I was doing a workshop recently and asked for some feedback from the group. One of the participants commented, “Well, I just got a swift kick in the b___.”

Really?
We started to talk. She’s a “believer” in visual strategies. She uses them. But what she realized during the course of the workshop is that what she USED to do is not what she does now. She has drifted away from her basics. It’s a bit like going off your diet.

The good intentions fade away
One of the important principles for managing the challenges of autism is consistency. In spite of that, one of the biggest problems people can encounter with using visual strategies is consistency.

Consistency?
It’s one of the big secrets to success in using visual strategies for our students with ASD. Out of consistency comes trust and a predictable life. That’s what our students need and crave and desire.

The middle of the school year is tricky. It’s too easy to forget the power of the visual tools. By now, students seem to be doing better because they have become familiar with so many of those routines we established in the beginning of the school year. That can lead to complacency and forgetting to use the visual tools that work.

I’ve consulted with teachers
In the beginning of the school year they diligently work to start new routines with some visual tools to help their students overcome those challenges that come with a new environment.

By the middle of the year they drift away from using those tools that worked so well. Then the teachers start asking me questions about the behavior problems that seem to be popping up all over the place. They want to know why.

There’s some interesting research
Here’s what it says. We know what works, but half of us don’t do what we know works. My question is this. Why?

What prevents consistency?
It takes time to make visual tools. Some people feel they don’t know what to do. Or they don’t know how to do it. Or they think they have everything they need.

And here’s the classic
I’ve heard it too many times. “My students really don’t need the visual strategies any more.” When I hear that one I wonder, “If that’s the case, why are they having all these behavior problems?”

Here’s what needs to happen
The only thing that prevents success is not making that decision to be consistent. Once you make that decision, you never quite run out of things to do. And that’s a good thing.

And then here’s what happens. The more you do, the faster it goes. The better you get at it.

Does life get in the way????
Of course. Sometimes it seems that everything in life is designed to take you off your path. (That’s just like going on a diet, isn’t it???)

From my own experience, once I made that decision to be consistent with visual strategies, everything changed . . . . in a really good way.

Don’t let yourself off the hook . . . Make the decision to be consistent with your use of visual strategies. It WILL make a difference . . . . with positive results.

P.S. I’ve heard of yo-yo dieting. I wonder if there is such a thing as yo-yo visual strategies??

P.P.S. For me, consistency with visual strategies has been much easier than dieting. How about you???? Please comment.

Don’t Forget to Use Video
Video is a powerful visual tool for students on the autism spectrum. Since new electronics are common gifts during the holiday season that means parents and teachers will have more video possibilities to explore.

Most of the latest phones and tablets have video capabilities with much better video quality than even just a couple of years ago. Of course, the Apps on those iPads and other tablets and “toys” will capture everyone’s attention, but don’t forget the video possibilities.

Here are five ways you can use video to help students enjoy a positive holiday season.

Use video to give information
The busy holiday season is frequently full of changes in regular schedules and routines. New activities, changes in routines and unfamiliar decorations are all part of season.

It’s great when you can create some videos to tell children what is going to be happening before it happens. For example, if a trip to the shopping mall is coming, parents or teachers can stop before the trip to capture some video clips of the decorations or displays or whatever else might cause a problem or create a concern for a student.

That’s not always possible, but utilize that option when you can. If you have recurring situations, try to video the first time and then use that to prepare students for those repeats.

Think about all those other activities where video can be used. Cooking meals, baking cookies, shopping and wrapping gifts are great on video.

Thinking ahead and being proactive about giving information can help many students avoid meltdowns and handle new situations with ease.

Teach holiday related routines
Think about any routines that are new or used infrequently (or this even works with more familiar routines). Greeting people at the front door, how to open gifts, going to a “quiet place” if it gets too noisy or how to eat hors d’oeuvres properly (no double dipping!) could all become video clips.

Of course, it won’t work to try to teach everything all at once. Good teaching will target an appropriate number of things that a student needs support with. Focus on those.

Create video stories
Helping students handle social situations via strategies such as writing Social Stories™ has become common. These same stories can be created in a video format. It doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be as simple as writing the story on paper and then creating a video reading the story while showing the pages of the story. Another simple strategy is recording someone telling the story. Of course you can get fancier by using actors to act out the details.

Here are a few topics that would work.

• How to greet company coming to the house
• Going to visit when there is a party at grandma & grandpa’s house
• The football game is on TV so I can’t watch my favorite show
• How to play with my little cousin
• How to put the Christmas tree up
• How to treat the Christmas tree
• How to take the Christmas tree down
• I get to open my presents but I do not open other people’s presents
• Other people’s gifts are not mine

Remember people
Families have different ways to celebrate during holidays. For many, it’s a time to get together with friends and extended family. That creates more change for our targeted students. Their lives may be filled with people they see regularly, people they don’t see very often and new people they have never met before.

Video helps. Record a person saying his or her name and anything else that will make them memorable. Watch videos before you see the people. Watch to remember who was there after the people leave.

Think about videos you can watch next year to remember routines and activities and people related to the holiday. Watch videos of people next time you are going to see them to remind children where they are going or who they will see.

Perform
Children of all ages enjoy watching videos of themselves and those around them doing fun things. Consider these.

• Singing favorite songs
• Dancing
• Talking
• Showing something drawn or made
• Demonstrating how to do something

After special days, students will enjoy watching videos for entertainment and memories. Home made videos can also make special gifts for special people.

The reason video is special
Our students on the spectrum are easily attracted to anything with a screen. Why video? Video is visual and it offers the opportunity for watching something predictable over and over. It’s a tool that provides an opportunity to develop new skills or relive memories. And one more thing. Video can become an important calming tool when children need something to help them get calm.

Be sure to use video as a teaching tool. It’s is easy to use to create holiday FUN!!!!

This is a “sad” story with a very happy ending.

Flying to California.  While I was talking on my cell phone, they were getting ready to shut the plane doors for take off.  I decided to rush to the bathroom before I had to get belted in.  (That was a decision based on experience.  I’ve flown on too many of those flights that have long “unexpected delays” before takeoff.)

