Teaching Social Skills

RDI Consultant Sarah Wayland wrote a very interesting article published on RDI Connect about the difficulty of teaching social skills to children on the Autism Spectrum. She gave some very insightful information about how certain brain connections are associated to different areas of the brain, which effect children socially. She emphasized the importance on teaching our children WHY social interactions are important through doing RDI activities with them.

"Kids who cannot learn social skills through normal social interacting must be taught differently. The most common approaches teach these skills using a structured curriculum that first explains the skills, and then helps the child to practice the skills in increasingly unstructured situations. Examples of these skills include making eye contact, taking turns, and correctly interpreting facial expressions. The focus with these approaches is on teaching the “what” of social interaction.

But what about the “why” of social interaction? Would it help to explain why a child should care about eye contact, why it’s important to take turns, why facial expressions matter, and why children with social communication disorders don’t know the answers to these questions?"

Click here to read the rest of the article by Sarah Wayland

Summer Ideas

How familiar are you with Utah? This list from KSL provides some fun summer ideas that you can do with your kids. Here are some of our favorites from this article:

1. The Utah State Capitol Building

2. Temple Square

3. This is the Place Heritage Park

4. Cultural Celebration - Greek Festival or Swiss Days

5. The Great Salt Lake - The Spiral Jetty

6. Dinosaur National Monument

7. Natural History Museum of Utah

8. Museum of Ancient Life at Thanksgiving Point

9. Ogden Eccles Dinosaur Park

10. St George Dinosaur Discovery Site

11. Prehistoric Museum at USU-Eastern

12. Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry

How did you score on the quiz?

Click here to see the entire article

TIME Magazine Supplemental Reading

TIME Magazine published an interesting article, Autistic Children's Brain Responses To Words Predict Their Developmental Outcomes, about using toddlers' brain responses to predict future linguistic and cognitive skills.

Click here to read the entire article

Highlight on the Sumsion Family

One of our RDI parents, Tammi Sumsion, was selected this year as Salt Lake Valley's Foster Mother of the Year by Utah Foster Care. The link below is an article by KSL.com highlighting the impact that raising a foster child had on Tammi's son who has Autism:

"Not only has foster care been rewarding for the Sumsions, Tammi Sumsion said, '[her] eldest son, who has autism, benefits from his interactions with the 7-month-old girl who was placed in their home when she was 4 days old.'"

"For our family to watch the transition he's been through has been incredible. He is so loving, so accepting. This little child we have now, he's like, 'I want to hold her. I want to help you change her. I want to dress her.' I mean he was never like that. He was in his own little world, but this has opened him up."

Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

"For our family to watch the transition he's been through has been incredible. He is so loving, so accepting. This little child we have now, he's like, 'I want to hold her. I want to help you change her. I want to dress her.' I mean he was never like that. He was in his own little world, but this has opened him up," she said.
Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

r family to watch the transition he's been through has been incredible. He is so loving, so accepting. This little child we have now, he's like, 'I want to hold her. I want to help you change her. I want to dress her.' I mean he was never like that. He was in his own little world, but this has opened him up," she said.
Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.9

Not only has foster care been rewarding for the Sumsions, Tammi Sumsion said her eldest son, who has autism, benefits from his interactions with the 7-month-old girl who was placed in their home when she was 4 days old.
Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

Not only has foster care been rewarding for the Sumsions, Tammi Sumsion said her eldest son, who has autism, benefits from his interactions with the 7-month-old girl who was placed in their home when she was 4 days old.
"For our family to watch the transition he's been through has been incredible. He is so loving, so accepting. This little child we have now, he's like, 'I want to hold her. I want to help you change her. I want to dress her.' I mean he was never like that. He was in his own little world, but this has opened him up," she said.

Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

We are proud of Tammi's efforts and example, and feel privilaged to be working with her.

Click here to read Tammi Sumsion's story

"It's one of the hardest things I've ever done, but it's one of the most joyful things that I have ever done,"
Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

was selected Salt Lake Valley's Foster Mother of the Year for 2014 by Utah Foster Care
Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

was selected Salt Lake Valley's Foster Mother of the Year for 2014 by Utah Foster Care
Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

was selected Salt Lake Valley's Foster Mother of the Year for 2014 by Utah Foster Care
Read more at http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=29828999#3YsGJA8luFz77ey5.99

L.A. Dodgers

Are you ready for a summer California vacation? Here is an excuse to get-a-way for a few days! Tuesday, June 17th at 7:10pm the Dodgers are hosting an Autism Awareness night. A portion of each ticket will go to Autism Speaks.

Purchase tickets online

How Does Our Parent-Led RDI Program Work?

Do you feel ready to start RDI with your child? How prepared do you need to be? RDI Consultant Maisie Soetantyo wrote an article in Autism World Magazine discussing the different areas that you need to be prepared in before you start a program. The most important areas Soetantyo discusses are:

1. Individual parent readiness

2. Commitment as a couple

3. Setting up a long-term vision

4. Time commitment

5. Feeling empowered as a couple

Click here to read the entire article on page 32-36 of Autism World Magazine

Do you know much about Autism?

How much do you know about Autism? Are you interested in learning more? We are having an informational night tomorrow, May 13th at Reagan Academy at 6:00pm. Come to learn more about the core deficits of Autism and how you can help your child. We hope to see you all there!

Reagan Academy

1143 W. Center St

Springville, UT

Monthly Subscription

     Have you been enjoying the articles posted on our blog? Many of the articles come from Autism World Magazine. The magazine is full of great interactive ideas to do with your children and personal stories shared by families about their RDI experience. For only $24.99 a year, you can subscribe to Autism World Magazine and receive a monthly issue for 12 months.

To subscribe, visit www.autismworldmagazine.com

The Moments in Life That are Worth Living For...

During the 2014 Winter Olympics, Utah's own Noelle Pikus-Pace was one of the Games' heroes as she competed and won a Silver Medal for the U.S. in the Skeleton event. Her story about how she arrived at the Olympics after facing physical and emotional challenges, and how her family stood by her side and supported her along the way, is inspiring to us all. 

In an interview shortly after the Olympics, Pikus-Pace said, “Honestly, getting hit by the bobsled, people look back and say, 'Oh, man, that's horrible. Taking fourth in the Olympics, people say, 'Ah, too bad, that stinks.' And then I had a miscarriage at 18 weeks and many tears were shed, but if I hadn't gone through every one of those things I would not be here today, and this is right where I want to be and to have my family is beyond words. I am beyond words."

Her positive encouragement is admirable as she has endured and overcome many personal and family trials in her life. Despite the hardship and tears that adversity can bring, these moments can be used to mold us and our loved ones, and help us to become better individuals day by day. I think Pikus-Pace put it best when she said, "the moments in life that [are] worth living for . . . come after the hard times, long days, and determined work."

Click here to read more about Pikus-Pace and her personal story on on NCAA.

What Is RDI?

How familiar are you with RDI? RDI Certified Consultant Maisie Soetantyo wrote a brief description about the remediation process of RDI, and the long-term benefits that it can bring to a family.

Click here to read the article from Autism World Magazine on page 31

Just Laugh it Off

     Did you know that laughing makes your brain work better? In Sarah Figalora's article "Laughing Makes Your Brain Work Better, New Study Finds," Figalora finds that laughing can strengthen your short-term memory.

"Ever have trouble remembering where you just left your keys? Just laugh it off..."

Click here to read the article on ABC News