Archive for September, 2007
Friday, September 28th, 2007
The Department of Education recently awarded TeachTown a grant to design and develop a computer-assisted education and treatment program for autistic children with a developmental age of 6-12 years. As part of the grant requirements, TeachTown is conducting a study to assess the needs of the autism/Asperger’s community.
The study is an online survey designed for parents, teachers and clinicians who work with children diagnosed with autism or Asperger’s. We are looking for parents and professionals to provide us with their ideas and suggestions for developing an effective and motivating program. The program will include computer learning for children, as well as off-computer activities to enhance the skills they have learned on the computer. Focus will be on language, social, and cognitive skills in addition to community and life skills for this developmental age group. Once the study is completed, TeachTown will analyze the data and use the results in the design of the new computer-assisted education and treatment program.
Those who complete this survey will have the option to participate in free beta testing when this product is near completion (in 2008). To see if you are eligible for this study Click Here. If you meet the criteria, you will be forwarded to the complete survey.
If you have any questions about the study or about our company and products, please send an email to support@teachtown.com
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Thursday, September 20th, 2007
TeachTown is happy to welcome another new member to its Science Advisory Board!
Dr. Lauren Franke is a speech language pathologist and a clinical psychologist with a specialty in the area of autism. She is in private practice and has developed a comprehensive assessment and IEP development protocol for children with autism in the public schools. She has also designed a wide ranging narrative based language intervention program for children with complicated language problems. She maintains a private practice, conducts seminars and consults with school districts.
TeachTown knows she will be a great addition to our board and would like to welcome her to the team!
Updated List of Current Science Advisory Board Members include:
Dr. Laura Schreibman, UC San Diego
Dr. Ilene Schwartz, University of Washington Experimental Education Unit
Dr. William Frea, Autism Spectrum Therapies, Los Angeles, CA
Dr. Ronit Molko, Autism Spectrum Therapies, Los Angeles, CA
Dr. Bryna Siegel, UC San Francisco
Dr. Geraldine Dawson, University of Washington Autism Center
Dr. Connie Kasari, UC Los Angeles
Dr. Aubyn Stahmer, Children’s Hospital, San Diego, CA
Dr. Brooke Ingersoll, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR
Dr. Gary Stobbe, Autism Spectrum Treatment & Research Center, Seattle, WA
Dr. Laurie Stephens, The Help Group, Sherman Oaks, CA
Dr. Dominic W. Massaro, Animated Speech Corporation
Dr. Lauren Franke, Seal Beach CA
For more information about Dr. Lauren Franke, check out the following link:
http://www.drfranke.com
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Tuesday, September 18th, 2007
TeachTown is welcoming a new member to its Science Advisory Board.
Dominic W. Massaro is a Professor of Psychology and Computer Engineering, director of the Perceptual Science Laboratory, Chair of Digital Arts and New Media M.F, and the founder and director of Animated Speech Corporation.
Dominic has a rich background. He received a BA in Psychology (1965) from UCLA and an MA (1966) and a Ph.D. (1968) in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. After a two-year postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, San Diego, he was a professor at the University of Wisconsin until 1979 before moving to Santa Cruz. He has been a Guggenheim Fellow, a University of Wisconsin Romnes Fellow, a James McKeen Cattell Fellow, and an NIMH Fellow. He is a past president of the Society for Computers in Psychology, and is currently the book review editor of the American Journal of Psychology and founding co-editor of the journal, Interpreting. He has published numerous academic journal articles, written and edited several books. His research uses a formal experimental and theoretical approach to the study of speech perception, reading, psycholinguistics, memory, cognition, learning, and decision-making. One focus of his current research is on the development and theoretical and applied use of a completely synthetic and animated head for speech synthesis, language tutoring, and edutainment.
TeachTown is happy to have Dr. Massaro as a new member to its Science Advisory Board and know he will be a great addition to the TeachTown team.