I’m not sure exactly how it happened . . . but it did.  My phone flipped out of my hand and balanced precariously on the edge of the “trap door” at the bottom of the toilet.  Before I could do anything to salvage it, the trap door opened and my phone slipped away into a deep dark place.  I did NOT try to retrieve it.

Another sad story was living without my phone for a week before I could get a replacement.  I suspect you’ll agree that our phones have turned into necessities that rank as high as tooth brushes and food.

But here’s the GOOD news.  Everything on my phone was backed up in “the cloud.”  What a relief.  Just think about all the information our phones collect.  Phone numbers, email addresses, Apps for efficiency and fun.

And that’s a profound lesson for phones and also all those visual tools we use for ourselves and our students.  Backups (or multiple copies of print versions) save us from disasters.  That’s the happy part.

Here’s my question.  Do you have a system for backing up your stuff?  (Do you teach your students to do that, too?)

So . . . . I’m doing a “happy dance” because everything was backed up!

Of course, the new iPad Mini is going to be a “hot” item this season.   It’s a little smaller and a little cheaper than the full size iPad.  Still, it has all the important features – camera and video – and according to the Apple website . . . apps made for iPad also work with iPad mini.

The iPad Mini should be a nice option for those who thought the iPad was too pricey last year.  The online “buzz” suggests the iPad Mini is the favorite iPad yet.

When I stopped at my local Apple Store today, the iPad Mini was “temporarily out of stock.”  That reminds me of my “cell phone adventure” that I wrote about recently.  When my phone was “lost” in an “ugly place” I had a hard time replacing it.  Apple didn’t have any.  They were out of stock.  It took a couple of weeks to get one, and I ended up having to buy one with more gigs of memory than I needed (that means it cost more) just to finally get a phone.

Apple currently has so many new and updated products all at once that there is some question if they will be able to ramp up production enough to meet the holiday demand.  My phone problem and the out of stock iPad Mini suggest this may be a problem this holiday season.

That said . . . . it’s probably wise to SHOP EARLY if you are going to shop Apple.

If you are shopping Apple, don’t forget accessories.  I love the IGuy protective case.  Kay’s Case Kidbox Mini is another child friendly option.  A stylus can be really helpful for students who have difficulty with precise movements on the screen.

The iPad
Of course, the “traditional” iPad is still a very desirable option.  The slightly larger display will always appeal to people.  By now, there have been some “new generations” of the iPad which means it has been updated.  The good news is that the older versions are still available – at a lower price.

Another shopping option for the iPad is to consider used or refurbished ones. (If you click on the link & go to an Amazon page, look on the right side of the page at more buying options or scroll down a bit and you’ll see some different options.)

One more IMPORTANT thought
Last year I wrote about the LeapFrog LeapPad.  (Did I tell you that I had to go stand in line at 3:00 AM at a local toy store to get one because there was such a limited supply???  It’s a grandmother thing!)

This was a PERFECT purchase for the younger grandchildren.  This year there’s an updated version.  The LeapFrog LeapPad 2 Explorer is the #1 electronic gadget for children and it’s really worth considering.

Be sure to think about the individual child you are considering a purchase for.  If the child needs a finger type touch screen or use a stylus, camera and video features, plus Apps that address more than 2500 skills in subjects like reading, art, music, science, geography, and math, then the LeapFrog LeapPad 2 Explorer is definitely worth considering.

The two greatest features on the LeapFrog LeapPad 2 Explorer are the price (right now they are $99) and it’s durability.  The manufacturer says the age range is 36 months-9 years.

The iPad Mini can access specific Apps that are not available on the LeapFrog LeapPad 2 Explorer, but that’s why it’s so important to evaluate exactly what the individual child needs.   If you are looking for those traditional preschool and early learning fun art, music, game and academic activities, you can do it all on LeapFrog LeapPad 2 Explorer.

So here’s the bottom line
Electronics are the exciting gift option for all ages this year.  Shopping early may be your most important decision.

P.S.  Only 5 weeks ‘til Christmas.  It will fly by!  My personal experience in the past is that when supply is down, prices go up.

P.P.S.  Please tell me about your experience & opinions about the electronics frenzy!

Most educators and parents understand that the “category” of social skills is an important area where our students with autism & Asperger’s need some special help.

I conducted a survey of several hundred people who have a special interest in these students. They shared a lot of questions which demonstrate how confusing the topic of social skills is.

Here are just 4 of the questions

• What is the best way to teach social skills?
• What is a good source of ready made materials to teach social skills?
• Can you recommend a social skills curriculum for our school?
• What is the number one strategy for assisting students with Asperger’s and their social skill challenges?

It would be nice to have simple answers to these questions. They are focusing on resources and strategy. Unfortunately, they don’t capture the real diverse range of social skill needs of our targeted students. It would be convenient, but we aren’t able to teach social skills in the same structured and systematic ways we approach reading, writing and ‘rithmetic. There are too many variables.

And that leads to another question
Here’s my question. What ARE those “social skills” we want the students to learn? You can find some curriculums and assessment tools that list out social skills to teach, but do they capture the essence of the specific personal needs of that student you are focusing on?

Here’s an example
I had a conversation recently with a young woman with Asperger’s and her mom. Mom is concerned because daughter is using Facebook in a way that mom doesn’t feel is safe. Daughter gives too much personal information. Mom is concerned that her daughter doesn’t understand the difference between real friends and a stranger on the internet.

Or another example
I talked with a psychologist not long ago who was preparing to go to court to testify about a young man with Asperger’s. It’s another internet story. The camera on his computer captured some behavior that resulted in police involvement. The psychologist’s job will be to explain his lack of social judgment related to his disability.

These are just two examples
Is that social skills curriculum going to help in either of these situations? Probably not. Adding to the confusion, talking about teen or adult issues is very different from tackling the challenges of young children. That’s what makes the topic of social skills so difficult for us all. There are so many variables. Young children have different skills to learn than elementary or high school or college age students.

