Amid a bewildering range of treatments that promise to alleviate or even cure autism, even the leading researchers can’t predict what will work for your child. As a parent, you are in a unique position to become the practical expert on your child’s needs and strengths. Parenting Your Child with Autism will equip you with family-tested and science-based approaches for meeting the challenges ahead. You’ll learn how to get a diagnosis and navigate the health care and educational systems, make sense of your child’s treatment options, and tap into expert opinions and your own observations to find a treatment program that works. Perhaps most importantly, you will learn how to become your child’s best advocate, and build a better life for your child. This book focuses on the processes and decisions parents of children with autism face every day. To help you build an everyday life that works for your child with autism and other family members, this book shares suggestions that range from practical and educational to philosophical, closing with some personal and professional advice for your journey ahead.
In Autism & Leadership: Learning to Lead for Your Autistic Child, Dr. Sharon Link builds a combined framework of autism theory, leadership theory and advocacy augmented with personal vignettes of raising her own autistic son. While the book has a strong research based approach, Dr. Link adds a blend of humor, personal narrative, and pragmatic tension to the information that is shared. Starting with the leadership model of geese and ending with the Link Autism Action Plan(c), Dr. Link sheds light on her own parenting style, glimpses from the classroom, and solid backing for her own leadership and advocacy. Dr. Link and her autistic 17 year old son, Jimmy, just recently wrote another book together called The Abyss of Autism. As a parent just facing the autism diagnosis or for a parent on the brink of facing an uncertain adulthood with your own autistic child; this book is for you. It will unravel many of the systems that your child is facing, and help you build a solid research based system to construct your own leadership and advocacy. Dr. Link believes that anyone can be a leader.
"Parenting a Child with Autism: Navigating the Journey with Understanding and Compassion" is an essential guide for parents and caregivers seeking to support their child with autism through every stage of their development. Authored with empathy and a deep understanding of the challenges and rewards of raising a child with autism, this book provides practical strategies, emotional support, and valuable insights to help families thrive. "Parenting a Child with Autism: Navigating the Journey with Understanding and Compassion" is more than just a guide-it's a companion for parents, caregivers, and families, offering hope, love, and practical advice to help navigate the unique challenges and joys of raising a child with autism. Benefits of the Book: Comprehensive Guidance: Understanding Autism: Gain a thorough understanding of autism, its characteristics, and the diverse spectrum of behaviors and abilities associated with it. Learn about early signs, diagnosis, and the importance of individualized support. Navigating Healthcare and Therapy: Discover various therapeutic options and healthcare strategies to address your child's unique needs. From speech therapy to occupational therapy, explore how different approaches can enhance your child's development. Practical Strategies: Building Communication Skills: Learn effective techniques to enhance your child's communication abilities, whether they are non-verbal, minimally verbal, or fully verbal. Understand the importance of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems. Promoting Independence: Find out how to teach self-care skills, foster decision-making, and prepare your child for transitions to adulthood. Practical tips and real-life examples illustrate how to encourage independence and build confidence. Emotional and Social Support: Creating a Supportive Environment: Discover ways to build a supportive community around your family, including tips on educating friends and relatives, collaborating with schools, and finding local support groups. Caring for Yourself: Understand the importance of self-care and managing stress. Learn strategies for maintaining your own well-being while caring for your child, including connecting with support networks and practicing mindfulness. Future Planning: Financial Planning: Explore options for securing your child's financial future, such as special needs trusts and ABLE accounts. Understand government benefits and how to plan for long-term security. Transition to Adulthood: Prepare for your child's transition to adulthood by addressing areas such as independent living, higher education, and employment. Learn about legal considerations like guardianship and power of attorney. Empowerment Through Hope and Love: Inspiration and Resilience: Embrace the powerful roles of hope and love in your parenting journey. Find inspiration in stories of perseverance and success, and learn how to foster a hopeful and loving environment for your child. Who Should Read This Book: Parents and Caregivers: Whether you're new to the autism journey or seeking further support and understanding, this book is a valuable resource for all stages of parenting. Educators and Therapists: Professionals working with children with autism will find practical insights and strategies to enhance their support. Family and Friends: Those who wish to understand and support a loved one with autism will gain valuable knowledge and empathy.
