I had the privilege of attending a presentation by Dr. Temple Grandin this weekend. Dr. Grandin is an incredible woman that is internationally known for her work with Livestock Behavior; Design of Facilities and Humane Slaughter. But the most amazing thing about Dr. Grandin is that she has autism. And her gift to the families that I work with is that she gives us an insight as to how a person with an autism diagnosis thinks, learns, and feels. She also has fantastic suggestions and strategies for parents and educators on how to help children with autism succeed in life. I would suggest that you check out her website at http://templegrandin.com. I also would recommend that you see the HBO movie that was created about her life, it really gives you a wonderful insight into the world of a person with autism and how they can make their way, often times, very successfully in this world.
Dr. Grandin is funny, outspoken, passionate, very, very intelligent and an inspiration to all.
What she says that inspires me is her information that
1. Young children with autism need to be engaged 20 hours a week in turn taking activities and joining in with the world around them
2. These 20 hours do not need to be with a "therapist or specialist" but can be just as effective with a parent, grandparent; sibling; babysitter etc. She says that it is important that a specialist coach the family as to what strategies work well for their child and help them be successful.
3. The family should build activities around what the child likes. If a child is obsessed with trains, then use that interest to ease them into learning more based on trains. Start with what they like and are passionate about.
4. Understand what sensory integration is and respect that certain sensory stimulation is painful to the child and will interfere with learning and possibly eating, sleeping and social situations.
5. The family needs to help the child learn social rules so that they are able to function in the world. The children need to learn how to give other people what they want.
6. Use simple and clear directions with the child and use a neutral voice. Don't be demeaning but always respectful.
My favorite quotes of hers were: "Do not try to de-geek the geek". "Let's accept that there are different kinds of minds". "Eccentric is acceptable; being dirty and rude is not."
If you ever have a chance to attend one of her presentations, do it!! It will make a difference in your life.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Baby Babbling and Communicating with Dad
Hi Everyone,
I'm back :) As you can see, I have a new look. All the credit goes to Eliana Tardio, a coworker and dear friend!! Thank you so much.
I am now linked to my new facebook page and twitter, so hopefully I will be able to reach families with the technology they feel comfortable with.
My goal is to bring more media to the blog and share with you all kinds of information concerning communication. ENJOY!!
Check out this video and see true communication between a little girl and her dad. Notice how Dad is commenting and encouraging turn taking. Listen to the child's infections and body language. I know it will put a smile on your face.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
October 2011
I have so many ideas of fun things to do in October to help your child "pop" language :)
1. LEAVES:
If you live where the leaves are falling there are so many things that you can do. You can rake them (and get your child their own little rake) and then "one, two, three, go" you can jump in them!!! You can toss them around and focus on words like "up, down". You can find a bunch of dry leaves and "crunch, crunch, crunch" them up. You can get paper and glue out and stick the leaves to the paper. You can go on a walk and find all the different colors of leaves or just find the trees that have leaves that are not green. You can march through the leaves; you can crunch the leaves with your shoes, you can shuffle in the leaves; you can hide your feet in the leaves, or your hand or your whole body!!! You can make a path through the leaves and walk down the path, or hop or crawl.
2. PUMPKINS:
One of the best suggestions that I am going to share is one that I learned from another early interventionist. You take a pumpkin, you take some colorful golf tees and find your childs little hammers from the pounding toys they have and you pound the tees into the pumpkin. "bang, bang, bang"; "more tees"; "in and out". Your child will enjoy this process so much. You pound the tees in and then you can take them out and do it again.
Of course taking the seeds out of the pumpkin is fun to explore. If your child has sensory issues this could be a hard one. Let them use a spoon, that might help. But if you have an explorer, let them pull the seeds out with their hands and you can scoop out the insides and put them in a bowl to explore. "Squishy, slippery, stringy" are all fun words that would apply. If they put some in their mouth, please don't say "yuck", let them decide if they like the taste or not (but be careful about choking on the seeds if your child is small).
