Fun way to work on summer Social Skills/Peer Awareness!

Hello Friends! 

Raising peer awareness/increasing social skill is something to work on with your kiddos all year long.  Summertime provides opportunities for this, especially with kids who are enrolled in summer camp/programs.  In fact, social skills are often challenged here, as your kids are learning lots of brand new faces and names in a small amount of time and all at once! Soooo ... what a great time to implement some summer social activities that will aid this.  This may even be helpful to begin working on a couple weeks prior to the start of school.

I really like a lot of the Pancake Manor songs (their sound is easy and enjoyable for all).  I have included two video versions of the same song below.  I find that some of my clients who demonstrate shyness or social withdrawal/disinterest/sensitivity(especially kids on the ASD spectrum), benefit from this method.  

METHOD: With these clients, I will sometimes implement a peer awareness activity first using names paired with animal or fictional/cartoon characters.  I find that these clients are often more accepting of and willing to give visual attention/participation with animal/character pictures over pictures of actual people faces.  This is a "meet the child where they are" type of method.  Once your child is comfortable with this, begin to transition into using actual peer faces.  Depending on how sensitive your child is in this area, you may want to transition with one of the methods listed below:

• Transition to peer faces by only adding in one peer face with each repetition of the song, keeping the rest of the song/activity the same as originally introduced (with animal/character pics).
• Transitioning with peer faces, but have them more cartoon based ... then move little by little to actual face pics.
• Transition by implementing 1 actual peer face (your child's actual peer) at a time.  This is if you are trying to work on specific peers in your child's life (neighbors, campers, family members, familiar persons, classmates, etc).  

The Name Song by: Pancake Manor
 (song version with animals/characters)

The Name Song by: Pancake Manor (song version with peer faces)









Have fun!

Jessica

Man in the Can - The Life of a Dreamer (Autism Awareness)

Well, this got my heart! 

Patrick lost his job and both of his parents, but he never gave up on his dream. Here's a little smackeral of autism awareness and inspiration for ya! (click on the video link below) 

Keep on singing,

Jessica

Happy Siblings Day! "MY Brother" (6 yr. old tells about her brother w/Down Syndrome)

HAPPY SIBLINGS DAY!

MY BROTHER

A six year old tells about her brother with Down Syndrome

I found this sweet post on the National Down Syndrome Society's FB page  https://www.facebook.com/NDSS1979?fref=nf .

Siblings of children with special needs really face a lot both with a different family dynamic from many of their peers as well as environmental/society factors involved.  However, one of the many many beautiful benefits for these siblings is an increased understanding of some of the most important things in life that effect US ALL ... things like wisdom, compassion, and a greater understanding of how "people are".  They also hold insight on how to immensely love and accept others, despite differences, and they learn this very necessary skill far sooner than most of us.  This takes the rest of the world much longer to learn!  That leads me to my final point about these awesome siblings ... and that is they are natural born teachers.  They show us how we should be loving, how we should be acting, and how to resolve our fears.

Through all the hard times ... still ... what a gift it is for the a child to be a sibling of a child with special needs  AND what a gift it is for a child with special needs to have such a sibling.

WELL ... I thought that was the end of today's blog post UNTIL I came across this gem online ... please read and share with that boy or girl you know that needs it!

Dear Sibling to a Child with special needs ... Let me tell you why you are amazing! (Letter to a sibling)


Jessica Daisi

Microsoft Launches Pilot Program to Hire Adults with Autism

April 08, 2015

Microsoft announced a new pilot program to hire individuals with autism by working with agency Specialisterne, CBS reported.

"It’s simple, Microsoft is stronger when we expand opportunity and we have a diverse workforce that represents our customers," wrote Mary Ellen Smith, Microsoft's corporate vice president of worldwide operations, on the company's blog.

"People with autism bring strengths that we need at Microsoft, each individual is different, some have amazing ability to retain information, think at a level of detail and depth or excel in math or code. It’s a talent pool that we want to continue to bring to Microsoft!" Smith wrote.  

For Smith, the motivation to hire individuals on the spectrum is also personal: she has a 19-year-old son with autism. 

"This represents only one of the ways we are evolving our approach to increase the diversity of Microsoft’s workforce," Smith continued. "We believe there is a lot of untapped potential in the marketplace and we are encouraged by the strong level of readiness from the vendors who cater to this segment."

