THE EDITOR IN CHIEF'S DESK FAYE SIMON

Summer Plans

For families raising children with disabilities, the break in routines during the summer can pose certain challenges.

Here we are on the doorstep of summer. We turn our attention away from school and homework to warm weather activities and vacation plans. As our readers well know, for families raising children with special needs, the break in routines during the summer months can pose certain challenges.

EP’s Annual Summer Fun and Travel Issue presents a wide variety of resources and articles to help address these families’ concerns. For parent’s who are seeking a recreation program with the proper fit for their child’s individual needs, Bonnie Ivers, M.A., Psy.D. offers a solid set of tips to help them find it in her article “How to Evaluate Recreation Programs for a Child with Special Needs.” For parents or caretakers staying close to home, Elizabeth Boyajian has contributed a selection of ideas for keeping children engaged and active in her piece titled “Summer Fun Across the Spectrum.” One of the most quintessential summer activities – swimming – is the focus of Joey Enos’ piece, “Why Inclusive Swimming Matters,” in which he conveys how significant his son Sammy’s inclusive swimming program has been to his development.

For those who plan to travel to vacation destinations or to visit distant family, our June issue is a great resource. In "To Travel or Not to Travel," Pamela Aasen submits a thoughtful personal story containing a myriad of tips to make summer travel easier. Ellen Lenox Smith recounts all of the ways that her service dog Maggie made travel a smoother and less stressful experience in her article "Travel and Summer Fun with a Service Dog."

Summer also presents a unique set of problems for parents of neurodivergent children who are prone to the summer slide. In her article “Fun Ways to Prevent the Summer Reading Slide in Dyslexia,” Georgie Normand recommends a course of action informed by her many years of teaching, as well as research and writing on the subject.

We encourage you to share these helpful articles with colleagues family, and friends. We also invite you to check out our revamped social media outlets. Like us on Facebook and share our posts at facebook.com/exceptionalparentmag, share from our Instagram feed at instagram.com/epmzine, and follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/epmzine. Plus, it’s easy to subscribe and receive “EP for Free” – just visit www.epmagazine.com and click EP for Free Sign Up. Have a terrific summer!

Faye Simon

Editor In Chief

THE EDITOR IN CHIEF'S DESK

Faye Simon is a certified pre-K—8 teacher with a wide range of educational experience. She has worked in deaf/blind and infant stimulation programs, taught K—2 in public schools, and was a Head Teacher and Parent Coordinator for Head Start. She is Founder and President of the volunteer-run IES Brain Research Foundation. As EP's Editor In Chief, Faye sources and edits articles, creates partnerships with businesses and not-forprofit organizations, and develops relationships with EP's writers, corporate partners, readers and staff.

Information and Support for the Special Needs Community

VOLUME 53 ISSUE 6 ESTABLISHED 1971

Publisher

Len Harac

lharac@epmagazine.com

Editior In Chief

Faye Simon

fsimon@epmagazine.com

Art Direction & Design

Leverett Cooper

lev@foxprintdesign.com

EXCEPTIONAL PARENT MEDIA

Exceptional Parent (ISSN 0046-9157) is published monthly 12 times per year including the special January EP Guide - Navigating Special Needs Resources by Exceptional Parent Magazine, 1360 Clifton Avenue, Ste. 327, Clifton, NJ 07012 Internet address: www.epmagazine.com. All rights reserved. Copyright ©2023 by Exceptional Parent Magazine,. Exceptional Parent™ is a registered trademark of Exceptional Parent Magazine. Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Exceptional Parent,1360 Clifton Avenue, Ste. 327, Clifton, NJ 07012. Any applicable periodical postage paid at Clifton, NJ and additional mailing offices (USPS 557-810). Basic annual subscription for EP Digital is free. Limited edition print subscription $199.00. Subscriber Service: Direct all inquiries & address changes to: Exceptional Parent, 1360 Clifton Avenue, Ste. 327, Clifton, NJ 07012 08758. Customer Service/New Orders: E-mail: fsimon@epmagazine.com or call (973) 726-6218. Back issues incur a charge of $17 each with shipping, (January issue $20 when requested) and depend upon availability. Call (973) 726-6218. Agreement #1420542