westie

Cerebra also offer vouchers for speech and language therapy, if your child is not getting it from elsewhere (someone's comment about not being able to access the services that school may bring in made me think about this) See: http://www.cerebra.org.uk/parent_support/s...ech_therapy.htm they also offer grants: http://www.cerebra.org.uk/grants/ They also have a library of books and sensory equipment that parents can loan for a period of time! http://www.cerebra.org.uk/parent_support/Library/

I ticked "has a mental health problem" and "has a long term illness" on my forms. The others did not really apply/fit and autism is long term after all, and the DSMIV book many use to diagnose is Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, so I thought they fit better than the others in my case (well forms not for me but my kids)

The NAS publish a guide to statementing/ SEN for children with autism and aspergers, its �3 plus P&P. http://www.autism.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly....429&a=11022 though it may not have enough actual detail for you as to what to ask for help with in yr particular case. Imagine often if kids are not really disruptive then lots of times their needs are overlooked. There are some other posts on here which you can read and which may explain a bit more X

http://www.barnardos.org.uk/what_we_do/our...oung_carers.htm I have a friend who works for this organisation and understand these projects run across the uk, not sure exactly which areas, definetely have ones in parts of South Yorkshire though!! Please have a read because a sibling of an ASD child may need and be able to make us of these services X

you can download the stuff from sparkle box for free, think you may have to register with site first..... My sons school use loads of stuff taken from this website. If you read further it may explain more. Go to the homepage http://www.sparklebox.co.uk/ good luck p.s. I also think someone else has posted on the forum about some PECS cards that you can get from his website see the resources pages I think. I am sure there are some about emotions

