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How My Family Faces Roadblocks… got lots of individual attention, speech and occupational therapy.  When it came time to enter Kindergarten, his teacher supported him going into a regular classroom with an aide, which is what my daughter wanted as well. The principal was on … want either of these options (a roadblock), so her team (the speech and occupational therapist, plus his pre-K teacher) regrouped and came up with an IEP plan that had lots of supports, including preferential seating, a behavior modification plan, options to test in a small group setting, etc. At …
Expert Q&A: Dr. Ryan Adams shares tips and resources to end bullying… in the UC Department of Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, a member site of the Autism Speaks-supported Autism Care Network . His research focuses on adolescents, peer victimization, bullying and depressive symptoms.   … some examples of strategies you offer in the guides?  We know the most effective way to stop bullying is giving the larger group of bystanders the tools they need to recognize when it’s happening and get involved. A lot of times, people get away … with bullying by saying they were kidding, so we teach kids that doesn’t matter. Then, we give them different strategies to support the person being bullied. For example, the easiest thing to do if you witness bullying in school is not to laugh. …
Meet Tyler H. … does he live on campus in a dorm suite with two other students, he’s thriving in all of his classes thanks to the extra support he receives as a member of the SUCCEED Program, a post-secondary program for students with intellectual and … Tyler’s parents credit their son’s amazing strides into adulthood to crucial early intervention services, a caring and supportive group of family members and kindhearted friends who always stood by his side and his strong will to make the most of his …
Sweet Treats… Have Dreams is an Evanston/Park Ridge autism resource agency. Since 2013, ilovesweets has partnered with Have Dreams to support their workplace training program for young adults with autism. At ilovesweets and other area businesses, … business, workplace, and marketing are inspired by individuals with autism and their unique strengths and abilities. Your support allows us to grow and share our gourmet popcorn creations and our caring mission to benefit those with autism. … Spectrum Bakes Spectrum Bakes is a social enterprise dedicated to providing jobs to young adults with autism. A group that faces a 92% unemployment rate. We bake all of our products in small batches, we ensure mouth-watering tastes & a …
Spanish resources help bilingual families in the autism community overcome language barriers … appointment, Berlina Felipe did her research. She had a year during that wait, reading about what to expect and how to plan supports for her son, Alex. “When he did get diagnosed at age 4, even though I was already prepared, it was still hard,” … Both of Jair’s grandmothers, who took care of him when he was young, attended the Spanish classes as well to learn how to support him. “Years later, my mom told us she is so glad that we got all the early intervention,” Gaby said. “And that we … their classes and resources in Spanish. Based on participant feedback, they also sometimes separate dads and moms into two groups to encourage each group to talk more openly. Alex’s family made sure to learn from his providers and school contacts …
Recognizing and preventing sexual abuse… to stay calm, listen carefully, and NEVER blame the child. Thank the child for telling you and reassure him or her of your support. Call for help immediately. If you know or suspect that a child is being or has been sexually abused, please call: … There are a number of treatments for children who have been sexually abused, including: Individual therapy Family therapy Group therapy Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy Child-centered therapy From  American Psychological Association   …
Girls, genes and autism… , at the University of Washington, in Seattle. I want to start by saying "thank you" to the Autism Speaks community for its support of my research. My Weatherstone Fellowship launched my scientific career by helping fund my first big study – into … and I wanted to use a relatively new gene-sequencing technique – called exome sequencing – to sequence  all  the genes in a group of girls and women on the autism spectrum.  [Editor’s note: Standard genetic testing involves the sequencing of only a … disrupted the normal formation of synapses – the vital connections that link brain cells with each other. This finding supported earlier evidence that problems with brain connectivity are a root cause of autism. In addition, we found many …
Meet Azeem K.… For the first 10 months of his life, Azeem was hitting many of the same developmental milestones as the children in his playgroups – sitting, crawling, walking – but other things didn’t come as naturally.  Although their son’s lack of “baby talk” … meaningful days. Today, Azeem is seven years old and benefiting from a variety of therapies, educational and behavioral supports, and an outpouring of encouragement from family, friends and the autism community. He still struggles with … help him to become independent one day. How has Azeem's sister, Aneesa, played a role in providing him with guidance and support through the years? Aneesa is like his right-hand man. Even though she’s just three years old, she sticks up for him …
Travel & autism: Five tips for success with toilet issues while on the road… etc. But they may still commonly fail to use these skills at the right times. This seems to be particularly true for two groups of children: Those who have recently learned the skill of toileting but for whom it’s still not yet an established … a public restroom or otherwise following a vacation schedule. Here are some techniques for doing so: #3 Consider visual supports On your next vacation, it may be helpful to use a visual support such as a schedule board with bathroom breaks listed or “First-Then” boards (e.g., “First bathroom, then trip to the …
ATN@Work: Personalizing hospital care for children with autism… the lead author of an Autism Treatment Network study that helped develop a model program for tailoring in-patient care to support kids with autism At Mass General Hospital for Children, Dr. Sarabeth Broder-Fingert  discusses a patient’s … Right after that eye-opening experience, I thought there must be other hospitals that have developed ways to support children and families affected by autism when they come into the hospital. So I set out to find these programs and … would then go in the child’s hospital file for every member of their care team to see. One caveat, the clinicians in the group cautioned, was that if the document was more than, say three page, it might not get used. So we needed to create a …