Category Archives: Daily Living Skills

Pick of the Week: NEW On-Task On-Time Timer

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Help your child gain independence with the brand new On-Task On-Time scheduler and timer. This is a unique time management system that organizes three important routines of the day during the Morning (getting ready for school), Afternoon (school to home transition), and Night (getting ready for bed). Just apply one of the 52 task stickers on the routine disk, insert the disk to the unit and the individualized schedule for your child is complete. Turn stressful transition times into structured, self-esteem building experiences. Each unit includes the timer, 3 routine disks, a set of boy and girl stickers, two markers, and a wall hanger.

This week only, save 15% on this great new scheduling tool – the On-Time On-Task Timer – by entering the Promo Code BLOGONTOT at checkout.

*Offer expires on October 10, 2012 at 11:59 pm EST. Not compatible with any other offer. Be sure there are no spaces after the Promo Code when you enter it at checkout.

Pick of the Week: Token Boards and Reward Charts

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It can be a tall task to structure children’s days and reinforce good habits and behaviors. Daily chores such as getting dressed, brushing teeth, making the bed, and getting out the door on time can lead to a bit more excitement than desired. Token Boards and Reward Charts are a great way of visually structuring the tasks at hand and providing tangible reinforcement for a job well done. There’s the I Can Do It! Reward chart which covers all sorts of daily activities such as Get Dressed, Set the Table, and Say Please and Thank You. The I Can Do It! School Chart specifically organizes the early morning rush while teaching children independent, daily living skills. We even have charts specifically for Potty Training and Brushing Teeth.

This week only, save 15% on all of our Token Boards and Reinforcers by entering the Promo Code BLOGTBR2 at checkout.

*Offer expires on January 17, 2012 at 11:59 pm EST. Not compatible with any other offer. Be sure there are no spaces after the Promo Code when you enter it at checkout.

Pick of the Week: Small Steps, Big Skills Video Modeling Game

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This week’s pick at a 15% discount is Small Steps, Big Skills which is an evidence-based video modeling game that teaches 22 skills for independence. The software combines Applied Behavior Analysis methods of video modeling and least-to-most prompting by having players watch the skill being completed and then practicing it in a game format. The interactive program rewards players with 8 fun games and shows a wide variety of materials to promote generalization skills. The skill areas covered in the program are: Helping in the Kitchen, Getting Ready for the Day, Helping at Home, Cafeteria Time, My Clean Room, and Time to Relax.

To save 15% on Small Steps, Big Skills this week only, enter the Promo Code BLOGSSBS at checkout.

*Offer expires on October 18, 2011 at 11:59 pm EST. Not compatible with any other offer. Be sure there are no spaces after the Promo Code when you enter it at checkout.

 

Special Needs Talk Radio has debuted!

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Coffee Klatch, a corporation dedicated to providing resources and educational programs for families with special needs children, has a new sister company called Special Needs Talk Radio which features interviews with leading experts, advocates and more in the field of Special Needs. Special Needs Talk Radio debuted on September 6 and will present six new shows hosted by twelve different moderators. This new network is aimed at providing parents with the most current news and information covering a wide range of special education topics.

The network will present six shows that will be broadcasted weekly and are currently scheduled to run through mid-October. They cover topics from Parenting Issues, Raising children with ASD, Special Education and the Law, Inclusion and more. The website also offers interactive features that allow users to be actively engaged in the content by suggesting topics, making comments, and asking questions that can be answered during the live shows.

To find the show schedule and to learn more about each program and upcoming guests, visit:

Special Needs Talk Radio

Peer Pals

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is a wonderful not-for-profit dedicated to building communities of inclusion for children with disabilities as they enter kindergarten. Peerpals.org matches preschool age children with typically developing children in their communities for one-on-one play dates. Peer Pals also facilitates group play dates in developmentally appropriate settings supervised by special education professionals.

This program strives to build local communities and give a child with a disability a support system of typically developing peers upon entering school.  Having a typically developing child as a friend, or even as a peer model, is a wonderful thing. You can sign your child up or if you’re a professional who would like to donate some of your time, you can become a volunteer.

Fire Safety Resources

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There is no one piece of advice that I offer more than “Prepare your child.”  We all know that children with autism tend to be inflexible in their adherence to routine.  Any unexpected change in their daily schedule can present emotional and behavioral difficulties for all involved.  That is why it is important to prepare your child for any  potential disruptions.  This includes fire safety and it just so happens that the National Fire Protection Association has created some great resources to help you.  Check out the social story that can be customized to include your child’s personal information below!

National Fire Protection Association Fire Safety Flip Book

Sparky the Fire Dog Website

In-school convenience store proposed for students with special needs

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would house a convenience store inside the school. The goal would be to teach students in special education vocational skills to enhance their future opportunities for employment. Interesting idea! Do you know of any other schools or organizations that offer vocational training such as this?

Thinking About All the Parents Out There…

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With the holidays approaching we all know that gift giving will soon be in full swing.  This undoubtedly means that your families will be generously bestowed with electronic cause and effect toys.  These types of toys help to stimulate development as your child discovers the function of the toy and how to elicit certain responses from the object.  Children with special needs tend to have a longer relationship with these types of toys as they often serve as powerful reinforcers, meet ongoing sensory needs and continue to provide opportunities to address language and motor development.  Additionally, it may take a special needs child longer to master this type of play before moving onto more imaginative and creative play.  What I’m getting at is that these toys are going to be in your house longer and some of them are LOUD.  So when I came across the following post on Apartment Therapy the other day it jumped out at me as a piece vital information for all of you special needs parents out there.  We are always thinking about adaptations for toys and games for the kids but what about the parents?  A former sound engineer for children’s sound books shares a secret on how to turn down the volume on these toys.

Check it out and Happy Holidays!

Bringing Down the Volume on Electronic Toys

Preparing for Thanksgiving at School

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This is an interesting article about students with special needs at Dexter Middle school “practicing” a Thanksgiving meal. We thought this was a fantastic idea! By preparing children for what to expect at a holiday gathering and meal, either in school or at home, perhaps some anxiety and behavioral issues can be avoided. Do any of you “practice” the holidays to avoid stress and make the event easier for your children?

Video Modeling by Mary Beth Palo of Watch Me Learn

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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!