I have a book called "Aspergers - what does it mean to me?" it is a workbook explaining self awareness and life lessons to the child or youth with high functioning autism or aspergers. It is fairly expensive but has lots of chapters, including ways of thinking, people, understanding, thoughts, communication, school, friends, feeling upset to name a few. You can pick and choose which bits are relevant to your son. Each chapter has a number of worksheets for the child to complete to help them understand things, and explain how they feel. At the end of each chapter is a section with info. for the caregiver, which explains purpose of each chapter and how to use the info. In the "friends" section for example, it has a part on how to be a good sport, teams, a friend coming to my house, getting along with a friendplaying with friends, pretend play, playing outside. It has info and pictures and parts to complete to make it relevant to them. In the introduction section it has sections called "autism is another thing about me", what is autism, and why do I have autism, and was I born with autism. They may help you to explain to your child The professional at the Elizabeth Newson Centre recommended that I look at particular chapters with J, to help him in certain areas he was struggling with (though she knows he has PDA not Asperger syndrome) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In terms of helping J to manage his anger I bought a good book called "Anger Management, a practical guide for Teachers, parents and carers" which had some worksheets at the back and I managed to sit down with my son and do at a rate of about one a week. They are staged, so first one looks at what makes you angry - is a list then space to write down other things your child may feel angry about. Next worksheet is "how do you feel when you are angry" - again a list and space to add your own things to. Next worksheet looks at particular scenarios, and what thoughts about them would make you angry, then other ways to think about it that would not make you angry - for example teacher ignores you when you ask something - angry thoughts would be "she hates me" or things on those lines, non angry feelings are that "she is distracted by something else", "she did not hear me" - again there is list of scenarios, a couple of completed examples and then others are for you to discuss with the child. Then next worksheet are looking at things you can do when you are angry (obviously that are acceptable/ do not hurt others) - again it is a couple of suggestions then space so you and yr child can discuss. Next sheet looks at the last time your child got mad. It has questions to complete, what happened, what did you do well? What did not go so well? What could you do next time? I did one each week, it was quite hard as he hates talking about things like this but we did perservere and I think it helped him to get thinking about it and has helped some. There is lots of other info in the book, its for older children about 8 plus I would say in terms of the worksheets, but there are tips for anger in preschoolers, primary age and teenage children. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ If you/ anyone want anger worksheets for younger children there is a book called "a volcano in my tummy" that has similar type worksheets but for children a bit younger up to about 10 I think - the format of this book implies more for a school/ group discussion but I think they could be used for 1:1 work, or perhaps complete with a sibling/ friend if the sibling is similar age?? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are also some "siblings" booklets by Julie Davies which can be bought from Elizabeth Newson Centre in Nottingham. They have separate booklets which explain autism and aspergers and PDA; and these may help siblings and other family members to better understand your childs diagnosis and how it may affect them. I have the one about PDA (i think its really good!) which I got from the Elizabeth Newson centre after J's assessment and diagnosis. Link below is to full list of publications from the centre. http://www.sutherlandhouse.org.uk/child_pub5.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I have loaned a good book from my local library called ?How to Help Your Autistic Spectrum Child ? practical ways to make family life run smoothly?, by Jackie Brealy and Beverly Davis. Jackie is a parent of a child with Asperger syndrome, and a special needs teaching assistant. The book is easy to read and gives some useful advice and web addresses/ other sources of help. I found some useful info in there. They mention a website about nutrition called www.nutritionfirst.co.uk so I am going to look at that. There are other sections such as how ASD affects the family, getting organised to save your sanity!, strategies for dealing with day to day difficulties, behaviour, eating, coping emotionally and getting support to name a few. You can tell that it is written by a parent who has been there, and its easier to relate to than some other books I have read. some other parents have contributed, and in the section about home educating the parent who is discussing her experiences says that her sons needs are compounded by fact that he has PDA as well as Aspergers (does not go into detail about what PDA is though ) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Another book I loaned from the library (but think I will actually buy) is called Encouraging appropriate behaviour for children on the autistic spectrum (Frequently asked questions) by Shira Richman There are answers to 100 different real questions from parents, covering all sorts of topics such as toileting, social skills, bevaviour, communication etc. The author is a behaviour therapy consultant who has worked with autistic children using ABA (applied behaviour analysis) Some examples of the questions answered in the book are: a) how can I avoid unwanted behaviours before the spiral out of control and need intervention? How can we get our daughter to sleep past 4am? c) My son is scared of the shower, how can I get him to wash? d) My son is toilet trained but I always have to remind him to pull his pants up, flush and wash his hands. How can I get him to be more independent? e) How do I help my son, who has asperger syndrome, through puberty? f) Is there a way to teach the art of chit chat? g) My son has trouble following the rules of games, how can we teach him some simple games he can play with his family? h) Our daughter stares into space for long periods of time. How can I increase her ability to focus? i) My son, diagnosed with PDD, is a sore loser to the point where his siblings no longer include him when they play together. How do I teach him to lose gracefully j) my child is terrified of haircuts. Is there anything I can do to reduce his anxiety? k) We would love to be able to go out to dinner as a family but my daughter with autism turns us into a spectacle at the restaurant. How can we make going out to eat pleasant again? l) I feel that I am constantly making excuses for my child. Is there a was to avoid this? These are examples, there is so much more but I would be typing all day to list them all! The things she suggests to me seem logical and sensible approaches and there are a number of things I have read that I am going to try, and I would like my own copy to refer back to as you can't work on everything at one time! (and my sons are different ages but I think the questions cover a whole range of ages and also for children on different ends of the spectrum, i.e. in answering some questions she gives advice and then also slight variations in technique for if your child is non verbal for example. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Thats all for now, will add if I find any more books that I think others may find useful!!! (I have posted these reviews on another forum and it is likely that I may have recommended one or more of these books on other threads on this forum so apologies if you have read the info before!)

no it sounds really confusing to me also!!

Hello and welcome to the forum X

Great news, congratulations keep us updated! Debbie

I am not sure if I am correct (and would appreciate it if someone points out if this is wrong!) but, as I understand it, each year a child is supposed to move up two levels (i.e. from 1c to 1a, from 1a to 2b). In yr 4 my sons sats results were same level as last year (he suffers high anxiety in these situation so they say that his results do not reflect his true abilities) however since start of yr5 they put him in different group for maths and english and gave him more support and in one term his maths grades moved up 3 levels and his english two levels. On his annual review it says last yr he was 3c reading 2c writing, 2a math number, 2a math shape and measures, 2a maths handling data. This term it says he is 3a reading, 2b writing, 3a for all the maths categories. Not sure if that is average/ below average for his age but am pleased with progress he has made. Can't understand the schools reluctance to help, I hope you get in touch with the EP and get some help and advice. Take care <'>

