10/21/2012

[Oct 28] Taichung Parents' Family Halloween Party

From their Facebook Page:

Hello Folks,

It's that time of year again!

For our third annual Taichung Parents Halloween Party!


We will be having our Taichung Parents Halloween Party on Sunday,
October 28th in the park on Dong Xing.

3pm start. (set-up will begin at 2pm)

Last years Halloween Party was massively well attended and a
tremendous event!

We will be following a similar format this year.

We will establish 'activity stations' where kids can trick-or-treat
around to the different areas, play various games, and will receive
candy for their hard work and smiles.

There will be no groupings or time-lines so parents and kids can wander around to the various stations as they please.

We want to encourage parents and kids to dress-up for the event but it is by no means mandatory.

So, whether you plan to wear a costume or not, we hope you will
attend and join us on our biggest event of the year.

You can do a couple of things to help:

#1 If you plan to attend the Halloween Party with your children please bring at least two bags of candy (something good) to contribute to the trick-or-treat grab-bag. This candy will then be redistributed to the kids when they are making the rounds.

#2 We also need parents to help run some of the various activity stations and help with patrol duties. We would love to hear from folks who only have one child to supervise. This is a good way to pitch in folks!

If you would like to help out, please email me directly:

driftwork@yahoo.com

I hope we can all pitch in to make this year's Taichung Parents
Halloween Party a terrific success!!!

Many smiles,


Joe Cooperman

I think it's best you sign up for the event so organisers have a good idea how many people are going.  From experience, it really helps!

[Oct 31, 2012] Halloween Cupcakes at Parents' Place

Bring your preschoolers along to a cupcake decorating hour at Parents' Place in Neihu.

Cost is TWD250 per child/three cupcakes.  Feel free to bring lunch along, too.

Time 11am-12 noon.
Cost TWD250
Address: 2F, No. 315, Section 4, ChenGong Rd, Neihu District, 台北市內湖區功路四段315號2F, Taipei, Taiwan 114

Register on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/events/452897608085537/

Or on the website's registration page (payment info on the form): www.parentsplace.com.tw

[Oct 31, 2012] Kid's Halloween at the Eatery, Kaohsiung

Here is my first Halloween event for Kaohsiung.  I am confirming that the kids' part starts at 5pm also, but you can also call and then let me know :)

Come Have a Howling Halloween with us at THE EATERY.

On Wednesday Oct 31st we will be celebrating All Hallows Eve. Come join us! Bring the family. We will have many treats for this special day including candied apples, home made pumpkin Pie, Special home made Hallow Ween Ice Cream and lots more. We will have discounts all night and at 12:00am will give away 1000 NT to best costume. We will also be offering CHEAP DRINKS so come get your drink on have some food then head out to the clubs 60 NTD drinks all night Vodka Whiskey and Rum drinks all night from 5pm till 12:00AM Hope to see you here.
Any children 12 and under will get a free Trick or Treat bag filled with goodies :)

Address: No 14 Lane 20 Ziqiang 3rd rd KHH City 802 Kaohsiung (Near Lamp across from The 85 building)
Tel: 72691813

10/15/2012

[Through to Oct 20, 2012] Barbie Exhibit in Taichung

Barbie's Fashion Box Exhibition is now in Taichung. We have been to a few Barbie exhibits in Taiwan. Barbie has a special place in Taiwan's manufacturing history.  You can read about it in past posts on this blog.

Some of the dolls in the Fashion Box exhibition are from the personal collection of famous Taiwanese designer Lin Kuo-chi. My kids loved spotting people from history in the exhibit.

Where: Taichung Cultural & Creative Industries Park (362, Fuxing Rd., Sec. 3, South Dist.; closed Mondays). Tel: (04) 2229-3079. 
Go to www.artsticket.com.tw or call (04) 2208-0128 for more information.

[oct 2012] Halloween Events at Taipei Zoo

Well, unfortunately we all missed out on the Zoo's Halloween event. Only 300 kids could take part, so it was unlikely I'd be in time to get a ticket.  They do have a Halloween-related exhibit in their Education Hall, that runs through to November 4th.  Okay, it's not really Halloween-related, but they put it under the theme anyway.  It's looking at our futuristic world, and how it might be in coming generations.

Chinese link here.

Read about the cool Halloween event you can no longer sign up for here.

