Here’s another free, great tip from Rethink Autism on Halloween.
And don’t forget to check out the Difflearn YouTube channel for Halloween pre-teaching videos and schema on pirates, superheroes, astronauts and more. We hope you all have a safe and happy Halloween with lots of treats!
We came across this article that suggested potential previously undetected language delays in siblings of children with autism. For those parents out there with more than one child, do you agree or disagree with the findings in this article?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101001105218.htm
I am a HUGE fan of the Radiolab program on National Public Radio (NPR) and just had to share this one. I’ll admit that the Radiolab podcasts are usually my escape from work and a time to think about something different. However, the podcast ‘Words’ focuses on the role language plays in our thinking. It offers several interesting perspectives on language development and non-verbal individuals that really moved me. There is no mention of autism but so much of what is discussed felt relevant to this population. I hope you will listen in…
Mary Beth is a dear friend of ours. Many of you know her as the amazing mother who used video modeling to help her son learn to speak. From there came the Watch Me Learn Video Series which has received near unanimous praise. Here are her thoughts on Video Modeling and how Watch Me Learn came to be.
“I was fortunate enough to see Temple Grandin speak years ago…. before she became a star….. I went to the presentation on a whim – I guess to get out of the house (pathetic right?) Being the mother of an autistic child leads you to do things that a “normal” person wouldn’t be caught dead doing! At the time, I believe that she only had one book published; Thinking in Pictures.
In that book and in her presentation she referred to her thought process as going back in her mind, retrieving a video tape from her mind’s library and then playing the proper video to think/see…. This hit me like a 2×4 across the head….
I am mostly an auditory thinker….. so I guess it didn’t dawn on me that this could be so impactful on educating. Couple this information with 2 years of therapy for my son with no progress, and a light bulb went off in my head. Pure desperation led me to video modeling. After my first attempt at VM, as a result my son was speaking within 2 ½ weeks. Well, needless to say, video became my life and my son just kept learning and learning. Video was our main teacher and our therapy hours were used for generalizing the skills he learned on video.
Video modeling can be used in sooooo many ways – self modeling, peer modeling, etc… and it can be used to teach sooooo many skills – from simple receptive language, imitation skills to complex social skills. Research supports video modeling as an evidence-based teaching method and it has been recognized by the CEC(Council for Exceptional Children) as a valid means of teaching. The research exists and more will be coming.
Now, when I teach my son, I always have visuals. Of course, he was most successful with video, but after years of strictly video, we have been able to branch out into other visual inputs. The learning is always faster with visual inputs ….. even in 6th grade when we are using cookie dough and chocolate chips to make a visual model of the atom nucleus – who would have thought?
Why does it work? Well, I don’t have the scientific answer to that – as I have yet to find a study researching the brain activity while watching VM. Watching children for years and knowing how and what they react to, it is easy to see the reason why VM works. Children love tv, children love other children, children have an inherent desire to be social and VM provides not only repetition but also removes outside distractions enabling a child to concentrate on one thing.
Today, there are many VM products on the market. These products allow you an easy way to experiment with VM and a great learning opportunity for your children. VM can also be done in the home, school, therapy and out in public. You need to decide what is best for you and the child.
I am the proud mother of Brett Palo – a 12 year old boy who is now mainstreamed in 6th grade. Without VM, he would not be there. As a result of his success with VM and a zillion phone calls from other desperate mothers, Watch Me Learn Videos were created. Watch Me Learn’s goal is to teach children in their natural environment – at home, in school and most importantly through play! A child’s job is to play – let them do their job and learn at the same time! They will learn without even knowing it!
Eden II in New York has a wonderful Running Club for their students. We love the story behind it, the ease with which they implemented it and think it’s a fantastic idea for any school or agency as a way to get kids into shape and out into the community. Here’s their story: 
In early 2008, Randy Horowitz, Associate Executive Director of Educational Services at Eden II tried to get the staff together to run for better health. Johanne and Chickie, both behavior specialists, thought it could be a good way to include both students and teachers. And so, the Eden II running club began with a small group of student who were selected by age, weight and the ability to be outside without engaging in difficult behaviors.
Originally they had seven students aged 10 and above but the program grew as more parents found out about the club and wanted their children to participate in a mainstream activity. There are now 58 members at two program sites. A new club, the Pee Wee Running Club for students 5-9, began a year ago and already has 25 members.