"Microsoft's announcement is another major turning point in increasing employment of adults with autism," said Lisa Goring, executive vice president of programs and services at Autism Speaks. "Tech jobs offer some people with autism an opportunity to prove their skills in this highly competitive market."

Autism Speaks is committed to helping individuals on the spectrum find employment. We've launched three great new employment tools for the autism community. Check them out here.

For more employment resources, go here. Also join our LinkedIn group, the Autism Employment Network, powered by Autism Speaks.

Candidates interested in the pilot program can email resumes to msautism@microsoft.com. 

- AutismSpeaks.org (source)

"If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism."

This Autism Speaks film delves into just how unique every individual with autism spectrum

disorders (ASD) is. There is a saying among the autism community, "If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism." This film resonates that message. 

For more information on this story, visit Autism Speaks at

https://www.autismspeaks.org/news/news-item/video-inside-autism-spectrum

Jessica Daisi

Carly's Cafe - Experience Autism Though Carly's Eyes

This experience is viewed through the eyes of Carly Fleischmann, a 17 year old girl living with non-verbal Autism.
Based on an excerpt from the book Carly's Voice: Breaking through Autism, it explores how, for someone with autism, a simple act like going for a coffee can descend into chaos.
Carly's Café was developed as an interactive video that allows the user to experience Autism from the inside-out, visit carlyscafe.com to enjoy the full experience.

Walk for Autism - Fun Events

                     February 26th  (Sat)-                                Pancake Breakfast
                               Applebees (Mount Pleasant)
                               8am - 10am
                               Tickets are $5  (at the door)

March 14th (Monday) - Chuckie Cheese in North Charleston (Rivers Ave).
* donating 15% of proceeds to this charity
* Contact me if you are interested, and I can email you the flyer for this which includes a coupon for 10 free tokens !


ATTENTION BIKERS! 

March 19th (Saturday) -
Poker Run
(at American Biker in Ladson).
 
 
 

April 9th (Saturday) - Walk for Autism at Hampton Park in (downtown Charleston)
For more info, visit   http://www.walkforautism-charleston.com/

The Autism Shop - great stuff!

THE AUTISM SHOP - A Fun Resource
My friend, Craig Evans of Autism Hangout (http://www.autismhangout.com/), recently posted a video, live from this wonderful autism store/resource, The Autism Shop.  Click on this link to view.

The Autism Shop - A one-of-a-kind book and toy store for people on the spectrum.

Cherri's 20+ years of first-hand experience with families and teachers of people with autism help her in finding and/or designing the ideal products for our special kids.

Cherri's shop features over 1,000 hand-picked items that she ships worldwide.  (- Craig Evans, Autism Hangout)


Enjoy!
Jessica

Strides For Autism

Walks Across South Carolina








This fall, the community will walk in support of South Carolina families affected by autism in both the Grand Strand and Lowcountry at the Strides for Autism events to benefit the South Carolina Autism Society (SCAS). These are the last of our four signature fund-raising and awareness walks, which include a 5k walk, resource fair, and family-fun events. Strides for Autism is among various activities that benefit the organization and the families it serves.

MYRTLE BEACH EVENT:
The Grand Strand event will be held on Saturday, November 6, 2010 at Grand Park at Market Common.

CHARLESTON EVENT:
The Lowcountry event will occur one week later on Saturday, November 13, 2010 at Memorial Waterfront Park in Mt. Pleasant.
Registration for each event will begin at 8:00 am, and the walks will begin at 9:00 am.
If you have not already registered to participate in our resource fair as an exhibitor, we encourage you to do so! Rates are just $100 for non-profit organizations or state agencies, and $150 for for-profit companies. We welcome you at one or both of the events. Attached is an information and registration form that you can complete and return to us. To pay by credit card, please complete the form and then call the Columbia office at 1-800-438-4790 to process your payment.
We also have spaces left for Corporate Sponsorship to increase the visibility of your organization. Please see the attached sponsorship forms for additional information.
According to Craig Stoxen, President & CEO of the South Carolina Autism Society, we have two goals with our Strides event.
1) To raise the awareness of autism spectrum disorders. With the occurrence rate of autism at 1 in 110, everyone is or will soon be affected in one way or another by autism. It may be a family member or it may be coworker’s child or a friend’s child. So the better understanding our society has, the better the quality of life for those on the spectrum will be.
2) To raise funds for the South Carolina Autism Society. This fundraiser is to help ensure SCAS can meet the needs of families through information and referral, trainings and workshops and advocacy.
SCAS is the only statewide agency advocating for children and adults with autism spectrum disorders and their families, while also providing assistance and resources. SCAS promotes, educates and raises awareness that one in every 110 births in the U.S. is a child with autism, and provides support for South Carolina-based research and development. Most importantly, SCAS works to ensure that the 28,000 individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) living in South Carolina have opportunities to achieve a quality of life comparable to their peers.
Monies raised for South Carolina Autism Society stay in South Carolina and go towards family supports, education, advocacy, and South Carolina-based research.
We encourage you to join us at Strides for Autism, and spread the word to your clients. Registration and other information for Strides for Autism, along with information about autism and SCAS, is available at the event Web site, www.scautism.org/strides/, or by calling the Columbia SCAS office at 1-800-438-4790.


