February 2009  

אדר  תשס"ט 

What's new at PWP? Partners with Parents is a Facebook cause!  Click here to donate to Partners with Parents via Facebook. Baruch Dayan Emet Condolences to Sharon Fishman, our social skills instructor  and the entire Beres/ Fishman family on the loss of their father and grandfather.  Sharon will be sitting shiva in her home in Modiin. For more information: gayle@partnerswithparents.org.il

Tip #1 - Hebrew Exposure is the Key! Your children's spoken Hebrew vocabulary, directly affects their ability to read and understand Hebrew texts in school assignments.  Expose your children to Hebrew language theater, movies, and radio regularly. Enriching their Hebrew language experiences, will build a foundation that will help them suceed in school.

Tip #2: Hebrew First, English Later! Bilingual students with language based learning disabilities will have trouble mastering both languages simultaneously. Reduce the stress and demands (both in school and at home) for English until they are functioning comfortably in Hebrew.

Recommended
Reading

Dual Language Development & Disorders: 
A Handbook on Bilingualism and Second Language Learning
By:  Fred Genesee, Johanne Paradis, and Martha B. Crago

 

The First Thousand Words in Hebrew
By Heather Amery

Support our Amuta when
you order books through  the link below!

Purim, Teens and Alcohol!  Teens are often given the green light to drink alcohol on Purim, both by their parents and their Rabbanim. This can be dangerous for teens who take medication for ADHD or any other disorder. Set up an appointment for you and your teen to discuss this issue with his pediatrician so he can stay safe and healthy.

Newsletter Dedication This newsletter is sponsored by  Sandra Shimoff in loving memory of her husband Dr. Eliot Shimoff,  Eliyahu Chaim Ben Sarah Henna z"l,  in commemoration of his 5th yahrtziet  on Rosh Chodesh Shvat.

Dear Parents,

We are truly blessed to be able to raise our children in Israel, for so many reasons. One gift that growing up in Israel provides to our children, is the opportunity to truly be bilingual.  Being bilingual is an asset, both socially and cognitively, with its own educational and developmental profile studied by professionals and researchers around the world.

However, our bilingual children, being raised in enclaves of predominantly English speaking communities, ARE at risk. Many of them are not developing strong, rich, sophisticated Hebrew language skills, which they will need to succeed in school and in Israeli society. For children with a speech and language impairment or a language based learning disability, the need to become totally bilingual is an extra challenge.  These children are at even greater risk at school, because it is very difficult for them to master two languages simultaneously.

For this reason, we have decided to devote two issues of our
e-newsletter to his topic.  It is crucial that we begin to understand the issues involved in raising and educating bilingual children, especially children who are at risk. This first newsletter, focuses on spoken language and the second one will be about literacy and reading. We hope you will be inspired to bring more Hebrew into your lives!

Wishing you all a Rosh Chodesh Tov - משנכנס אדר מרבים בשמחה !

Gayle and Esther

Did you miss Part II of Treating Children and Teens with AD/HD?
Click Here

Sponsor the next E-Newsletter! Partners with Parents R"A has been approved by P.E.F. Israel Endowment Funds, Inc. to receive U.S. tax deductible contributions.

  Featured Articles:


   From Our Website:

Hebrew in the Home: An Important Key to School Success 
By: Esther Boylan Wolfson, MA
Parents often ask me what they can do to make sure their child will be ready for first grade in Israel. The answer to this question is different for each child, but one recommendation that I make to all parents, is that if you want your child to be ready for first grade, you should expose your child to Hebrew in your home. read more

  From the World Wide Web:
The articles below are written based on studies of bilingual children growing up in the United States where the language of school instruction is English, but the conclusions are equally relevant to our children.  Keep in mind that for our children the home language is English and the language of school instruction is Hebrew.  

Second-Language Acquisition and Bilingualism at an Early Age and the Impact on Early Cognitive Development
This article, from the Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development, discusses how bilingualism effects early childhood cognitive development.  It concludes that "Children’s success in school is strongly dependent on their proficiency in the language of instruction...Bilingual children...may have not built up adequate skills in the instructional language to succeed in schools."

Second Language/Bilingualism at An Early Age with Emphasis on Its Impact on Early Socio-Cognitive and Socio-Emotional Development
This article, also from the Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development, discusses the advantages of bilingualism and how knowing two languages from birth effects children from a social and emotional perspective. It also explains that " it can be difficult to identify bilingual children who are at risk of learning disabilities and speech-language pathology. In some cases, typically developing bilingual children produce the same kind of language as children with language impairment." 

Two or More Languages in Early Childhood: Some General Points and Practical Recommendations
This article, from the Center for Applied Linguistics, discusses the concept that in todays global world (and certainly our own) raising a bilingual child is often simply a fact of life.  It then discusses recommendations for those parents for whom raising bilingual children is a given and not merely a choice. 

A Child's Journey to Bilingualism: Simultaneous Dual Language Development 
This article from Multilingual Living Magazine, provides an explanation by a speech therapist about the process of bilingual language development, explains the advantages of bilingualism, and gives tips for parents raising dual language learners. 

 
  In the News!

ועדת דורנר: הורי מוגבלים יקבעו היכן ילמדו
This article discusses new and far reaching recommendations regarding special education law in Israel.  Two important recommendation are to allow parents to choose if their child will study in special education or a mainstreaming environment and for each child to receive funding on the basis of his specific needs rather than his specific diagnosed disability.  These recommendations are now being passed on to the Knesset for consideration as additions to the current חוק לחינוך מיוחד.

Helping Israeli Children with Learning Difficulties Succeed!  Educational Consulting Services - יעוץ חינוכי The purpose of our newsletter is to keep you regularly informed about events at Partners with Parents, as well as provide you with tips and information about helping kids with learning disabilities, both in Israel and around the world. Partners with Parents places the highest priority on safeguarding the privacy of all who subscribe to our e-newsletter list. We guarantee that neither your e-mail address, nor any other personal information will ever be disclosed or sold to any third party. Partners with Parents is a non-profit organization providing educational consulting services, which help parents help their children, with learning disabilities or other difficulties, succeed in school.  ©2009 Partners with Parents, Educational Consulting Services, Registered Amuta (Non-Profit Organization)  # 58-046-9211.

Gayle Shimoff, MA Learning Disabilities & Reading Specialist Esther Wolfson, MA Specialist, Early Childhood Special Education Sharon Fishman, MA Social Skills Instructor, Special Education HaChavatzelet Street 17/1 Beit Shemesh 99590 ISRAEL Phone: 972-2-999-4817, Fax: 1-532-999-4817 Toll Free from the USA: 1-866-563-6915 info@partnerswithparents.org.il www.partnerswithparents.org.il