Besides age, the variables include skill level, environment, cultural and family values, personal interests and so much more.

So now I have questions about social skills

• How do we decide WHAT to teach?
• What are “best practices” to teach those skills? (Including what research says works or doesn’t work?)
• What tools and resources will be most effective? (Research has some important answers here, too).
• How do you measure “success?”

This is just a short list from a lot more questions I’ll be writing about. We have a lot to learn. But we also have some great resources to draw from.

I’d like to hear from you
How are you handling the social skill needs of your students? What is working? Has anything flopped? We have a lot to learn from each other. Please share.

P.S.
And one more thing
We need to spend time observing what the other students are doing at each age & stage that our targeted students are in. Some things about young child development don’t change much. But . . . when you are addressing the social environments of older elementary, high school or adults, the social rules and routines have changed a lot from when you and I were young. More to learn about!

Students with autism can achieve great success in environments that help them succeed. How does that work? Settings that are “autism communication friendly” provide a variety of little things that result in big positive changes in student participation.

Of course, there will be variations, depending on age and skill level of students. Classrooms will have differences. But these essentials are essential. We have learned so much about what students on the autism spectrum need to be successful.

One thing that we know is that the majority of students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (and lots of other students, too) are visual learners. You’ll see lots of visual tools on my essentials list.

The problem is that we don’t always use what we know. That’s human nature. So here’s my challenge and here’s my list.

12 Essentials

(1) Camera
This can be one of your most powerful communication tools. They are so common now. You probably have a camera on your phone that you carry in your pocket. Teachers can take pictures or you can teach students to use the cameras on their own phones.

Take pictures of everything. Use them in the phone or print the pictures as needed. Use your photos for conversation starters, demonstration tools or reminders to help students remember what to bring to school tomorrow.

(2) Calendar
Posted on a wall, written in a notebook or accessed on a smart phone, the calendar is an essential tool for helping students orient to their flow of life. Calendars can focus on group information at school. But many students need a personal calendar for school info or one that also includes home and family information. Does that mean one for a classroom and one for personal needs? Possibly yes.

(3) Schedule
The daily schedule has finally become one of the most used visual tools. That’s because they work really well to help students follow their daily routines. Everyone benefits from knowing what is going to be happening today.

(4) Predictable routine
Predictable does not mean rigid. Students will follow routines, demonstrate less stress and exhibit better behavior when they know what to expect. Cameras, calendars and schedules are some of the really useful tools to help students understand when something expected is changing or when something new is going to occur. Rigid means nothing changes. Predictable means giving enough information so they know what to expect.

(5) Quiet spot (not punishment)
Sometimes things get too fast, too noisy or just plain too much. There can be many causes. Those are the times when some of our students start “bouncing off the walls,” “melting down,” or showing us in many ways that things are not going well. This is when adults naturally start talking too much to try to calm things down. Instead, a goal is to teach students to use a “quiet spot” which is a designated location that will help them regroup. Use something visual to help get them there. That quiet spot can have a special name and may be equipped with some items that promote relaxation. This should not be used for punishment. It’s an opportunity for calming.

(6) Visual tools
Pictures, objects, written language and anything else VISUAL is used to support communication. The calendar and schedule are just two visual tools. A supportive environment will provide a variety of other visual supports to assist students in multiple ways for successful participation.

(7) Note pad & pencil
No matter how much pre-planning you do, stuff happens. The temptation during those times is to try to talk it through. The problem with that strategy is that it often doesn’t work. Especially when students are confused, upset or when they don’t understand, that pencil & paper can become a lifesaver.

(8) Proper work environments
Individual students may have specific needs. Think about sensory needs related to things such as sound, sight, or touch. Size or shape of furniture, location of activities, or actions of other students can be significant. What distractions or disturbances can affect a student’s success?

(9) Organized work spaces
Label the environment so students know where to go, what to do and where things belong. Make sure work places contain the correct materials or that students know appropriate procedures to solve problems in work settings.

(10) Rules
What are the rules? Everyone needs to know. Too many is not good. Some are location specific. Identify the important ones. Post them. Review them.

(11) Timer
Time management is difficult for lots of students. Transitions can be challenging. When do you need to stop? When do you prepare for change? How long is this activity going to go on and on? Timers help. There are many kinds. Visual timers like the Time Tracker or the Time Timer, kitchen timers, phones or watches with a timer function or timers on an iPad or computer are all great options.

(12) Effective communication partners
Staff who are committed to using multiple forms of communication help students achieve success. SHOWING instead of TELLING makes a huge difference for student success.

A word of caution
It’s easy to eliminate things from this list of essentials with the excuse that students are too high or low functioning or too young or too old. Another complaint is that something on the list is not “appropriate” for some reason. Sometimes strategies are declared unnecessary because the communication partners don’t feel like doing them.

Just know that all these essentials work really well for student success.

P.S. Do you have some more “must haves” or other comments? Please comment and share your ideas.

Want to avoid transition troubles? Starting a new school year can be a time of great relief for many of us. After all those “lazy days of summer” it can feel really good to get back into the nice predictable routine that a new school year offers.

Unfortunately, starting a new school year can be a huge stress producing, anxiety creating time for lots of our students. The reason is TRANSITION. Even when we think that returning to school will “be the same as last year,” it isn’t, from the perspective of so many children with autism and Asperger’s.

Transition troubles can occur any time there is significant change in a student’s routines. Going back to school certainly creates potentially troublesome change, even if there has only been a short break.

Fortunately, there are a few things we can do to help those students transition into a new school year with success.

First, we can try Engineering the Classroom with Visual Strategies to create environments that will help our students with autism and Asperger’s adjust quickly and easily to their new school year.

Second, we can focus on Solving Behavior Problems in Autism (and Asperger’s and for the whole class) by using some simple visual strategies to give information and help students manage their behavior in acceptable ways.

Teachers: Just spending a little time preparing the right visual tools for your classrooms will really help you get through those first challenging days in the new year.