And of course you can carve the pumpkin and roast the seeds. You can talk about the facial body parts that you are carving "should we cut out the nose or an eye?" and if you use a real candle you can play with having them blow it out several times in a row...great for breath control and to encourage your child to request "more please".
FOOD: YUM!!!! OK, there are caramel apples and caramel dip. There is a new milkshake at McDonalds that is an autumn shake which I would assume might be spicey. Milkshakes are great for improving the muscle strength in your childs mouth. There is pumpkin pie (and dipping the electric toothbrush in this mixture could be a good taste treat, plus wake up the mouth.) There are cakes and cookies and pies with cinnamon and ginger and nutmeg. Let them try apple cider or warm apple juice and maybe even add some cinnamon.
And what about the Halloween candy!?!?!? Licorace and gummy worms are good for muscle development....bite and pull on the sides as well as in front. Pixie stixs powder is one of my favorites to wake up the mouth. Their are that fun dip candy where you dip a hard candy into a powder. Keep your mind open as to ways to use some of the candy to stimulate your childs mouth. Remember, I'm not saying all day, every day. But a couple pixie stixs are not going to hurt your childs health or teeth.
HALLOWEEN: Words that will come easily for your child would be "boo" for ghost; "pumpin" for pumpkin; "cany" for candy. With the trick or treating and costumes realize that small children cannot always tell what is real and what isn't, so be sensitive and aware if your child might be scared. If you want them to participate, maybe let them help you hand out candy, or just ride in a wagon while someone else goes to the doors of the houses.
ART: A child's foot, painted white on the bottom and then pressed on a piece of dark colored paper will look like a ghost. You can add the eyes and open mouth. Or paint both feet and let your child walk across some black paper and you will have many ghosts :)
Give your child some markers to decorate their pumpkin or let them paint a pumpkin. You could dress your pumpkin with a hat and a tie for fun....let your imagination go.
Enjoy this time of year, we are heading into the holiday time; school has started and our lives shift into a different rhythm. Look for the fun in every day and share it with your child.
1. LEAVES:
If you live where the leaves are falling there are so many things that you can do. You can rake them (and get your child their own little rake) and then "one, two, three, go" you can jump in them!!! You can toss them around and focus on words like "up, down". You can find a bunch of dry leaves and "crunch, crunch, crunch" them up. You can get paper and glue out and stick the leaves to the paper. You can go on a walk and find all the different colors of leaves or just find the trees that have leaves that are not green. You can march through the leaves; you can crunch the leaves with your shoes, you can shuffle in the leaves; you can hide your feet in the leaves, or your hand or your whole body!!! You can make a path through the leaves and walk down the path, or hop or crawl.
2. PUMPKINS:
One of the best suggestions that I am going to share is one that I learned from another early interventionist. You take a pumpkin, you take some colorful golf tees and find your childs little hammers from the pounding toys they have and you pound the tees into the pumpkin. "bang, bang, bang"; "more tees"; "in and out". Your child will enjoy this process so much. You pound the tees in and then you can take them out and do it again.
Of course taking the seeds out of the pumpkin is fun to explore. If your child has sensory issues this could be a hard one. Let them use a spoon, that might help. But if you have an explorer, let them pull the seeds out with their hands and you can scoop out the insides and put them in a bowl to explore. "Squishy, slippery, stringy" are all fun words that would apply. If they put some in their mouth, please don't say "yuck", let them decide if they like the taste or not (but be careful about choking on the seeds if your child is small).
And of course you can carve the pumpkin and roast the seeds. You can talk about the facial body parts that you are carving "should we cut out the nose or an eye?" and if you use a real candle you can play with having them blow it out several times in a row...great for breath control and to encourage your child to request "more please".
