Contributed by Awake Labs
At Awake Labs we are developing a tool to empower autistic individuals and their caregivers to better understand anxiety with the goal of preventing behaviour meltdowns. This tool is called Reveal. It’s a wearable device (it looks a bit like a fitbit) and app that measures and tracks anxiety in real time. I’m new to the team and the first couple of months have been eye opening. So far, these have been my main takeaways.
By Elayne Pearson, Disability Advocate, Motivational Speaker & Consultant
Hope everyone is having a great summer. I bet your thoughts have turned more than once to the students affected with autism in your sphere of influence. As a mom of Heidi, a young lady on the spectrum, I can tell you, summer is a difficult season with lots of open doors and windows, time on our hands and restless kids. UGH!
Dr. Melanie Bolt
IBCCES is excited to introduce new Executive Director Dr. Melanie Bolt to the global community of autism specialists. As Executive Director of IBCCES, Dr. Bolt draws on her expertise in educational research and evaluation to unite people, processes, and productivity for the purpose of providing autism training and certification for professionals who work in the fields of healthcare and education. Her goal is to better-equip teachers, paraprofessionals, therapists and other healthcare professionals to successfully address the needs of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
By Rachel Wise, CAS
As a school psychologist, I often hear parents asking what happened to the Asperger’s diagnosis? Asperger’s still exists, it just falls under a different name.
In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-4), there were four separate diagnoses all related to autism, which fell under a broader category called Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD). These four separate diagnoses included autistic disorder, Asperger’s disorder (also referred to as Asperger’s Syndrome), childhood disintegrative disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified (PDD, NOS).
(April 21, 2016) The International Board of Credentialing & Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES) is recognizing outstanding professionals that dedicate their lives to autism during Autism Awareness Month. Throughout April, the IBCCES will feature these individuals through their Members Site for Certified Autism Specialists to recognize each day. Each week, the Outstanding Autism Specialists will additionally be featured on the IBCCES News Blog for recognition worldwide. IBCCES has selectively chosen these individuals based on their background, qualifications, achievements, and continuous work in the field of autism.
For the month of April, IBCCES is recognizing some of the Outstanding Autism Specialists that dedicate their lives to making their communities and the world a better place for individuals living with autism. At IBCCES, we know that all of our certified members are exceptional human beings, and each makes a difference each day. We want to send a personal thank you to all of you who work in the field of autism, are a parent or family member of a loved one with autism, or just cares about the field and making the world a better place.
Please see below for some of the few outstanding individuals that represent our members who make a difference.
“Her kindness, patience, and dedication are unparalleled and her passion is obvious as she looks for every opportunity to advance her learning in any way she can to help those on the autism spectrum.” – Excerpt from nomination for Khamiya Nisbett-Parris
“Her strong understanding on how Autism affects an individual has not only brought hope and optimism to families, but also the methods and tools to transform their children’s lives across community settings.” – Excerpt from nomination for Vicki Johnson
By Kelly Noda, MA, CAS kelly@ibcces.org
A few years ago, I encountered a set of notorious twins who challenged my classroom and behavior management skills honed carefully by years of teaching middle school students and parenting a “strong-willed” child. I had no formal ABA training; in fact, I was brand new to the school. I didn’t recall doing anything to merit these 15-year-old sophomores’ placement together in my class, especially in a period that ended up as the last class on Fridays. I’d been warned of their tendencies, their “attention-seeking” antics by my colleagues. Head-shaking, commiserating ninth-grade teachers wished me the perfunctory “good luck” after a disbelieving exclamation of “You have them BOTH in the same class!?” I can still see the piteous looks on their faces.
By: Elayne Pearson, Special Needs Preparedness Specialist, Author/Life Coach/Motivational Speaker
February brings to my mind cold and prickly weather, but also warm and fuzzy thoughts of Valentine’s Day. It’s a favorite holiday of mine because I think we all need to express our love and appreciation more. Okay, at home, more love and at work, more appreciation.
“Ah love, it’s a grand thing,” Lady Cluck wistfully observes, while gazing at the dreamy Maid Marion in Disney’s Robin Hood, and I truly agree with her.
For years, our home rang with the delightful music and scenes from that show and many Disney classics, because Heidi, our beloved little girl with Down syndrome, adored all things Disney. A few years later her sweet personality shifted into anxious and baffling behaviors (before most had even heard the word autism) and our videos went from being a simple joy — to a deep need of Heidi’s to collect and constantly carry with her.
