From William: It was Magic!
I have just come out of our Son-Rise Program playroom, where I worked/played with a wonderful boy with autism. I feel so bless and honored to have been with him. We jumped around, chewed on chew toys, stared at spinning objects, shared eye contact, he rode on my back and let me bounce him up into the sky. We spoke, laughed and were also completely silent. I rolled on the floor, pretended to jump on a trampoline and at times stood still starring off across the room…every moment was magic!
Enjoy your time in your playroom with your child.
Love and Smiles
William
Enjoy your time in your playroom with your child.
Love and Smiles
William
Labels: Attitude, Environment, Fun and Games, William
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posted by William Hogan, Senior Son-Rise Program Teacher at
12:16 PM
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Wednesday, February 17, 2010
From Katrina - I love my literal friends!
Hey everyone,
We often laugh in our office as we rehash events that took place in the playroom, but today I couldn't stop laughing enough to tell the story. I had brought in a game I had made, including a book titled with stickers that said "SUPER SPELLS". However when I first walked in, the beautiful boy from England was holding himself and wiggling. I offered him the toilet, when he looked at me I again reminded him that he could put his pee in the toilet (pee being an American word, English folk might say wee). He said "P?" I said yes, let's go put our pee in the toilet. He then proceeded to take the letter P off of my spell book and put it in the toilet! I had to giggle, it was so sweet.
My autistic friend has been so literal this week that it has been a challenge for him to stretch his imagination to symbolic play. I was often told today that objects were not what I was saying they were. "That is not a fire hose, it's a drum stick", "that is not a map, its paper", "that is not a screw driver its a bubble wand". Every time I would agree with him, and suggest we could pretend it was the new object. Most of the time that idea was shot down. This did not mean I could not try again. What I love about the Son Rise program playroom is that the child always has full control, but I can always try again later! And even if it doesn't happen today, there is always tomorrow!
Wishing you all a fun and persistently challenging day!
love,
Katrina
We often laugh in our office as we rehash events that took place in the playroom, but today I couldn't stop laughing enough to tell the story. I had brought in a game I had made, including a book titled with stickers that said "SUPER SPELLS". However when I first walked in, the beautiful boy from England was holding himself and wiggling. I offered him the toilet, when he looked at me I again reminded him that he could put his pee in the toilet (pee being an American word, English folk might say wee). He said "P?" I said yes, let's go put our pee in the toilet. He then proceeded to take the letter P off of my spell book and put it in the toilet! I had to giggle, it was so sweet.
My autistic friend has been so literal this week that it has been a challenge for him to stretch his imagination to symbolic play. I was often told today that objects were not what I was saying they were. "That is not a fire hose, it's a drum stick", "that is not a map, its paper", "that is not a screw driver its a bubble wand". Every time I would agree with him, and suggest we could pretend it was the new object. Most of the time that idea was shot down. This did not mean I could not try again. What I love about the Son Rise program playroom is that the child always has full control, but I can always try again later! And even if it doesn't happen today, there is always tomorrow!
Wishing you all a fun and persistently challenging day!
love,
Katrina
Labels: Environment, Giving Control, Son-Rise Program Staff
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posted by Katrina at
2:08 PM
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Friday, January 15, 2010
From Becky: Boundaries
I was recently working with a Mother who is doing The Son-Rise Program with her child.
An issue she had was that her child kept asking to go out of the playroom. He'd turn off the lights, stand by the door and rattle the door handle several times.
This wonderful Mother who is working on language with her child would ask "What do you want, tell me what you want?" To which he would say "I want out".
Then she would let him out because she wanted to show him the power of his language by giving him what he had asked for. Then the session would be over.
If this sounds familiar to you then here are some ideas.
1) At The Autism Treatment Center of America, we believe in setting clear boundaries for our children. We know that boundaries are useful and will help our children in their lives. One boundary we always set is that when we are in The Son-Rise Program playroom the door stays shut and locked. This is because we know that working with our child in this one to one environment with no distractions for us or our child is absolutely the best way to help them.
2) That it's ok if our children are going to the door or wanting to get out, the idea is not to try and distract them away from the door but to help them see that in life you don’t always get what you want and help them to work through that.
3) That we can still work on language and celebrate them for talking to us. So even if they are saying "I want out", we can say "I love that you are talking to me but the door will still be locked because I love you and want to help you".
4) Offer an alternative. Maybe your child is wanting something that is outside that they don't know is in the playroom, always ensure that you have fresh snacks, a drink and a way for your child to use the bathroom in the room and have fun showing them all of these things and offering them what they might want.