Parents: The same principles apply to creating visual tools to establish new routines at home for the upcoming year.

SLPs: Helping teachers and parents identify what will help them quickly adjust during that potentially challenging transition time at the beginning of the school year will be one of the best “gifts” you can share with them.

Using visual strategies is a critically important step to get this school year off to a great start by avoiding those transition troubles.

P.S. I have two excellent resources on SALE to help you get off to a great start for the 2012-2013 school year

Engineering the Classroom with Visual Strategies is a DVD with worksheets to guide you through organizing a classroom for student success.

Solving Behavior Problems in Autism will be your “go to” guide to help solve those issues that do emerge as you discover what helps your new students become successful.

These two resources are on SALE. Hurry . . . there’s still time to get them and benefit as they guide you into the new school year.

P.P.S. Another reason to hurry . . . when summer is gone, so is the sale.

P.P.P.S. Note to my international readers. You may not be starting a new school year right now, but these resources will delight you in the middle of the school year too.

More Visual Strategies Storage Ideas

One of the most common questions I receive about using visual strategies is, “How do you store your pictures?” Once people get involved in the process, storage becomes an important consideration.

Pictures have to be easy to access. If you can’t find what you want when you want it, you’ll give up.

Here’s one of my favorite storage options
Using 2 inch pictures is a common choice for lots of classrooms. When you use them for schedules or choice boards, it’s easy to collect a lot of pictures quickly. I love this 64 Drawer Storage Cabinet. It can work really well for those two inch pictures.

A lesson I learned from experience
Just one note of caution. Two inch pictures don’t necessarily fit into two inch drawers. You have to be careful that you are choosing a unit that will really work for you. I like this option because the drawers are actually a little wider than 2 inches.

This 64 Drawer Storage Cabinet has drawers the right size. They are “virtually unbreakable” (really?) 2-1/8-inch (wide) by 1-1/2-inch (tall – not a problem since the pictures will lay down) by 5-1/4-inch (deep) drawers, so they should be a perfect size.

One of the tricks that I have found really works well is to label each drawer with a word or by putting a copy of the picture on the front of the drawer so you easily know what is inside.

Here’s another cabinet with drawers a little bigger
All visual tools are not (and should not be) 2” X 2”. This 24 Drawer Storage Cabinet will hold pictures that are a little bigger. Because the drawers are bigger, it can be an option that many students can manipulate more easily.

It has 24 virtually unbreakable drawers (Ha!) are 4-3/8-Inch (wide) x 2-Inch (tall) x 5-1/4-Inch (deep).

I’ll be sharing more ideas
I have a few more storage “gems” that I be sharing in another blog or newsletter.

Please comment and let me know about YOUR favorite storage options.

I was talking with a friend recently.  She knows a lot about autism.  Our discussion led to some sharing about an incident with one of her family members.  During the conversation she commented, “He’s never been diagnosed, but I’m sure he has Asperger’s.”

That discussion made me think about many, many adults I have talked with about their Asperger’s diagnosis.  Most of them were not diagnosed until teen or adulthood.  One of the things many of them have shared with me is how “freeing” it was when they finally received their diagnosis.

That diagnosis suddenly explained a lot of things in their lives that caused them problems for years.  Now they understood why they had difficulty going certain places or why they couldn’t get along in school.  Cringing when they were touched or having a meltdown on an elevator made more sense.

Temple Grandin, probably the most famous person with autism or Asperger’s, is quick to see beyond the challenges of Autism Spectrum Disorders.  She sees the personal strengths of these individuals.  That’s what she focuses on in her new book.

Different . . . Not Less: Inspiring Stories of Achievement and Successful Employment from Adults with Autism, Asperger’s, and ADHD

This book should be an encouragement for individuals with autism/Asperger’s.  It should also give hope to the parents and teachers of these individuals.  Temple sees the skills and abilities that individuals with autism or Asperger’s can have.  She sees their strengths.  She sees hope.

The description of the book states:

This book is a compilation of success stories from adults with autism and Asperger’s Syndrome.  Each shares what helped them during their childhood and young lives that made them the independant adults they are today.

One of the most important missions Temple Grandin has is making sure people with autism and Asperger’s make something of their lives.  As Temple says quite bluntly, “Being on Social Security is NOT a job choice.”

These unique individuals often have great potential in parts of their minds that neurotypicals never even start to tap.  This needs to be shared with the world.

However, in order to share their hidden genius, they have to overcome many social obstacles.
The point of this groundbreaking work is – it is possible, and it is WORTH it.  Let these crusaders, handpicked by Temple herself, show how it can be done.

Let this work by Dr. Temple Grandin inspire you to your true potential.  You will soon see why it means so much to her.

When we hear  about individuals with autism, we often hear about the problems they have.  One of the most important parts of the term Autism Spectrum Disorders is the word SPECTRUM.

Temple’s book will help the reader understand more about the gifts and strengths that those on the spectrum can experience.  Teaching them what they need to learn so they can fully use those strengths is our goal and our gift to them.

Please comment.

:

Here’s a great “FREE” learning opportunity.

Please be sure to forward this email to any of your friends who you think would appreciate attending this virtual learning opportunity.

I am very excited to invite you to the FREE “Autism Empowerment Telesummit- 2012″, where I have been invited to participate in a panel of 11 world wide experts in the field of autism.

There are some interesting topics covered in this Telesummit.  Although I don’t know all the other professionals participating in this program, they represent a variety of topics of interest to parents and professionals who desire more info about the needs of children with ASD.

This prestigious group of experts, with years of experience, research and success, is devoted to sharing their knowledge and practical tools with you so you can witness transformation in YOUR child. Claim your spot by clicking this link Click here to visit Meir Autism Treatment Center.

This telesummit is for both parents and professionals who know that more is possible for your children with ASD but can’t figure out HOW to help them make the next leap in their development.

Imagine your child (or student) …

Having a healthy digestive system and improved immunity.

Experiencing more physical comfort in his/her everyday life.

