Be sure to check out and “Like” me on my new Facebook   page, KATHIE HARRINGTON’S AMAZING AUTISM PAGE.

This is another new way of presenting information and inspiration to the autism/ASD community.

Share with your family and friends.

After all – life is AMAZING!

Children will respond to statements because:

• they are not threatened by communication
• they know they are not being requested to answer
• they can enjoy the moment
• they are being included in the communicative intent
• they are hearing more vocabulary
• they are hearing more intonation patterns and animation
• they are in a “learning” pattern rather than a “testing” pattern
• they will value the SLP (adult) as a teacher/friend

1. Apple’s revolutionary iPad a near-miracle for autistic boy

2. Study: Baby’s babble could be ‘clue’ to autism

3. Parenting A Child With Asperger’s Syndrome

4. Bridging from Cells to Cognition in Autism Pathophysiology

5. Autism And Allergies: What Can Your Child Eat?

6. USAAA Event Becomes Most-Viewed Autism Conference in the World

7. Autism Finding Could Lead To Simple Urine Test For The Condition

8. The Romantic Lives of Young Adults with Asperger’s Syndrome

9. The State of Marriages: Are there Insights to Be Learned from Greeting Cards? Part I

10. Meeting the needs of college students with autism

Doug at UNLV Star of NV Marching Band

Benefits of Drumming

There are many reasons to choose drumming: communication/language development, social interaction, sensory diet, physical development, and personal development. These reasons are simple to complex and support self-esteem, typical school experience and quality of life.

Communication and language development: Communication is always a targeted area of concern for a person with ASD. This is often the most complicated and obvious aspect of their disability. What drumming does for language development is boundless. Learning to read music — the pauses, the length and style of the notes, the overall piece, and how the percussion parts fits into the whole — takes a great deal of language and problem solving.

When breaking the components of language down into finer details, it is not hard to see that drumming supports all of the language skills specified on most IEPs for children with ASD. These skills include: categorizing, sequencing, predicting, turn taking, attending, problem solving, socializing, making choices, following directions and perhaps even role-playing and reading body language. Whether the child with ASD is drumming on one drum or a set of drums, individually or in a group, he or she is practicing one or more of the above language skills in a functional activity.

I wrote this for ADVANCE for the Occupational Therapist

and you will want to read the entire article,

“Keeping the Beat.”

April 2, 2011

April 2, 2011 is World Autism Awareness Day. My son’s birthday is April 1st.

Let me say this

Before I start my list.

I didn’t see them all

That would be a giant call.

Even some that I did see

I didn’t like that well for me.

But all, in all, this list for you to see

Are movies by Hollywood staring ASD.

 Enjoy and let me know YOUR thoughts.

autism blog through ADVANCE for Speech/Language Patholgogists

Autism Spectrum Across Ages and Environments

Each weekly entry will inform and insprire SLP’s, other professionals, and parents.

I invite you to read, learn, and comment.

Dr. Andrew Wakefield

I’m asking, not making conclusions about Andrew Wakefield and his latest publicity. What do YOU think? The vaccine connection and autism has always been a fragile and debated area. The Wakefield study itself, was based on a small population and the public knew it at the time.

We, as parents and professionals all want an answer to the cause and a cure for AUTISM. Why shouldn’t we? Why can’t we have that? These are our children, our clients. Autism changes dreams of parents and it lasts a lifetime. We deserve answers.

I ask myself, why would Andrew Wakefield or any other person want to or try to fraud this population? I can’t find an answer to that because fraud would mean it was delibertly done. Is there the possiblity he was wrong – you bet – there has always been that possibility. Parents of children with autism are often ready to follow a new trend because it offers hope. I don’t know if Wakefield gave or continues to give hope, I only know that we as a society need to document and look closer before we follow.

I found the following link that might interest you as a parent/professional in the New York Times on 1-6-11. There are also many links from that article. An interesting one is to click on Andrew Wakefield.

Leave your comments about this – maybe it is the Wake-up call we need.

below – from US Autism & Asperger Association:

We hope that your complimentary USAAA WeeklyNews was helpful and informative for you in 2010. Be sure to forward your copy of the newsletter to family and friends so they can subscribe and learn about up to date news on autism spectrum disorders.

You gave us feedback on articles from all of the newsletters we featured in 2010. Below are the the top ten articles that received the greatest response from you. They included topics on technology, diet and nutrition, research, parenting, education, marriage, and the annual conference. We thank you for contributing your comments to our Parent’s Forum and Opinion section. Click here to read all past issues from our newsletter archive.

1. Apple’s revolutionary iPad a near-miracle for autistic boy

2. Study: Baby’s babble could be ‘clue’ to autism

3. Parenting A Child With Asperger’s Syndrome

4. Bridging from Cells to Cognition in Autism Pathophysiology

5. Autism And Allergies: What Can Your Child Eat?

6. USAAA Event Becomes Most-Viewed Autism Conference in the World

7. Autism Finding Could Lead To Simple Urine Test For The Condition

8. The Romantic Lives of Young Adults with Asperger’s Syndrome

9. The State of Marriages: Are there Insights to Be Learned from Greeting Cards? Part I

10. Meeting the needs of college students with autism