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Wednesday, December 28, 2016

The Important Difference Between Conversation and Communication with Autism

But first, you must understand five things:
  1. Communication is about reciprocity
It is not about one person dominating the conversation, and it is certainly not about word production or the number of words being used…
Communication is about how effectively those words are used in a back-and-forth exchange. It is about being interested in what your partner shares; it’s about reciprocity.
One of my students was in the habit of asking the mothers who came to our center what they had cooked that day. The delighted mothers would answer elaborately.  But he was not interested in their answers. In fact, he didn’t even wait for them!
He probably had been taught to ask certain questions to increase his ‘wh’ repertoire.

Read more here at Autism Parenting Magazine.

Monday, December 26, 2016

How to Desensitize Autistic Children

Many autistic children are born with significant sensory issues. They can be startling, upsetting, or even painful to the individual. This article explains how to methodically reduce sensitivities in vision, hearing, and touch using gradual exposure.



Read more here on wikiHow.

1 in 150 children in Singapore has autism

The data on developmental problems came from KK Women's and Children's Hospital and the National University Hospital, which diagnose such disorders in children six years and below.
The children's conditions include autism, speech and language delays, behavioural problems and global development delay.
The panel behind the roadmap identified the rising number of people with autism as a key trend affecting the disability sector, and said it was important for future services to address the wide spectrum of needs.
The consensus among experts is that Singapore's high autism rate and the rise in the number of people with autism are likely due to more awareness and testing, and to the wider parameters of the autism spectrum, rather than a greater prevalence of autism.

Read more here at The Straits Times.

Friday, December 23, 2016

How to Build and Implement Programs for Students with Autism

Billings
January 25 and 26, 2017
9:00 am. to 4:00 p.m.
Big Horn Resort
Day 1: How To Build A Program For a Student With Autism
  • What to look for in the diagnosis report
  • Examine programs and assessments to gather meaningful data
  • How to conduct an ER for a child with Autism
  • Develop an IEP with meaningful goals based on data
  • How to create a daily schedule and integrate IEP goals
  • Examine 4 profiles for children with autism and how their programs differ
  • Discuss/Create visual supports that may be helpful with your students
Day 2: How To Implement a Program For a Student With Autism
  • How to take data on goals from the IEP every day
  • How to integrate IEP goals throughout the day
  • How to help the student generalize skills
  • How to conduct a reinforcer assessment
  • How to implement a token economy
  • How to use a visual schedule
  • How to create a task analysis
  • How to use visual supports  throughout the day
Twelve OPI renewal units will be available for this training. This training is FREE from the OPI Montana Autism Education Project.

* Attendance is limited to 45 people.*

This workshop is intended for paraeducators and special education teachers. You can request to attend the workshop here.  You will be informed on January 11th if you have been chosen to attend the workshop. A block of sleeping rooms are available at the hotel.



Presenters:

Lorri Coulter has been an itinerant school psychologist for 14 years.  Currently she provides services to the Prairie View Special Service cooperative in Glendive, Montana. She is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and is now part of an Evaluation & Diagnostic Team and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale (ADOS) team in eastern Montana. When she is not on the road she lives with her husband Rod on the family ranch in Brusett and spends every other minute in her art studio.  

Chelsea Phipps is a ranch wife, mother, and speech language pathologist. She currently runs her own private practice.  One of her favorite things about being an SLP is helping kids learn to communicate with AAC devices. 



Thursday, December 22, 2016

Understanding the spectrum

I hear alot of people misinterpreting or misusing the term ‘autism spectrum’. So for Autism Acceptance week, I decided to make a comic to help explain the term and how it affects things. Archie is one of the reasons I became so interested/knowledgeable in autism (I like to go all out in research when I write characters for comics n such) so he’s the one presenting everything! 

See more here.