Families intentionally creating success for disabled children

Most of us find the day-to-day activities of parenting a challenge. Between diapers, bottles, homework, practices and dinner time, there is a lot of work to parenting.

Parenting a child with disabilities, however, is a tougher assignment.

There probably aren't many of us that would choose to parent a child with mental, physical or speech impediments. New parents expect children to have 10 fingers, 10 toes, dimples and a few curls. They don't dream of wheelchairs, braces, seizures and glasses.

Judy Winter writes that of 56 million Americans with disabilities, nearly 15 million are children. They're born every day to families in all kinds of communities. Many will go on to accomplish good things in their lives, if they are given proper parenting and early intervention and support. Some of these children will even go farther than their non-disabled peers.

Most children with disabilities will have the opportunity as an adult to live independently or in a supported-living arrangement with assistance. The school program will likely focus on life skills and independent functioning for these individuals, but there are learning opportunities unique to the family that help each person become as self sufficient as possible.

Keep a schedule and eat together

It's important to find a a way for all children to participate in family routines. Each family has a different way of getting up and out in the morning, getting the necessary tasks done during the day and settling in for the night. The routines that a family establishes help to set the stage for proper behavior and encourage independence for kids.

Meal times are sometimes very difficult for families supporting children with disabilties. They bring difficult behaviors, communication issues and sometimes awkward equipment to the table. This often leads to parents who feed their children with disabilities at a separate time or let them cruise by the dinner table at intervals to graze briefly and then move on. Parents who teach that each child is expected to sit with the family for meals, promote more than good nutrition.