Gluten Free Candy Corn?

Hello fellow GF friends -

Does anyone know what brand of CANDY CORN is definitely gluten free? Evidently Brach's technically doesn't contain gluten ingredients, but are processed in a facility that also processes wheat (cross contamination risk).  UGG! I love candy corn, and would really like to have a little this year (especially since it's a seasonal thing).  I've looked it up on the internet, and have had difficulty getting an answer on this one. 

While I'm on the subject, I am also looking for GF licorice (or licorice jelly beans, gummies, etc).  I adore black licorice, and as you know, traditional licorice is made with wheat as a main ingredient.  Oh how I miss this!

Thanks!
Jessica

Strummin' and Pickin'

You may have noticed that I have added an awesome new gadget in the left hand column of my blog ... a guitar chord gadget!  I was pretty excited when I saw this, and thought it would be a great addition here.  I hope my guitar playing clients (and other web friends) will enjoy having easy access to the chords. 

I also wanted to mention a great website that offers some online help as well. 

http://www.e-chords.com/ -  offers piano and guitar chord formats for your searched songs.  Here, you are also able to transpose by changing key to half step up, full step up, half step down, full step down OR you can change the key of the song by simply clicking on what key you want it in.  For guitar, it also offers left handed chords.

Keep strummin',
Jessica

"Pumpkin, Pumpkin" (song/activity)

As you are carving and lighting your pumpkins this week, you may want to take this fun holiday tradition as a yet another (FUN!) opportunity to reinforce certain goal areas. 


Here's a simple little Halloween song and activity...

"PUMPKIN, PUMPKIN" (click link to my webpage where you will find this song listed)

This activity may be used with these goal areas:

• Auditory Attention (listen for and follow auditory cue)
• Impulse Control (wait for cue to touch items)
• Cognitive Skill (teach/reinforce concepts such as colors, shapes, holiday/theme related material, etc.)
• Verbal Commands (follow verbal prompts/commands/directions)
• Sensory

Be sure to use props for this activity (a real or toy pumpkin and black cat AND/OR pictures of a pumpkin and black cat).  As always, keep in mind your child's age and/or developmental level when determining appropriateness of an activity.

Jessica

Thriving with Autism

Happy Tuesday to you all! I have referenced one of my new favorite resources on this blog before - Austim Hangout (http://www.autismhangout.com/ ).  Here are a couple of current Webinars (video based interviews/podcasts).

________________________________________________________________________________

WEBINAR Series:  Thriving with Autism
Monday, October 26th - 6-7:30A CDT

Meet Dr. Stephen Shore and Donna Williams... two AMAZING people on the spectrum; one a PhD, the other a singer/songwriter/author/screenwriter - both diagnosed as severly autistic in youth (the doctors suggested institutionalization). More living proof how people with autism can "thrive!"
________________________________________________________________________________
WEBINAR Series: Hot Off The Press!
Wednesday, October 28 - 12-1P CDT

Filmmaker Melanie Levy will be premiering clips from her powerful documentary, "My Name is Sydney." Meet the charming, talented, witty young Sydney. Melanie has captured an amazing story.
Again, not to be missed!




Very inspiring.

Jessica

Is it really ADD/ADHD?

There is something that I have been meaning to mention in a blog posting, but haven't gotten around to it.  It's something that I feel quite passionate about.  Well, it's come up a few times this week in various conversations/situations so it's on my mind yet again.

ADD and ADHD.

In our recent past, we have seen this very much over diagnosed and/or misdiagnosed.  It is crucial, for many reasons, to avoid this and to seek out a thorough diagnosis.

As with any diagnosis, it is important to have the correct one.  There are several factors, I believe, in being sure to have an accurate ADD/ADHD diagnosis. 

1)  Look at diet, sleep patterns, as well as environmental influences, stressors, and circumstances.
DIET:  What foods/drinks does your child generally consume? Are they high in sugar, caffiene,
MSG, artificial colors? What you put in will determine what comes out.  I have given the example before of filling your gas tank up with water or mud, and expecting it to run the same as when you fill it with fuel.  People often don't give enough credit to just how much the food we eat/drink influences our body, energy, thinking, memory, physical ability, etc.
SLEEP:  Sleep disturbances/problems can result in similar behaviors including inattention, fatigue or
hyperactivity, low impulse control, stress/mood swings, etc.
STRESS:  Have there been any major changes which could be causing stress? OR Is there anything ongoing
in the child's environment (school, home, etc) that could be causing emotional stress/trauma?

2)  Obtain a diagnosis/assessment through a psychologist/behavioral therapist.  Do not only rely on one source (i.e. solely on a teacher's comment, one visit to the pediatrician, etc).  There are several things involved in making a thorough diagnosis.  There are certain conditions/disorders/symptoms that can look like other conditions/disorders/symptoms.  When looking at the DSM-IV, various conditions/disorders may share similar symptoms.  A proper ADD/ADHD diagnosis should be based on the behavioral symptoms  observed and by ruling out other disorders.