5) Feel comfortable, loving and assumption free even if your child whines, cries, shouts or tantrums about the door staying locked. If when you don't open the door your child does this, it doesn't necessarily mean that your child is unhappy, they are trying to communicate with you and see what might work to get what they want and they also could be seeking a reaction from you so that you eventually "Cave" and open the door.
6) Having the door shut and locked is an act of love. In this playroom I can accept my child, join my child, give my child much more control than outside of the playroom, I can celebrate my child and teach my child in this room.
An issue she had was that her child kept asking to go out of the playroom. He'd turn off the lights, stand by the door and rattle the door handle several times.
This wonderful Mother who is working on language with her child would ask "What do you want, tell me what you want?" To which he would say "I want out".
Then she would let him out because she wanted to show him the power of his language by giving him what he had asked for. Then the session would be over.
If this sounds familiar to you then here are some ideas.
1) At The Autism Treatment Center of America, we believe in setting clear boundaries for our children. We know that boundaries are useful and will help our children in their lives. One boundary we always set is that when we are in The Son-Rise Program playroom the door stays shut and locked. This is because we know that working with our child in this one to one environment with no distractions for us or our child is absolutely the best way to help them.
2) That it's ok if our children are going to the door or wanting to get out, the idea is not to try and distract them away from the door but to help them see that in life you don’t always get what you want and help them to work through that.
3) That we can still work on language and celebrate them for talking to us. So even if they are saying "I want out", we can say "I love that you are talking to me but the door will still be locked because I love you and want to help you".
4) Offer an alternative. Maybe your child is wanting something that is outside that they don't know is in the playroom, always ensure that you have fresh snacks, a drink and a way for your child to use the bathroom in the room and have fun showing them all of these things and offering them what they might want.
5) Feel comfortable, loving and assumption free even if your child whines, cries, shouts or tantrums about the door staying locked. If when you don't open the door your child does this, it doesn't necessarily mean that your child is unhappy, they are trying to communicate with you and see what might work to get what they want and they also could be seeking a reaction from you so that you eventually "Cave" and open the door.
6) Having the door shut and locked is an act of love. In this playroom I can accept my child, join my child, give my child much more control than outside of the playroom, I can celebrate my child and teach my child in this room.
Labels: Environment, Inspiration, Son-Rise Program Staff
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posted by Becky Damgaard, Son-Rise Program Teacher at
6:53 AM
2 Comments
Sunday, December 6, 2009
From Alison: Loving the joining
From Alison: One of the key parts of any Son Rise program playroom session is the Joining of our child's exclusive or repetitious behaviour, here's how that looks in my sessions with my son Jordan.
So I am in the playroom and we have just played a game, now Jordan wants some alone time. He starts to walk in circles around the edge of the room muttering to himself under his breath so quietly that I can hear that he is speaking, but can't hear what he is saying. I walk with him on the opposite side of the room and mutter softly to myself too. Jordan interrupts his monologue with "Mummy will be quiet" as I am distracting him with my mumblings. So now I walk as gently and quietly as I can so as not to disturb him and I stop speaking. But I still want to join him as closely as I can, but not audibly, as I want to demonstrate my love for him and my acceptance of his choice of activity. So, in my head, I continue my own discussion.
It is at this point that I like to focus on what I want for myself and Jordan. In my head I am saying over and over 'I love you and I want to play with you, I love you and I want to play with you'. Then I use a visualisation to put that idea out into the room, so with every breath that I exhale I imagine that I am blowing up a huge balloon that fills the playroom with love and playfulness. Or with every breath I imagine blowing out a little playful butterfly that will fly around the room and fill it with love, laughter and playfulness. Another one that I like is, if I feel my level of 3 E's dropping is to imagine blowing out some little clowns who will bounce around the room doing some fun slapstick antics.
I make up that these visualisations have an effect on the amount of interaction between us. They definately help me focus on my love for Jordan and how much I want him to connect with me. How does joining look in your playroom?
So I am in the playroom and we have just played a game, now Jordan wants some alone time. He starts to walk in circles around the edge of the room muttering to himself under his breath so quietly that I can hear that he is speaking, but can't hear what he is saying. I walk with him on the opposite side of the room and mutter softly to myself too. Jordan interrupts his monologue with "Mummy will be quiet" as I am distracting him with my mumblings. So now I walk as gently and quietly as I can so as not to disturb him and I stop speaking. But I still want to join him as closely as I can, but not audibly, as I want to demonstrate my love for him and my acceptance of his choice of activity. So, in my head, I continue my own discussion.
