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Article Library
All of the articles on this site are listed in the Article Library for your reference. They are also listed in Departments, organized by topic.
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Using Positive Commands to Instruct Students
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Emily was putting pink frosting on the newly baked cake. Sitting up at the kitchen counter, she had a table knife in her hand with a large glob of that frosting on it. Her eyes were twinkling and that glob of frosting was getting really close to her mouth. So guess what Dad yelled!!! "Don't put the knife in your mouth!" Guess what Emily did. It was such a natural, impulsive response. And that frosting tasted so good! It was almost like she was doing exactly what Dad told her NOT to do. The natural reaction of the adult is to think the child is purposely disobeying. But it might not be exactly like that. . . .
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5 Guidelines to Help Clinicians Work With Parents of Special Needs Children
Denise Meissner
WANNA GET INVOLVED? 5 GUIDELINES TO HELP CLINICIANS APPROACH & WORK WITH PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS. Imagine how you feel when your ideas of what should happen (i.e. when you start a new job, go on vacation, or make plans to have children) collide head on with what really happens (i.e. co-workers are difficult to deal with, hurricane disrupts your vacation, or child begins to present with developmental irregularities). This is a classic fantasy-meets-reality situation in which feelings of excitement and joy may be replaced by feelings of fear and despair. As a mother of a child with Autism, I have first hand experience regarding the fear, despair, anger, and frustration that challenges a parent. . . .
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Using Photos to Communicate with Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Learning effective conversation skills ranks as one of the greatest challenges for students with autism spectrum disorders (and lots of other students with communication or behavior difficulties). Conversation is complex. It requires exactly the abilities that are difficult for these students. Success with conversations requires many skills such as: Engaging another person Deciding what to talk about Using appropriate language to share thoughts or information . . .
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Thinking Ahead: Anticipating Negative Situations with Children with Autism
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
What was a recent situation you had to deal with where you did not have a visual support? Could you have anticipated the situation? Is the situation likely to be repeated? Is there some kind of generic visual cue that could have helped? For example: "wait" or "something is going to change" or some other phrase that could work in a lot of situations. We can't anticipate every situation that requires our intervention. There will always be surprises. But planning ahead for those most common events and needs will create environments where students can become increasingly appropriate and successful. . . .
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First Year of College: Lessons from a Parent of a Child with Asperger Syndrome
Julie Coulter
My husband and I began a new phase in life last fall as our son left home to attend college. After struggling with ADD and Asperger Syndrome through special education programs in a mainstream environment for 13 years, he had graduated from high school successfully. We are proud of his hard work and the steps he took to get to college. We are very grateful to all the teachers who helped our son prepare for college in high school. We are also very thankful for college programs for students with special needs. . . .
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Using Visual Strategies to Help Children Understand Life Events
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Life is full of events and circumstances that are difficult for children to understand. How do you explain? And explaining doesn't mean that they comprehend. And what happens when children don't understand? Emotional outbursts? Difficult behaviors? Problems can occur for good events as well as bad ones. Writing down information can provide a way to help understanding. Here is an example of how it can work. . . .
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Understanding Students with Austism Spectrum Disorders
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Autism can be a mystery . . . a puzzle . . . It can leave us perplexed . . . bewildered . . . confused. Here is our challenge We need to be detectives. Colombo and Sherlock Holmes were observers of details. And that is what we need to do. Watch. Pay attention. Look at the bigger picture. And this is what I find Those who really try to "learn" who these students are do learn. They figure out a lot about how individual students think and reason and understand. . . .
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Disclosing Asperger's Syndrome to an Employer
Barbara A. Bissonnette
Clients often ask me whether they should disclose their Asperger's Syndrome to an employer and my answer is, "It depends." My approach is to weigh the many factors that affect employment outcomes and develop a personalized plan for each person. Disclosure can benefit individuals who are currently employed as well as those who want to be. If your challenges are very noticeable or hard to manage during the work day, disclosing can be much more effective than simply hoping that your social and communication problems or organizational difficulties will go unnoticed. . . .
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Plan Ahead to Create Happy Holidays
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Fall is full of lots of holidays and special events . . . exciting ones. The environment is full of decorations and music and lots of thrilling opportunities. Our children can easily get caught up in that excitement. Some will become so exuberant that they can hardly sit on a chair. Others may be so over-stimulated that they try to hide from the world. Think of all those activities that occur in preparation, during and after ANY holiday. . . .
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When Everything is the Not Same: Handling Change with Autistic Students
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
That is what the new school year feels like When a new school year begins, there are two common scenarios. One is where an autistic student makes a huge change. Going to a totally new school. Changing buildings. Like moving from elementary to middle school. This is not the kind of change we will be discussing. The second scenario is returning to where you were last year. It might be the same classroom or some place very near by. Perhaps it's a move across the hall to another room, but the rest of the surroundings are the same. Many teachers and school staff are the same. The school bus routine is the same. The lunch room ladies have returned. . . .
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Choosing the Right Career for Individuals with Asperger's Syndrome
Barbara A. Bissonnette
What makes the world of work so difficult for people with Asperger's Syndrome to manage? Most of the clients I work with in my coaching practice enter the workforce with solid academic credentials and above-average (or even exceptional) intelligence. Yet they can't seem to find the right niche or maintain steady, rewarding employment. Although there is no specific formula or set of instructions that will guarantee job success, there are strategies that increase your chances of finding and keeping satisfying work. Each article in this series is based on common employment challenges that I see in my coaching practice and a corresponding strategy to address the problem. . . .
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Visual Strategies: Essentials for a Good Classroom Environment
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
A new school year guarantees changes in an Autistic student's life. Some changes may be easier to handle than others. Some new environments will be easier to navigate than others. The question is WHY? Good Bones Some environments have good bones. Some do not. Sometimes people will say a house has "good bones." That means the designer can look past the pink and purple polka-dot wallpaper and orange shag carpeting. What he sees is a great basic floor plan that needs some help. The essentials are there. . . .
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Understanding the Need for Using Visual Strategies in Teaching Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Understanding WHY is Half the Battle. Using visual strategies with students used to be rare. Now it is a more common practice for educators who have a lot of experience working with autism. In my Visual Strategies Workshops at least 75% of the people indicate that they use some visual tools with students. They see great results from this method of communication support. That is why they are attending the workshop. They want to learn more. The problem is. . . .there are still a lot of people who have difficulty understanding the need. Some of them struggle and argue and fight to try to avoid accepting the need for this communication approach. . . .
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Teaching Appropriate Restaurant Behavior to Special Needs Children
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Do you have a favorite restaurant? Go out to eat very often? We certainly have become a "dining out" society. Drive through, sit down, buffet or fancy menu. There are lots of possibilities. Teaching students to enjoy meals out can give a family more options. Unfortunately, dining out requires some skills that students may have difficulty with. Making choices, waiting, handling unpredictable menus and tolerating busy, noisy environments can be challenging. Inappropriate behavior may turn a special event into a nightmare. . . .
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Using a Journal to Help Children with ASD Handle Life Changes
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Dear Linda: We've had situations with Bryan that have consumed us. Grampa died (someone that was very close to Bryan). Plus there have been some other major changes in his life. He has had many incidents at school. There have been altercations in the classroom. He is talking about violent things. I can tell he is depressed. He does not know how to handle himself when he is in stressful situations and his reactions are negative and have violent gestures. . . .
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