[Oct 21, 2012] Halloween Kids' Party at Carnegie's, Central Taipei

I've heard this is always a super-fun event for the family.  Carnegie's is a good place to take the family during the day, anytime, too.

  
Poster from Carnegie's event page.
When: Saturday, 21 October, 2012, 2:30-5pm
Where: 1F, No. 100 An He Road, Section 2, Taipei. (台北市安和路二段100號1F)
Tel: 02-2325-4433

Cost: 888 per child, 555 per adult (10% discount for early purchase)

Check out full details on the event page of their website.

[Oct 27, 2012] Halloween in Tianmu - Lots of Events for Children Again

The Chinese version of the events going on in Tianmu is already up on the dedicated blog.  Check back here a little later for an English version, or run it through a translator to get a quick idea first.

Additions:

October 27th from 3pm, at Tianmu Sports Park (天母運動公園)

貝丹的秘密市集 
Market Day (from 3pm)

Over twenty stalls. 

The Coca-Cola Fun Car will also be there to liven things up.  (People dressed up as cartoon characters and other fun stuff for kids.)

The Storyhouse will be running at night:

First Session:18:00-18:30
Second Session:19:00-19:30


At the entrance of the park, from 3pm to 10pm, there will be a Tarot Festival, run by seven witches.


 天母運動公園中央走道
From 3pm to 10pm, on the boardwalk in the park, there will be games and activities for kids, including DIY.


天母運動公園水景廣場前
3pm-10pm
In front of the water area of the park, bands will play.  

Chinese schedule:
 
時間
活動內容
15:00-16:00
中西逗陣走
15:30-16:00
可口可樂區活動
16:00-16:10
主持人開場
16:10-16:30
團體表演1
16:30-16:40
主持人介紹活動
16:40-17:10
活動開幕儀式
17:10-17:30
共飲魔法湯
17:30-18:00
長官視察
18:00-18:30
團體表演2
18:30-19:00
可口可樂區活動
19:00-19:30
團體表演3
19:30-20:00
 可口可樂區活動
20:00-22:00
魔音傳腦音樂饗宴+故事屋


Buses that get to the area:
220、224、267、535(中山)、601、616、685、中山幹線、紅19

Shuttle buses from Shipai Station:
紅12、紅15、紅19



Address:
No. 77號, Section 2, Zhōngchéng Road, Shilin District  Taipei City, 111
臺北市忠誠路二段77號

10/13/2012

[Oct 14 2012] Hakka Festival, Hakka Culture Park, Taipei

Oops! Missed giving a warning on this one. Already half-over, but there is another day.  The Hakka Festival at the Hakka Culture Park (formally the Transportation Museum for those who had kids around the same time I did).

Chinese timetable is here.

Official English website here.

I haven't been here for many years, so can't really add anymore insider information.

You can park at the water park carpark.

Address : No.2, Section 3, Tingzhou Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei

Nice Little Vegetarian Eatery in Central Taipei - Child-Friendly

Per Te "Italian Style" Vegetarian Restaurant is located between Chungshan North Road and Linsen North Road.  With a small store-front, it is a little deceiving, but trust me, the space behind the little breakfast-store style oven is clean, cute, and stroller-friendly.  You might want to enter by the larger door to the left of the store after ordering.

The menu is all in Chinese, but there are photos of all the choices stuck on the cooker so you can look and point or even just make sure the food is what you want.  Per Te offers Italian style pasta, baked rice dishes, the same dishes with cheese, and Japanese, Korean, or Thai flavored hotpot.  In summer they have cold noodles and salad.  Soup and tea are free. You serve yourself. The service area is clean and safe for children.  They have forks and spoons available.

Prices are good, somewhere between TWD80 and TWD120 including the soup and tea.  Servings are very big. I requested a smaller serving after seeing what the family in the shop was eating.  You could easily share a meal with a young child.

I ordered the Basil flavored baked rice.  It had a very strong basil flavor.  I think a half-serving would have been perfect flavor-wise, and would have loved to share two dishes with someone else.  It was very good, just of very strong flavor.

The young couple running the store were just lovely, and everything was clean.  The children eating there were really enjoying their meal.

Per Te is open every day.  They close at 2:30pm for an afternoon break.

