4 Tips for a Successful Transition Back to School

Transitioning back to school can be scary for all kids. For kids with autism it can feel downright terrifying. Especially after just settling into summer. Here are 4 tips I use to prepare my autistic son for back to school and to make the transition as simple as possible. Visit the School: Drive to your child’s school. Park in the parking lot. Walk around outside. Visit the playground. Get your child used to seeing the building. We have been visiting Cooper’s school daily for nearly a week now to prepare…

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Let Their Voices Ring: Empowering Your Child to Communicate

Everyone deserves to be heard. Especially your child. Their thoughts call for respect. And to be able to communicate those thoughts is a fundamental human right. The beauty about communication is that it looks different for everyone. For some, it means verbally speaking; for others, making music. But for those with autism, “speaking” one’s mind takes a form perhaps more beautifully unique than any other. How, then, do we celebrate this in a way that empowers kids with autism to influentially express themselves? With this question in mind, I want…

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How I Encourage My Nonverbal Son to use his Speech Device

I have many goals for my nonverbal son. Obviously, I want him to speak one day. But even more than that I want him to be able to communicate and in more than just a ‘preferred request’ sort of way. I want him to be conversational. I want him to ask me questions. I want him to be heard and understood. Right now, since he is nonverbal and struggles with Apraxia on top of his Autism, reaching these goals means encouraging the use of his Speech Device. Cooper uses a…

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Helping Nonverbal Kids to Communicate

My son is almost seven years old. He has autism. He was and is nonverbal. I like to mention that because some kiddos with autism speak at some point and lose their speech. I can’t imagine how hard that must be for parents. To hear their child speak one day and not the next must be gut wrenching. Our story is a bit different. My son has never spoke. He has never babbled. He has no approximations. He mostly screeches, screams and hums. I’ve never heard a word like sound…

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A Video Update from Cooper and Sawyer

Hi all! I haven’t done a video in a few days! Cooper has a lot to tell you! And it’s just as adorable as you can imagine. Because I know you are going to ask, Cooper’s speech device is an iPad loaded with proloquo2go. He’s had it for three years but only really started using it fluently in the last six months. You can also hear that Cooper is still very vocal. He loves communicating in his own way. We are always working on sounds and modeling in our house.…

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Assistive Technology for Kids With Autism

A Speech Device scared me. I thought it would limit what little verbal communication my son had. I was scared that he would go silent. I was scared he’d get teased. And honestly, I was worried to try something new and fail. If you have a kiddo who is nonverbal or has limited communication I am sure you have heard about Talking Devices, Speech Devices, or Assistive Technology. And if you are new to the world of Autism it can all seem a little bit scary and overwhelming. When Cooper was 3 we had…

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