Good News

Read this great article in the New York Times about a man who is looking for ways to use the strengths of people with autism in the workplace! The comments from readers are also worth reading. 

He looks at the characteristics of people with autism such as their intense focus, repetitive behavior and strong attention to detail and shows how those characteristics can be strengths in the workplace. 

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/30/putting-the-gifts-of-the-autistic-to-work/

Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Step in the Right Direction

http://online.wsj.com/article/AP91df7578731d4261a99ecbfd2dfb1a6b.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Autism Votes

Working together we can, and will, obtain autism insurance reform equality for the state of New York.  If we work hard, we can get this done THIS YEAR so that you are reimbursed for medical expenses!  Otherwise, your hard earned money will continue to fly out the door for both health insurance premiums and therapy payments.  For more information on the legislation in New York, visit www.autismvotes.org/NewYork.

Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Webinar

Hidden Curriculum:  Practical Solutions for Understanding Rules in Social Situations

http://momsfightingautism.com/conference/

Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Special Needs Kids fair

Sociable Kidz hosted a special needs kids fair yesterday which we participated in.  The fair raised over $1200 for the Tourett Syndrome Association New York Hudson Vally Chapter!!!  Sociable Kidz is a wonderful organization that teaches children how to grow socially with their peers and within their communities.  Their were a lot of amazing participants and organizations that work with children with special needs in a variety of ways at the fair.  The kids all had a great time.  See the side bar for a list of some of the organizations that you might find helpful.
 
Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Researchers Suggest Many Undiagnosed Kids Have Mild Autism

All educators know that there are kids in their classes who are undiagnosed in a variety of areas including autism,  however, the study discussed in the article;
Study in Korea Puts Autism’s Prevalence at 2.6%, Surprising Experts
from The New York Times is still quite revealing.  The article identifies a study that found the prevalence of children with autism to be much higher than the current estimation of CDC's 1 in 110 children.  Is it really that surprising?  I think the answer is both yes and no.  Autism encompasses such a large spectrum that kids are bound to fall under the radar.  How many kids found to fall under the radar is what is concerning from this article.  As an educator, it is clear that there are a number of reasons that children may be undiagnosed.  Some parent's of kids who have mild autism may not want their child to have the label.  Other kids with mild autism just simply don't show enough symptoms to raise a red flag in a general education classroom or at home where somebody might not know what to look for.  The ultimate problem is what these children are missing without being "labeled" as having autism.    

Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Autism Webinar May 3rd

Title: How do we decide what to do for our kids?
Date: Tuesday, May 3rd
Time: 9PM Eastern
Speaker: Dr. Josh Feder

For Event Info & Post Your Questions
http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=Mkbuw&m=JaQI_qLvdayIR5&b=RbtfJLJUnpYrpNdx50GbIg <---Click Here

Description:
There are so many people who tell us so many things about what we
ought to do or ought not to do for our children with autism and
autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

This talk will sort through how we decide what we do for our
children, and includes discussion of current important concepts of
Evidence Based Medicine to help families demand real informed
consent and have real parental choice in selecting interventions
for their children with ASDs.
Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Autism Awareness Month is here!

Although the warm weather has yet to follow, April is here and it is Autism Awareness month.  Feel free to share your stories about how you have made an imprint on the world of autism.  Let's celebrate all of the joy that individuals with autism have brought into our lives!  If you are a person with autism, celebrate your own strengths and be proud of the person you are!  Sunny days are on the way!


Matthew Halem, MSE Family Autism Support

Moms Fighing Autism

Although I am not a mom, I somehow began receiving emails a while back from a website called www.momsfightingautism.com.  The reason that I recommend signing up to receive emails from this wesite is that it offers free autism webinars from time to time.  I recently listened to a webinar by Dr. Stephen Shore.  I know that it isn't easy to coordinate your availability to listen in on a webinar but if the timing is right, it might be worth listening in on one if it lines up with your schedule.  I was lucky enough to happen to be available at the time of Dr. Shore's webinar.  I had never heard of Dr. Shore before and was really impressed with how he spoke about addressing the needs of people with autism.  It all started with respecting the individual and understanding the "why's" of a lot of the common behaviors we see in people with autism.  People are often told to try to eliminate behaviors such as hand flapping and increase behaviors such as eye contact in individuals with autism.  Dr. Shore cautioned against attempts to eliminate or increase a lot of behaviors because they all have reasons that may not seem valid but are very meaningful to the individual with autism and enable them to cope in a complicated world.  Ultimately, Dr. Shore emphasizes not only respecting individuals with autism, but HOW to respect individuals with autism.  Although the webinars are free, if you miss one that really interests you, you can still purchase it.


www.familyautismsupport.com

Up and Running!!!

Welcome to Family Autism Support!  I would like to share a special story behind the Family Autism Support logo.  In search of something that was meaningful to what we stand for, I stumbled upon this painting on an internet search.  I felt like the picture was powerful and wanted to use it but needed to get in touch with the person who painted it first to get her permission.  When I finally contacted her, she told me an amazing story about the painting.  It was painted after her family lost everything in a propane gas explosion that occurred directly under her two daughter's bedrooms.  Fortunately nobody was in the house at the time and everything was lost except each other.  The painting is a symbol of positivity, hope and family.  I think that these symbols are also instrumental to what Family Autism Support stands for.  I want to thank Michelle Filer for permission to use her painting as the Family Autism Support logo.