2013 has been a wonderful year so far. I continue to focus on projects in the metro-Chicago area and will travel nationally and internationally for conferences, consultations, technical assistance, and training. It seems that my messages of practical, ready-to-implement strategies that lead to lifelong success for everyone on the autism spectrum are needed more than ever for people on the autism spectrum of all ages.
As always, my services include technical assistance, training, presentations, and consultations to child or adult programs, educational staff, therapists, mental health professionals, the child welfare system, universities, families and organizations.
I have developed a full day workshop focusing on Mental Health for people with ASD or other developmental or intellectual issues. We have seen in the news that the lack of mentally healthy thinking patterns have led to undesirable consequences. Although we cannot always prevent mental health disorders, we CAN recognize thinking and learning patterns that do not support mental health. In addition, we CAN teach people skills that can lead to healthy thinking and behavior. I hope you will be able to join me for one of these special workshops this fall. Be sure to check my upcoming events pages for information.
I continue my very specialized focus into 2013 providing more supports to children and adults on the autism spectrum who are also deaf or hard of hearing. Autism with hearing impairment is challenging, but over the years I have developed effective strategies for learning, teaching, supporting and improving communication for this group of dually challenged individuals. My ideas are appropriate for school/educational staff, families, adult services providers, teacher training programs, mental health programs, and state and private schools for the deaf. If you have an interest, let me know. I will be working on more handouts and informational papers for this population this year so check back often for new information and ideas.