Raising Neurotypical Children with Siblings with a Disability

Search online for articles about Autism, and parents will discover endless choices. Published data about the demographics of disabilities (age, income, race, adult incidence, etc.) could fill a large notebook. However, there is little known about the effect of a brother or sister with a disability on a neurotypical sibling.

All siblings of children with disabilities have to find a way to cope, and there is no one right way to do it. Sometimes it can lead to negative consequences, like feeling isolated or a need to be perfect in order to make up for the sibling’s challenges. But there are also positive consequences that have been documented such as an increased capacity for empathy, greater tolerance for individual differences and resiliency (Braaten, 2022).

In this webinar, Natalie Hale, author of the book, Oh, Brother! Growing Up With A Special Needs Sibling, discusses the joys and challenges of raising neurotypical children with a sibling with disabilities.

Parents, guardians and caregivers who view this webinar can expect to:

• Hear the ups and downs of raising differently-abled children
• Learn strategies to manage the various types of situations with their differently-abled children
• Recognize that, as parents, they are not alone—other families live with siblings who have different abilities

MEET THE SPEAKER

Natalie Hale is an award-winning author, innovative educator, parent of an adult son with Down syndrome, and for over 30 years, a national and international speaker on the topic of teaching reading to learners with Down syndrome, autism, and other delays.

She is the author of several books, including “Oh, Brother! Growing Up With A Special Needs Sibling,” published by the American Psychological Association.

Natalie currently lives in Los Angeles. She continues to teach parents and educators across the country and across borders (Bulgaria, India, and Canada so far) through her workshops.

MADE POSSIBLE BY:

REFERENCES

Braaten, E. (2022). Growing up with a sibling with a disability. The Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds. https://www.mghclaycenter.org/parenting-concerns/growing-up-with-a-sibling-with-a-disability/

Maenner, M., Shaw, K., Bakian, A., Bilder, D., Durkin, M., Esler, A., Furnier, S., Hallas, L., Hall-Lande,J., Hudson, A., Hughes, M., Patrick, M., Pierce, K., Poynter, J., Salinas, A., Shenouda, J., Vehorn, A., Warren, Z., Constantino, J., DiRienzo, M.,…Cogswell, M. (2018). Prevalence and characteristics of autism spectrum disorder among children aged 8 years — Autism and developmental disabilities monitoring network, 11 sites, United States. Center for Disease Control. Surveillance Summaries, 70(11);1–16.
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/ss/ss7011a1.htm>