“The government will collect evidence from autistic children, their families and their carers on how to improve the support they get… Supporting people on the autism spectrum or with learning disabilities is one of the 4 clinical priority areas in the NHS long-term plan…” Read more on the UK government website gov.uk https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-review-to-improve-the-lives-of-autistic-children Advertisements
Christmas time in school can be difficult for children with additional needs, changes in routine and new experiences can be hard to manage. Here is some advice from Its a Tink Thing with ideas for helping autistic children to be included in the Christmas play. How to help an autistic child to manage the school Christmas play
ASI WISE was recently invited to deliver a presentation about Autism and sensory issues to a UK National Autistic Society meeting. Our presentations to the audience addressed the science and evidence behind autism and explored a families experience of sensory integration therapy. Since the presentation we have had interesting conversations with some parents who attended. A common theme has been parents discovering that motor and…
Back to school is just around the corner. School can be tricky for young people with sensory integration challenges, and especially those first few weeks in a new schools, classrooms, with new teachers and sometimes new classmates. New uniforms and shoes can be challenging also. Practising these exercises at home over the next 2 weeks may help young people have some ways to reduce anxiety…
This article is a great read., and links to the BBC news item this morning about a research project exploring if parents with children with autism are experiencing stress. Some children on the spectrum may exhibit problematic behaviors when asked to change their routine or to transition from one task, activity, or setting to another. Why is this? — Read on www.findatopdoc.com/Parenting/Why-Do-Kids-on-the-Spectrum-Have-Trouble-with-Transitions
..but publications and research by OT’s are needed to show ASI is effective! What more do we need to show how mainstream sensory integration theory is becoming than this recent publication in Neuroscience News. It is just a pity it says we need new therapies when we have a good one that has gold standard randomised control trials showings its effectiveness in the ASD population. Perhaps…
Submitted by guest blogger, Ruth OT. In my time as a special needs parent, I’ve had a variety of responses to telling people my child has special needs. Some responses have been great, others have left me crying all the way home. Literally. Some have opened up conversations, others have shut them down. I know that those people who have not been so helpful have…
Although today I was sent a copy of a link to an article entitled “First significant study on autism and homelessness”, this is not the first I have known about the increased risk of homelessness in those with Autism or ways that as a profession Occupational Therapy can offer something to help reduce this risk. For a number of years, OT’s have been talking about…
Resources for Practice: Reducing use of control and restraint in mental health.
Submitted by guest blogger Ruth OT Our daughter recently appeared on a UK Kids TV show called Something Special. I was ridiculously excited about it and told lots of people who never usually watch CBeebies, the BBC children’s channel, that they just had to see her. Filming was brief but exciting. We got to meet Justin briefly (one child was very disappointed Mr Tumble wasn’t there too)…
