Gratitude Quirky Style
Photo by C1.Holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas are often stressful. This is especially true for families who have one or more members with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Things change. Expectations may or may not be met. Chaos prevails. So instead of doing a traditional gratitude post, I'm going to try and lighten u

Essay: Levels of Autism Knowledge Acknowledged at START
At one of the first sessions of START, our presenter acknowledged that attendees had different levels of knowledge about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). To make us all aware (I guess), one of the first slides had these three words: "novice," "intermediate," and "advanced."Knowing who all was attending, I figured this to be true. We had seasoned therapists, social workers, and special education teachers who work with kids on the spectrum regularly. I figure these professionals would most likely be classified as having at least an intermediate level of autism knowledge--if not advanced.Then we had regular education teachers and school administrators who may or may not

Fall 2009 START Calendar and Topics Covered
As I've stated in the previous post, I'm going to be sharing information I learn through my training with the START (STatewide Autism Resources & Training) program. This post will serve as an outline or point of reference to give you an idea to what topics will be covered and when. Each module consists of a two-day training session. Each day runs from 8:30-3:30.September 17: Orientation (8:30-11:30)September 30 and Oct 1: Autism Overview/Teaming (Module 1)November 4 and 5: Educational Strategies (Module 2)December 2 and 3: Behavior (Module 3)January 11

A Brief Overview of START
Below: C1, the focus child for his school. : )I've been on autism-information overload lately, which ironically is why I haven't blogged for awhile. Last week I participated in two-full days of a grant-funded autism-training program (based out of Grand Rapids, Michigan) called

Photo Essay: Anxiety, a Parade, and a Cannon
My 11-year-old son with autism loves parades, but fears loud sounds which hurt his super-sensitive ears. Here he needed a little help from his dad "locking down his ears" (which were also protected with ear plugs) when Central Michigan Univerity's ROTC unit went by with their cannon. They fire it