Quote of the Month

” I never planned on this journey with Autism, but I Love my tour guide.”

Activity Corner

Bugs in the Grass- A cute Springtime activity to promote sorting, playing, matching, fine motor skill development and sensory engaging! Fun too!

Technolog Hub

The technology available today can help our children learn so many skills, right at their fingertips.Tablets iPads, and iPhones are being used to teach children many functional skills everyday, outside of the classroom and/or clinic. But all too often children are using these devices unsupervised, which can can lead to bad habits, including poor attention span, sleeplessness, and visual motor issues. Children constantly switching between applications or switching as soon as they feel unsuccessful, and pop up advertisements, are a few culprits leading to decrease attention and focus. allowing children to have more screen time recommended by the American Pediatric Association, can lead to sleep issues, diminished social skill set with peers, and can inhibit our children from the valuable structured or coordinated gross motor play/ games that are crucial for overall development in children, especially special needs children.

TIPS FOR TECH..

• PARENT SUPERVISION Use the tablet as a learning tool and you as the teacher guiding the learning.
• Learn how to use “Guided Learning” that is available on Apple devices. This feature allows parents to take charge of the screen. This allows you to “disable” features you do not want the user to activate, assisting your child to develop better focus and attention. This feature also “disables” the home button so children cannot leave the app until you chose.
• Purchase apps to stop pop up ads, which distract your child’s attention.
• Purchase apps from reliable companies. Apps for children with special needs, a4cwsn.comis a great resource for finding reviewed and reliable apps for children with special needs.
• Consult with your therapist before purchasing $$$$ communication apps. Your speech therapist will assess which communication apps would be best suited for your child.
• PROTECT YOUR INVESTMENT!! There are many durable protective covers available now, that can protect against water damage and dropping ect. With that being said teach your child how to respect the device. Ask you speech or occupational therapist about social stories that can assist with this learning process, if necessary.
• The best way to get the most from a