Beginning in the fall 2009 we will begin providing in-home care for families who need to run errands or have a fun night out. All in-home care providers that are contracted through ASPB will receive training specific to autism and will have a full background check completed. If you are interested in gaining additional information regarding this service please contact Kiya at kiya.olson@gmail.com

Relationship Development Intervention (RDI®)

Often times typical social skills trainings (i.e., scripts, turn-taking, etc.) for children with ASD are unsuccessful and unnatural. This is because until recently these approaches have relied primarily on behaviorism approaches to teach socialization.

Dr. Steven Gutstein created RDI by redefining what Autism is. Symptoms are often listed when describing an individual with ASD (i.e., only uses language to request, does not play with others, etc.), however, in RDI the core deficits of Autism are examined (i.e., lack of emotion sharing, appraisal, self-awareness, etc.). As a result, the focus of this intervention is not treating the symptoms, instead it focuses on remediating those deficits. The RDI stages are based upon the development of typical children as they learn to become active social beings.

The RDI philosophy is also that the family should be the central unit in the remediation process. Therefore, there are extensive parent trainings that are conducted prior to any assessments or training with the child.




Behavior Modification

For specific behaviors that need to be addressed (i.e., frequent tantrums, physical injury, etc.) the child would need to be observed for an hour to an hour and a half during the time that the behavior typically occurs. After hypothesizing about what the antecedent could be, then a meeting with the consultant and the parents would be held to determine the next course of action.

Behavior modification is typically designed to be a temporary intervention to decrease the frequency of a target behavior. The family is ultimately given suggestions on what to do for proactive and retroactive strategies to extinguish the behavior. Meetings with the consultant are usually established on an as needed basis.




Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)

ABA operates under the framework that if a behavior is reinforced it will increase, however if it is negatively reinforced or ignored, it will extinguish. A behavior is defined as an action or reaction of a person in response to a stimuli, which includes learning behaviors.

A successful ABA program should be comprehensive by incorporating discrete trial, visual systems, communication, and generalization. ABA has proven to be effective in assisting children in skills that are static (non-changing). Therefore the focus of these programs are typically adaptive/self-help skills, following commands, basic cognitive skills, motor skills, etc.

In order to begin an ABA program, an assessment must be conducted to assess the child’s strengths and weaknesses, and any additional concerns that the parent may have. Then a program is created, unique to that child’s needs.

The consultant from Autism Service Provider and Beyond will conduct the assessment, create the program, train the therapists, and provide ongoing supervision. However, it is the family’s responsibility to attain and hire all therapists for ABA. It is recommended to post flyers at local universities and colleges and to post an ad on www.abaconnections.com

Early Intervention (EI)

All children under the age of three are eligible for a screening and a possible global evaluation to determine their developmental domains through the early intervention system.

EI is state regulated and can provide services such as developmental therapy, occupational therapy, speech/language therapy, physical therapy, psychological services, group therapy, social work, and nutritional needs. All services, however, are determined by each child’s needs and eligibility as determined by their Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) team.

In order to gain EI services, the parent must first contact the Child and Family Connections (CFC) office that corresponds to their county. If you are located in the DuPage area, the phone number is (630) 493-0400, otherwise please refer to the website to look up further information at www.state.il.us/agency/dhs/earlyint/earlyint.html

Developmental Therapy

Many children between the ages of birth and three are eligible for developmental therapy (DT) through early intervention. DT is able to address all areas of development through fun and playful techniques, so that the children are often motivated and excited to learn new skills. ASPB is now extending DT to children age three and over, to work on skills such as engaging in appropriate games/play, expanding language, taking turns, and problem solving. These sessions will be structured so that the therapist will model and teach parents how to do the same techniques at home. All of these sessions will take place in a one on one setting at the ASPB office. If you are interested please contact Kiya at kiya.olson@gmail.com

Academic Tutoring

Many children benefit from one on one intervention in order to strengthen their performance with academic concepts. These academic sessions will assist students in completing their homework assignments while also encouraging generalization of the concepts into various activities. Academic tutors are trained in how to modify homework so that students are able to independently complete worksheets. Various programs may also be utilized to reinforce academic concepts that are being taught at school (i.e., Teach Me Language, Touch Math/Money, etc.). If you are interested in academic tutoring please contact Kiya at kiya.olson@gmail.com

Counseling

Counseling is offered for individuals, families, and parental dyads. The purpose of these sessions are to hep individuals and families cope with having a child with special needs and work through their feelings and emotions about parenting and their child. If you are interested in being receiving counseling services please email Kiya at kiya.olson@gmail.com

Support Groups

We are currently offering support groups as a way for families and parents with a common connection to learn from one another and offer a safe place for sharing and coping. If you would be interested in attending these groups please email Kiya at kiya.olson@gmail.com