Shannon Des Roches Rosa

All Posts

  1. From Blog to "Book of the Year": Thinking Person's Guide to Autism

    1/20/12 9:00am by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 4
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    thinking person's guide to autism

    The blog project I co-edit just published our first book, Thinking Person's Guide to Autism. The reviews are fantastic: "Geek Syndrome" journalist Steve Silberman named it his Book of the Year, author Dr.  Read more >

  2. Why Every Last Mother & Child Needs a Flu Shot

    12/5/11 4:59pm by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 6
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Flu Vaccine

    This is National Influenza Vaccination Week, and Every Child by Two and Families Fighting Flu are working hard to ensure that families, parents, and individuals are exposed to the most current influenza immunization information, the specific trends of this flu season, and the facts about influenza vaccines for children, pregnant women, and health care workers.  Read more >

  3. Disneyland: My Autistic Son's Land of Yes

    11/24/11 12:00pm by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 18
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    leo at disneyland

    Look, I grew up in Anaheim. Disneyland's fireworks exploded over our house every summer night, and I played Dopey the Dwarf in the Main Street Electrical Parade. I couldn't be more blasé about the house of Mouse, so if you told me that my former workplace would one day make me happy enough to cry, I'd have scoffed. But crying with happiness is exactly what happened during my autistic son Leo's birthday trip to Disneyland -- he had two full days of pure joy that melted my cold, hard, meh-filled heart. For my son, it really was a Magic Kingdom.  Read more >

  4. Very Necessary Holiday Gifts for Kids With Special Needs

    11/23/11 12:00pm by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 1
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Special needs gift guide

    The holiday shopping frenzy approaches! While most kids look forward to holiday gifts, extra-thoughtful gifts for kids with special needs are extra-appreciated. Our kids aren't always easy to shop for, but when giftors hit the mark -- with my son at least -- the appreciation fanfare is spectacular.  Read more >

  5. When Medicating Kids Goes Very, Very Wrong

    10/31/11 8:00am by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 21
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Leo and Shannon

    "I want you to consider taking some anti-anxiety medication. As in, tomorrow." I thanked her sincerely, told her I'd look into it, and left the medical center. I'd appreciated that quiet two-hour break from my computer and household chaos, even with the blood draws and chest x-rays. That was four months ago, and I still haven't taken the recommended medication, despite advice from both friends and professionals to do so. Why am I hesitant? Because it was my son's horrible reaction to anti-anxiety medication that helped land me in that clinic.  Read more >

  6. Science, Puppets and TV: An Interview with Halle Stanford of The Jim Henson Company

    9/22/11 9:00am by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 0
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Halle Sanford

    Halle Stanford is in charge of children's television development at The Jim Henson Company -- a job so cool Fast Company once interviewed her for an article on Dream Jobs. She shepherded shows like Dinosaur Train and Sid the Science Kid to children's screens around the world, and is part of the reason your preschooler may know more about science than you do.  Read more >

  7. How Dr. Seuss Got Inside Your iPad: Michel Kripalani of Oceanhouse Media

    9/6/11 11:03am by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 6
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can you? app

    I discovered the Dr. Seuss OmBooks apps earlier this year, while looking for ways my son Leo's iPad could support his emerging reading skills. Leo and I were both blown away by how beautifully Oceanhouse Media's apps retain Dr. Seuss's classic look and feel, while making his beloved stories accessible for readers of all levels.  Read more >

  8. Is it Still a Family Vacation Without My Autistic Son?

    8/23/11 8:00am by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 16
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Family vacation

    When we told people we were spending a week on a summer family vacation with our girls -- but without our son Leo, who has high-octane autism, responses varied. The best reactions stayed positive without dwelling on the details of our abandonment: "Wow, that sounds like fun, all that time in the San Juan Islands!" More well-intentioned reactions stoked my already-raging guilt-fires: "Well, you know, those girls really deserve a break, and so do you -- it's about time you had a regular family vacation."  Read more >

  9. New Study Shows Higher Autism Rates for Autism Siblings

    8/17/11 8:00am by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 7
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Mali, 1

    How likely is a child with autism to have an autistic sibling? The medical journal Pediatrics recently published results from the UC Davis MIND Institute's Infant Sibling Study, showing that nearly 20 percent of 664 infant siblings of children with autism -- infants who were tracked and evaluated from age six to thirty-six months -- developed an autism spectrum disorder. This rate is much higher than previous estimates of three to ten percent.  Read more >

  10. Interview: Jenni Holm, Triple Newbery Honor Author

    7/21/11 11:57am by Shannon Des Roc...
    • 0
    • Sparkle (
      )
       
    Jenni Holm by Amy Freidman

    You may think there are two authors named Jenni Holm: The winner of three Newbery Honors for her exuberant historical kid lit books Our Only May Amelia, Penny From Heaven, and, just recently, Turtle in Paradise; and the writer of two world-dominating graphic novels series:  Read more >

Shannon Des Roches Rosa

Full Name
Shannon Des Roches Rosa
Member Since
January 2006
About Me: 

I'm the BlogHer Contributing Editor on parenting children with special needs, and I'm at your service. 

I am more than a parent, but with three kids -- one of whom has autism -- the current playlist has parenting on heavy rotation. I am a kick-ass writer and editor, and have been blogging fearlessly and compassionately about parenting and autism since 2003, at www.Squidalicious.com. I'm also a co-founder and editor at the Thinking Person's Guide to Autism.

My work as an autism parenting and iPad advocate has been profiled in The New York Times, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, The Wall Street Journal, Redbook, PBS Parents, SF Weekly, Autism Speaks, and SF Gate. My radio interviews on autism parenting and blogging include KQED Forum, KCUR Central Standard, and News Talk KIRO. I've edited several anthologies and contributed stories to numerous books, including the award-winning My Baby Rides the Short Bus. I frequently speak at conferences, including BlogHer and UCSF Developmental Disabilities. I'm also a CafeMom's autism expert, and one of Babble.com's Top 25 Autism Bloggers.

I'm an unabashed geek, so my enthusiasms often outstrip my social skills. But I'm always happy to answer (and ask!) questions.

Location Tags: 

San Francisco Bay Area

Employers: 

BlogHer.com, Electronic Arts, The Learning Company, When.com

School Tags: 

UCLA, Syracuse

About Me Tags: 

parenting, autism, tolerance, activism, cephalopods, Thinking Person's Guide to Autism, advocacy

Causes Tags: 

The Thinking Person's Guide to Autism: www.thinkingautismguide.com
SEPTAR: www.septar.org
Can I Sit With You?: www.CanISitWithYou.org

Shannon Des Roches Rosa's Followers

More >

 

Conferences


BlogHer '12

The BlogHer Annual Conference is heading back to New York City on August 2-4, 2012! Join thousands of other bloggers, writing on every topic under the sun, for 3 days of learning, networking, and fun. Register today!

Learn more about BlogHer conferences.

Subscribe to our newsletters.
Follow our RSS feed.