The acclaimed approach to helping children with autism, profiled in the award-winning documentary Autism: The Musical This groundbreaking book outlines seven integrated keys for educators and parents to make meaningful connections with children on the autism spectrum. The book is based on the unique approach used by Elaine Hall and Diane Isaacs of The Miracle Project, a musical theater program for children with autism and their peers and siblings. The Miracle Project integrates traditional and creative therapies in an interactive, social dynamic. The book shows how to apply these effective strategies at school and at home to nurture kids' self-expression and social skills. Elaine Hall and The Miracle Project were profiled in the two-time Emmy Award-winning HBO documentary, Autism: The Musical Seven Keys reveals the seven-step program that has proven so successful for children in the Miracle Project After reading Seven Keys teachers and parents will better understand this puzzling disorder and be able to help children with autism draw connections and form more meaningful relationships Seven Keys to Unlock Autism offers readers strategies for creating a personal skill set to make their encounters with autistic children as successful and rewarding as possible.
Despite new research and increased public awareness, autism is still looked at in a negative light. Most books on the subject perpetuate this notion by saying that autism is bad or needs to be overcome, rather than highlighting the positive—for instance, many people with autism graduate from college, attain exciting careers, and lead happy, fulfilling lives. Making Autism a Gift emphasizes these positive realities and tears down the wall of isolation associated with this disorder. With information from hundreds of up-to-date sources, this practical book looks at the effects of autism on the individual and provides strategies parents can use to help their autistic children at home and beyond.
This two book/DVD package presents a parent training approach that is accessible, evidence based, and highly practical. Grounded in developmental and behavioral research, the Practitioner's Guide provides step-by-step guidelines for conducting parent training individually or in groups. It takes proven techniques for promoting the social-communication skills of young children with autism (up to age 6) and breaks them into simple yet effective steps for parents to follow. The DVD, for use in the training sessions, features video clips of parents implementing the techniques with their children, as well as PowerPoint slides. The Practitioners Guide also features 30 reproducible handouts and forms. The companion Manual for Parents helps parents master the techniques and use them at home with their child during daily routines and activities. - Publisher.
The North Carolina State Legislature's mandate to Division TEACCH has three major components. First, to provide the most up-to-date and cost effective services possible for families with autistic or similar language impaired children; second, to conduct research aimed toward the better under standing of such devastating disorders; and third, to provide training for the professionals needed to pursue these goals. One element in achieving these aims is to hold annual conferences on topics of special importance to the under standing and treatment of autism and similar disorders. In addition to training professionals and parents on the most recent de velopments in each conference topic, we are publishing a series, Current Issues in Autism, based on these conferences. These books are not, however, simply the published proceedings of the conference papers. Instead, some chapters are expanded conference presentations, whereas others come from national and in ternational experts whose work is beyond the scope of the conference, but es sential in our attempt at comprehensive coverage of the conference theme. These volumes are intended to provide the most current knowledge and profes sional practice available to us at the time.
Autism spectrum disorders are developmental disorders. Individuals with autism spectrum disorders develop differently. These differences are usually present in social interaction, communication, and sensory processing, and become visible through a wide variety of behavioral responses that differ from individuals without autism spectrum disorders. Despite significant research efforts, the exact causes of autism spectrum disorders remain poorly understood; however, researchers have gained extensive insights into possible pathomechanisms, even at the molecular level of cells. Many diagnostic criteria have been developed, adapted, and improved. The eight chapters in this book highlight the current state-of-the-art in many areas of autism spectrum disorders. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the epidemiology of autism spectrum disorders and the current knowledge of the underlying pathogenic mechanisms. Chapter 2 summarizes the diagnostic criteria and procedures and highlights present and upcoming therapeutic strategies. Chapter 3 reviews the adverse events and trauma in people with autism spectrum disorders. Chapters 4 and 5 focus on atypical sensory processing, and Chapter 6 discusses the genetic overlap of autism spectrum disorders with other neuropsychiatric disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, and schizophrenia. Chapter 7 focuses on the contribution of abnormalities in mitochondria, and chapter 8 discusses gut-brain interactions and a potential role for microbiota in autism spectrum disorders. This book is aimed primarily at clinicians and scientists, but many areas will also be of interest to the layperson.
This book examines early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) programs for young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It analyzes current research on early intervention (EI) and explains the importance of accurate, timely detection of ASD in facilitating the use of EI. Chapters address five widely researched EIBI approaches: Discrete Trial Training, Pivotal Response Training, the Early Start Denver Model, Prelinguistic Milieu Teaching, and Enhanced Milieu Teaching. This in-depth study of current EIBI approaches offers a rigorous guide to earlier and more intensive interventions for children with ASD, leading to greater autonomy and improved later life outcomes for individuals. Featured topics include: Parent-implemented interventions and related issues. Evaluations of controversial interventions used with children with ASD. Factors contributing to rising ASD prevalence. Obstacles to obtaining accurate ASD diagnosis in young children. Early Intervention for Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder is an essential resource for researchers, clinicians, and graduate students in developmental, clinical child, and school psychology, behavioral therapy/rehabilitation, social work, public health, educational policy and politics, and related psychology and behavioral health fields.
