By Diane Cullinane M.D. “‘Good job!’ is a phrase used frequently during treatment sessions with autistic children. What message does a child receive from hearing, ‘Good Job!’? We hope they hear our interest, encouragement and approval. However, when ‘Good Job!’ becomes a habit, is it still successful in conveying this meaning? Or, does it simply...
Written by Richard Solomon, MD For the longest time I wondered why so many children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) loved trains and wheels as their favorite ‘special interests’. When I finally figured it out, I not only answered my question but learned something fundamental about human nature. Let me start by telling you about the...
Autism & Kindergarten Readiness* Richard Solomon, MD Is Jacob Ready for Kindergarten? Jacob Grant (name changed) is five years old with a birthday in December. The family arrives at my developmental and behavioral pediatrics practice for some advice. They live in Michigan. Jacob has had an excellent, comprehensive, and intensive intervention program for the last...
Where are you from and where do you currently live and work? I am from Middletown, Ohio. While I’ve lived in different cities around the state, my husband and I moved back to Middletown before having children to be near family. I work for Warren County Board of Developmental Disabilities Early Intervention in Lebanon, Ohio. How long...
Where are you from and where do you currently live and work? I live and work in Asheville, North Carolina, a beautiful town situated in the Appalachian Mountains. I have a private speech therapy practice that serves children from infants through 12 years, and I also work for F.I.R.S.T., an agency that provides family education...
The P.L.A.Y. Project would like to mention a very special person who has been instrumental in advocating for and bringing P.L.A.Y. to Ohio, where we have trained over 100 Home Consultants to date and plan to train more this year. Margaret Conrad, who retired from her position as Director of Four Oaks Early Childhood Programs...
P.L.A.Y. Project Home Consultant Laura Zdravkovski was recently crowned Mrs. Michigan, and will be using Autism: Connecting the Missing Pieces as her platform to promote autism treatment options as she prepares to compete in Mrs. America on August 28 in Arizona. We asked to her to answer a few questions about herself and her role...
You may recall reading this post about our second large-scale PLAY Project Agency Training training in Ohio. We are so grateful to have the opportunity to work with the state of Ohio and to train their early intervention professionals in The PLAY Project model. We are already looking forward to September, when we will...
By Onna Solomon, MSW As a PLAY Project Home Consultant, one of my primary goals is to form a partnership with parents that grows out of trust, respect, and good communication. I learn so much from each family I work with, and I can only hope that I repay their wisdom with the expertise and...
Where are you from and where do you currently live and work? Hi, my name is Audrey Pierce-Seeley and I was born and raised in Billings, Montana. I now live in Missoula, Montana and offer the P.L.A.Y. Project intervention along with other services for children and families with autism for Easter Seals-Goodwill Northern Rocky Mountain....