Address: No. 27, lane 59, Chungshan North Road, Section 2, Taipei City
台北市中山北路二段59巷27號
Tel: 0922-355-672

10/11/2012

Daniel Pearl Music Day

I've taken the kids to this event a few times.  There are always other families there, and it can be fun.  The "new to you" charity will be selling some of their donated goods there this year.  The venue is really nice, and somewhere I was planning to write about.

▲台北 X 倫敦 X 舊金山 X 巴黎 X 紐約… 超過100個城市連線


丹尼.波爾(Daniel Pearl)是一名成就非凡的記者和樂手,也是位著名的樂評人。2002年任職華爾街日報時,不幸地為了採訪工作死於巴基斯坦恐怖份子手中。為了紀念丹尼.波爾短暫卻燦爛的一生,他的朋友在2002年發起「丹尼一日音樂節」,每年十月在世界各地舉辦,傳遞愛與和平、希望與寬容的理念。


美國總統歐巴馬更是在每年10月寫下親筆聲明,公開宣揚對丹尼.波爾的悼念。此外,丹尼.波爾的真實故事,也改編成電影《無畏之心》,由安潔莉娜裘莉擔綱主演,傳神詮釋痛失丈夫的心碎妻子,精堪的演技獲得美國金球獎及獨立精神獎最佳女演員提名。


自創始以來,「丹尼一日音樂節」得到各界熱烈迴響,已擴大為國際性音樂活動,已在111個國家進行6700場演出,世界各地具有號召力的音樂家、藝術家們皆紛紛響應,台北也是率先參與的城市之一。人們將會永遠記得丹尼.波爾的精神,相信音樂可以改變世界,人類應該和諧共處!


▲不只是搖滾樂…,藍調、鄉村、雷鬼、爵士以及其它


台灣樂迷熟悉的搖滾樂團Grizzly Bear、The Music、Maroon 5、R.E.M.,以及音樂傳奇Elton John、葛萊美獎得主Herbie Hancock等人也曾參與國外「丹尼一日音樂節」演出


丹尼一日音樂節音樂類型多元,邀請的樂手往往涵括藍調、鄉村、雷鬼、爵士、靈魂樂各種類型,藉此傳達音樂打破種族隔閡的核心價值。


今年在台灣舉行的「丹尼一日音樂節」即將在10月20日於新成立的台北市客家文化主題公園舉辦,臨近台電大樓捷運站(延著師大路走到底,約莫5分鐘的路程)。現場共有兩個戶外舞台,16組知名樂團將輪番上陣,帶來豐富的聽覺經驗。



▲最重要的是…活動免費,快來一起當好朋友!


最後一個好消息…活動完全免費!我們特別選擇戶外空間舉辦音樂節,所以歡迎大家帶著自由、開放的心來聽表演,你要在草地上翻滾、蹓狗、野餐,通通ok,記得趕快先將10月20日空下來,真是美好的一天!官方臉書:https://www.facebook.com/danielpearl.tw


▲活動資訊


時間 | TIME: 10/20(六/Sat)13:00-22:00

地點|PLACE:台北市客家文化主題公園 Taipei City Hakka Cultural Park 臺北市中正區汀州路三段2號 No.2, Sec. 3, Tingzhou Rd., Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City


捷運|MRT: 台電大樓捷運站5號出口(約5分鐘的路程)

入場|ticket:免費! FREE ENTRY!

舞台 | stages:兩個舞台 |2 stages

樂隊 | bands:16樂團輪番演出

風格|styles:搖滾、民謠、藍調、雷鬼、爵士|rock 、folk、blues、reggae、Jazz


▲表演樂團名單(10/5更新)


1:30pm Molting Crayfish 蛻皮小龍蝦

2:30pm Wild Alibis

3:30pm La Cumbia Balkanska(新增)

4:30pm T-bone & Yasu

5:30pm Shiznits

6:30pm Skaraoke

7:30pm Dark Eyes

8:30pm Aashti 汎絲路樂團


Rock

2:00pm 昆蟲白 insecteens

3:00pm Ever So Friendlies

4:00pm Inhuman 非人物種

5:00pm .22 (featuring pete holmes)

6:00pm 88 Balaz 八十八顆芭樂籽

7:00pm Sleaze 湯湯水水

8:00pm Blind Acid Date

9:00pm We Save Strawberries 草莓救星


Taipei, London , Paris, San Francisco, London, New York ... more than 100 cities around the world


Daniel Pearl was a remarkable journalist and musician who worked for the Wall Street Journal. In 2002, he was taken hostage and died in the hands of terrorists. To commemorate his brief but brilliant life, his friends launched "Danny Pearl World Music Days", held around the world in October of each year, spreading the message of love and peace, and tolerance.


