Extinction is a behavioral principle used in applied behavior analysis (ABA). It can be used to reduce or eliminate an unwanted behavior such as disruptive behaviors, tantrums, swearing, whining, aggressive, as well as self injurious behavior.
To learn more visit this site.
We received this email from one of our Kearney members:
My pastor’s wife recently sent this email out regarding a great resource for those on the Gluten Free diet. The Berean church planting pastor in Boulder, CO has food allergies and has to be on a gluten-free diet. His wife, Julie, has given special attention to his diet needs and for the past year has been working to start a new magazine for people with similar diet problems. That magazine is just being launched and the web site link below gives further information. I hope this may be helpful to some of you.
The magazine web site is: www.delightgfmagazine.com
Thanks for sharing this resource Kristen!
(For more tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
Families for Effective Autism Treatment or FEAT of Nebraska was founded by parents of autistic children. FEAT of Nebraska is a non-profit, 501(c) (3) organization for parents and families of children with autism.
FEAT of Nebraska believes that newly diagnosed children with autism should receive intensive, quality, effective treatment that is based in research. FEAT’s mission is to provide education to families and the community on effective autism treatments, and to provide support to families seeking effective treatments for their children on the autism spectrum.
To learn more visit www.featofnebraska.com
(For more tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
Don’t be overwhelmed. Pick an autism topic and take it one step at a time. It is daunting but no one will ever be as much an expert on your loved one than you are (except maybe your loved one)! There are literally hundreds of books about autism and you are not going to be able to read them all. Get referals from other parents or teachers about what books they have found helpful. (We have a growing list of recommended resources on our site) And be sure and save your funds by borrowing books and buying only those that you know you will need to reference over and over again!
The Autism Spectrum Disorders Network houses an amazing collection of books, DVDs and other autism materials. These are available for educational professionals AND parents to checkout for FREE. This is a great way to browse through material before you spend the money to buy! Some titles just might become your parenting handbook while others won’t live up to the hype. This is a GREAT way to make sure you spend your money on the books that are really going to help!
If you are a newly diagnosed autism parent, you need to read her books.
If you are a veteran autism parent, you should revisit her books again. You’ll get something new out of them every time.
Temple Grandin is an inspiration to us all and an amazing voice for individuals with autism.
http://www.templegrandin.com/templehome.html
(For previous tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
O.A.S.I.S. is a resource created by parents of children who are diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome. It provides information for families of children diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome and related disorders, educators who teach children with AS, professionals working with individuals diagnosed with AS, and individuals with AS who are seeking support.
There is a wealth of information at this site!
(For previous tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
Confused by all the “biomedical” talk? Here is a good link that provides background of the multitude of possible therapies that fit under this category.
http://www.generationrescue.org/biomedical.html
(For previous tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
A previous tip gave an overview of the Relationship Development Intervention RDI® Program and why Dr. Steven Gutstein developed it. One of the most important and fundamental principles of RDI is “guided participation”. The idea here is to have a parent, teacher, or older sibling guide the individual with autism through an activity or interaction so they make discoveries. For example, the emphasis in RDI is for individuals with autism to make discoveries about people – rather than telling them what they should do or expect in a situation, etc. Once a discovery has been made, then it can be built upon so that the individual with autism becomes increasingly nuanced in their understanding of how people and the world work. An important goal of guided participation is to transfer wisdom and let the autistic child make discoveries so they develop thinking skills and a sense of competence. RDI is a cognitive program where the goal is to develop brain connections not made during infancy.
Hopefully we will know more in the upcoming weeks about the status of this waiver. The Autism Society of Nebraska will be sending any updates and IF we need to rally the troops to make calls or send emails we will let you know! For now, we ask that everyone work on building your own personal network. Talk to your friends and family and work on creating a team of supporters who will join you in sending emails. Then when we put out a call to action we will have even more voices speaking up to make sure our message is heard. This will be critical in any advocacy measures… Medicaid waiver or anything else that might come our way!
Thank you to everyone who contacted their senators!
(For more tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
What is Relationship Development Intervention?
Relationship Development Intervention (RDI) was developed by Dr. Steven Gutstein. This is an intervention program designed to remediate the cognitive processing deficits of autism, and focuses heavily on developing these through the autistic child’s relationship with their parents. The goal of the RDI® Program is to provide people on the autism spectrum with the potential to attain a higher quality of life (e.g., the ability to have meaningful friendships, live independently as adults, marry, etc.).
Friendships represent a significant and important role in most of our lives. Developing and maintaining those relationships seems to come ‘natural’ for most of us, something we were born knowing how to do. However, friendship building is difficult for individuals on the autism spectrum. The “Circle of Friends” process can help students learn to build relationships with peers and increase their overall sense of belonging as well as participating in the social sector.
For more detailed information visit the iCAN training modules.
Or check out this site for Nebraska’s 2008 Teacher of the Year, Mary Schlieder. Mary has a book out titled, “With Open Arms: Creating School Communities of Support for Socially Challenged Kids Using Circle of Friends, Extracurricular Activities, and Staff Learning Teams”. This book will give parents and school staff practical, easy to use tools to create a welcoming school community for kids with social challenges. Best of all, Mary is a Nebraska teacher and willing to come speak to local parent groups. You can contact her at mary@schoolswithopenarms.com.
(For more tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
A Social Story™ describes a situation, skill, or concept in terms of relevant social cues, perspectives, and common responses in a specifically defined style and format. The goal of a Social Story™ is to share accurate social information in a patient and reassuring manner that is easily understood by its audience. Half of all Social Stories™ developed should affirm something that an individual does well. Although the goal of a Story™ should never be to change the individual’s behavior, that individual’s improved understanding of events and expectations may lead to more effective responses.
excerpted from The Gray Center. To learn more about Carol Gray and the Gray Center visit www.thegraycenter.org
or you can see examples and learn more about how social stories can be used at the iCAN training module site.
(For more tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
Generation Rescue is an international movement of scientists, physicians and parent-volunteers researching the causes and treatments for autism and mentoring thousands of families in recovering their children from autism.
Are you wondering what biomedical treatment is all about? Start here.
(For more tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
Our daily lives are made up of an endless stream of thoughts, decisions, actions and reactions to the people and environment in which we live. The internal and external actions fit together. Sometimes seamlessly. Sometimes not. This is largely dependent upon a set of invisible yet highly important skills we call Executive Functioning (EF). These skills, which involve planning, organizing, sequencing, prioritizing, shifting attention, and time management can be well-developed in some people (think traffic controllers, wedding planners, business CEOs, etc.) and less developed in others. They are vital in all parts of life, from making coffee to running a profitable business. The skills develop naturally, without specific, formal training, and we all have them to some degree - or at least, we all assume we all have them.
Women historically have dominated teaching fields, and autism education is no different. But among autistic students, the ratio of boys to girls is almost reversed. So, what happens when all those boys become teenagers? Who teaches them some of the basics of male behavior - how to avoid fights, how to horseplay, how to act in a public restroom?
Check out this story.
And this is an interesting video that might help you out. Please keep in mind that some topics are just down right hard to teach and this is about as “clean” and open of a discussion as you can have. Probably more appropriate for our older guys…but they all have to learn it! Yeah. It is a bit uncomfortable but then there are a lot of uncomfortable topics we have to cover, huh? Maybe this will help you — or maybe not. You decide.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGGVuNI43z0
(For more tips please visit our Autism News section where everything is archived!)