The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that an evaluation for childhood ADD / ADHD include:

• A thorough medical and family history
• A general physical and neurological exam
• A comprehensive interview with the parents, the child, and the child's teacher(s)
• Standardized screening tools for ADD/ADHD
• Observation of the child
• A variety of psychological tests to measure IQ and social and emotional adjustment

For more valuable information on this, visit the American Academy of Pediatrics website.

Jessica

Your Monster Mash!

Many of my clients just love working and playing on the computer.  As I've mentioned before, for these kids, I often incorporate computer fun into some of my music therapy activities within session.  It may be fun cognitive based games/activities, emotion/facial affect games/activities, social skill activities, or it may be work on the recording studio (which is accessed from my laptop). 

Someone shared with me this great link to an online Monster Mash photo activity (sponsored by Oriental Trader) that I wanted to share with you.  (http://www.monstermashup.com/)

You may have non goal-oriented fun with it by simply uploading fun family member pictures, and then watch as say, Dad, dances around in a silly monster mash dance.

Another option that I thought of was a goal-oriented approach.  If you have access to this (maybe pictures from field trips or pictures from last year's yearbook), download pictures of your child's peers/classmates into this little activity.  This would be a great way to help increase peer awareness and may help in decreasing mild social anxiety through use of peer pictures (and references) within a fun activity.  As I've mentioned in previous blogs, I find that first implementing these types of activities can go a long way in working on social skill/peer awareness activities with children who have anxiety related to peer socialization.  This is a way of "getting the toes wet" socially, and may be perceived as a little more 'safe' to a child with social anxiety.  See some of my other social skill/peer awareness blogs for further explanation.

See my family's monster mash - we got a kick out of it! We may do it again with a different theme/music.  There are lots of choices there including using pre set characters or uploading your own pictures.  Fun, fun!

Jessica

Here's a Little Pumpkin

Orange and Round

Sung to :  I'm a Little Teapot

C

Here's a little pumpkin,

F                   C

Orange and round,

G7                    C

Here's a little pumpkin,

G7       C

That I found.

When I get him cleaned up

F       C

I will say,

"Here's a little pumpkin

For my holiday."

-Jean Warren

The above song and signs are from one of my favorite little activity resources, Piggyback Songs to Sign.  I have mentioned this little book before, and I also have it included in my aStore in the left hand column of this blog.  This is a great little activity that can accomplish a lot.  Here are some goal areas for which this activity would be useful:

• 
  
  Teach/reinforce cognitive concepts (holiday themes, colors, shapes, etc.)
  
  
  
• 
  
  Increase communication skill (facilitate nonverbal communication, teach ASL)
  
  
  
• 
  
  Increase visual attention
  
  
  
• 
  
  Improve auditory attention (listening for certain auditory cue to perform task/ASL signing)
  
  
  
• 
  
  Improve hand/eye coordination
  
  
  
• 
  
  Facilitate midline/cross lateral work
  
  
  
• 
  
  Increase range of motion/quality of movement
  
  
  

You may find other great uses not represented here as well or you may enjoy building from this activity. 

Have fun and happy fall!

Jessica

Happy Fall!

Happy Fall!

Yes, I know I am late with this greeting.  It seems my family (as many) was busy fighting off seasonal illnesses, and we completely missed the first day of fall! We have this nice little tradition that we started when my son just a little thing, and we called it out "Fall Celebration".  On the first day of fall, we would take out all our fall decorations and decorate the inside and outside of the house (wreaths and gourds and pumpkins and such ... Halloween decor is left for the week of Halloween).  We would also buy our pumpkin (but not yet carve it), make caramel apples, and make some sort of centerpiece for our dining table (usually involving those little mini pumpkins and gourds and candles). 

Although we missed having our fall celebration on the actual first day of fall this year, we did still have it.  This past Tuesday was our day dedicated to fall celebration, and it was a great one! We are still munching on caramel apples, and enjoying the season. 

I have to fess up here, though.  This sounds all fun and quaint, however, I have to be honest about why this whole celebration came about in the first place.  See ... I adore the spring and summertime.  I am a beach girl.  I love picnics at the park.  I love fishing and crabbing.  I love the sunshine and looking out on a beautiful marsh.  I love cookouts, and well ... I just love summer! I, selfishly, decided that instead of mourning the end of summer as I often did (well, mourning is a harsh word ... 'clinging desperately' fits, though) ... instead of dreading the summer's end, I decided to begin celebrating fall's beginning.  There are so many wonderful things about each season and each 'time'.  Once we started focusing on that, things got a lot brighter :) So from that, this wonderful family tradition came about, and we just love, love, love it!

