PLAY Project Consultant Responsibilities
What does a PLAY Project Consultant do?
Through our Certification training program, child-development professionals learn to be effective parent coaches, empowering families to help their young children with autism through play.
– A PLAY Project Consultant teaches + supports the family by following the 7 Circles of the PLAY Project.
– A Teaching PLAY Consultant coaches + supports school staff to follow the 7 Circles of Teaching PLAY.
Our step-by-step program includes foundational principles and methods, a unique child profile assessment, activity guides, effective parent training strategies, and an extensive training manual with useful handouts and templates.
Evidence from our research showed that by following the 7 Circles of PLAY:
1. Professionals successfully implement the program in the community setting with high fidelity to the model.
2. Parents gained the skills needed to engage their child.
3. The children improved in their social communication and autism severity.
Many PLAY Consultants provide home visits, while others practice in the clinic, office or school setting.
During PLAY Project visits, the consultant will:
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Collect Video
Collects video of the parent and child interaction in order to give the family constructive feedback
Between visits, the consultant will:
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Send Feedback
Sends video and written feedback to the family
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Play-based Methods
Coaches and models play-based methods for engaging their child on the autism spectrum
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Practical Advice
Gives practical advice to the family with ideas for fun activities that can be built into daily routines
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Encourage Family
Encourages the family to put in the time engaging the child. This is what makes the approach “intensive”—the beauty of training parents is that the child is potentially getting intervention all throughout the day.