Autism Program Enhancement

Do these questions and comments sound familiar?

• We have so many children with ASD, how do we educate them all?
• I am a 20 year special education veteran, but this group of kids with ASD is new to me. I need guidance!
• How do I know that what I am doing with these kids is best practice?
  
• What can we do differently in order to keep from sending this child to a more restrictive environment?
• We have less money and more high needs kids, what else can we do?
  

I will meet with your administrative team to help determine district wide or building level needs to address the education of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in grades pre-K through 12. Then I will ask you to choose a team with whom I will conduct a needs assessment, develop and provide foundational training, and then take through each component of the program to build capacity within your district with the children and families in your district. Your team will become comfortable with research based interventions from programs such as discrete trial, TEACCH's visual instruction, Levine's neurodevelopmental constructs, the SCERTS language model, Gutstein's RDI program, and Greenspan's floortime intervention. Here are some of the common components most school districts need to be able to address the needs of children with ASD and to program effectively for new and incoming students in the future:

• Developing sensory integration diets

• Providing structure

• Conducting eligibility assessments

• Writing IEPs for kids with ASD

• Creating communication systems

• Developing social skills

• Using visual instruction

• Fostering education through affinity development

• Conducting functional behavioral assessment and positive behavioral support

• Building language and academic skills

• Increasing independence in children and teens with ASD

Professional Development

Dr. Larson Kidd provides high quality, best practice professional development to inservice and preservice educators in the following areas: 

• Basics of Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Behavior Intervention Planning-using positive behavioral supports for student success
• Biomedical aspects of ASD
• Biomedical aspects of children with neurobehavioral deficits

• Behavior management for special educators

• Behavior management for general educators

• Brain based interventions for behavior

• Brain based interventions for learning

• Data analysis and data collection techniques

• Data based decision making

• Differentiation in the general education classroom

• Direct instruction for academics

• Functional Behavioral Assessments—what, why, and how

• How to evaluate your program for kids with varying disabilities

• Interventions for children/youth with ASD

• Making accommodations in the general education classroom

• Neurological aspects of disabilities including reading, autism, ADHD, etc.

• Response to Intervention in Reading, Math and Behavior

• Sensory integration

• Social skill instruction

• Stress management for administrators

• Stress management for educators

• Stress management for special educators

• Understanding IDEA 2004

• Understanding Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act

• Understanding the discipline aspects of IDEA 2004

• Using music as an intervention and educational tool

• Writing accurate and legal IEPS

• Writing useful IEPs