Current Science Advisory Board Members include:
Dr. Laura Schreibman, UC San Diego
Dr. Ilene Schwartz, University of Washington Experimental Education Unit
Dr. William Frea, Autism Spectrum Therapies, Los Angeles, CA
Dr. Ronit Molko, Autism Spectrum Therapies, Los Angeles, CA
Dr. Bryna Siegel, UC San Francisco
Dr. Geraldine Dawson, University of Washington Autism Center
Dr. Connie Kasari, UC Los Angeles
Dr. Aubyn Stahmer, Children’s Hospital, San Diego, CA
Dr. Brooke Ingersoll, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR
Dr. Gary Stobbe, Autism Spectrum Treatment & Research Center, Seattle, WA
Dr. Laurie Stephens, The Help Group, Sherman Oaks, CA
For more information about Dr. Dominic Massaro check out the following link:
http://mambo.ucsc.edu/psl/dwm/dwm_files/main.html
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Tuesday, September 4th, 2007
Because most children with ASD are visual learners, creating a visual schedule of the day’s activities can illustrate what is expected, as well as what is expected from them. A visual schedule does not have to be another expensive therapy prop you have to go run out and purchase. The schedule can be created using a basic clipboard or a small two-ring binder that can be found in any office store, a small roll of self-adhesive Velcro, and printed out pictures of clip-art or hand drawn objects roughly 1”X 1”.
Step 1: Establish what places, activities, and classes the child will be visiting or taking part in.
Step 2: Find a picture that depicts each place, activity, or class. The number of pictures depends on the number of different activities the child will take part in during a course of a week. Pictures can be found on-line. They can be photographs, or if you are a good artist, hand-drawn. The key to choosing a picture is making sure it conveys the correct concept. For example, a picture of a book that says “math” on the cover may not be the best image to use for math class, while a picture with numbers or an actual math problem may be easier to understand. Once you have chosen all of your pictures, make them all a similar size and cut them out into small squares. (Tip: Laminate each picture with a thick laminate so they can be used for years to come.)
Example of a picture:
Step 3: Cut the self-adhesive Velcro into small squares roughly half the size of each picture. Apply the soft side to the backs of each picture. Apply five to six Velcro squares (rough side) to the clipboard or to the outside of a small binder. Put all of the pictures into a zip lock bag or a pencil pouch that you attach to the binder or clipboard. By using a binder or clipboard, you can bring it where ever you go. TIP: It is important to limit the number of activities shown on the visual schedule at one time. More than five or six activities can be too overwhelming. Rewards and/or fun activities should also be present on the schedule.
TIP for starting out: Use the schedule for fun activities or rewards the child enjoys. If the child likes to play games on the computer, create a visual schedule around computer time. I.E. Show a picture of the computer, snack, toy time, etc. This way the child will not associate the schedule with activities he/she does not like.
The visual schedule can be used from the time the child wakes up to illustrate the different tasks he/she must do in order to get ready for school and then what classes or activities he/she will be taking part in while at school. The child can keep the visual schedule at his/her desk or the teacher may even allow you to keep the schedule on the wall and incorporate that into the whole class’s transition from one activity to another. Once the child gets use to the visual, he can be responsible for “setting his/her schedule” and checking off each activity, so to speak by taking it off the board and placing the pictures into the bag. This is a helpful tool to use when taking the child into new environments, such as a sit down restaurant.
But the most important thing you can do is maintain constant communication between the child’s teachers, therapists, and all who work with him/her so that everyone is on the same page. Teaching a child to do one thing in one environment and something else in another is counter-productive. A visual chart can alleviate a lot of confusion, when dealing with transitions.
The following sites have pictures that can be downloaded and used as a picture for your child’s visual schedule. Some are free, while others you must pay for.
http://www.pyramidproducts.com/
http://www.difflearn.com/default.asp
http://www.abaresources.com/free.htm
http://www.abaresources.com/free.htm
http://pdictionary.com/
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/clipart/default.aspx
http://www.mayer-johnson.com
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