I am sorry to read about this, its terrible and the school not properly supervising is so wrong, I am glad that he is going somewhere else and I hope he is ok when he gets home. My son is going on a residential trip in may and, rather naievly, I never thought about stuff like that (worried more about him kicking off or endangering himself by doing impulsive things during activities etc), but now I will be asking questions about supervision etc. the place my son will be staying is not so far away, within driving distance. Imagine with this all taking place in France it has made it seem even worse <'> D

private

hm its a bit like getting an extra payment from tax credits, you cant always be sure why so you dare not spend it in case they have made an error and have to pay it back glad you found out why and hope you find a good use for it

well let me know how you get on as he yet to hit that stage and I will need some help with it myself, I am sure! Will have to keep details of those books for myself :-)

on!

I have posted above part of my reply to another thread on this forum, to highlight to others that I have found one useful web resources where you can download free visual aids (my son's school seem to really like it and I can see why having looked at it even only briefly!)

Spoke to James' teacher today and she pointed me towards an excellent website called sparklebox which has all sorts of useful educational resources on that are free to download, INCLUDING the faces I mentioned that James uses in class to say whether he needs help! , see here http://www.sparklebox2.co.uk/226-230/s2b230.html and a couple of other useful ones that I found are: http://www.sparklebox2.co.uk/thumbs36-40/s2b36.html - anger posters http://www.sparklebox.co.uk/parents/sen.html - links to pictures and info about emotions, and to use on daily planners and showing routines etc!! There is so much more that I have not had chance to view but will post on here if I find anything else (I am sure there is a pinned thread for visual aids so may add these to this list as well as any others I find. I agree if you post then you often find someone who has/ or is dealing with similar things and can help you find other/ additional/ different ways which may help your child and your family, thats why I really like it on here X

also it took me a while to figure out what an "m" meal was, but think I sussed it now!

That sums up how I feel as well!

quick update on yesterday (first day using the reminder pictures on keyring) When we were almost ready to set off for walk to school I reminded him to look at the pictures to help him remember what to take. So he got his bag out (his bag is first picture - as the keyring is hung on his bag remembering this item should not be a problem!) then next one was the lunchbox picture, so he finds this and puts it in his bag. Next picture is of his fleece. - he does not take one unless I force him and this morning I did not, so this ok too. Then he gets to the coat picture. He walks 2ft to cupboard under stairs, lifts his coat off the hook and puts it on, fastens it............................................................................. then walks straight to front door minus bag, lunch, pe kit etc etc, and starts to open door it was like a switch had been flicked in his brain which said "when your coat is on you must exit!!!" so i shouted him back, reminded him to check his pictures again, and he looked at them all and made sure he had everything he needed... so not too bad a start.

best wishes, thinking of you <'> hope you do get through tomorrow and get some help from CAHMS as regards to the teacher who says he has social problems, and has adapted her behaviour to suit yr son - well thats what she would have to do for an autistic child anyway (or any other special need) so why does that rule out a diagnosis of ASD?? Its such a battle and even harder when schools talk to you like this and make you feel small/ like you are imagining or overreacting. I personally find it much easier to organise my thoughts and concerns by writing them down, as detailed as I can and taking this to meetings/ mailing to professionals. Also, I find that it gives me a record to look back on/ use for other purposes (fill in DLA form, write letter to LEA to ask to maintain statement etc etc). I do have to force myself to speak up, especially if it is complaining as I feel like I possibly am overreacting, seen as a munchansens mother or something, but recognise that if I dont speak up for him no one else will so it is really important for me to put this aside. My hubby never really speak about kid's diagnoses and issues:- think he either does not know what to say/ and/ or can't be bothered. I deal with it all in terms of seeing doctors, attending meetings at school etc, doing courses of which he never reads info. so its always me they see, always me writing letters and chasing, always me reading and finding ways which may help, so thats another reason why I think they may think I am a nuisance/ paranoid mother!