Each year, the event is strongly supported by top journalists around the world as well as world leading politicians such as U.S. President Barack Obama who typically offers a personal statement. Danny’s life has also been subject to many books and movies, including the "A Mighty Heart" starring Angelina Jolie, a vivid interpretation the heartbreak experienced by Marianne Pearl in the last few hours of his life.


Since its inception, "Danny Day Music Festival" to an enthusiastic response from all walks of life, has expanded into the international music events, has 6,700 performances in 111 countries around the world. Musicians and artists all have all warmly responded and Taipei is fortunate to be one of the early participants in this international event, eagerly sharing the message that music can change the world.


This year’s event in Taipei will be held on October 20th at the Taipei Hakka Cultural Park near the Taipower Building MRT Station (a five minute walk). There will be two outdoor stages, 16 bands, and numerous performances and dedications. Food will also be available from local stalls and plenty of fresh air and open space for everyone.


The event is free and open to the general public. We have chosen this music festival environment to welcome everyone to listen with an open heart. For more information, please visit or official facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/danielpearl.tw

Looking for a New Wardrobe? Support New To New's 2nd Charity Sale!

With all the charities focusing on  sharing kids' stuff round, it's nice to see one sharing adult (I think mostly women's) clothing come in for a second time.  Get a new wardrobe, shed the clothes that are weighing you down, and feel good about it!


The ‘New to You’ Second Hand Charity Sale is back again by popular demand for the 2nd year in a row! The date will be Sunday, December 2nd, but more details will come soon.




If you would like to get rid of your clean, used items that are still in great condition, please consider donating them to this charity event.




We are looking for men’s and women’s clothing, such as: shirts, pants, jackets, shoes, dresses, skirts, belts, scarves and also jewelry. We would also like books and English magazines. Othe
r small household items may also be taken.




This year, we are supporting two charities.




One is Happy Home Orphanage in Nepal that Lorena volunteered at this past summer. They are in desperate need of everyday items and funding is crucial. Happy Home now has 60 children who have been rescued from drug addiction and horrible street conditions in their care. They have grown a lot and rescued many children since this video was filmed, and they will continue to help more children as they can afford to. Please check out this short documentary about Happy Home Orphanage:










The second organization is the local, Taipei Women’s Rescue Foundation. The TWRF provides assistance to women and children of domestic violence, female victims of human trafficking and recognition to former Taiwanese comfort women. Please check out their English website:












If you would like to donate items, please take them to the following locations:




A) Forkers, Zhong Xiao Branch: 1 F, No 8, Alley 10, Lane 223, Sec 4, Zhong Xiao E, Rd. Taipei City Open Daily 12:00 pm to 11:00 pm Zhong Xiao Dunhua MRT station, Exit 2,






B) Frankie’s Pies: Wen Hua Rd, No 15, 1 F, Yung He, New Taipei City Open 5:00pm-1:00am Daily. Closed Mondays Dinxi MRT Station Exit 2








C) The Green Hornet: 1F, 108 Xindian Rd, Xindian, New Taipei City. Open 5:30pm-12:00am Daily. Closed Mondays Xindian MRT station








D) Carnegies 1 F, 100 An He Rd, Sec 2, Taipei City Liuzhangli MRT Station








E) Carleen’s English Language Center: 128 and 132 Xin Yun St, Neihu. Neihu MRT Station Exit 2. Across the street from Kang Ning Elem School.




F) Parents' Place: No 315, Section 4, Cheng Gong Rd, Neihu. Please call 09-8757-6771 for daily hours








***** The most important part of The New to You Second Hand Charity sale, the location, has NOT BEEN FINALIZED, so we reach out to you for help. We are in need of an unused apartment or empty office space in central Taipei in which we can access for 1 month in total to sort, organize, prepare for the sale and then re-sort so that we can distribute the leftover items to other local charities in need. Ideally, a space of 25+ pings would be perfect. We hope there is a kind person out there who would offer the space use for free (we can pay for the electricity) as having to pay rent would then come out of the amount of money we would like to donate to the charities. But, we are open for discussion on this. Please help us spread the word!!




The New to You II sale can be really successful with your help.


