am the autistic supposedly too “low-functioning” to deserve to be heard. You pity me and you ignore the facts.

My Top Ten

These are the top 10, now top 18 things I need for teachers, therapists, doctors, friends and family to know.

The Presumption of Competence

Presumption of competence is more than an abstract idea. It has real and concrete effects. Here is one: it is better than a makeover.

My iPad Is Not a Toy

Please never refer to my iPad as a toy. It is not. It is my voice. Imagine if you could not speak with your mouth how important your iPad voice would be.

Senator Harkin Delivers Speech in ASL Upon ADA Passage in 1990

Upon passage of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 13th, 1990, Senator Tom Harkin delivered a speech on the Senate floor in American Sign Language. Harkin, whose brother Frank was deaf, was the lead Senate author of the ADA, which was enacted later that year. His speech is the first in American Sign Language to be delivered from the Senate floor.