Overcoming his/her challenging eating habits.  Having fewer episodes of hitting/biting/head banging and temper tantrums.

Growing without barriers by reducing the chemical toxins that impact growth and development.

Feeling, understanding, moving, and thinking in ways that seemed unattainable before.

Breaking through communication barriers so s/he can more fully understand and be understood.

Deepening his relationship with you, family members and peers.

Developing self help skills, such as being toilet trained and eating independently. Fully engaging in games with you and his/her peers.

Plus, imagine knowing how to best take care of YOU so you can be most effective in helping your child and experience more energy and joy in your life.

Simply click here Click here to visit Meir Autism Treatment Center to save your spot in this FREE virtual event.  Once you click this link you will be taken directly to the registration page so you can meet the panel of experts and make sure that you don’t miss out on this value-packed event by registering today!

I hope you will join me in the “Autism Empowerment Telesummit-2012″ so you can discover keys unlocking your child’s potential.

P.S. Do you know anyone who could benefit from the knowledge and tools that will be shared in the  “Autism Empowerment Telesummit-2012″?  Please pass this link along Click here to visit Meir Autism Treatment Center so we can serve as many families as possible!

P.P.S.  The Telesummit will take place July 22-27.  Interviews will be recorded to allow you some flexibility in when you can participate.

A frequent autism communication question I receive is about how to store and organize your visual tools.  It’s an important question.  Once you really become a “believer” of using visual supports, you’ll very naturally begin developing more visual  tools to use for the many communication needs in the life of your child or students.  The question that surfaces pretty quickly is, “How do you store them?”

Important question.  Unfortunately, there’s not a simple answer.  But I made a discovery this week that may provide part of a very workable answer.

My journey started when I went to one of my local office supply stores looking for a rolling file cart.  The one I have now is quickly “dying.”  It wobbles and won’t roll and just plain needs replacing.  The sales person steered me to a cart that “would work.”  Of course they were out of stock, so she offered to have it shipped.  Fine.

When the box arrived, I discovered that the cart I purchased was broken down into about 50 pieces.  It looked more like an erector set than a file cart.  My non-mechanical brain envisioned hours of frustration assembling it, so I quickly packed it back up to return it to the store.  (I couldn’t even get all the pieces back in the box!  Has that ever happened to you???)

After a little more searching, I found a perfect replacement rolling file cart.
First, it was easy to assemble.  I didn’t need to hire an engineer to do it!  Took less that 10 minutes.

This rolling file cart will roll easily where I need it and it will hold plenty of files.  It’s low enough to store under a table or a shelf.  It’s much more sturdy than the one I’m replacing, and best of all, it looks good.  Aesthetics always help.

My favorite box bottom-closed side file folders  work well with the cart.  I love the ones with a box bottom and closed sides.  Box bottoms work really well to hold several items or for more bulky visual tools.  The closed sides keep pictures from falling out of the folders.

While I was shopping for my rolling file cart and file folders, (with storage options on my mind), I found one more awesome storage cart with drawers that could work really well for some people.

This cute cart has lots of drawers which can help keep visual tools organized.  You can label one drawer for each student.  Another option is to designate one drawer to hold visual tools for each activity or time of day.

There’s even a 15 drawer storage cart with wheels.

Organization is a very personal thing.  These carts and folders are options that will work really well for me.  Your style of organization may be different from mine.  That’s OK.  It’s critical to organize in a way that matches how you personally function.

What is most important is to find places to keep those visual tools.  They need a “home.”  Then you’ll be able to find them when you need them.  If you can do that, your efforts to support communication with visual tools will be more successful.

I’ll share more organizing tips in another blog.  There are even more answers to the Autism communication question “Where do you store your visual tools?”

Did you EVER have to manage a behavior problem with your child or your students with Autism Spectrum Disorders?

Here’s another one . . .

Have you EVER experienced a communication breakdown with your child or your students with ASD?

Then I have something special for YOU.

Answers to lots of questions.

Do you use visual strategies?  Do you want to learn more?

I took Visual Strategies on TOUR.  Lots of conferences in lots of cities around the USA.  I’m so glad I remembered to take my little recorder with me.  At first I was just recording the program so I could remember what I talked about.  But after I listened, I decided I needed to share the recording with YOU.

Here’s why . . . .

These are examples of comments I received on the evaluation sheets.

“THIS WAS THE BEST CONFERENCE I’VE BEEN TO IN 10 YEARS!  Thanks for synthesizing my knowledge base AND teaching me some new techniques.  You’re the best!” – Speech Pathologist

Linda, when I attended your workshop today I felt I could cry, so intense was my feeling of comfort that I was listening to someone who knew and understood what autism means . . .  You were offering very real, true strategies that would help us.  You make heaps of sense. 
Thank you.  CF

I think you can understand why I can’t just let these recordings sit on my computer.

So what does this have to do with YOU?

I know summer is a season of spending your time in different ways from the regular routine during the school year.  In fact, I’ll bet that by now your brain has actually cleared out (at least a little).

Well . . .  these recordings are PERFECT for the summer.  Of course, you can listen on your computer.  But even better, you can download them to your favorite listening device for driving in the car or taking a walk for exercise.

Click here to check it out

We even created a SALE for this week.

P.S.  Apologies to my readers in Australia and other places in the world who are not on summer vacation!  You will still really enjoy the audio recordings.

P.P.S. Here’s that link again

http://www.usevisualstrategies.com/discovering-the-possibilities-with-visual-strategies-audio/

Be sure to mark your calendar.

I’ll be doing a FREE online webinar on Wednesday, June 27, 2012.  Here’s the info. . .

Time, Travel & Transition:
Using Visual Strategies for Student Success

Working with Autism Spectrum Disorders
& Related Learning Needs

Presenter:  Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP

Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders demonstrate significant challenges with life experiences that involve time management, changing environments and participating in transitions.

Communication difficulties can be a root cause for many of the inappropriate social and behavior episodes that can occur during these times. Visual strategies can be used effectively to provide support for students to help them appropriately manage these situations that are difficult for them.

