Turning screen time into constructive screen time that becomes a valuable tool in a child with autism’s speech therapy is one of the goals of Speech Blubs. I talked with founder Mitja Mavsar about the positive role his speech development app has for children who have a variety of speech issues.
Everyone feels useful and productive through a job, but for the autism community, where nearly 80% of them are unemployed, it can be hard to break through that barrier and enjoy that feeling. Ann Marie Sullivan’s company Spectrum Works seeks to be that bridge between unemployment and productive employment for the autism community.
When a child with autism begins to speak for the first time, it can be tempting for parents or professionals to rush ahead and teach them adjectives, verbs, and phrases as fast as they can. Building the speech foundation for a child with autism must be done carefully over time, so today I want to lay out some common mistakes you should avoid because they actually disrupt speech patterns.
Video modeling is a powerful, evidence-based tool that can help children learn to talk. I had a client who I'm going to talk to you about whose name is Kurt and he went from having 10 words in two hours to having a hundred words in two hours using this powerful tool: video modeling. Using…
How do you break free from autism stereotypes? For Dr. Kerry Magro, a TV consultant, public speaker, and best-selling author, you leave behind stereotypes every time you show a realistic portrayal of the many different kinds of people with autism. Representation in media matters to him, and that’s why he works so hard with other self-advocates to share an accurate and varied picture of autism in television and film.
Children with autism often experience other medical issues, including anxiety. Today, I'm discussing the different types of anxiety that you may be seeing in your child or clients and I'm also going to give you next steps that you should take if your child has autism and anxiety. Chrissy was one of my clients at…
When my son, Lucas, celebrated his 18th birthday, he officially became an adult. He participated in some autism jobs for a few years prior to his 18th birthday through his IEP at school. The next summer as part of an Extended School Program (ESY), Lucas started volunteering at a local hotel for an hour each…
Hand Flapping in Kids with Autism Hand flapping is a common self stimulatory behavior for kids with autism. Today, I'm talking all about hand flapping and giving you insight on what to do about it. Have you ever been in a lecture where the material is way too easy or completely over your head? Or…
I’ve been consulting with children and a few adults with autism for many years now. I had a revelation soon after I published my book The Verbal Behavior Approach. I now believe that there are three main skills every child and adult with autism needs to be successful. These skills for autism, I believe, are the...
Rather than simply hoping a child with autism picks up social and play skills, I believe that it’s imperative for parents, caregivers, and therapists to purposefully teach these skills. But before a child can run, they have to learn how to crawl. I share the developmentally appropriate language skills, and some strategies to teach them, that can help children with autism develop a language foundation on which to build social and play skills.
