Friday, July 29, 2011

Autism Speaks Video Glossary


Want to learn more about the early red flags and diagnostic features of autism spectrum disorders (ASD)? The Autism Speaks website includes a video glossary with comparison videos of how a typical developmental child acts at certain age’s side-by-side to a video clip of how an autistic child with atypical development acts at certain ages. This glossary contains over a hundred video clips, free of charge and is easy to use! Some of the comparison educational video topics include: social interaction, communication, repetitive behaviors and restricted interests, regulatory and sensory systems, over reactive, under reactive, unusual sensory interest and emotional regulation. Also, you may browse specific glossary terms in the "Glossary of Terms" tab.

Remember that many ASD features are being presented in the videos but most children don’t show all of the features all of the time. Many children have some of the features some of the time. A combination of these features could show a need to conduct a screening or a diagnostic evaluation.

 What is Autism Speaks?

Autism Speaks is the nation's largest autism science and advocacy organization, dedicated to funding research into the causes, prevention, treatments, and a cure for autism; increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders; and advocating for the needs of individuals with autism and their families. 

Soooooo....check out the autism video glossary to learn about early red flags! Click on the link below then tell us what you learned and what was helpful!


Note: You must register to use the ASD Video Glossary. 


Friday, July 22, 2011

InfantSee

Have you taken your child to receive a professional eye exam?  Did you know that the best time to take your child in for their first eye exam is actually between 6 & 12 months?  According to the American Optometry Association, one out of every 10 children have an eye problem that could have been diagnosed sooner, but only 13% of mothers take their children in for an eye exam by the time the child is two years old. 

InfantSee is managed by the Optometry's Charity - The American Optometry Association Foundation to provide FREE professional eye exams to ALL infants 6-12 months old, regardless of the family's income or access to insurance.  To find an InfantSee eye doctor near you call (888) 396-EYES (3937).


Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Free Workshops For Single Parents

eSingleParent is offering workshops! All single parents are welcome to attend these workshops. “eSingleParent.org is committed to improving the lives of Utah's Single Parents by assisting them in developing long-term self-reliance through networking, education or training, and personal and career development."

1.       Finding Money For College: A FREE Financial Aid Workshop for Single Parents 
Wednesday, July 20, 2011, 6:30-8:00pm AND Thursday, August 11, 2011, 12:00am 11:00pm Columbia College, 5250 South Commerce Drive, Suite 200, Murray UT

The following questions will be answered during the workshop:
                                -What is financial aid?
                                -Who can get it?
                                -How much can I get?
                                -How do I apply?
                To receive instructions about, and assistance with completing the Free Application For Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), bring the following information to the workshop:

                        -2010 W-2 forms and other records of money earned (by you).
                                -Your 2010 Federal Income Tax Return.
                                -Any foreign tax return or tax return from Puerto Rico.
-Your 2010 untaxed income records—examples include IRA deductions, child support, and veteran’s non education benefits.
-Your current bank statements, business and investment mortgage information; business and farm records; and stock, bond and other investment records.
                                -Your Social Security number
                                -Your alien registration number (if you are not a U.S. citizen).

2.    No Regrets! Workshop Tuesday, August 9, 2011 12:00am-11:59pm

Salt Lake Community College - Redwood Campus, 4600 South Redwood Road, Student Center, Room STC 221, Salt Lake City, UT 84123


Find out more about getting an education and tapping into community resources to achieve your goals. Don’t live your life with any regrets. We can help you get on track (and stay on track) in obtaining a career and becoming self-reliant.

Register online at eSingleParent.eventbrite.com

If you attend these workshops, tell us about it! What did you learn? What skills did you gain?

Friday, July 15, 2011

Hopscotch Play!

Learn from our Help Me Grow Experts how Hopscotch can support your child's development and have fun at the same time!
Let us know what you think about these videos!








Blog Entry Posted by Deb

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

More Positive Discipline Guidelines

We all want to become better parents and adopt better discipline techniques, right? Right! Well, just as I promised here are the rest of our positive discipline guidelines:



10. Teach and model mutual respect. One way is to be kind and firm at the same time---Kind to show respect for the child, and firm to show respect for yourself and the needs of the situation. This is difficult during conflict, so use the next step first. 
11. Proper timing will improve your effectiveness ten-fold. It does not “work” to deal with a problem at the time of conflict—emotions get in the way. Teach children about cooling off periods. You or the children can go to a separate room and do something to make yourself feel better—and then work on the problem with mutual respect
12. Use logical consequences when appropriate. Follow the three R’s of logical consequences to make sure consequences are 1. Related 2. Respectful 3. Reasonable.
 13. During family meetings children can help decide on logical consequences for not keeping their agreements. Remember not to use the work punishment—which does not work for long-range “good” results.
14. Avoid morning hassles by establishing routines the night before—like having children choose their clothes and lay them out, along with books, shoes, etc. Help children decide how much time they need to get ready, and allow them responsibility to get up, with their own alarm clock. Allow them to experience the consequences of being late. 
15. Learn the four steps for winning cooperation 1. Guess how your child is feeling and get into your child’s world. Check with your child to see if your guess is correct. 2. Show understanding. You don’t have to agree or condone to understand. If possible, share an example of a time when you felt the same. 3. Share your feelings about the situation in a non-accusing manner, using “I” messages. Children are willing to hear you after they feel heard. 4. Work together on ideas to avoid the problem in the future—or to correct the present problem through a logical consequence. If the first three steps have been done in a respectful manner, your child will now be ready for cooperation. 
16. Model recovery after you make mistakes—share with your child what you didn’t like about your behavior and ask for help in finding a better solution. 
17. Teach children that mistakes are wonderful opportunities to learn! 

Super Bonus: Make sure the message of love gets through. 

Once again, please share the positive discipline experiences you’ve had with your children, no matter their age. Try something new from this list and then tell us what happened!

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Resource Spotlight! Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale

Do you remember when we talked about Dr. T. Berry Brazelton last week? Well let me tell you about an incredible assessment he developed for infants! You can learn about your infant's type of communication/language through this assessment.

What is the Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS)?
The Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale was developed in 1973 by Dr. T. Berry Brazelton and his colleagues. The scale is a guide that helps parents, health care providers and researchers understand the newborn's and infants language up to 2 months. Although newborns do not speak with words, they are born ready to communicate with body movements, cries and visual responses: all part of the complex language of infant behaviors. Infants are highly capable when they are born. They communicate through their behavior and respond to cues around them, like their parents' faces, but they also take steps to control their environment, such as crying to get a response from their caregivers. Infants are social organisms or individuals with their own unique qualities, ready to shape as well as be shaped by the caregiving environment. 

By the end of the assessment, the trained examiner has a behavioral "portrait" of the infant, describing the baby's strengths, range of individuality, adaptive responses and possible vulnerabilities. Parents can then develop appropriate caregiving strategies tailored to the baby’s specific physical needs and behavioral style. Does the baby like to be handled? Is the baby receptive to social interaction? Does the baby easily calm herself? Parents learn how much support the infant may need at home and how far along the child is at completing her developmental agenda. NBAS enhances the earliest relationship between babies and parents.
 
I hope you found this information helpful! Tell us what you think about the NBAS! Please comment or ask other questions about child development, child behavior or community resources that you're just DYING to know about! We'll answer them!!!

Reference: Brazelton, T.B., & Nugent, J.K. (1995). The Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale. Mac Keith Press, Cambridge.