This page contains numerous resources, but the one I like best is the ASD Student Profile (currently third from the top of the list). Covering such areas as interests, communication style, comprehension, social skills, response to change, sensory issues etc, with examples to choose from, it’s quite a thorough list!
Sensory workshop
Genevieve Jereb OT will be presenting her “Traffic Jam in my Brain” workshop in Brisbane on 20 March 2016, and also Darwin, Melbourne and Adelaide in Mar/Apr 2016. I’ve heard great reports of her sensory processing explanations and strategies- earlybird tickets are $219.
Disability Awareness activities
There are a number of good resources on “A day in our shoes” blog, but I particularly liked the Disability Awareness packet (#1 on the list of resources halfway down the page). There are some very simple, practical ideas here!
“Seams Away” sale
Seams Away (Australia) is closing down, and all their products are $5, which is very cheap for seamfree clothing!
Autism in Females: Tony Attwood
I have seen many of Professor Tony Attwood’s presentations on Youtube, but found this half-hour speech, from the Annual Women’s Health Update, Sydney 2015, to be especially good. While I knew a fair bit of the content (eg that a lot of Aspie girls like reading fiction), I didn’t know why that was so important/indicative (because the text clearly spells out what someone is thinking and feeling). Or that Aspie girls’ speech is often comprised of borrowed phrases from television/movies, and they repeat it in the accent they heard it, which is why some of them have unusual accents.
How friends should treat you
AspieAngles has written what I think is a sadly accurate article called “Nobody teaches us how friends should treat us“. While Autistic people are taught the specifics of how they can and should be good friends to others, they are not taught how friends should treat them, and she referenced a survey showing that almost half of all Autistic adults surveyed had been abused by someone they had considered a close friend.
You know you’re a SN parent when…
I can relate to so many items on this list! Let’s see now…
- downloaded several hundred apps in the App Store “just to try” (wish I could delete them from my account once we’ve decided they’re not suitable for us!)
- knowing more government departments by their acronym than a public servant
- being more accepting of other parenting styles and decisions
- you can recite the paid parking prices at the hospital
- you refuse to commit to anything, ever, unless you’re standing in front of the calendar
- you use sign language across a crowded shopping centre
- you celebrate what everyone else just takes for granted, because you know what an achievement it actually is
… and plenty more that I’m not willing to admit in public!!
Changing Places toilets
These full-sized toileting facilities first came to my attention a couple of years ago, when Abi was too big for baby change tables, standard cubicles were far too small, and our only option was to change her on the floor of disabled toilets, using a garbage bag underneath her for some small measure of hygiene. At that time, although Changing Places were growing in the UK, they were still very limited in Australia. There is a campaign page on their website, for people to nominate locations where they would want to see such facilities.
Shopping while Autistic
This article by Lynne Soraya outlines how amazed she is about how much people who don’t share her sensory issues are able to “tune out” when shopping. I think it’s the longest and most descriptive description of sensory overload while shopping, and as she said- she’s an adult.
Signs of Asperger’s
Rather than being a clinical list, this article outlines five questions parents should ask themselves when considering their child’s behaviour- and common misdiagnoses for each of these. Questions include how the child plays with their peers, the kinds of conversations they engage in, academic giftedness etc.
lovenlearning 