**Please invite friends to the event, and post it on your Facebook wall.


**Mention it to friends and encourage people to sort through their things and then drop the items off at the mentioned drop off points. (We especially really need clean, quality men's clothes!!)


**Come shopping on the day of the event to buy second hand items for a very low price.


**Offer to volunteer with picking up items, sorting and selling


**DONATE USED CLOTHES, HANGERS, LARGE PAPER SHOPPING BAGS AND CLOTHING RACKS! All these items are needed!




For more information, please contact us in English at:


charitybakesale@hotmail.com




Thank you so much for your support! 
**They still need a space for a month to store, sort, and hold the sale.  If you know of anywhere they could use, please get in touch!

10/07/2012

National Palace Museum


Yesterday, my two kids (6 and 8) visited the National Palace Museum.  I hadn't been there since their major renovations, and was amazed by the changes.  My children didn't LOVE the main exhibit areas, but they did still get a lot of out of it.  If I had done my research, I would have gotten them the headsets with children's introduction to the main museum.  It's designed for kids aged four to eight years.  You can download it, or borrow the headsets for TWD50.  AND, I would have downloaded the worksheets... oh, well, next time...



We decided to have lunch before entering the exhibits, and ate at the cafe at the museum's entrance.  It was pretty good.  Inexpensive food, bilingual staff and menu, healthy food options, and sturdy chairs and tables, made it a good option for us.


Enjoying a Pearl Milk Tea and Ham Sandwich.

In the calligraphy room, there is a section with lots of multimedia to keep everyone entertained and educated.  You can also use the museum's educational web pages at home.

There are several gift shops in Exhibit Hall 1.  I picked up a 10-book set of children's book for just TWD270!  They are clearing them out, and only have about 20 sets left at the time of writing.  If you live near the museum, they are definitely worth picking up for gifts. They are in Chinese with ㄅㄆㄇㄈ.  Published by the museum, they introduce some beautiful pieces from their collection.

I'd be lying to say my kids fell in love with the exhibits upstairs, but I think it's still important to let them see these things, as they learn about them in their textbooks at school.  They were very excited to hear about the children's room in B1, that's for sure.

Entry to the children's room is free, and you can enter without buying entry to the museum, so it is a great little space to visit when it's rainy or too hot out.  Everything is hands-on, and bilingual.  The video they show is only in Chinese, though.

My son was fascinated by the "Create Your Own Zoo" program.  It's like a giant i-pad.  You design your image, and then it plays in a sequence with other kids' pictures.
"Create Your Own Zoo"

There are Q&A sections, engineering activities, and jigsaw puzzles. Everything is made to encourage participation by children and their parents.



Questions about jade.

Challenge: Build the bridge.

Finish the puzzle to make the animations on the screen start.

After our time at the museum (about 2 1/2 hours), we popped to Zhishan park next door.  If you show your museum ticket, you get in free.  I don't know how much it is without the ticket, but I don't think it's much.  I remember visiting years ago, but had forgotten what a haven it is.  We fed the fish and the swans, and watched artists paint the landscape.





Definitely painting-worthy.
If you didn't buy enough at the gift shops, there is another one at the park entrance.

I parked across the road from the museum in the car park.  There is a car park behind the museum, but it's hard to find a space there.
Address:  No.221, Sec. 2, Zhishan Rd., Shilin Dist., Taipei City 11143, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
Tel:+886-2-28812021

Up-to-date visiting hours and entrance fees:  http://www.npm.gov.tw/en/visiting/visit/hours.htm

My age recommendations:  Stroller-friendly, good for little ones, or children six and up.  Toddlers will find it hard to stay patient and quiet enough for the main exhibit areas.  

10/05/2012

[Oct 13, 2012] AGAPE Children's, Adult, & Maternity Rummage Sale


Whilst I don't particularly agree with the philosphy of the charity this sale is supporting this time round, its still a great sale and a chance to pick up some fantastic stuff for your family whilst making some new friends.  The sale is pretty crazy so be prepared! Take your own bags and change/small notes.