South Carolina Autism Society
http://www.scautism.org/

Autistic Salutatorian Delivers High School Graduation Speech

"Music Therapy Glimpses" - Music Therapy: Kenny's Story (autism)

Well, friends, here's the deal ...

As you know, I dedicated last week to showcasing some great music therapy videos each day on my blog.  These gave great 'glimpses' into music therapy treatment (and as mentioned, there are also some impostor 'music therapy' videos out there as well).  HOWEVER, I found so many good ones that they naturally spilled over into this week.  So, I guess I am dedicating 2 weeks of blogging to this!

Here's another great clip:



Jessica

"Model Me Kids" - a great Social Skills resource

I was on Autism Hangout (http://www.autismhangout.com/ ) the other day, and saw mention of a wonderful social skills resource called "Model Me Kids" (click on link to go to site).  Model Me Kids teaches social skills concepts through DVDs/videos, which provides visual cues through modeling specific social skill and related behaviors. 

Many of these include accompanying storyboards as well.  Also, I was pleased to see that the videos are modeled in real life scenarios AND they are very concrete, providing very clear step by step examples. 

I would love to add Model Me Kids to my own collection of resources as I know they would be extremely beneficial in and out of therapy!

As mentioned, I was really excited about this resource, however, I did want to see a sample before making a decision to purchase.  The website provides several samples, and after viewing these, I was even more impressed.  For video samples of some of the DVDs offered, visit this link : http://modelmekids.com/autism-video-samples.html

Another great feature is that these are also categorized according to age appropriateness (and age range of person using the resource).

This one is going on my wish list! I'd love feedback of anyone who has used this resource.

Jessica 

Music Therapy and Autism webinar

"Where Words Fail, Music Speaks"

Hello everyone! I wanted to share with you something that I am pretty excited about.  You've heard me mention Autism Hangout before in past postings.  Autism Hangout is a website created to provide support and resources for those in the autism community. 

Craig Evans, a fellow musician and host to the Autism Hangout site, invited me to speak (via webinar) on Music Therapy and Autism.  We did the webinar interview this morning, and he already has it posted on the site.  The heading/title of the webinar is "Where Words Fail, Music Speaks".

It is a 10 minute webinar that touches on some introductory points about Music Therapy as it relates to ASD treatment.  Craig and I have discussed plans for expansion of this, and look forward to creating a series of webinars under Music Therapy and Autism.  These future webinars will give a little more in depth look at the use of music therapy techniques to support specific needs of a person on the spectrum (i.e. speech, development, supporting cognitive skill/concepts, sensory input/integration, social skill development, etc).

Thank you, Craig, for Autism Hangout as it is a wonderful resource, and thank you for allowing me to contribute!

Visit http://www.autismhangout.com/default.asp to view the video, along with some other great resources.

Jessica

Autism Shop

Oh wow - how fun! I found this great link to an online book and toy
store geared toward ASD. 

"Autismshop.com is the online home of the Autism Resource Network, a one-of-a-kind Book & Toy Store that is packed with merchandise and information for individuals with ASD and those who love, care for, and educate them. We are a Minnesota nonprofit corporation."


*  Free shipping on orders of $100
*  Online purchases welcome
*  Proceeds benefit autism research and support
*  Lots of great resources, tools, and info!
Copyright © Autism Resource Network
Some featured items include:
- books
- jewelry, cards
- time timers
- PECS, visuals
- music, speech, language
- sensory items, chewables
- fidgets
- games
- software

I really had fun poking around the site! Enjoy :)

Jessica

Exciting New Social Stories Music Project!

You've heard me (read) mention of my new friend, Craig Evans, in the web autism community.  Craig hosts a wonderful site dedicated to the world of autism :  http://www.autismhangout.com/.  Craig is also a fellow musician (see past blog posting for more info on his wonderful CD that I use often in therapy!)