FOOD: YUM!!!! OK, there are caramel apples and caramel dip. There is a new milkshake at McDonalds that is an autumn shake which I would assume might be spicey. Milkshakes are great for improving the muscle strength in your childs mouth. There is pumpkin pie (and dipping the electric toothbrush in this mixture could be a good taste treat, plus wake up the mouth.) There are cakes and cookies and pies with cinnamon and ginger and nutmeg. Let them try apple cider or warm apple juice and maybe even add some cinnamon.
And what about the Halloween candy!?!?!? Licorace and gummy worms are good for muscle development....bite and pull on the sides as well as in front. Pixie stixs powder is one of my favorites to wake up the mouth. Their are that fun dip candy where you dip a hard candy into a powder. Keep your mind open as to ways to use some of the candy to stimulate your childs mouth. Remember, I'm not saying all day, every day. But a couple pixie stixs are not going to hurt your childs health or teeth.
HALLOWEEN: Words that will come easily for your child would be "boo" for ghost; "pumpin" for pumpkin; "cany" for candy. With the trick or treating and costumes realize that small children cannot always tell what is real and what isn't, so be sensitive and aware if your child might be scared. If you want them to participate, maybe let them help you hand out candy, or just ride in a wagon while someone else goes to the doors of the houses.
ART: A child's foot, painted white on the bottom and then pressed on a piece of dark colored paper will look like a ghost. You can add the eyes and open mouth. Or paint both feet and let your child walk across some black paper and you will have many ghosts :)
Give your child some markers to decorate their pumpkin or let them paint a pumpkin. You could dress your pumpkin with a hat and a tie for fun....let your imagination go.
Enjoy this time of year, we are heading into the holiday time; school has started and our lives shift into a different rhythm. Look for the fun in every day and share it with your child.
Friday, September 30, 2011
September 2011
Here I am!!! Sorry it's been a bit since I posted.
September.....school has started, fall has arrived, the weather is changing and what can we do to stimulate some language ???
I hope that you stocked up on school supplies when they went on sale. Crayons and glue sticks and paper and 3 ring binders...yup, I have ideas for all of these.
1. With the 3 ring binder (and some page protectors) I want you to make a "book" of your child's favorite things. Pull out some old magazines and cut out pictures of things and people your child likes. Check the ads in the magazines, you will find pictures of food that children like ( fish crackers; mac and cheese; juice boxes; cookies.) You will also find ad's for children's TV shows (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, for example). You will find pictures of cars and trucks and motorcycles and trains, if your child is into vehicles. Or you could cut out pictures of faces with different expressions (crying, laughing, smiling, yawning, etc.) And don't forget to put some pictures of actions like walking or jumping or swinging. Once your have found some pictures that are meaningful to your child, pull out the glue sticks and have your child help you glue them to construction paper. While you are gluing you can model "push" or "go go" when you are rubbing the glue on. You can talk about "up and down" when you rub the glue on the top and bottom. Then place the picture on the paper and "boom boom " or "pat pat" the picture onto the paper. Encourage your child to pat or hammer with their hand the picture on the paper. Then slide the picture into the page protector, put the pages into the 3 ring binder and "ta da" you have a wonderful book your child can "read" to others. They will take pride in their book as well as want to talk about the pictures.
2. Paper. A simple piece of paper can become a wonderful language stimulation tool. You can crunch it and make it into a "ball" that you throw; kick; "go up"; "go down"; etc. You can throw it "in and out" or you can make a basket with a laundry basket. You can make it into a paper airplane and "one, two, three, go" you can throw it inside and out. You can use this activity to take turns and build anticipation. There is a fantastic video on YouTube of a dad that holds a piece of paper out to his baby boy and the child rips the paper and basically falls over laughing. It's a wonderful example of turn taking and reading your child. Trying something that simple can "pop" language. You entice your child by holding out the paper. The child pulls the paper, it rips and the sound makes everyone laugh. Before the child gets to try it again (and they will want to try) wait for them to indicate, in some way that they want another turn. It can be by looking or reaching their hand out to get the paper. It can be looking at the paper and laughing. However your child shows you they want a turn, you accept that and then continue the turn (plus model a word or phrase to go with that turn.)