This session will explore simple solutions to solve sometimes major problems related to time, travel and transition.

Here’s the link for the presentation: 
http://instantteleseminar.com/?eventID=30236376

This program is part of the Moms Fighting Autism Conference Call Series.

Here’s that link again:
http://instantteleseminar.com/?eventID=30236376

Linda Hodgdon M.Ed., CCC-SLP is a Speech-Language Pathologist who is internationally known as a pioneer in developing the use of visual strategies to support communication for students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and related learning needs. Her training programs are packed with best-practices and effective ideas for using a range of low tech to high tech visual tools, including video and tablets like iPads and Apps,  to meet the communication, behavior and social skills needs of these students.  A powerful and entertaining presenter, Linda shares practical information that inspires program participants to accomplish new goals with students immediately.

Linda is the author of Visual Strategies for Improving Communication and Solving Behavior Problems in Autism.  Considered essential resources for professionals and parents, these are two of the most recommended books in the field.   She provides support for Speech-Language Pathologists, educators and parents of students with ASD & related special learning needs via her online training materials.

For more information & to sign up for Linda’s Special Report and email newsletter, visit www.UseVisualStrategies.com

Autism and Behavior:  Why is he doing that?

Autism and behavior problems lead us to question why is he doing that – why is that behavior problem occurring?

“Why is he doing that?” is a common question when dealing with autism and behavior.  It’s a question that needs an answer.  But it’s a question that sometimes cannot be answered easily.

I pulled this article out of my archives.  It makes a really important point.  Becoming a detective is a critical skill when trying to discover solutions for autism and behavior problems.  Here is the situation.  (Keep reading . . . there’s a SALE at the end!)

I talked with a Mom recently.  She had a major problem with her five year old son.  A toileting problem.  He is just too old to still be wearing a diaper.  One body function was handled OK, but the brown messy one was the problem.  I think you get the idea without further description.

So what to do?
We talked about some of the typical strategies like timed toileting (having the child go sit on the toilet at regular intervals through the day, i.e. every hour).  We talked about wearing diapers versus not wearing diapers.  We started to go down the list of possible strategies.  We discussed in detail what he currently does related to the messy diaper.  Then the question.  “How does he react to the dirty diaper?”

BINGO! She said something
Then she said something that caught my attention.  She described how her son seemed to like to have his diaper changed.  When she was changing it he would look at her and smile and say, “I love you mommy.”  Diaper changing had become a sort of Mom-son bonding time.

What a discovery!
That social back and forth is very common when changing the diapers of infants.  It is a face-to-face-talking-looking-interacting time that elicits smiles and gurgles and great eye contact.  That is very appropriate for little ones until they get toilet trained at 2 or 21/2 or 3.  But this boy is older.  And the social aspect is not appropriate any more.

She left with a plan
Mom left our conversation with a plan to change the social dimension of diaper changing.  She also purposed to create more social bonding time with her son away from the diaper activities.

I suspect she has solved the problem
I think she is on her way to a good solution to a big problem.  But trying to find that solution has taken a lot of energy.  It often does.  But it is really important to pay attention to what we did.  We had to put on our detective hats to try to analyze the CAUSE of the problem.  Finding the cause is the first step in leading to a good solution.

What is the cause of the problem?
That is a question I ask when people want to discuss behavior challenges with me.  Very frequently they say they don’t know.  When you don’t know, it will be hard to find a solution.  When you don’t know, you may come up with frail short term fixes but not good long term solutions.  There is always a cause.

The cause may not be obvious
In fact, especially with autism, the cause may be hard to figure out.  That can be, in part, because of that idiosyncratic thinking that these students may demonstrate.  I love that word.  It means that these individuals may observe the world differently than you or I do.  They may pay attention to different things than we do.  Their reasoning process may not be the same and your and mine.  That doesn’t mean it’s bad.  It means it is different. Unusual.  Peculiar. Not quite like everyone else.

That’s what causes our challenge
We have a hard time because we try to solve problems by using our own reasoning skills.  Instead, our objective is to look at the world through the eyes of the child.  If we do that successfully, we will find it looks different.  But that understanding will lead us in the right direction.

Being a detective is a good thing
I am not suggesting this as a quick fix for all behavior challenges.  But it worked in this case.  Together we came up with some good possible solutions to a really major problem Mom was having.  And that’s what it’s all about.

Here’s the resource
My book, Solving Behavior Problems in Autism, includes a Guide for Assessing Behavior Situations.  This tool is designed to help you analyze and interpret the child with autism and behavior situations that exist.  Then it leads to developing possible solutions, frequently using visual strategies.

Click here for a sizzling summer sale

Horizons said, “.  . This book was desperately needed yesterday, and is an essential tool for any teacher or parent working with a child on the autism spectrum.  This is a MUST HAVE!”

I frequently get questions about what toys are appropriate for children with Asperger’s and Autism.  That reminds me of an experience.

I was walking down a street in a small town at the bottom of the mountains near Machu Picchu in Peru.  I love to watch how the local children play.  I heard two boys giggling and laughing so I turned around to see what was happening.

Their toy was a piece of paper.  They would hold it up and then let go so the wind would catch it.  Then they would run quickly to try and catch it before it touched the ground.  That simple piece of paper kept them entertained and occupied for a long time.  Perhaps it was the only toy they had.

What does this have to do with children with Asperger’s and Autism? 

I recently found a GeekDad’s website article touting The 5 Best Toys of All Time.

This online article was featuring “toys” for all children.  It was not focusing specifically on children with Asperger’s and Autism.  But there are some things that hold the status of “universal,” meaning across cultures, across ages and across special needs.   There are some reasons that these toys are especially important for our children with Asperger’s and Autism.

Here are The 5 Best Toys of All Time according to GeekDad.

1.  Stick
They can be big or little, but sticks can challenge the imagination to keep kids occupied.  They become great tools for hitting, digging, reaching, touching and sword fighting.  Sticks are great for sensory input from touching and rubbing.  Sticks can also produce an opportunity for building structures and creating unique art projects.