reading and relating to a lot of stuff on this thread! Am using lots of visual/ list type things myself. (reminders of rules, posters about behaviour, routines for weekday mornings and evenings) my laminator has had some use over last few weeks/ days! Reading some info. about ADHD/ picking up tips from others which are related to helping with room tidying, such as list broken down into stages ( a bit like bikemads post about instructions in stages working better for her son) and also a photo of his tidy bedroom to give him a clear idea of what "tidy" is! Also some suggestions to maintain focus are to put a piece of velcro under desk (kids can feel it and it helps them to refocus) and sniffing lemon also meant to help refocus on tasks.... thinking about trying. I have made/ laminated a series of cards with photos on of what he needs to take/ fetch home from school and when, i.e. each day/ mon and fri. etc. as fed up of waiting around outside while he goes back in to fetch something! A book I read about anger explained its not bad emotion, it is a valid emotion, and that its the way that you deal with it that is the key to managing succesfully. In terms of my 10yr old sons behaviour (difficult at home and school since age 2 1/2) it has taken a long time but we moving forward and he been doing great a lately in recognising himself when it is building, and managing to control himself and avoid meltdown (not 100% but brill compared to previous) He was not so bad yr 3 at school, had good teacher but still were incidents. Yr4 was a nightmare for him but towards end of yr4 and so far this year (yr5) he has come on leaps and bounds in this area. We have tried a number of things to help him in this area, self help books reward systems. I find like baddad that explaining the rules and consequences for breaking them is a good approach - explain while calm not in heat of moment! (I have used visual aids with this). I take away computer/ tv time or stop him playing out with neighbours as consequences, only for that day/ evening so he has a fresh start the next day btw: my hubby occasionally says as a punishment "you are grounded for a fortnight" which I think is pointless and even counter productive: - keeping him in for a fortnight would drive us all mad, there is nothing then for him to work hard for in the coming days, and by the end he will have forgotten why he was grounded in first place, but hubby also does have his uses as often he can explain things to him and calm him where I cannot - I think because they are so similar that hubby knows what to say that will calm him down One example was about a month or so ago, and he started crying and getting hysterical in bed at about 8.40pm one evening. I heard from downstairs and rushed up as I could tell he was really upset. He said to me when he could talk that he was scared to sleep and could not stop thinking about dying, was there a heaven? Then he started talking about our dog who died last year and saying he wanted there to be a heaven so he could be with our dog again, he wanted him to come back, and where was he ? Well I said without thinking "he is downstairs" - meaning his ashes were.... Imagine the big eyed, horror struck face (obviously he had not understood what I meant by it), and then I compounded the error by saying it was not him as he was, or his body but his ashes. ........EVEN BIGGER EYES/ SHOCKED FACE then "you burned my dog!!!, you are evil!!!, I hate you!!!" etc etc etc. and more hysterics..... I was stunned (mostly by my ability to say completely the wrong thing) and I did not know what to say or do to calm him, then his dad came up, and talked to him about viking beliefs (son is very into history esp. vikings) and that they burn bodies at sea as they believed that this helps souls go to heaven etc etc etc, and managed to calm him enough to sleep. That's it I am always sending him up in future, obviously I can't be trusted not to put my foot in my mouth!!!

http://www.mirror.co.uk/life-style/real-li...15875-21164151/ link as promised

There is a 2 page article in Daily Mirror with title given above, mentions a group called "treatingautism" and seems to imply that by using specific diet you can cure autism. The article has been written about a mum who has twins who were previously diagnosed autistic but after following advice of the group in terms of diet and supplements that they have been reassessed and are no longer on the autistic spectrum.... Has anyone else heard of this group, or of this idea that people are/ can be cured?? I have heard of behaviours etc improving as a result of changes in diet and this makes sense to me, but it doesn't necessarily mean you are cured.... saying that whatever the reason it is positive news for this lady and her children who seem to have made great progression (apparently they still need intense speech and language therapy, but only a yr behind academically and greatly improved behaviour/ reduction in autistic symptoms) If I can find it online I will post a link...

not sure myself. he recently joined this lego forum where you can join and chat to other members and it made me think because he was not really sure what to post about I told him he was not to put any info. about himself where he lived, school name etc but not sure if he took it in, and have no idea about what would happen if it was someone who was speaking to him face to face as not sure he would use the same guidelines. (I also had to tell him that replies he put on the forum should really be relevant to the topic posted, rather than just one word messages that have no connection to the post, such as "Hi", "Cool", "ok" etc etc etc. as people may not understand what/ why he is posting ) he kind of lost interest in posting after a day which is a relief for me (sure once he a teenager he will have renewed interest in messaging etc., then i wont have a clue what he is posting as all teens seem to use another language in posting/ messaging their friends !)