Enjoy this time of the year ... all the yummy fall scents, leaves changing (for those of you fortunate enough to live somewhere more north of here that has this beautiful phenomenon), a little nip in the air, festivals, state fairs, the anticipation of the holidays, and so on and so on!

Jessica

Frailin' With Friends = Fun Music!

I have recently met a friend via the internet who not only hosts an autism resource website, but is a fellow musician as well.  Craig Evans hosts http://www.autismhangout.com.  I mentioned in a recent blog posting a 'webinar' that I viewed on Autism Hangout which featured Lindsey Beil and her book, Raising a Sensory Smart Child.  Since then, I have revisited the Autism Hangout website as it is a wonderful resource! In my recent visit I stumbled upon mention of Craig's wonderful CD entitled Frailin' With Friends.

Frailin' With Friends features Craig's lovely banjo (and friends) tunes.  They are toe-tapping, upbeat, and lots of fun.  "This CD of happy music was assembled as a day-brightener for those living with the daily challenges of autism. I'm also using all the proceeds from sales to fund Autism Hangout."  Visit www.autismhangout.com/directory/store.asp for more information as well as to HEAR SAMPLES of songs.


I have big plans for this wonderful CD as I implement it into my own sessions.  Thank you, Craig, for such a wonderful resource!


Jessica

Fun Fall Events (CCC charity events)

Wow! There are some really FUN charity events coming up so mark your calendars! Click on the event name to be linked to the event flyers (below).  I am hoping to make it to the sale and to the Halloween event. 
Jessica 

MOM to MOM Sale
Event:  Mom to Mom Sale
Date:  October 10, 2009 (this Saturday)
Time:  7am – 2pm
Location:  Mt. Pleasant Armory
245 Mathis Ferry Road
$1 entrance fee - 100% of the entrance fee and a portion of the proceeds will be split between Charleston Autism Academy and Carolina Children’s Charity.
(Click above link to view flyer.)


 

Halloween Party with a Purpose
Event: 2nd Party with a Purpose – Halloween Style (adults)
Date:  Thursday, Oct 29, 2009
Time:  drink/food specials 6-9pm, Costume Contest @ 9:15pm
Location:  Mad River Bar & Grille
Meanie Miney Moe will be our band for the evening. We will also have a silent auction during the event. If you know anyone who may like to donate an item or service for this auction, please call the CCC office at 554-6222.  (Click above link to view flyer.)

Charity Golf Tournament (benifiting CCC)
Event:  Charity Golf Tournament (hosted by Goose Creek Fire Dept.)
Date:  Saturday, November 7, 2009
Location:  Crowfield Golf and Country Club
300 Hamlet Circle, Goose Creek
Looking for participants!
(Click above link to view flyer.  Convert to word if trouble opening flyer.)

Sensing

I recently listened to a podcast on Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) featuring Lindsey Beil, M.A., OTR.L, an occupational therapist specializing in pediatrics.  The podcast that I viewed was a webinar entitled Author Lindsey Biel - "Raising a Sensory Smart Child."  In this webinar, Ms. Beil gives a great overview of SPD as well as the way our senses work typically and atypically. 

Ms. Beil has also cowritten a book, along with Nancy Peske, entitled Raising A Sensory Smart Child (Note:  I have this book listed on my astore as a recommended resource for your convenience).  Visit Ms. Beil's website http://www.sensorysmarts.com/ for additional information.

Jessica

Resources ... My aStore

Hello everyone!

As you know, one of the reasons for my blogging here is to bring to you a variety of resources. I have recently added "My aStore: music therapy moments recommends ..." to this blog site which includes many of the resources that I have recommened to you within my blog, newsletters, website, etc. These are items that I have hand picked as my own recommendations. Note that there is a variety, and if you have any questions on appropriatenss of a given resource listed, please feel free to ask me.

So far, I have included some music selections (under "Adult/Young Adult Music" and "Children's Music"), Sensory Tools, Books, and Instruments. I intend on adding some other items along the way, but this is a good headstart. Let me know if you have any recommendations. I would love that! I do like to get familiar with items before I recommend them first.

Many of the links that I have included for resources (in the past), I have made them Amazon.com links because I view them as a trustworthy and reputable. So, it made perfect sense to me to add this gadget to make the whole process that much more clear and easy for you! Note that Amazon.com provides options for both new and used items/prices so be sure to check that out.

See my aStore in the left side column of this blog!

Jessica

Leaves Are Falling Down

LEAVES ARE FALLING DOWN
(to the tune of Farmer and the Dell)

Leaves are falling down,

Leaves are falling down,

All the colors all around

Leaves are falling down.

Leaves are falling down,

Leaves are falling down,

Orange, yellow, red, and brown,

Leaves are falling down.


Even a song/rhyme as simple as this can go along way in reinforcing certain concepts such as colors, teaching certain ASL signs, seasons, etc. This could even be used as a fun game for movement/muscle strengthening.

Jessica