Study: Environmental Factors May Be Just as Important as Genes in Autism

By ALICE PARK Tuesday, July 5, 2011 Autism is undeniably influenced by genes, but a new study suggests that environmental factors may also contribute significantly — more than researchers previously thought — to the developmental disorder. In fact, environmental factors may play at least as big a role as genes in causing autism. Dr. Joachim Hallmayer, a psychiatrist at...

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Inspiring Fluency: One School’s Journey to Improve Reading Skills

July 21, 2011 by Corey Fitzgerald A focus on core reading skills has recently been promoted in college coursework for beginning teachers, statewide initiatives for student achievement, and professional development for teachers across the curriculum in all levels of education. One of the five core skills, fluency, is still being heavily debated among the researchers, but is...

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Tired and exhausted children

SUNWAY University's Psychology Department lecturer and developmental psychologist Woo Pei Jun says children are at risk of social, emotional and mental problems if faced with excessive homework. "Too much homework reduces a child's time for other leisure activities, such as play time and interaction with other children and family members. These activities offer many important...

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Just too much homework

PEOPLE often say that we never stop learning, but parents are painfully discovering that homework is also an ongoing process -- many are doing more homework and school projects now than when they were in school. Although the benefits of homework are indisputable, experts are questioning whether there's such a thing as too much homework. Professor Puan Sri Dr Rohaty Majzub...

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2岁的孩子也玩iPad？专家:会影响注意力发展

专家不赞成，认为视频早教易诱发近视，导致文字学习障碍及语言发育迟缓 　　2岁的孩子也玩iPad？今年过年，不少年轻家长在为孩子选购玩具时，不再青睐积木、蜡笔等传统物品，而是“大手笔”选购高档电子产品，其中iPad成为热门。一些两三岁的孩子手持触摸屏，玩得不亦乐乎。幼儿玩电子产品，到底好不好？ 　　用娱乐功能训练“综合能力” 　　马女士最近给两岁的儿子买了台iPad。她说，iPad既是大人们喜欢的娱乐机，又是功能齐全的幼儿“早教机”，可以作为教辅工具。马女士下载了一些教育软件，让孩子跟着iPad读童谣，翻看图片，学认各种水果、交通工具等，还能借此认字。“比较新鲜有趣，他学起来特别快。” 　　此外，iPad的娱乐功能，也被很多家长用以训练孩子的“综合能力”。杨女士说，三岁的儿子特别喜欢一款“切西瓜”游戏。“眼要快，手要快，还要在高速涌...

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家长看电视连累孩子 导致儿童注意力分散

家长开着电视做事情，孩子在一旁玩耍。这是美国家庭中常见的一幕。不少家长认为，儿童对成人节目不感兴趣，只是偶尔看看荧屏，电视对他们几乎没有影响。但最新研究发现， 只要电视机处于打开状态，无论是否播放儿童节目，都会导致婴幼儿注意力分散，影响他们认知能力和行为能力的发育。 注意力难以集中 这项研究由玛丽·埃文斯·施密特等学者在美国马萨诸塞大学实验室进行。 研究人员选取５０名年龄分别为６个月、１岁和３岁的婴幼儿，发给他们各种玩具，让他们玩耍１小时。 前半小时中，研究人员打开电视，播放广告和婴幼儿难以理解的成人娱乐节目。后半小时则关闭电视。 研究人员经观察发现，电视处于打开状态时，婴幼儿似乎并不在意节目内容，每分钟最多看１次荧屏，每次看荧屏时间只持续几秒钟。但他们的玩耍情况明显受到影响：与关闭电视时相比，玩耍总时间缩短，注意力难以集中。 ...

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Eat Out - Even With An Autistic Child

Do you avoid eating out because you have a child with autism, and it's just too stressful to take him to a restaurant? We have some tips to help you avoid some common headaches when dining out at a restaurant with an autistic child. (In the comments section below the article, please share your tried-and-true advice for managing meals out with an autistic or other special...

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Eight Tips For Helping Your Sensory Sensitive Child While Dining Out

Enjoying family meals out at a restaurant can be a lot of fun. However, for some children, this experience can also be a source of sensory overload with all the sights, sounds, smells and movement throughout the restaurant. Below are a few ideas to help you and your child have a pleasurable meal at your favorite neighborhood spot! How to Make A Restaurant Manageable...

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