It is at this point that I like to focus on what I want for myself and Jordan. In my head I am saying over and over 'I love you and I want to play with you, I love you and I want to play with you'. Then I use a visualisation to put that idea out into the room, so with every breath that I exhale I imagine that I am blowing up a huge balloon that fills the playroom with love and playfulness. Or with every breath I imagine blowing out a little playful butterfly that will fly around the room and fill it with love, laughter and playfulness. Another one that I like is, if I feel my level of 3 E's dropping is to imagine blowing out some little clowns who will bounce around the room doing some fun slapstick antics.
I make up that these visualisations have an effect on the amount of interaction between us. They definately help me focus on my love for Jordan and how much I want him to connect with me. How does joining look in your playroom?
Labels: Attitude, Environment, Joining
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posted by Alison Taylor at
2:34 AM
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Tuesday, October 20, 2009
10 Variations for the Door
When working with children in The Son-Rise Program playroom there is one thing that happens quite often, especially when first transitioning the parents of the child. That is, the child goes to the door, either tries to open it when it is locked, asks for Mummy and Daddy or says "Open the door".
The first thing to do is explain to the child that the door is going to be locked and exactly when the parents will be back. Sometimes, the child accepts that and drops it, other times, they continue to perseverate on the door.
Here are 10 things that you can do when your child does this.
1) Go on a hunt around the playroom to find the key, try different, fun things such as the tail of a toy dinosaur, the spout of a teapot, the whisker of a cat puppet, etc.
2) Get a pretend magic wand (e.g. a marker or drumstick) and create magic spells to cast on the door to see if it opens (e.g. "Hocus Pocus Diddly Deeze, make this door open with a sneeze").
3) Sing a song about the door.
4) Write a letter to Mom and Dad and post it under the door.
5) Try and crack the secret knocking code that opens the door (e.g. is it 2 quiet knock and one loud?, 3 short knocks and kiss?, etc).
6) Draw different keys, cut them out and try each one.
7) Pretend that the door knob is too slippery to grasp and entertain your child as you try to open it.
8) Line up all the toys in the playroom with you and your child at the front and try and pull the door open with all the toys helping you.
9) Pretend to be the person that your child is asking for by impersonating their voice, wearing a wig, etc, and giving them fun things in the way that person might (e.g. "I bet Daddy would tickle you like this.....", etc).
10) Brainstorm the things that your child might want that are outside the room and create them inside the playroom (e.g. if they want chips, make some pretend giant chips out of toy blocks, if the want Mom, offer them a hug, etc).
The first thing to do is explain to the child that the door is going to be locked and exactly when the parents will be back. Sometimes, the child accepts that and drops it, other times, they continue to perseverate on the door.
Here are 10 things that you can do when your child does this.
1) Go on a hunt around the playroom to find the key, try different, fun things such as the tail of a toy dinosaur, the spout of a teapot, the whisker of a cat puppet, etc.
2) Get a pretend magic wand (e.g. a marker or drumstick) and create magic spells to cast on the door to see if it opens (e.g. "Hocus Pocus Diddly Deeze, make this door open with a sneeze").
3) Sing a song about the door.
4) Write a letter to Mom and Dad and post it under the door.
5) Try and crack the secret knocking code that opens the door (e.g. is it 2 quiet knock and one loud?, 3 short knocks and kiss?, etc).
6) Draw different keys, cut them out and try each one.
7) Pretend that the door knob is too slippery to grasp and entertain your child as you try to open it.
8) Line up all the toys in the playroom with you and your child at the front and try and pull the door open with all the toys helping you.
9) Pretend to be the person that your child is asking for by impersonating their voice, wearing a wig, etc, and giving them fun things in the way that person might (e.g. "I bet Daddy would tickle you like this.....", etc).
10) Brainstorm the things that your child might want that are outside the room and create them inside the playroom (e.g. if they want chips, make some pretend giant chips out of toy blocks, if the want Mom, offer them a hug, etc).
Labels: Environment, Inspiration, Son-Rise Program Staff
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posted by Becky Damgaard, Son-Rise Program Teacher at
9:08 AM
1 Comments
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
A Game Idea
Hello Everyone,
Click on the video below to see a game idea. This game is designed to encourage your children to ask questions of their friends.
Love Kate
Click on the video below to see a game idea. This game is designed to encourage your children to ask questions of their friends.
Love Kate
Labels: Creativity, Environment, Inspiration, Kate
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posted by Kate Wilde at
5:20 AM
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Monday, August 24, 2009
No Distractions
I had the opportunity to play with the most gorgeous 6 year old boy from Scotland this morning in The Son-Rise Program Intensive.
This boy was incredibly exclusive to begin with, busily arranging plastic letters, musical instruments and balls on top of the trampoline that we have in the playroom. During this time, he rarely looked at me and merely used me as a means to get things by trying to climb up me to get to items on the shelf.
