You may have heard of “high-functioning alcoholics”—people who work steady jobs and seem immaculate in public, but become cranky and ill at home if they miss a regular dose of wine. If someone hints their drinking is “a bit much,”…
Author: Katherine Swarts (page 29)
STAFF PICKS: Alejandra Gonzalez on Bilingual Apps
For our latest Staff Picks list, Alejandra “Ale” Gonzalez, BridgingApps Digital Navigator, shares her favorite educational/alternative-communication apps that are usable by Spanish as well as English speakers. TD Snap AAC is a communication app that easily switches between English and…
National Bullying Prevention Month: How to Be Part of the Solution
Not that long ago, bullying among kids was treated as just one of those things you have to “learn to live with.” Kids who complained were called oversensitive. Parents who complained on their children’s behalf were labeled overprotective. And for…
Home Emergency Preparation for the Special-Needs Household
This post is dedicated to October as Fire Prevention Month. Emergency preparation is an essential that too few people are proactive about. One Liberty Mutual survey found that fewer than 3 in 10 families had ever had a home fire…
Retired Service Dogs
For the disability-affected person who seeks companionship along with practical assistance, the service dog is far superior to any inanimate tool. But though it’s a hard fact to face with any companion animal, a service dog is also likely to…
STAFF PICKS: Daryn Ofczarzak on Augmentative and Alternative Communication
October is AAC Awareness Month—AAC standing for “Augmentative and Alternative Communication” or, in lay language, apps and tech devices for people with speaking and/or writing disabilities. Daryn Ofczarzak, Speech Language Pathologist at BridgingApps, shares her five favorite AAC apps below.…
The World of Cerebral Palsy
Today’s post is dedicated to World Cerebral Palsy Day, Thursday, October 6. Cerebral palsy is one of those disabilities that everyone has heard of but few (outside of the 17 million families who personally live with it) really understand. Ask…
ESGH and Current Events: Digital Inclusion Week 2022
Happy Digital Inclusion Week (October 3–7 in 2022)! Since 2016, the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) has been working to raise awareness of the digital divide and to promote digital literacy. What Is Digital Inclusion? For those new to the…
STAFF PICKS: Amy Barry on Back-to-School Apps, Teen Edition
Amy is our Digital Marketing Lead—and the mom of three teens and two young adults. This is her list of most-used apps for reducing the overwhelm in keeping track of everyone’s schedules, whereabouts, and school needs. Google Calendar is a…
When It’s Your Turn to Make Reasonable Accommodations
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, anyone with a disability has the right to “reasonable accommodations“–modifications to public and work environments as required for equal participation in everyday activities. A few examples: employee handbooks in audio form; captions or a…