Ideas for Autism Awareness Year Round

By Julie Stewart, M.Ed.

As an agency directly focused on supporting the autism community, we are overfilled with joy for dedication of individuals hosting so many activities that occur for Autism Awareness month every April.  Information being spread across the Commonwealth will help to change the lives of individuals with autism and their families; however, we know these individuals and families deserve more than an awareness month. 

"Autism is more than April" kept running through my mind throughout the month and inspired me to research awareness activities to suggest.  These activities and probably any autism awareness activities can be implemented across the year, because truly autism awareness is more than a month.  Article Continued

By Laura Ferguson, M.Ed., BCBA

If you are a teacher in any school or classroom you will have individuals in your classroom that will have unique learning needs. It is important that if we are going to fully include everyone we have to make sure that all students in the class are accepting of each other. Here are some tips to encourage all students to be accepting of each other.

Lead by example. Teachers have the opportunity to lead by example throughout the school day. If you treat a student with special needs different other students in the class will follow your lead. Your actions and words will tell a child how to respond to his classmate, so treat them how you would like your students to treat them. Article Continued

By Heidi Cooley-Cook

Summer break is quickly approaching.  Some children are waiting anxiously for the time when they can play outside all day, wake up late, or take a summer vacation. Others are anxious just thinking about leaving school, changing teachers, not having the same routine, and wondering what the summer will hold. 

Many parents are savoring these last few days of school and scrambling to find appropriate activities and settings for their child during the break.   Finding a suitable summer camp for a child with special needs including autism can be a daunting task.  Below you will find a few questions to keep in mind when researching summer camps for your child.  You'll also find the list of summer camps.  Article continued

8:00 am - 4:30 pm 

Keynote Speakers

Kathleen Lynn Lane
Comprehensive, Integrated, Three-Tiered (CI3T) Models of Prevention: The Importance of Systematic Behavior Screenings 

Wednesday, June 19th

Erik Carter
Promoting Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships: What We Know About Helping Youth with Autism to Flourish During and After High School 

Sessions will address: *Common Core Standards, *Behavior Management, *Communication Instruction, *Self-Determination, *Transition, *Parent Professional Collaboration, *Social Skills, *Health Issues and many more topics . . . 

This conference is designed to provide educators, service providers, students and families from across the Commonwealth with the latest research-based tools for supporting students with disabilities across the lifespan. 

Download flyer [PDF]

REGISTER TO ATTEND TODAY!

The University of Kentucky is now offering a graduate certificate in Autism Spectrum Disorders. This certificate consists of five classes offered in the summer and evenings. The content of this graduate certificate in ASD will focus on serving individuals on the ASD spectrum, across the lifespan. An interdisciplinary approach will provide students with a foundation of characteristics, etiologies, assessment issues/strategies, communication, collaboration, and research-based interventions used with individuals with ASD.  
 

Students will learn to critically analyze current trends, issues, and therapies used with individuals with ASD, providing a comprehensive array of practical research-based instructional approaches to use. An emphasis on collaboration with families and other professionals, facilitating access to the general curriculum, and appropriate assessment will be included throughout coursework.

The ASD certificate will culminate in a face-to-face institute where students will connect content knowledge for courses taken with practical applications. The majority of the courses are offered in the summer via Adobe Connect. For more information, please contact Dr. Amy Spriggs at amy.spriggs@uky.edu or 859-257-9105.

Download Flyer [PDF]