3. Crayons. I know that they can be messy, so set up the area where you are going to let your child color before you let them loose. Think about putting a big piece of paper on the garage wall and let them color on that. Or tape a big piece on the floor or on the driveway and color out there. Be aware of the questions that you want to ask but your child can't answer; "what color is that? What did you draw?" Remember to keep modelling instead of quizzing, "you are coloring with blue, round and round and round. I like how you went up, up up, with the color." Describe what they are doing and feeling more than expecting it to "be" a picture.
With so much focus on school during September, I want to share some important information about your young child. If your child is 3 or under (and sometimes 5 and under) you need to focus less on things that are basically academic (like colors, numbers, letters, shapes) and focus more on relationships with family and peers. When a child is young, they are not supposed to be able to tell you what color something is, or what shape something is or be able to count and do the alphabet. A baby should not read, honest :) I know that there is the program out there to convince you that your baby should be reading. Here's the problem I have with that. Even if your baby starts to recognize a word and can label it, for example "dog", do they understand "dogness???" For example, have they touched a dog, heard a dog bark, smelled a dog, smelled a wet dog, had a dog lick them, touched their fur, heard their nails click on the floor??? Once they have interacted with a dog they "get" what a dog is all about and then they can connect the word "dog" with the object. It is meaningful to them. But saying "dog" when the word is flashed on a screen is not the same as understanding all about dogs. To me it's skipping a bunch of developmental steps for your child.
Our society is pushing academics, earlier and earlier but that is not developmentally appropriate. Young children learn from playing with toys, interacting with people, exploring nature, trying new foods and having fun. Our job as the adults in their lives is to expose them to different things and activities and then let them explore it their way and build on their interests instead of worrying about academics. When a child is ready, the academics come easily and it's fun. But pushing a child to quickly will cause frustration and even delay those skills from developing because it's just too hard.
Remember to relax and enjoy your child for who they are and what their interests are. Build on that and you can't go wrong.
September.....school has started, fall has arrived, the weather is changing and what can we do to stimulate some language ???
I hope that you stocked up on school supplies when they went on sale. Crayons and glue sticks and paper and 3 ring binders...yup, I have ideas for all of these.
1. With the 3 ring binder (and some page protectors) I want you to make a "book" of your child's favorite things. Pull out some old magazines and cut out pictures of things and people your child likes. Check the ads in the magazines, you will find pictures of food that children like ( fish crackers; mac and cheese; juice boxes; cookies.) You will also find ad's for children's TV shows (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, for example). You will find pictures of cars and trucks and motorcycles and trains, if your child is into vehicles. Or you could cut out pictures of faces with different expressions (crying, laughing, smiling, yawning, etc.) And don't forget to put some pictures of actions like walking or jumping or swinging. Once your have found some pictures that are meaningful to your child, pull out the glue sticks and have your child help you glue them to construction paper. While you are gluing you can model "push" or "go go" when you are rubbing the glue on. You can talk about "up and down" when you rub the glue on the top and bottom. Then place the picture on the paper and "boom boom " or "pat pat" the picture onto the paper. Encourage your child to pat or hammer with their hand the picture on the paper. Then slide the picture into the page protector, put the pages into the 3 ring binder and "ta da" you have a wonderful book your child can "read" to others. They will take pride in their book as well as want to talk about the pictures.
