Social Timing

We all know how the intricacies of socialness can pose challenges for most individuals with autism.  I wanted to share with you a couple of blog posts that addresses the issue of social timing.  The blog site is special-ism.com , a comprehensive eMagazine that is the result of a marriage between two powerful blogs addressing “invisible” special needs.  In the summer of 2011, Danette and Tiffani partnered to create Special-Ism, a unique article marketing platform affording the professional with exposure opportunities, while providing solutions to the challenges faced by parents and caregivers of children with “invisible” special needs.

The specific blog posts I wanted to share with you today were written by a speech and language pathologist, Karen S Head, and  deal with the issue of social timing.  Part one addresses why social timing is difficult for individuals on the spectrum and provides one strategy to try.  Part two offers another strategy that incorporates a specific visual support system.  Book mark the site as each month Karen will be providing an additional strategy related to social timing.  You also will want to check out the other blog entries that are provided.  There's an organization structure to search within the site for specific topics and there's also a search engine for the site.  Try searching for Judy Endow, Madison's very own Autism self-advocate, as she has a regular posting on this blog site too.

Strategies for Learning Hidden Curriculum

Hidden curriculum is a term that refers to all of those social skills that most kids just know about and understand -- the unstated rules or customs that make the world a confusing place for many students with autism spectrum disorders.  Madison's very-own Judy Endow -- an international consultant, trainer, writer who has autism and has raised a son with autism --  has recently provided many useful resources that address the topic (e.g., "Hidden Curriculum One-a-day Calendar for Older Adolescents and Adults:  Items for Understanding Unstated Rules in Social Situations", "Learning the Hidden Curriculum, The Odyssey of One Autistic Adult").  Most recently, Judy has posted an informative blog on the topic, Strategies for Learning Social Skills and Hidden Curriculum.  I think that you will find the post humorous, interesting, and informative.

The Path to Fitting In

John Elder Robison is an author and consultant who writes about and speaks of his success in dealing with his Aspergers.  Author of "Look Me in the Eye" and "Be Different", John provides his unique perspective on the topic of "The path to fitting in" in this informative and interesting entry at the Autism Asperger's Digest.  For more information about John, visit his website.

Special Ed Teacher Develops Play Date Tool for those with Autism

SpecialPlaydate.com is a way for parents with children on the spectrum to be able to find and schedule safe, rewarding social encounters. Free to members, it’s a new online service that’s connecting parents with other parents seeking playdate opportunities for their children with special needs. According to its founder, Jane Hsu, Special Playdate was created based on the simple premise that "every child deserves a friend." Read more about this tool created by a special education teacher.

YouTube Saves the Day

Jill Kuzma has done it again! She has added over 40 new YouTube links for social skills on her incrediby helpful site. I felt like this fact deserved a shout-out of its own.

Have you tried using YouTube with your students yet? I can not say how helpful it has been to me when working with teams that are looking for social skills assistance, video modeling examples (you can use them for your own students or for a jumping off point for your own creations), and beyond. Jill's list is fantastic and is a great example of the gems you can find on YouTube (and the web in general) when you dig a little bit.

I like to set about a half an hour aside each week to look for videos on YouTube that would be helpful for myself and the teams I'm working with currently. It helps me manage my time and keeps me feeling like adding this strategy is do-able and not so overwhelming. You can also use Google to help direct your searches in the right direction. Why recreate the wheel when it's already out there being shared?

Dealing with Changes

This weekend, Jill Kuzma posted a really great tool to use with students working on dealing with CHANGE.

Make sure to check this post out and use her PowerPoint presentation: "A Kid's Guide for Change" with your students! It is in a PDF format so you can print it out for yourself. I know I am definitely saving this for future reference!

The Social Brain and Autism Spectrum Disorders/Research Study

Here is an article describing distinct differences in the brains of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and their siblings in recognizing human-like images and non-human images documented with MRI readings. The article includes video of the MRI process and a demo of the images shown during the MRIs.

http://www.iancommunity.org/cs/simons_simplex_community/the_social_brain_and_asd