Archive of events and seminars
A selection of past CanAssist events
- Building Bridges Forum
- CanAssist Disability Resource Fair
- CanAssist Seminar: "Let's Face It!: Training Face Perception in Autism"
Building Bridges Forum: Planning and Preparing for the Future
Date: Feb. 18 - 19, 2011
Location: Spectrum Community School
957 Burnside Road West, Victoria, BC
Registration: Please click here to register. Workshops are first come, first serve!
Conference Agenda: Please click here to view conference agenda.
Who can attend:
- Parents and caregivers of special needs children (physical and/or cognitive disabilities, including mental health)
- Health care providers
- Social service providers
- Educators (teachers, education assistants, administrators)
- Students (undergraduate and graduate)
Keynote Speaker:Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond
As the BC Representative for Children and Youth, Mary Ellen provides oversight to the Ministry of Child and Family Development and advocates for improvements to the child welfare system. She has received the Bill McFarland Award from the Parent Support Services Society of BC as well as the Perry Shawana Award for her leadership and work as a champion for the voices and rights of children.
Description:
CanAssist, together with its community partners, is hosting a two day forum that will bring together families, educators, and health/social service providers to undertake joint planning that supports children with special needs. NOTE: Some workshops have a particular focus on the middle years (ages 10-14) but there will be a range of workshops/topics that will be relevant to supporting children of ANY age group. We encourage any parent with a special needs child of any age and their caregivers, service providers and educators to participate in our Forum.
Our shared vision is that youth with special needs thrive and reach their full potential with the support of thoughtful, comprehensive plans that are youth-centered and peer- and family-focused. This will also be an opportunity for educators and service providers to learn more about the contributions of their colleagues, as well as about the children and families they serve.
Participants will have an opportunity to:
- Understand and appreciate the roles and responsibilities of those who work with youth with special needs;
- Connect with one another in support of youth with special needs;
- Gain an appreciation of and make a commitment to reflective practice;
- Hear success stories from parents and be inspired!
The forum will include a series of practical workshops during which participants can choose the sessions they would like to attend. NOTE: Workshops are first come, first serve. Topics include:
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Proudly supported by:
CanAssist Disability Resource Fair
Date: Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Time: 12 PM - 5:30 PM
Location: Michele Pujol Room, Student Union Building, University of Victoria
Description:
Ever wonder what resources are available to people with disabilities? Would you like to learn more about community organizations and how to get involved? Come join us on Wednesday, Dec. 2, at the CanAssist Disability Resource Fair, where disability organizations from Victoria and Vancouver will be showcasing their programs and services. This will also be an opportunity for the community to see and test new technologies from CanAssist.
Inspiring speakers and musical guests will be featured in the first half hour of the event - so don't miss out! Please join us on Dec. 2 in celebrating the accomplishments of people with special needs and the work of community organizations.
For directions to UVic's Student Union Building, see the map. Please note that general parking is available in all main campus lots and that permits can be purchased from dispensers.
Here is a list of some of the fair's participating organizations:
- ACCESS UVic
- ACT - Autism Community Training
- Autism Society of BC
- BC Aboriginal Network on Disability
- Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB)
- CanAssist
- Communication Assistance for Youth and Adults (CAYA)
- Community Living BC
- Community Living Victoria
- Community Support Team
- Cridge Centre for the Family
- Garth Homer Society
- Group Perspectives Therapy Services
- Katherine Paxton Counselling
- Lifetime Networks
- Mosaic Learning Society
- Power To Be
- Recreation Integration Victoria
- Regional Resource for Adults with Disabilities (RRAD)
- Special Education Technology BC (SET-BC)
- STEPS Forward
- Tetra Society of North America
- Transition Youth Employment Services (TYES)
- UVic Resource Centre for Students with a Disability
- Vancouver Island Society of Disabled Artists
- Victoria Conservatory of Music
- Victoria Disability Resource Centre
- Victoria Opportunities for Community Youth Leadership (VOCYL)
- Victoria Society for Children with Autism
CanAssist Seminar: "Let's Face It!: Training Face Perception in Autism"
Date: Thursday March 26, 2009
Time: 3:15pm - 4:15 pm
Location: Room 660 in the Engineering Computer Sciences Building
Presenter: Jim Tanaka
Jim Tanaka's Bio:
Jim Tanaka is a cognitive neuroscientist specializing in the cognitive and neurophysiological processes underlying object and face recognition. He is interested in questions of cognitive and neural plasticity related to how experience influences the way we perceive and recognize objects in the world. In his research, he combines both psychophysical and electrophysiological (i.e., event related potentials) approaches to understand the relation between behaviour and brain. In a related line of research, he has been working with children with autism in a program designed to improve their face recognition abilities.
Abstract of the Presentation:
Most people are considered face experts, quick to recognize a familiar face or interpret a facial expression in a moment's glance. However, recent research suggests that children with autism are less expert in their face recognition abilities and have difficulty identifying faces and understanding facial emotions. Can facial abilities, like other forms of perceptual expertise, be taught through direct instruction and training? In his presentation, Jim Tanaka will describe the Let's Face It! software, a computer-based program designed to teach face processing skills to children with autism (http://web.uvic.ca/~jtanaka/letsfaceit/). They will discuss results from a recent study demonstrating the effectiveness of the Let's Face It! intervention and give a hands-on demonstration of the program.
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