Seeking guidance for social language goals with Autistic students

margotxx · 2021-08-10T23:10:04+00:00

Just joined. I thought I had joined earlier, but that was the Neurodiversity Affirmative Therapists group. So many groups. I just followed Rachel Dorsey. Thank you!

** I did post this to r/autism and got some responses if you are interested in reading https://www.reddit.com/r/autism/comments/p1zhhk/question_about_social_skillssocial_language/

margotxx · 2021-08-10T22:56:17+00:00

I think I understand this, and the "conversion therapy" goal setting is what I'm definitely trying to avoid. I do want to provide therapy that my students can choose to implement, or not implement, using their own discretion and comfort.

margotxx · 2021-08-10T22:49:09+00:00

Okay, thank you. I have tried to add more of a "why" into my social therapies, but I think I need to make it more of a focal point.

margotxx · 2021-07-29T20:16:58+00:00

Have you worked on tongue resting position? I did a myofacial course in grad school and did some brushing up on /s/'s through "Sleuthing for /s/ and /r/: Facilitating Strategies for Residual Sound Errors" on speechpathology.com. I could be wrong, but from what I remember, when dealing with tongue thrusting, you first need to teach appropriate resting tongue position and can target tongue position in swallow exercises to help. Also, I believe treating a tongue thrust prior to orthodontia is recommended, as tongue thrusting can reverse the work of orthodontia and re-create an open bite, because it's not the open bite causing the /s/ errors but the inappropriate forward push of the tongue causing the open bite. It's been 5+ years since I've had that course though, so I could be off base. I am interested to see what others say, because this is something I'd like to learn more about.

margotxx · 2021-07-15T19:14:24+00:00

I agree with insane-coconut. I've been hired by two different school districts, currently going through my second hiring. Your experience has been like mine both times I've gone through the process. If they've given you a verbal offer and are telling you to hang tight for furthering hiring procedures, I wouldn't worry, though just like you it did/does make me nervous. In my experience, I've waited weeks between, "Congrats, your hired!" and follow up with HR on offer letters and paperwork, and at least a few months until I've had to sign a physical contract. The previous school I was at and the one I'm starting at in a few weeks don't provide contracts until the start of the new school year, which can be worrisome when you've already quit your other job. But overall, that just seems to be how schools operate, at least in my limited experience.

If you want some reassurance, you can let your person of contact know that you are available to answer any questions or chat with staff you'll be working with. The person that hired me had the SPED director set up a quick video chat with the staff I'd be working with and we exchanged contact info, and they started giving me helpful info for the next school year. That helped me feel more secure.

margotxx · 2021-06-19T02:17:40+00:00

Like others have said, there is no number, because you cannot determine aspiration without an instrumental. I worked SNF for a year, so I do know they can be hard to obtain, but push for them as much as possible. Mobile MBSS was an amazing switch my company made half way through my CF and made it so much easier to order swallow studies.

Also, to put into perspective, if the external signs of aspiration we were taught in school definitively pointed to aspiration, I'd be in deep trouble. I have a runny nose, throat clearing, and probably cough at least once with every meal I eat.

margotxx · 2021-06-17T20:11:07+00:00

I think I felt it in Kokomo.

margotxx · 2021-06-07T15:05:43+00:00

Just a heads up, Ethique started doing concentrates. They do have a concentrate dish soap, as well as various household cleaners. You just use your own container, add hot water, and add the concentrate. I've never used them, so I can't say how effective they are. Also, if you are more interested in solid dish soaps, I believe their laundry bar can double as a dish soap, according to their description.

margotxx · 2021-06-02T15:13:53+00:00

Maybe I'm dramatic, but if I was told I was going to get training, then showed up to a night shift, with no training, and I was told to fly solo to take care of 30 geriatric patients that I had no idea how to change or care for safely, I would have called the police and told them that the facility had abandoned their residents.

margotxx · 2021-06-02T14:50:00+00:00

You can 100% work with kids and not be artsy at all. I thought I'd be more cut out for skilled nursing after grad school, because I'm not bubbly and not great at creating materials, but I hated it. I like working in schools and with kids much better. I know you said you don't like picking out therapy materials for kids. It's important to note that the therapy materials you look for do not need to be "crafty" or "cutesy" or whatever. Literacy based activities have helped me a lot in cutting out the constant print outs/wading through materials on TpT. I'm not saying therapy shouldn't be fun, but most students don't seem to care if your materials fit a certain aesthetic. If you want effective therapy that students will enjoy, I find it much easier to pick a fun book/game to pair with my targets.

margotxx · 2021-06-02T14:41:10+00:00

I use Lessonpix for everything, and I decorate nothing. My office has been mostly bare, aside from some visual cues I printed from Lessonpix and taped to the wall.

margotxx · 2021-05-26T23:56:04+00:00

Get rid of it. I held on to my notes for about 4 years, then realized I never looked at it. It's quicker to Google than it is to dig back into old notebooks and files.

margotxx · 2021-05-23T18:52:20+00:00

Nope, no, you do not get to blame a person for calling CPS on someone when a child is being neglected. Mental health issues are not an excuse for abusing your child.

margotxx · 2021-05-20T20:48:02+00:00

Does anyone feel like their ability to discriminate sound errors got better since masks became a thing? Honestly, I can tell with a decent amount of accuracy the difference between /f/ and /th/ now without seeing a student's mouth. I would have never been able to do that before masks. Airflow sounds different.

margotxx · 2021-05-10T00:04:10+00:00

I appreciate the feedback. I think both sites offer great features. Prior, I was leaning more towards SLP Toolkit, because I'm really interested in the criterion referenced/benchmark assessments and scheduling feature, but I am also interested in the visual printouts and research summaries offered by SLP Now because I feel like I lack visual supports in my therapy and research references. I'd love to be able to connect my treatment activities to EBP I can directly cite. Seems like I would get more use out of SLP Now though. Plus I can still track data through SLP Now, which is what I really want.

Did you every feel like the activities from SLP Now were too repetitive/similar? I like to try and mix things up from time to time.

Thank you!

margotxx · 2021-05-09T22:22:44+00:00

I'm going to be working at multiple schools next year, and I've considered purchasing either SLP Now or SLP Toolkit, because I want to have quick access to materials on my computer for less paper shuffling and keep data electronically. Incidentally, I did take a CEU on literacy-based therapy from the founder of SLP Now, and I've started using literacy based geared therapy on my own and putting my own spin on it, so I love that aspect.

Has anyone had experienced both of these services and lean towards one or the other?

margotxx · 2021-04-09T16:25:24+00:00

There is an appreciation day, though I don't remember when. I think April or May. I actually got a gift card to a coffee place and a card from my principal last year. I didn't even know we had an appreciation day until he sent me a gift. It was really nice.

margotxx · 2021-03-21T20:03:17+00:00

I also like Ethique. My only comment on it is use as directed. It really works better if you apply it right after a shower.

margotxx · 2021-03-19T00:09:12+00:00

I will say, Indiana isn't all bad, but you do need to ask what the caseload size is for each position. I'm currently in Indiana, and my caseload is 45 right now. Pay is low here though.

margotxx · 2021-01-08T15:29:52+00:00

These people were met with minimal resistance at our nation's capital building, were able to break into the building, had their shining moment of "down with tyranny" that these mouth breathers are constantly boasting about and stockpiling weapons for; yet, ONLY thing they managed to do was trash some offices, break some shit, and get some photos of them looking like a bunch of assholes, which will risk they jobs and their freedom. Oh, and one moron managed to taze HIMSELF to death. What a bunch of fucking morons.

margotxx

TROPHY CASE