2. Paper. A simple piece of paper can become a wonderful language stimulation tool. You can crunch it and make it into a "ball" that you throw; kick; "go up"; "go down"; etc. You can throw it "in and out" or you can make a basket with a laundry basket. You can make it into a paper airplane and "one, two, three, go" you can throw it inside and out. You can use this activity to take turns and build anticipation. There is a fantastic video on YouTube of a dad that holds a piece of paper out to his baby boy and the child rips the paper and basically falls over laughing. It's a wonderful example of turn taking and reading your child. Trying something that simple can "pop" language. You entice your child by holding out the paper. The child pulls the paper, it rips and the sound makes everyone laugh. Before the child gets to try it again (and they will want to try) wait for them to indicate, in some way that they want another turn. It can be by looking or reaching their hand out to get the paper. It can be looking at the paper and laughing. However your child shows you they want a turn, you accept that and then continue the turn (plus model a word or phrase to go with that turn.)
3. Crayons. I know that they can be messy, so set up the area where you are going to let your child color before you let them loose. Think about putting a big piece of paper on the garage wall and let them color on that. Or tape a big piece on the floor or on the driveway and color out there. Be aware of the questions that you want to ask but your child can't answer; "what color is that? What did you draw?" Remember to keep modelling instead of quizzing, "you are coloring with blue, round and round and round. I like how you went up, up up, with the color." Describe what they are doing and feeling more than expecting it to "be" a picture.
With so much focus on school during September, I want to share some important information about your young child. If your child is 3 or under (and sometimes 5 and under) you need to focus less on things that are basically academic (like colors, numbers, letters, shapes) and focus more on relationships with family and peers. When a child is young, they are not supposed to be able to tell you what color something is, or what shape something is or be able to count and do the alphabet. A baby should not read, honest :) I know that there is the program out there to convince you that your baby should be reading. Here's the problem I have with that. Even if your baby starts to recognize a word and can label it, for example "dog", do they understand "dogness???" For example, have they touched a dog, heard a dog bark, smelled a dog, smelled a wet dog, had a dog lick them, touched their fur, heard their nails click on the floor??? Once they have interacted with a dog they "get" what a dog is all about and then they can connect the word "dog" with the object. It is meaningful to them. But saying "dog" when the word is flashed on a screen is not the same as understanding all about dogs. To me it's skipping a bunch of developmental steps for your child.
Our society is pushing academics, earlier and earlier but that is not developmentally appropriate. Young children learn from playing with toys, interacting with people, exploring nature, trying new foods and having fun. Our job as the adults in their lives is to expose them to different things and activities and then let them explore it their way and build on their interests instead of worrying about academics. When a child is ready, the academics come easily and it's fun. But pushing a child to quickly will cause frustration and even delay those skills from developing because it's just too hard.
Remember to relax and enjoy your child for who they are and what their interests are. Build on that and you can't go wrong.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
July 2011
July is almost over!! I hope that you all enjoyed the 4th of July celebrations with the yummy foods to try, the parades with the bands and firetrucks and the "boom!!" of the fireworks. All wonderful language popping experiences.
I know that family gatherings are things that we do in the summer. Hmmm, how does your child like family gatherings? Let me picture what a family gathering looks like to we adults. There are people laughing and hugging; there are people being loud; there are older people in chairs that are sitting back and watching the family members interact. There are the generation under that, probably getting drinks and focusing on the food. There are the children of that group, the 20's and teens having fun playing with Frisbees; volleyball; badminton, skiing on the lake; throwing eachother in the water; throwing water balloons and having fun. There are the little children; some are running around interacting with others; some are sitting on the adults lap and some are crying and trying to get out of there.
So, let's look at this from the view of the under 3 child. They are in an environment that is totally unpredictable. Strange people will walk up to them and talk to them and even try to hold them. There are lots of noises that surprise the child. There are so many things to look at and hear. There are so many things that the child might want to explore...the food, the yard, the house, and maybe even some of the people. And the child might have not been sleeping well because they are travelling to get to this gathering or they are sleeping in a hotel or in the house and maybe in a bed that isn't familiar to them.
When your child acts up during a family gathering, think about what they are feeling but may not be able to tell you. (Remember, behavior is a form of communication, so if your child is acting up, they are communicating with you.) Let's problem solve what you can do to make this all easier.
