Autism Speech Therapist
Expand your student or child’s play and they will learn more than just “how to play”. Expanding and increasing play skills will improve language and thinking skills too! The first stage of play is the exploratory stage, and the next step is functional play. During functional play, children play with toys in an “expected” way, such as pushing the toy… Read More
What is exploratory play and how does it relate to autism? Can I help expand play for my student or child who dumps or bangs toys? What comes after exploratory play? Keep reading to learn more about exploratory play and autism! What Is Exploratory Play? According to The Hanen Centre, exploratory play is when children explore objects and toys using… Read More
Parents and educators often create goals for autism and play skills. Autistic children’s play skills develop differently than neurotypical play skills. This is not bad or wrong, it’s just different and that’s okay! Let’s explore the different types of toy play, and learn more about how to expand play skills for autistic children using visual supports. The source for this… Read More
Potty training children with autism- should you use visual supports? Absolutely! Keep reading for some tips for using visuals and other strategies to help with the potty training process. How To Start Potty Training An Autistic Child Sometimes potty training can take a little longer for autistic children. There are a variety of reasons for this. Studies have shown that… Read More
What Is Co-Regulation? Co-regulation is defined as warm and responsive interactions that provide the support, coaching, and modeling children need to “understand, express, and modulate their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors” (Murray et al. 2015). We hear a lot about self-regulation, but often miss the important developmental stage of co-regulation. In fact, there is not a lot of information out there about co-regulation… Read More
These free playground visuals will help when there is rain, snow, cold or stormy weather that forces the dreaded “indoor recess”. It is important to prepare our students for a change in schedule. Keep these visual cue cards on a ring by the door so they will be easy to access. Click here to download the free playground visuals. Head… Read More