 2.  Box
Many parents tell stories where an empty box became a better gift than the toy that came in the box.  Making a robot costume out of a box requires quite a lot of skill.  Playing inside a box can produce hours of free time fun.  Cutting a door turns that box into a house or a fort.  Having more than one box extends the possibilities.

3.  String
Long, short, fat or skinny.  String can keep kids occupied for a long time.  Use it to tie things, hang objects or wind it around things like sticks or boxes.  String can provide hours of great creative time.

4.  Cardboard tube
Wrapping paper often comes wrapped around these tubes.  Sometimes mail comes in them.  Toilet tissue is wrapped a round small ones, but the longer tubes are usually more fun, They become swords, bats to hit balls, or important parts of construction projects.

5.  Dirt
I’ll add sand to this one.  One more addition is water.  Dirt and sand can provide hours of delight for kids.  When you add water, the fun increases exponentially.  That dirt can be for planting flowers in the garden or in a puddle on the driveway.  Fill a small dishpan or a large sandbox with sand and you’ll keep a child busy for hours.  If you add a little water to increase the messy part, most kids will be delighted.  Take a child to the beach with some sand toys and they may have hours of contented play time.

Of course, safety always comes first.  These are the “classic” toys that most children grow up on.  But children with Asperger’s and Autism may require a few more protections than other children.  The adult in charge should always be aware of an individual child’s safety needs.

Now, why are these so important for children with Asperger’s and Autism?
Social skills.  Choosing activities that the play friend will enjoy is hugely important when structuring successful play dates.

Arranging a play date with another child?  Try these ”classic” toys.  Playing with them doesn’t require any specific skills for children with Asperger’s and Autism.  There are no formal rules to follow.  The few rules a child needs to know to play successfully with these toys are more related to safety. . . like “you don’t throw sand in someone’s eyes.”

Everything on this list is low budget.  It’s appropriate for a wide age range.  You get lots of “play value” out of these toys.  Combine several together and you’ll have the potential for lots of fun.  Children with Asperger’s and Autism will benefit when you make sure to use The 5 Best Toys of All Time.

Do you have a favorite toy to add to the list?  Please be sure to comment.

One of my all-time favorite letters that I have received from a parent was from Mom Patty, telling me about how she wrote a simple story to help her son manage baseball.  Here’s her story.

Last night my son had his first Little League game. (Our city has a league specifically for challenged kids) and it didn’t take me long to realize that I had not done a good job in preparing him.

I went home and went to work on a social story complete with pictures we had just taken at the game.  I remembered you saying visual strategies didn’t have to be complicated — just try one.

This morning at the breakfast table I showed him the story “Tommy plays baseball” and he was thrilled.  We talked about every aspect including how to recognize his team members and coaches by the color of their shirt.  He can’t wait to try again on Saturday.  

The whole thing took a short time and will hopefully make the experience better for everyone.

Thanks for conducting such a practical seminar.  You took something that had seemed daunting in the past and turned it into a reality for our family.
Patty (Mom)

What Mom Patty wrote was not quite the same as Carol Gray’s Social Stories™.  Most people in the autism community are familiar with Carol Gray and her teaching about how to write Social Stories™ that include specific structures and information.  Carol’s book The New Social Story Book is a best-selling “must have” for information to implement this best-practices strategy.

But what Mom Patty did was extremely important.  In fact, it was so hugely (is that a word???) important that if she were standing next to me I would give her a hug, put a crown on her head and release a thousand helium filled balloons into the sky.  Mom Patty did something even more important than writing a perfect Social Story™.

Here’s why Mom Patty would get my applause.

1. She created an opportunity for her son with Asperger’s to try participating in a new social event.  (Baseball is a sport, but sports are social events.)

2. She immediately recognized that he wasn’t properly prepared for the situation.  (Gee . . . that happens to parents and teachers frequently.  It is best to try to think ahead about what will occur in a new situation so we can prepare students, but there are always things we didn’t think of or anticipate.)

3. She took action right away to create something to help him.  (How long does a challenging situation go on before the adults decide to handle it?  I talked to a Mom recently who told me a particular problem situation had been going for two years.  Two years???)

4. Mom Patty created a VISUAL tool to help her son.  (Yes . . . yes . . . yes . . .  We know our students with autism and Asperger’s respond really well when we give them VISUAL information.  By now we realize that most of them are visual learners so visual tools work really well.)

5. She identified exactly what information her son needed.  (There is so much that other children “just know” but that our children with Asperger’s and autism need to be specifically taught.  What does it mean when some ball players are wearing blue shirts and others are in red?)

6. Son and Mom looked at the new visual tool in a nice unrushed way so he could devour the information to get prepared for the next game.  (She didn’t wait until the next game.  She presented that story right away so they will have the opportunity to go over it several times before the next game.  Students with autism and Asperger’s benefit from repetition.  One of the benefits of using a visual tool is that it makes repetition easy.)

7. Son was thrilled.  (That means Mom Patty created a story in a way that son could look, engage and understand.  It was meaningful to him.)

Mom Patty wrote a social story about an event that her son was participating in.  She used it to give him the information he needed.

I attended a conference recently about “work productivity.”  When I entered the auditorium, there was a huge banner on the wall.  It said, “GET IT DONE FAST.”  That’s what Mom Patty did.  She got it done . . . . FAST.

Summer is here.  That means lots of opportunities for events that are new, different, changed from what happens during other times in the year, or unexpected.  Giving students with Asperger’s and autism information in the form of little social stories they can understand quickly and easily will help those students enjoy summer success.

Adults with Asperger’s and those who support them learn about Life in the Asperger Lane.

A young woman pulled me aside to talk in confidence.  I was conducting a Visual Strategies Workshop and we were taking a short break between sessions.  She told that as an adult she had recently received a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome.

She wanted me to know that everything I was sharing about the learning style of students with ASD made so much sense to her now that she knew more about adults with Asperger’s.