They are still taking donations.
AGAPE Children's, Adult, & Maternity RUMMAGE SALE, October 13th:
Dear Parents and Friends of City Playgroup,
We are excited to announce that the AGAPE rummage sale will be on Saturday, October 13th, from 9:00am - 12:00noon. 
This is a semi-annual event that allows families to reuse and recycle, as well as de-clutter for a good cause. We are asking for donations especially of infant and children's clothing, books, toys, and infant and maternity related items since this has always been the main focus of our rummage sale. We also accept adult clothing of men and women, household goods, and simple useful items that are acceptable for rummage sales. Note: the only furniture we can take is infant related such as beds, strollers, playpens, and highchairs, etc.
We are very grateful to all of you who will make donations over these next few weeks, through drop offs and directly on the day of the sale. This time all cash proceeds will be given to His Hands Taiwan, Inc., which is an organization which assists unwed mothers, by providing a home for them to live in during their pregnancy. His Hands Taiwan also helps the mother raise her child, or places the child in a loving Christian home, through adoption. Facebook site: http://www.facebook.com/pages/His-Hands-Taiwan-Inc/107210602034
All remaining items will be donated to either a local infant / toddler orphanage in Taipei City or to a charity working with aboriginal villages of Taiwan, of which both we have donated extra things to for several years now. If you have any items to donate, we ask that you bring them to the following places:

Taipei Area:

City Playgroup Thursday Outing Locations / Kelly Manske
And also to my home address: 台北市慶城街69號11樓 11F., Building No. 69, Qingcheng St ., Songshan Dist., Taipei City Cell #091-664-1144 / Home # (02) 2545-0459
AGAPE Church office / Wendy Chen: 53 MinQuan W. Rd, Taipei City, #2598 - 1009 / #0922-174-083
In Taipei area, if you have larger items to donate (infant furniture / large boxes of items) that you are not able to drop off, please contact Kelly about a pick-up at #091-664-1144.

Tien Mu / Shilin / Beitou:

Community Services Center / In care of Jennifer Chau No. 25, Lane 290 Zhong Shan North Rd., Sec. 6 Telephones: (02) 2836-8134 · 2838-4947

Neihu Area:

Parent's Place / Angela Chang #315, 2F, Cheng Gong Road, Section 4, Neihu Tele: 097-066-9040 - Please call first! Website: http://www.parentsplace.com.tw/

When: October 13, 2012, 9:00am-12 noon. 
Where: AGAPE Church at: 3F, Building No. 21, Chang Chun Rd., Taipei City / 台灣台北市中山區長春路21 號 3 樓 (Near the intersection of ZhongShan North Rd.)
The church is located a few blocks from the Zhongshan MRT stop, EXIT 9, on the red line. The 5th exit is in the underground mall area and that you have to head north towards the direction of the Shuanglian MRT stop while underground. You will actually take an elevator at Exit 9, It is less than a 2-block way from there.

[Oct 28, 2012] Latin American Food Festival and Charity Sale

Charity sale -both old and new items
Live music, hot food.
Raffle includes a GIANT bike, pearl necklace and a bottle of really good Tequila.

When: October 28, 2012, 12:45pm-6pm
Where: Catholic Church, Shipai.
Address: No. 20 Lane 90, Shipai Rd., Sect. 2, Taipei City. (Shipai MRT)
臺北市石牌路二段90巷20號

Church website (Chinese):  http://www.catholic.org.tw/shipai/pastor/ext.htm

Occupational Therapist Rosemary White to Visit Taiwan

 
I'm not lazy, I'm busy...

Copy and paste is working wonders today.  This looks like a really good event for English-speaking parents with special-needs children in Taiwan.

This is the link to the bilingual site and registration form.

Stolen from friend, who is one of the organisers:

 
Seats are filling up fast so register for your spot today! World-renowned occupational therapist, Rosemary White, will be in Taipei from December 1-3, 2012, to give a workshop on DIR/Floortime. If you are a parent of a child with special needs or a therapist, doctor, teacher, psychologist, social worker, or anyone with an interest in working with kids with special needs, I highly recommend you attend this workshop!

 為強化國內早期療育臨床專業,使其更符合遲緩孩子的需求,特地邀請美國DIR (Floortime)創始人Dr. Stanley Greespan的首席大弟子Rosemary White,舉辦Floortime(地板時間)工作坊,藉由資深實務工作者的授課與實作分享,培訓醫療專業人員、社工、教保人員及發展遲緩兒童家長,以 Floortime模式為居家訓練技巧,透過這種療法協助遲緩孩子能夠掌握六種與智力及與外界互動有關的基本發展技能。

課程資訊及講師簡介詳見課程簡章。

DIR®/Floortime is the developmental relationship based approach to treatment developed by Stanley Greenspan, MD and Serena Wieder, PhD.
It is a comprehensive treatment model that supports parent child interactions with the focus on relationships, as relationships are the vehicle for learning.

