NACD Newsletter: Volume 1, Issue 2

NACD - The National Association for Child Development Newsletter

Volume 1, Issue 2

March 2008

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The Project: 9 +/- 2

Program DVDs are History!

As always, we keep looking for bigger and better ways to do things. The latest is that we have found a better way to get your programs and program instruction videos to you.

Starting today, we will no longer be sending your new program and program instruction DVD in the mail. You will receive an email within two to three days of your evaluation with your child's evaluation and new program, with links for your program instruction. The instruction will be by short videos you can watch with a high speed internet connection.

The bottom line is that you will receive your new program much faster, we will be able to add to or modify your program and give you the new links as often as needed, and provide you with your program handouts online as well. This should make everything faster and more efficient, and for our international families, no more lost DVDs or two or three week waits for your new programs.

As with anything new, there will be a bit of a learning curve (we are transferring almost 3,000 activities and videos to a new format), so please be patient while we iron out the wrinkles. We expect to be in good shape within two weeks.

If you have any questions or problems with the new system, please contact us ASAP.

Study Helps Confirm NACD'S Developmental Perspectives on ADD and ADHD

- Robert J. Doman Jr.

New research by the National Institute of Health and McGill University provides confirmation of NACD'S belief about ADD and ADHD, i.e., that we are dealing with developmental issues rather than unique diseases. Using imaging techniques, the investigators evaluated the brains of 223 children labeled as having ADHD and 223 "typical" children. The children in each group received multiple brain scans from the time they were six years old to sixteen. The results of this study showed that the brains of the labeled children were not different from "typical" children, but that they were developing more slowly in some areas. The New York Times quoted Dr. Philip Shaw, the lead author of the study, as saying, "The basic sequence of development in the brains of these kids with ADHD was intact, absolutely normal," and, "I think this is pretty strong evidence we're talking about delay and not an abnormal brain."

While NACD has always held that ADD and ADHD are symptomatic labels applied to children with developmental issues, the mainstream medical community has historically insisted on applying a disease model to these children.

Click to read more.

NACD KIDS: NACD changed my life

By Melissa G.

Melissa G I remember a lot of things from before program, but I don't remember how much having an inefficient brain affected all the things that happened to me. Some kids who have problems learning get to the point where they just say, "I have ADHD (or whatever their problem is called)" the same way they would say, "I have brown hair," because the adults around them have taught them to think of the problem as being part of them. I never came to think of myself that way because, even though my mom knew I had all the symptoms of ADHD, she didn't ever talk to me about it when I was younger, and she didn't bother to get me diagnosed. Half of her family members had symptoms of ADHD, and they all grew up to be fine, so she didn't think of it as being a big deal.