8 mins read

Tips for Traveling with Your Child With Autism

Think back to your childhood summer vacations and you may be reminded of your fondest memories traveling with your family. Many children and their families have been waiting a whole year to visit relatives, go on a special trip, or take a relaxing vacation. Traveling with children can be challenging but having strategies can help make summer vacations more enjoyable, particularly if you have a child with special needs. Many families I have worked with have had negative experiences traveling and have ended up cutting their vacations short because of lack of planning. To avoid these potential frustrating summer vacations, here are some tips based on research findings and years of clinical experience with hundreds of families of children with special needs that can help make your summer vacation successful and stress free!

7 mins read

Handling the End of School Transition for Your Child With Autism

The end of the school year is a busy but exciting time of year for students and their parents. School parties and summer fun is just around the corner. Kids are eager for vacation and looking forward to all kinds of summer activities. For many children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and other special needs, the end of the school marks an important transition time for families and teachers including assessing student progress, reviewing Individual Education Plans, developing appropriate goals, and preparing to transition to new teachers, classrooms, or schools. Few programs offer systematic and thorough support for these students and their families to ensure the smoothest transition possible and maintenance of annual gains. Many programs do not offer continuous educational support and most fail to allow time or resources for the current teachers, aides, and specialists to collaborate with next years educational team. Therefore, parents are often responsible to make this transition happen. Here are some tips for getting through the summer and planning for fall for your child with special needs!

6 mins read

Is Your Child Autistic? The Warning Signs…

For most parents, the experience of watching their baby grow brings joy and excitement as each new milestone is reached. It seems that your baby or toddler learns something new every day. He smiles when Mom sings to him or she babbles when Mom walks in the room. However, many parents worry that their child may not be developing in a typical way and they become concerned that their young child is not reaching important milestones in the same way as other children. Some parents read or hear about autism and worry that their child may show some of the early signs.