Craig, along with his fellow musician friends, are working on a project that I am especially excited about.  They are gathering various social stories, and putting them to music! I will be sharing with him some of my own, and I cannot wait to hear the finished product.  I am certain to get a lot of use out of these within session, and I also look forward to being able to send these with my clients for use outside of therapy.  See below excerpt from the AutismHangout webpage (or visit the page ... see link above) for more info.
_____________________________________________________________

A Call For Social Stories!! Let's Put Them To Music!
Teachers, aids, caregivers and parents, if you've a great Social Story, here's a chance to put it to music and share it with others.
It's been proven time and again that music helps open up our kids. So why not put together "the best of" our community-prepared Social Stories with music so that all our special kids can benefit? Read more here.




____________________________________________________________


I will keep you posted!

Jessica

Charleston Oyster Roast for autism

17th Annual Charleston Oyster Roast

Saturday, February 20 7:00pm



Event: 17th Annual Charleston Oyster Roast

What: Fundraiser to benefit CAROLINA AUTISM

Date/Time: Saturday, February 20 at 7:00pm

Where: Visitors Center Bus Shed

http://www.charitablesocietyofcharleston.org/news/events.html

Dear John Premiere!

Hello everyone! This is so exciting! See below!

Dear John Charleston Premiere


A benefit event for Carolina Autism

Date: Sunday, January 24, 2010

Time: 5:30pm - 11:00pm

Location: Screening: Terrace Hippodrome, Official After Party: SC Aquarium

Street: 360 Concord St/100 Aquarium Wharf

City/Town: Charleston, SC

COCKTAIL ATTIRE
A Night of Spotlights and Stars to raise funds for autism treatment
The stars will be out at the Charleston premiere of Dear John, the new movie Directed by Lasse Hallström and based on the novel by best-selling author Nicholas Sparks. Now 400 fans will have a chance to see the stars and the new movie! The waterfront Hippodrome Theater is the setting for the premiere followed by a Hollywood style after-party next door at the beautiful South Carolina Aquarium. Plan to attend or just come on down to join the paparazzi and wave to the stars as the limos pull up to the red carpet.
DEAR JOHN tells story of John Tyree (Channing Tatum), a young soldier home on leave, and Savannah Curtis (Amanda Seyfried), the idealistic college student he falls in love with during her spring vacation. Over the next seven tumultuous years, the couple is separated by John’s increasingly dangerous deployments. While meeting only sporadically, they stay in touch by sending a continuous stream of love letters overseas--correspondence that eventually triggers fateful consequences.
The movie premiere is a fund raising benefit for Carolina Autism (http://www.carolinaautism.org/), a local charity that serves children and adults with autism. Proceeds from the event will go toward their intensive early intervention program, helping young children with autism and their families. Carolina Autism staff helped with the production of the movie and will be featured on the DVD of the film when it is released.
Tickets are $250 (portion tax deductible) and are available at http://www.DearJohnCharlestonPremiere.com

_____________________________________________________
Based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks

Cast: Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried, Henry Thomas, Scott Porter, Richard Jenkins and introducing Braeden Reed, a child actor from Charleston with autism, served by Carolina Autism


FOR TICKETS GO TO http://www.dearjohncharlestonpremiere.com/

Please arrive by 6pm for seating. Adult beverages served with proof of age.
Twitter contest rules: http://www.dearjohncharlestonpremiere.com/twitter.html
 
 
Jessica

Autism Broadcast (upcoming)

I received an email about an upcoming broadcast on Autism.  Check out the below message for details. 

++++++++++++++++
Dear Friends and Colleagues: Please see this forwarded message.



A broadcast about the Autism Collaborative Center at Eastern Michigan University, including music therapy, is planned for Tuesday February 2. Locally, it will show at 5:30 pm on Channel 56 WTVS Detroit.

The show is entitled "A Wider World" and focuses on opportunities for persons with disabilities.

We were told that the show will air across Michigan, other midwest states, Canada, the Carolinas and some southern states and California and some western states. The show will air again in April during autism awareness month.
+++++++++++++++++

I plan on contacting EMU to find out what channel/time to look for it in other parts of the US (especially since it mentions that it will be showing in the Carolinas).  Anyhow, for those of you in Michigan, this is all you need.  For the rest of you, I will let you know what I find out.

Have a great day!
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

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