Makaton Charity Advent Angels

Makaton is a kind of communication life line for many children. For those with little or delayed speech, it really does ease the frustration they feel. 

But not only that it actually helps the brain to form the connections needed to embed language. The more we sign and sign and say a word, the more likely it is to stick.

Mia uses Makaton to sign to Natty: Flower

When Natty was tiny I wondered if using sign was the right thing to do. I've heard parents say, 'but I want him to learn to speak...' and I wondered if signing and speech was an either/or dilemma. You can read Do We Really Need Makaton on the subject here. 

I know many parents worry, but rest assured Makaton will only enhance your child's communications skills. Natty naturally dropped each sign once she could say the word, and now she uses it when signing across a room or when really very excited. 

The girls were very excited to have been asked to join in with the free online Makaton advent calendar again this year. So, back in November we dragged the tinsel out of the loft and dusted off our angel wings to make this short film:

You can watch the rest of the advent video clips over on the Makaton Charity website here, including those made by schools, families and the inimitable Singing Hands. 

Marvellous Merry Christmas!

Festive Fine Motor Skill Fun: Paper Chains!

It's that time of year! A recycling box full of unwanted catalogues and children wanting Christmas craft ideas.

Once I've flicked through them, if I even get time for that, I pop them straight into the recycling bin, making a mental note to remove myself from the umpteen mailing lists. 

That is, until last week when Natty was off school due a sudden bout of bed and pyjama-covering vomiting. Clearly not able to go to school but jolly and chirpy in herself, we decided to settling down to a spot of Mummy and daughter making and doing.

The plush paper booklets, fliers and leaflets lay on the kitchen table as we ate our breakfast, promising ever more original gifts for the neighbour, teacher, pet dog... 

AHA! I thought. They were all in festive colours, silvers and greys with touches of red and green splurged on them. They would make perfect Christmas decorations: paper chain material! 

In the past I have bought costly paper chain making kits, the sort where your child ingests copious amounts of glue, licking the ends to stick them together. They look lovely but... we would have a go at making our own, for a fraction of the cost.

You will need:

unwanted Christmas catalogues

scissors or a guillotine

stapler 

I cut the paper into roughly similar widths and lengths then Natty began looping the strips through each other and holding them in place while I stapled them together. I was struck by how fiddly this was and what a super little exercise for developing her fine motor skills. Her Occupational Therapist would have been proud!

She even demanded to do it all by herself. The stapler was a little stiff for her small hands but with a bit of help she got the hang of it. 

The results were better than I could have imagined, we made meters of the cheap decorations over a few days. And more importantly Natty learnt a new life skill and she was kept occupied while getting over her tummy bug.

Happy Christmas artsy crafty creating!


Check out our Christmas Pinterest Ideas here. 
You might also like to read Painting a Triceratops: Fine Motor Skills Development here. Or try Christmas pretzel biscuits here.

The Christmas Nativity Star

Natty attends a mainstream primary school and last week Daddy Downs Side Up, Mia and I proudly watched her and her classmates perform in their second ever Christmas play.

Last year it was the traditional Nativity story, this year a jazzed up modern tale which included fish and penguins. Both were equally magical.

At least she wasn't rude to her fellow thespians like last year!

We rushed around to feed the girls after school, get them changed and returned for 5.30pm, all warmly wrapped against the chill of the dark December evening. We found a space to sit and chatted to other excited parents as we waited for the actors to ready themselves. 

As the action began to unfold, we sat and craned our necks to see a glimpse of our daughter past the heads of the other parents, all doing the same of course. Mia snuck down to the front of the hall and sat cross-legged, inches from her little sister. Once these optimum positions were found, all three of us didn't let Natty out of our sight for one moment, eager to catch every second of her festive role.

Well, the performance comprised some very nice singing, Natty joined in and all the words. There was dancing around the stage, waving wands and she knew exactly what she was doing and where to stand, interacting with her classmates perfectly.  She stayed where she should during the times when her group was not under the spotlight. Most of all, she was really enjoying herself.

There was also:

a little bit of nose picking, 

a small amount of fidgeting, 

a stand up and wave at Mummy 

a poke of her neighbour in the back with her wand

a couple of verses where she sat and yawned instead

"Oh dear," I thought.

And then I looked at her peers, all 30 or so of them, and I noticed these behaviours were, of course typical for any only-just-six year old. Mia had done exactly the same back in her day too.

And so, our Christmas play experience was much the same as yours I should expect, and that of your neighbour's children, your cousins and your neices. 

Each and every one a Christmas Star.

Marks and Spencer: Seb White Models

Oh finally. About time. And hoo-bloomin-ra!

A major high street chain are using a child with a disability in their tv ads.

Seb White in the M and S Xmas campaign

It's also the first time that M and S aren't employing celebs in their Xmas advertisement. 

Presumably following data suggesting that consumers felt the brand was out of touch with the average person.

Seb White is a gorgeous little boy that we know 'virtually' as he also features with Natty in the Jojo Maman Bebe catalogue for AW12. Marks and Spencer took him on after his Mum Caroline posted a photo of him on their Facebook page.

You can see a sneak preview of the ground-breaking ad here. I bet you'll love it as much as Natty did. Go Seb, go! 


To see Seb and some other ads featuring actors with disabilities hop over here to our YouTube list Disability in Advertising

See Downs Side Up's appearance on ITV Daybreak here. To read more about children with Down's Synrome who are modelling read Pioneers with Down's Syndrome

For a beautiful selection of photographs of children with Down's Syndrome modelling, check out our Pinterest Page

For details of Natty's modelling career so far read Natty, Model with Down's Syndrome

Listen to an Interview with Hayley from Downs Side Up on Heart Radio here.