In this video, Dr Dan Siegel, clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine, explains how screens can impact on sleep
Month: July 2018
Free theme park tickets for children with disabilities
Merlin’s Magic wand is a worldwide charity which provides free theme park tickets to families of children with disabilities. These days out help families to take some time out of their often stressful lives to create magical memories. Read more and apply here
Due to the high demand, each family can only apply once. Applications must be made by either parents, guardians or registered organisations, including schools/hospitals and councils.
Tickets are for children aged between 2 and 18
Its 5 years now since we had our Magical day out to Legoland and my kids still talk about it. At the time I wrote “Thank you so much Merlins Magic Wand Charity we have just had a fantastic day out at Legoland Windsor, we were treated like VIP’s the whole day. It was really special x”
https://www.merlinsmagicwand.org/
UK changes in accessible parking for people with hidden disabilities.
Good news for families living with autism and other hidden disabilities in England as the government decides to extend blue badge criteria to include people with hidden disabilities. Read more here
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-44993036
Building Sensory Friendly Spaces
Have you seen these resources for building sensory and ASD friendly environments…
Given up to 90% of young people with ASD have sensory integration difficulties, these resources are a great guide for anyone looking to build or create sensory friendly spaces.
Our own favourite is the Virco Zuma Chair for schools, offices and home – with adult and child sized options.
What is your favourite item for a sensory friendly space?
Here are links to great guidance from architects and others regarding sensory friendly building…
https://www.autism.org.uk/professionals/others/architects.aspx
Research In Practice: Do SI patterns identified in research exist outside a US population?
Patterns of sensory integration difficulties have been studied in the US since the 1970’s. Many questions exist about if similar patterns exist in cultures and communities outside of the US, and studies are limited. Here is a summary of an important study conducted in South Africa.
The purpose of the study was to investigate and describe the similarities and differences of patterns of SI dysfunction between children in South Africa and those in the US.
A quantitative, analytical study was conducted on a convenience sample of 223 children who were identified as experiencing sensory integration difficulties. The Sensory Integration and Praxis Tests (SIPT) were used as the measuring instrument and correlation and factor analyses were applied in order to describe similarities and differences. Consistencies in tests loading on patterns of Visuodyspraxia, Somatodyspraxia, Bilateral Integration and Sequencing dysfunctions and Tactile and Visual Discrimination dysfunctions were found.
This research confirmed similarities in the patterns of dysfunction in children in South Africa and confirmed the value of the SIPT in identifying sensory integration dysfunctions cross-culturally.