This scenario did not happen just once.  I’ve had the privilege of talking with many adults with Asperger’s who have shared with me how receiving their Asperger’s diagnosis in adulthood affected their lives.  They usually express a sense of great relief.  Somehow, they had experienced some kind of behavior, social or personal challenges that began to make sense once they understood their Asperger’s diagnosis.

Dan Coulter is a talented author and speaker who has been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome.  In spite of social and communication challenges, Dan learned to parlay his personal strengths in writing and speaking into a highly successful career in communications.  His career has included a variety of jobs from radio disk jockey to TV writer, producer & director.

After Dan’s son was diagnosed with Asperger’s, he transitioned his career to writing articles and producing videos to meet the needs of individuals with Asperger’s and those who support them.

Dan’s articles combine his great sense of humor with his deep understanding of the huge potential of individuals on the spectrum.  His new book, “Life in the Asperger Lane: Dan Coulter’s Collected Asperger Articles” will become a sought after resource.  Dan shares his wisdom and experiences along with insights from the variety of people he has interviewed in his ASD video producing career.

I had the opportunity to interview Dan for the webinar training series Using Video to Teach Skills for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder at www.AutismFamilyOnline.com  I was particularly interested in having him share about the videos that his company has produced for teens and adults  highlighting topics such as going to college and learning workplace skills.

Life in the Asperger Lane is a thoughtful, practical source of positive support.  Dan Coulter’s ability to use his strengths to achieve professional success should be an encouragement to others who are touched by Asperger’s.

Click here to check out Life in the Asperger Lane: Dan Coulter’s Collected Asperger Articles

Please comment

Autism and vaccines – one of the most common questions I receive.  When I tell people what I do, this is one of the first topics they ask about.  They want to know if I think there is a relationship between vaccinations and autism.  Do vaccinations cause autism? Is there a connection between the MMR vaccine and autism?

I wish I knew
What I do know is that there is more research on this topic than ever before.  That is good.  We need to keep learning. Unfortunately, there is an enormous amount of bias research and opinion out there on this very subject.  Very strong opinions and emotions.  I understand that.

Here’s an option
If you are one of those people who want more information on this topic, there is a resource.

Coursera, a new company founded by two Stanford professors, is offering a free course on Vaccines (read about them in the New York Times here). They’re launching (from Penn’s Medical School) in June.

The Vaccines course is free, and open to anyone to join. It will last 4-5 weeks starting this June, and cover the history and science of vaccines, benefits and risks, controversies surrounding vaccines, and answers to common questions that parents have about them.

Courses consist of video lectures with quizzes, discussion forums, and weekly assignments. Check out more details about the course and a quick intro video on Coursera.org here: https://www.coursera.org/course/vaccines

Dr. Paul Offit, MD, Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases and the Director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is teaching the course.

Dr. Offit is one of the most public faces of the scientific consensus against the vaccines/autism link.. His books, “Autism’s False Prophets: Bad Science, Risky Medicine, and the Search for a Cure,” and “Deadly Choices: How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All” have produced their own share of interest and controversy.

I have not taken this course
Unfortunately, I can’t report on it or evaluate the details.  But, if you are interested in becoming more educated on the topic of autism and vaccinations, this could be a great resource.

How much information do YOU need?
Some people are highly interested in the topic of autism and vaccines.  This may be too much information for others.  Their focus has shifted toward therapy and treatment options.

One of the challenges of autism
When your life is touched by autism you are challenged to learn.  That is what is required.  If you need to educate yourself more on the topic of autism and vaccines, this appears to be a useful option.

Please leave your comments

Parents of children with autism have a special job.  It’s frequently not easy.  Parents quickly discover it requires strength, stamina and devotion.

Here’s a video about Mothers Day
May means Mother’s Day.  This video touched my heart.  I know it has a focus on sports, but I think it should “translate” to every mom who has a child with autism.

In some ways sports and autism are not that different.  Think about the teaching, the training, the day-to-day commitment, and practice, practice, practice.

In the end, I think parents of children with autism deserve the BIGGEST gold medal.

www.youtube.com/embed/NScs_qX2Okk

Here are some statistics about what is happening in our tech-social world.

• More kindle books sold than “real books” during the last holiday season
• 70 percent of active online adult social networkers shop online
• 250 Million people in the world are now on Facebook
• 40% of social media users access social media content from their mobile phone
• US cell phone users send more texts than they do phone calls

And here is one of the most important statistics
28% of 12-24 year olds check their Facebook account before they get out of bed in the morning.

What does this have to do with autism?
Social skills training is one of the most requested services for students with autism. Here’s the important question. What social world are we preparing our students for? Who are they going to be socializing with? How do those people socialize?

The social world is changing
Those changes are happening quickly. Technology has rapidly become a major tool for managing social relationships. What percentage of social interaction occurs without people even seeing each other? How does that happen? Phone calls? Text messages? How does the presence of a cell phone affect the interaction between two people who are physically in the same location? What takes precedence – the phone or the person standing next to you? What are the new rules for social interaction?

What do we need to teach?
We know that our students on the spectrum frequently need help to learn the communication and behavior skills necessary to handle social situations in positive ways. Parents desire for their children to have friends. So, what do we need to teach our students with ASD to help them “join in” to the ongoing social activity that surrounds them?

It’s not an easy question to answer
First, we need to identify what the new social environment is. There are lots of variables. And there will be lots of individual answers to questions about what to teach. The goal here is not passing a value judgment on the use of technology for social interaction. Instead, it’s an attempt to recognize what is currently occurring and then deciding how to work with it. Are we preparing our students for a social world that existed in the PAST? Are we helping them learn skills that WE want them to have? Or are we looking forward to what skills they will need to have next year? Two years? Five years or more???

How have you addressed this situation?
Please comment. What do you think?

P.S. A college student who used to work for me just had an interview for a summer job. They did it on Skype. She applied for the job by filling out an application online. Are you teaching the kind of skills to be able to do that?