We are honored to have Rosemary White, OTR/L, renowned occupational therapist from the United States, to present this 3-day workshop on DIR/Floortime. This workshop is open to parents/caregivers and professionals working with children with developmental delay.



 We are also looking for families with kids with special needs who would like a 1 1/2 hr or 2 hr private consultation/assessment with Rosemary White. The consultations will take place on Novemember 29th and 30th. Please contact me for details*!

*I'm chasing her up for contact info.  If you are interested, leave your email in the comments. I won't publish it.  I'll pass it on.

Support For Families With Children With Special Needs in Taiwan

I did a search on my own site and was surprised nothing came up! I was sure I'd posted about Taiwan Sunshine.  If I have already, I certainly didn't do a good job of it.

Taiwan Sunshine is founded and coordinated by a very active member of the Taiwan expat community.  I was going to write my own view of their life, but why bother when I use the summary on their own site, with permission of course!  (I'll get it tomorrow...)

Welcome to our website!  We are really excited to announce that we just received our final government approval for the registration of Taiwan Sunshine.  That makes us 100% official and we can start renting, paying bills, giving Taiwanese tax-deductible receipts for donations, etc.!
Read on if you want to know our story!
A few years ago, God gave us a little girl.  Our daughter was born pre-mature, underweight, but REALLY cute.  At that time we were living in China.  That first fall and winter, we were surprised by how often she got sick and how “floppy” she was.  And — she sounded just like a little kitten when she cried.  After a very serious illness in the spring, three medical evacuations – quite the story in itself – we finally were able to get a diagnosis: 5p- also known as Cri-du-Chat Syndrome, also known as Cat’s Cry Syndrome, also known as LeJeune’s Syndrome, also known as “We don’t have any idea what you are talking about!”  Needless to say, we started to do lot of research and found that our daughter would be mentally and physically disabled for the rest of her life.

We did decide to go back to China at that time, but only on a year to year basis.  We knew that God wanted us to be there and that he would give us the strength and resources that we would need.  And that is exactly what happened.  We had two more wonderful years there.  At that time, though, it became very clear that we needed to move to a country that had better medical and therapy resources.  After a short search, we moved to Taipei, Taiwan.  The medical facilities, resources, therapies were great and our daughter improved so much!

As we were living in Taiwan, though, we realized that there were many other families with special needs children that seemed very lost and hopeless.  In Taiwan, it is still often seen as an embarrassment or shame to have children that are not ‘perfect.’  We were able to have great conversations with other parents and realized that there was a void that we could fill!  Because we have a special needs child ourselves, there is an automatic ‘heart to heart’ connection.  We could relate to them, encourage them, cry with them, learn with them, and, most importantly, tell them about the HOPE that we have.
We shared this vision with some of our very good friends and together, we decided to form a legal not-for-profit association.  This would allow us to work more easily with schools, hospitals, and other government organizations.  We would be able to give tax-deductible receipts in Taiwan.  Since our Taiwan Sunshine relies on the generous financial support of others, this was so important.  Now, our dream is finally a reality!

Oh, one more thing — why does our website say ‘fearfully and wonderfully made?’  This actually comes from a poem in the Bible, from the book of Psalms.  In this section, the poet says, ‘I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.’  He is talking about how God already knew him and made him fearfully and wonderfully.  In other words, he is not a mistake, an accident, a ‘sloppy’ thing!  God did not run out time when he was making him!  We believe that this is true for all of us.  God made each of us fearfully and wonderfully.  That includes our kids, no matter what kind of ‘disability’ they have!
We hope that through Taiwan Sunshine, there will be such a radical shift in Taiwan’s culture to understand that each of these kids is valuable – not because of what they can contribute, but because they were made by God – with a specific purpose that only they can accomplish.  We hope that Taiwan Sunshine will communicate that sense of HOPE with every family we come in contact with.

If you are not Christian, don't be put off by the religious aspect of the introduction.  I have never felt any pressure from MaDonna or her family to believe anything they do.  I think the key notion is HOPE for every family. 

You can also find Taiwan Sunshine on Facebook. They list current activities there.