Who is Nisky C.A.R.E.S.?
A group of parents educators, students and administrators working collaboratively with the purpose of creating a school culture that embraces, by greater understanding, the learning needs of individuals with all abilities.
 

GOALS:

• CONNECTING—create a space for learning and sharing strategies for all those who help our children to succeed.
• ADVOCATING—inform parents about positive strategies for advocating that support your child in the least restrictive environment.
• RESOURCE base for parents, teachers, students and administration. A variety of resources will be posted and updated on the Student Support Services website regularly.
• EDUCATION—create educational opportunities at Community Forums, Professional Development Days, Superintendent Days, PTO meetings, Dessert Nights, upcoming conferences, etc.
• SUPPORTING—a systemic approach to understanding differentiated instruction and learning.

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Nisky C.A.R.E.S. 2011-12 Meeting Schedule
Nisky C.A.R.E.S. will hold four meetings this year on the following dates.

• Monday, October 3 - Topic:  This is Not the Life I Imagined:  Grief & Coping Skills for Parents of Children with Disabilities
• Tuesday, November 29 Providing Homework Help to Your Child with Organization and Attention Difficulties

This workshop will help parents create a toolbox of resources to help children with attention, organization, and memory deficits in the areas of Reading, Math, Language Arts and other academic areas.  We will also discuss the role that executive functioning plays in homework skills, and will provide parents with resources for assessing their child's executive functioning skills and understanding the type of homework environment that best suits their child's learning style. 

• Thursday, January 5 - The Parent Network will present a workshop on bullying prevention open to all parents at the Jan. 5 Nisky C.A.R.E.S. meeting in the District Office Board Room at Van Antwerp Middle School. The training is scheduled from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Please RSVP to niskycares@gmail.com if you plan on attending.
• Monday, April 23

All meetings take place from 6:00-8:30 p.m. in the District Office Board of Education Room, unless noted otherwise.

Best Buddies Program: Best Buddies is a friendship club for disabled and non-disabled peers. It is a way to enjoy each other’s company through email, phone calls, in the halls, at lunch, and during meetings. Iroquois Middle School (contact: Laura Carroll), Van Antwerp Middle School (contact: Kevin McFerran) and Niskayuna High School (contact: Fred Ebert) all participate in Best Buddies. Watch a video to learn more about about Best Buddies.

Friday Knights Family Support and Recreation Program: The Friday Knights Family Support and Recreation Program is a program coordinated by students at the College of St. Rose that is designed to help autistic children and teens develop social skills through recreation. View a video clip of the program that was broadcast on NBC's Today Show.

Summer Programs for Students with Disabilities:

• Clover Patch Camp - Special Needs Summer Camp (PDF)
• Camp Spectacular - For Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (PDF)
• TSL Adventures - Togetherness, Sharing & Learning Summer Camp

For further information about Nisky C.A.R.E.S. contact us by e-mail: NiskyCARES@gmail.com. Please send us an e-mail if you are a parent, teacher, specialist, administrator or student who would like to be involved in the creation of our group. We’ll put you on our confidential list serve and send you meeting notices, updates, etc. We’d love to hear your ideas for creating a positive compassionate environment for people of all needs right here in Niskayuna.