I know that family gatherings are things that we do in the summer. Hmmm, how does your child like family gatherings? Let me picture what a family gathering looks like to we adults. There are people laughing and hugging; there are people being loud; there are older people in chairs that are sitting back and watching the family members interact. There are the generation under that, probably getting drinks and focusing on the food. There are the children of that group, the 20's and teens having fun playing with Frisbees; volleyball; badminton, skiing on the lake; throwing eachother in the water; throwing water balloons and having fun. There are the little children; some are running around interacting with others; some are sitting on the adults lap and some are crying and trying to get out of there.
So, let's look at this from the view of the under 3 child. They are in an environment that is totally unpredictable. Strange people will walk up to them and talk to them and even try to hold them. There are lots of noises that surprise the child. There are so many things to look at and hear. There are so many things that the child might want to explore...the food, the yard, the house, and maybe even some of the people. And the child might have not been sleeping well because they are travelling to get to this gathering or they are sleeping in a hotel or in the house and maybe in a bed that isn't familiar to them.
When your child acts up during a family gathering, think about what they are feeling but may not be able to tell you. (Remember, behavior is a form of communication, so if your child is acting up, they are communicating with you.) Let's problem solve what you can do to make this all easier.
- How to deal with the people that want to hold your child, or ask them "what's your name, how old are you" and then look at you and say "why isn't he talking!" If your child is not feeling comfortable, going to a stranger will probably not help. You can explain to the loving adult that your child needs a little bit more time to warm up and you will let them know when your child might want to be held. Or, you and the loving adult can go to a quiet place, away from the crowd and interact without putting pressure on the child. Slowly the loving adult can interact a little bit at a time, and perhaps win over your child. Please don't force your child to be held by another person if they don't feel secure.
- How to deal with a too tired child. I would try to keep your child's sleep schedule as typical as possible. Maybe have a baby monitor and pack and play in a quiet bedroom and have a fan running for white noise that might help your child have a nap when needed. Fans or other sources of white noise are wonderful for situations where there is unexpected noises. You might need to rock your child or swaddle them a bit in a blanket to help them get organized if they get overtired or upset. Calmly reassure them, sing quietly a favorite song and help them find some time to get organized. There is nothing wrong with lying down with them for a bit to help them fall asleep.
- How to deal with new foods when you have a "picky eater"? I would bring favorite foods with me so that you can help your child feel comfortable. This is not the time to try new foods if it is upsetting to your child. Try to avoid the comments that well meaning adults might say like "you are spoiling your child"; or " just make them eat it". You are the expert on your child and as hard as it is to disagree with YOUR parents or grandparents, you need to stick up for your child if they need that support. It will make for a happier child which will make for a happier you.
- What to do when your child is having a melt down? The first thing I would do is for you and the child to remove yourself from what is happening. Find a quiet spot to calmly reassure your child and help them through their stress. Another idea is to have a stroller ready to take your child for a walk. This will distract them from what has them upset as well as give you both some time to connect. Once your child and you are feeling calm and relaxed, then you can rejoin the group. Often times the thought is to scold a child or punish them for their behavior when they melt down. Once again, I would look at what the trigger was for your child and help them through it. Punishing and scolding will just escalate the meltdown. And you need to stay calm too (if you can) because your child will feed off of your stress.
Now let's think, just for a minute about the wonderful things that may happen at this family gathering. You might be able to get a break from being the primary caregiver for your child because your child loves hanging out with Grandma or Grandpa or auntie and uncle. Your child is engaging with the extended family, giving kisses or high fives and snuggling on the laps of your loved ones. Your child may love trying the new foods, especially if there are other children around their age that are eating new foods too. Children love to imitate other children. Your child might sleep much better on a trip because they are more active and the new things tire them out. Sometimes children with sensory concerns do better when everything is different and they appear more easy going. You might fall in love all over again with these special people in your life because of how they interact so well with your child and praise you for raising such a wonderful little person.
Talk to you soon!!
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