Friday, August 26, 2011

Actor with Down syndrome earns Spanish Best Actor Award! Yo, Tambien

Actor with Down syndrome earns Spanish Best Actor Award!
"Pablo Pineda is a Spanish actor who suffers from Down's syndrome, who stars in the Spanish movie Me Too (Yo, Tambien). His character is also a Down's syndrome victim in his 30's who manages to attain a university degree then goes on to fall in love with a workmate.


The actor plays Daniel Sanz who goes to university in Seville and manage to become the first European with Down's two come away with a diploma. He then moves on to take a job in social services.


Pablo Pineda says that the character has a lot of similarities to his real life as he has a special education degree. This performance has been called emotional and highly convincing.


The movie was directed by Alvaro Pastor and Antonio Naharro and offers Pineda the chance to display a huge range of emotions, something that is very difficult for someone with Down's syndrome to deal with. 


Pineda managed to scoop up the prestigious best actor prize at the film festival in San Sebastian, his co-star Lola Duenas also brought home the best actress award.
Copied directly from the Spanish News weblink To go to the direct link of this article ~ Click here: 


OK so the reporter say he "suffers & is a victim"??? Really? This ticks me off to no end why people still write in such a way that makes an entire group of people out to be SUFFERING when they are not! Why are there still reporters that incorrectly write about our wonderful people with Down syndrome suffering and that they are a victim. With reporters and writers and people in general continuing to still talk like those with Down syndrome are SUFFERING...which they are not...society is suffering from still very much outdated world views about a wonderful group of people that are perfectly able and capable of achieving more than most of society ever believed possible! Those with Down syndrome are MORE ALIKE than different than you and me! Watch the YouTube video clips on the upcoming movie and tell me you don't see NORMAL from BOTH ACTORS in this movie! They both found LOVE! Isn't that what we all want and need from life?    Even though I don't speak Spanish...just watching the movie trailers, I can tell this is going to be a wonderful movie! Do you think it can have subtitles? I can't wait to see this movie! Looks like a good one! I 'felt' this movie......let me know what you think when you watch the trailer.                                      

Yo, Tambien ~ The Movie
www.yotambienlapelicula.com 
Go directly to their website for more info on this wonderful movie!

Thirty-four-year-old Daniel is the first European with Down syndrome to have graduated from university. He starts a social services job in Seville, where he meets free-spirited co-worker Laura. They become fast friends, drawing the attention of both their co-workers and families. Their unique relationship becomes problematic when Daniel falls in love with her. But these rebellious souls refuse to bend to the rules and they find friendship and love as they have never known.










Sunday, August 21, 2011

BUS Schedules??...did YOU get one?

Did you get BUS info in the mail this week or last? I got a postcard in the mail for my high school son and a second reminder I received a Robo-Call reminding again of my son's bus scheduled time of pick up and what corner he needed to be at.

My daughter, well.....anxiously I have been looking in the mail box everyday waiting.....I even called the school a couple of times last week to let them know I was concerned because I had received my son's BUS info but hadn't heard anything about my daughter's BUS info for the start of the new school year.

Funny thing.....I spoke with 3 other mom's with Children that have Down syndrome and all three said they hadn't received any postcard in the mail or a robo-call or anything about time and place of pick up. One mom has a son that got his info a week ago...just exactly like I did for my son. Her son and daughter will be attending the exact same school that starts at the same time. When she called her school about her little girl, she was told by her ESE person....that because her daughter had DD=Developmental Disability that she would need to take a short bus....a SHORT BUS??!!! Did she really say that? I thought maybe my friend was retelling me what she thought she heard the lady say....and that she was retelling me wrong...but she assured me that yes the lady DID say to her that her daughter would have to take THE SHORT BUS!!!!

What is wrong with people!!...What is wrong with the very 'professionals' that work with our families and our Children and they continue to use such OUT-DATED terminology?

Why have 3 of us mom's not gotten our BUS info and we all have other siblings that also ride buses and the the other family members all received their BUS schedule but our Children with Down syndrome did not! What is going on with our kiddo's NOT GETTING our BUS schedule postcards in the mail or even the robo-caller that has gone out to our other Children? I just don't get it....how can it be such a coincident that 3 of us families all with a Child with Down syndrome have not gotten any info about their BUS SCHEDULES???...We all are WONDERING........WHAT'S UP?!!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Our school may not have the "program" YOUR Child needs.....

A parent with a young Child goes to enroll her very sweet little girl.....in her neighborhood school today....at SHUTTLE Elementary in Tamarac, Florida. (Not really the name of the school....) The office person that was there to help with registering new students was a nice lady I'm sure and just doing her job. My friend was asked about her 2 Children that she was registering today. She tells the nice lady behind the desk that her daughter has Down syndrome. Oh boy.....THAT was mommies first mistake because once you mention you are REGISTERING YOUR CHILD WITH DOWN SYNDROME, then things are handled differently for sure! The office person told my friend, "Have you had an IEP meeting with anyone from OUR school? OUR school might not have "the program" needed for your daughter.

My friend is a good Advocate for her two Children and moved to a new apartment over the summer just to make sure her Children would be in the boundry of that really NICE school! She also made sure this NICE school had what she knew her two Children needed and one is an ESE PreSchool Program for her little girl! Her little girl attends a Special Needs Developmental PreSchool now, called UCP in Fort Lauderdale.  UCP knows that her little girl would be transitioning onto that particular Elementary school, one that UCP has told this mommie yes that school does have the ESE PreSchool program or PLACE as it has been called in recent years. Seems our School District here wants to call our 3-5 year old Special Ed PreSchool Programs something different every year...just to confuse parents....and some school staff people even! Some of the 3-5 year old ESE PreSchool Programs are 'secretly' NOT for our little ones with Down syndrome it seems...........I said....it seems....let's get the DATA so we know. That would be nice to know for sure!

OK Folks.....What IS this particular PROGRAM all these people are always talking about....for OUR little kiddos with Down syndrome????

There is an ESE PreK Program at Shuttle Elementary in Tamarac (aka as the PLACE Program) and the little girl is absolutely ELIGIBLE to ATTEND that program because of her AGE and her ESE Eligibility! So what gives when they find out there is a student with DOWN SYNDROME wanting to enroll and attend the school that is down the street from the parents house?

This IS an ongoing problem here in Broward County and lots of places around the entire Country! I know for a fact this IS a very common problem with the MIND-SET and 'secret policy maybe' here in Broward Public Schools! This is not the first time a parent has contacted me and asked me for help and what to do. Parents are being told something that just isn't TRUE when it comes to enrolling their Child *with Down syndrome into their neighborhood schools!

What CAN BE DONE about this ongoing DISCRIMINATION that parents are being told......?

SEEKING ADVICE about this all too common problem here in Broward County!

Would be nice to find out where MOST students with Down syndrome are attending school and what sorts of classrooms they are being educated in. Is there a way to find out this information? Someone please help make this "situation" right.....it is just not right! How would YOU feel if you were told oh no your Child can't come to THIS SCHOOL.......we may not be able to "meet your Child's needs here."

Really......just want schools to ACCEPT our Children and TEACH THEM! Is that asking too much?

This annoys me more than a little................................

Have a delightful day!

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