After about 25 minutes of doing this, we went in the bathroom where he proceeded to pull me into the bathtub with him and wanted me to tickle him. It was amazing how connected he was during this activity, he was looking, giggling and pulling me toward him as he squealed with delight at the tickles.
I believe that being in the small, enclosed space of the bath was helpful for him and he was able to eliminate all stimulation happening outside the bathtub and focus in on me. The bathtub was the ultimate non-distracting environment.
When you are working with your special child, experiment with using a tent, play tunnel, blanket or curtain and see how connected your child is.
This boy was incredibly exclusive to begin with, busily arranging plastic letters, musical instruments and balls on top of the trampoline that we have in the playroom. During this time, he rarely looked at me and merely used me as a means to get things by trying to climb up me to get to items on the shelf.
After about 25 minutes of doing this, we went in the bathroom where he proceeded to pull me into the bathtub with him and wanted me to tickle him. It was amazing how connected he was during this activity, he was looking, giggling and pulling me toward him as he squealed with delight at the tickles.
I believe that being in the small, enclosed space of the bath was helpful for him and he was able to eliminate all stimulation happening outside the bathtub and focus in on me. The bathtub was the ultimate non-distracting environment.
When you are working with your special child, experiment with using a tent, play tunnel, blanket or curtain and see how connected your child is.
Labels: Environment, Son-Rise Program Staff
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posted by Becky Damgaard, Son-Rise Program Teacher at
1:06 PM
2 Comments
Monday, May 4, 2009
Tales from a Son-Rise Program Child Facilitator - why a playroom?
When I first began working with Robert one to one, he didn't have a playroom. His parents were working on turning his bedroom into a playroom but hadn't quite got that up and running yet so for now, I was going to learn the principles of The Son-Rise Program while playing with him around the house.
At the time I didn't know any better, I hadn't experienced the luxury of the non-distracting environment of the playroom. I was more than happy to work with Robert around the house.
I was constantly running up and down the stairs, in and out of the garden, into the kitchen for a snack, up into the bedroom to jump on the bed, a quick trip behind the living room curtain and then off to play with the pet cat's tail. It was hard work!
It was fascinating, Robert would do things like unravel the whole roll of toilet paper and once he found a can of furniture polish and spent about 10 minutes spraying it on the linoleum floor and then drawing circles in it with his finger.
He had an amazing sense of balance and completely baffled me when he would spin around in circles again and again and then be able to walk along a very thin window sill.
Anna would observe me quietly from the kitchen and then give me feedback afterwards. I didn't really know what I was doing at the time but I did know to follow his lead, have energy, excitement and enthusiasm and try and get a game going when he was available.
I had a lot of fun and it was an exciting challenge. I remember getting a game going at one time that involved me sliding him down the stairs in a laundry basket. He absolutely loved it and I was definitely sweating.
I felt like being with Robert for just 30 minutes was more rewarding than any of my other jobs or experiences thus far. I was doing something really meaningful.
I can really see now how the environment of the playroom is the very best way to filter out distractions and hone into connecting with the child and will forever be grateful for that sacred place. It truly is where the miracles happen.
At the time I didn't know any better, I hadn't experienced the luxury of the non-distracting environment of the playroom. I was more than happy to work with Robert around the house.
I was constantly running up and down the stairs, in and out of the garden, into the kitchen for a snack, up into the bedroom to jump on the bed, a quick trip behind the living room curtain and then off to play with the pet cat's tail. It was hard work!
It was fascinating, Robert would do things like unravel the whole roll of toilet paper and once he found a can of furniture polish and spent about 10 minutes spraying it on the linoleum floor and then drawing circles in it with his finger.
He had an amazing sense of balance and completely baffled me when he would spin around in circles again and again and then be able to walk along a very thin window sill.
Anna would observe me quietly from the kitchen and then give me feedback afterwards. I didn't really know what I was doing at the time but I did know to follow his lead, have energy, excitement and enthusiasm and try and get a game going when he was available.
I had a lot of fun and it was an exciting challenge. I remember getting a game going at one time that involved me sliding him down the stairs in a laundry basket. He absolutely loved it and I was definitely sweating.
I felt like being with Robert for just 30 minutes was more rewarding than any of my other jobs or experiences thus far. I was doing something really meaningful.
I can really see now how the environment of the playroom is the very best way to filter out distractions and hone into connecting with the child and will forever be grateful for that sacred place. It truly is where the miracles happen.
Labels: Environment, Son-Rise Program Staff
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posted by Becky Damgaard, Son-Rise Program Teacher at
12:53 PM
1 Comments
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