Positively Autism September 2011 Newsletter

Introduction to Pivotal Response Treatment - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/introduction-to-pivotal-response.html

PRT Video Example - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/prt-video-example.html

Pivotal Area: Motivation - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/pivotal-area-motivation.html

Pivotal Area: Responsivity to Multiple Cues - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/pivotal-area-responsivity-to-multiple.html

Pivotal Area: Self-Management - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/pivotal-area-self-management.html

Pivotal Area: Self-Initiations - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/pivotal-area-self-initiations.html

Enter to Win a Copy of "Pivotal Response Treatments for Autism" - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/enter-to-win-copy-of-pivotal-response.html

September 2011 Positive Autism News - http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/09/september-2011-positive-autism-news.html

Help Fund a Graduate Research Grant with Just $1

Here's an update I received from Valerie's List.



On Wednesday, September 28, 2011 OAR will be the featured charity on philanthroper.com. Philanthroper is a new Web site that encourages philanthropy. It features a different non-profit each day, giving donors the opportunity to support a cause for as little as $1.00. The money from this fundraiser will support OAR's Graduate Research Grants Program.

Here's how you can help!
- Sign on to philanthroper.com any time on September 28 and donate $1.
- Post a link to philanthroper.com on your Facebook wall or Twitter and ask friends and family to simply donate $1.

For far less than the cost of a cup of coffee, you can help fund a promising, young autism researcher! Click here for more info about OAR.

September 2011 Positive Autism News

Startup company succeeds at hiring autistic adults
September 23, 2011
http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/wellbeing/5675203/Startup-company-succeeds-at-hiring-autistic-adults

Highland Park Firm Hires Individuals With Autism for Software Testing
September 22, 2011
Chicagoist
http://chicagoist.com/2011/09/22/highland_park_firm_using_autistic_a.php

Special Needs Student Crowned Homecoming King
September 22, 2011
KSAT 12
http://www.ksat.com/news/29270785/detail.html

Musical inspiration: Autism doesn't stop Fenton High School junior from starring, assistant directing play
September 22, 2011
The Flint Journal
http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/flint/index.ssf/2011/09/musical_inspiration_autism_doe.html

Autism: Is It An 'Obsession' Or Just A Preferred Interest?
September 20, 2011
Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elaine-hall/adults-with-autism_b_968758.html?ref=mostpopular

Autistic boy's pledge to help others
September 20, 2011
KXII
http://www.kxii.com/news/headlines/130240548.html



Scout with autism earns all 132 badges
September 19, 2011
AHN
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/90060526?Scout%20with%20autism%20earns%20all%20132%20badges

Field Trips Help Prepare Autistic Adults for Air Travel
September 9, 2011
OzarksFirst
http://ozarksfirst.com/fulltext?nxd_id=518907

Enter to Win a Copy of "Pivotal Response Treatments for Autism"

Positively Autism is giving away a copy of the PRT book by Drs. Robert and Lynn Koegel and colleagues.

To enter, "Like" Positively Autism's Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/PositivelyAutismcom/133524426684006 and post the following text on our wall: "I just entered to win a copy of Pivotal Response Treatments for Autism from PositivelyAutism.com." Each Facebook account is eligible for one entry, and one entry will be chosen at random from all of the entries. The deadline for this contest is 11:59 PM (Eastern Time) on Thursday, October 27, 2011. The winner will be contacted via Facebook e-mail. The winner will need to provide (in an e-mail) a mailing address to send the book.

Pivotal Response Treatment for Autism: Communication, Social, & Academic Development

Pivotal Area: Self-Initiations

In Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior, Temple Grandin indicates that children with autism may not independently develop the skill of asking questions about their environment. In the pivotal area of self-initiations, the goal is to help children develop the skill of making initiations and asking questions to gain information as a result of natural cues in their environments.

Strategies for increasing question asking skills can be found in chapter 2 of:

Overcoming Autism: Finding the Answers, Strategies, and Hope That Can Transform a Life

References


Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior

http://www.txautism.net/docs/Guide/Interventions/PRT.pdf

Pivotal Area: Self-Management

Mastery of self-management skills is essential for independent functioning. Therefore, it is important for individuals, whether they are on the autism spectrum or not, to learn to monitor, reinforce (reward), and maintain their own positive behavior. This type of behavioral intervention is known as self-management.

For more information about self-management, please read the articles and resources found in these issues of Positively Autism:

May 2011: http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/05/positively-autism-may-2011-newsletter.html

June 2011: http://positively-autism.blogspot.com/2011/06/positively-autism-june-2011-newsletter.html

There is a chapter devoted to Self-Management for Students with Autism and Asperger's in the PRT book:

Pivotal Response Treatment for Autism: Communication, Social, & Academic Development

Pivotal Area: Responsivity to Multiple Cues

Children with autism may attend to only certain characteristics or stimuli in their environments. For example, when shown a photograph of a cup, the child may focus only the color of the cup and not the shape of the object. Therefore, cups of other colors may not be recognized by the child as “cups.” This is known as “stimulus overselectivity.” When teaching we want to use a variety of examples (along with other strategies) in order to teach children to respond to multiple cues in the environment.

For more information on teaching with multiple cues, please consult:

Pivotal Response Treatment for Autism: Communication, Social, & Academic Development

Reference
http://www.txautism.net/docs/Guide/Interventions/PRT.pdf

Amazon.com recommends...

Smethport Photo Language Cards Actions

Pivotal Area: Motivation

Motivation to learn in a typical manner is sometimes not seen in children with autism. Strategies for increasing a child’s motivation for learning include:

• Allowing the child to make choices. Possible choices include which toys to play with or which materials to use (markers or crayons, blue paper or green paper, etc.).
• Using natural reinforcers. Using a child’s favorite activities, toys, or interests may make your teaching inherently reinforcing.
• Task interspersing.  Intersperse easy or mastered skills with skills the child is currently learning. This gives the child a feeling of success and reduces frustration if the only things being taught in a teaching session are new or difficult.
• Reward attempts. If a child is rewarded or recognized for genuine attempts, engaging in new skills may be more motivating and less frustrating. For example, a child learning to verbally request items may initially be provided a cracker when he or she says, “cra.” Over time, a closer approximation of the word can be required before the child is given a cracker.

Reference

http://www.txautism.net/docs/Guide/Interventions/PRT.pdf

For more information, please consult:

Amazon.com recomends...

Incentives for Change: Motivating People with Autism Spectrum Disorders to Learn and Gain Independence

PRT Video Example

From Brookes Publishing:

http://www.brookespublishing.com/autism/prt/video.htm

Amazon.com recommends...

Pivotal Response Treatment for Autism: Communication, Social, & Academic Development

Introduction to Pivotal Response Treatment

Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) refers to an approach to autism intervention that combines applied behavior analysis (ABA) with a developmental approach. The goal of PRT is to create learning opportunities in a child’s natural environments, using the child’s interests and individual needs.

Pivotal areas are areas that, when targeted for intervention, facilitate improvements in skill areas beyond those specifically taught in intervention. Once skills in the pivotal areas are mastered, there are often widespread improvements noted. The five pivotal areas that have currently been identified are motivation, responsivity to multiple cues, self-management, self-initiations, and empathy.

Each of these pivotal areas will be described in future blog posts.

Reference

"Pivotal Response Treatment for Autism: Communication, Social, & Academic Development" by Robert L. Koegel and Lynn Kern Koegel. Publisher: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.