Each club goes out once a week. The older students go out to Clove Lakes Park or to the Eltingville YMCA indoor track, depending on the weather. For safety reasons, the Pee Wee Running Club trains only at the Eltingville YMCA indoor track.
Every parent is asked about her child’s daily routine and current level of physical activity before individual training plans are created. The goals are kept very simple, “will walk 20 consecutive minutes before stopping to rest”. A familiar staff person from each student’s classroom is assigned to work with him during training sessions. That staff person is responsible for keeping the child safe and hydrated as well as modeling and prompting stretching techniques. Most students quickly adjust to the routine of walking and jogging around a track or along the park’s running path.
Timers and verbal praise are used to encourage some students to continue walking orjogging until they can take a break. Students with fewer cognitive challenges are also learning about proper nutrition while working with staff during running club outings.
There have been a lot of surprises. It was never expected that some of the kids jogging and even walking without prompting. The kids genuinely like it and have fun doing it. Some of them have lost weight, and many of them are a lot calmer for the rest of the day after getting out for some physical activity in the morning.
Johannes runs with a particular student every Monday. He loves trying to break his record and feels so proud of himself afterward. One of the things his mom stressed when he became part of the running club was that he had little to no self-confidence, and she’s very happy that running seems to have helped immensely with his self esteem. To keep him motivated, he is given some kind of award certificate every time he breaks his record.
Randy, Johannes and Chickie believe this model could work for other agencies, because it doesn’t require anything complicated. Just keep the goals simple, and as long as safety, transportation and staffing aren’t issues, any school can start a running club.
Many children look forward to Halloween with the costumes, candy, parties and being with friends. However, for parents of children with autism the approach of October 31 and the extra challenges might bring about stress and anxiety. Here are some tips to help it go more smoothly.
Check out our new YouTube page, it’s a work in progress but we hope to do all the work for you in finding relevant clips for teaching and reinforcement.
This is an interesting article about a school district in Ohio that is using Ipads with students with developmental disabilities. We were particularly struck by the way they’re using it to appeal to students by engaging all of their senses and providing reinforcement.
We had the best Saturday night ever! Julie treated the Difflearn gals to the taping of the Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Concert for Autism Education at the Beacon Theatre in NYC.
Hosted by Jon Stewart, we were treated to side-splitting appearances by Tina Fey, Chris Rock, Ricky Gervais, Steve Carrell, and many others with live performances by Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings!
We won’t spoil it for you – the show is going to air on October 21, at 9 pm EST on Comedy Central – but some highlights included how much people will actually pay to meet George Clooney and what it’s worth to have Chris Rock call someone you’re really mad at. Temple Grandin was in the audience and our good friend Dr. Bridget Taylor was featured in one of the segments.
The event was incredible, both in the hilarity of the performers and in the intense generosity of the attendees. We were particularly impressed at how tuned-in the organizers were to the real and pressing needs not just of children with autism, but of their families and their futures and how it will continue to impact them across the lifespan.
This is the third time that Jon Stewart has teamed up with Comedy Central to put on this event and to date, they have raised more than $7 million for autism education!!!!
The money raised benefits a variety of autism education and family service programs across the country. In 2008, the benefit raised over $2.8 million dollars, with money going to:
This year, one of the new initiatives is the Institute for Brain Development, an all-inclusive center positioned to undertake collaborative research into the most effective treatment of autism spectrum disorders. It will be a collaboration between New York Center for Autism, New York Presbyterian and it’s medical schools of Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and Weill Cornell Medical College.
Please tell your friends and do tune in on October 21 at 9pm. The show is fantastic and there will be more opportunities to contribute to an excellent cause.
The MotivAider is consistently one of our top sellers here at Different Roads to Learning. It’s a versatile and helpful tool that can be used for anything from prompting a child to engage in play to toilet training. The MotivAider vibrates at timed intervals to prompt an individual to engage in a specific behavior. This is an interesting article about how it is specifically used with children with ADD. Have any of you used the MotivAider as a way to teach or change certain behaviors? How have you used it and for what? We’d love to hear your experiences.
This week’s free autism tip covers an important topic that helps enable your child to adapt to his/her daily surroundings. One of Rethink Autism’s special education professionals guides you through teaching your child how to apply what he/she has learned in a classroom setting to necessary skills utilized in everyday life. This tip is an effective tool to help your child develop these transferable skills.