Tips for an autism-friendly Halloween

Halloween, with its candy and costumes and traditions, is an exciting time of year for most children. But for folks on the autism spectrum, it can be downright overwhelming. So, we've pulled together a couple of great resources on how to make it all a little more autism-friendly:

First Up:

Blogger Bec Oakley of Snagglebox.com fame shares her tried-and-true tips for a more inclusive holiday for individuals with autism in a guest post here: http://gladerun.org/tips-for-an-inclusive-halloween/ 

(And for reminders of why we love Oakley's Snagglebox.com site, check out this previous Principal's Desk post.)

Last but not least:

The Indiana Resource Center for Autism (part of Indiana University Bloomington) has a fantastic amount of useful research and information - wander around their site for a bit, and you'll see what I mean. This month, they've posted a useful list of tips for Sensory-Friendly Fall Activities and Celebrations.

Whatever you do, have a safe and happy Halloween season!

Have another great resource to add to the collection? Share it with us in the comments!

Robert Crown Center brings puberty education program to PACTT

Today, we welcomed two instructors from Robert Crown Center's Health Education Program. They recently received an Autism Speaks grant, to modify their puberty education program for students with autism and we at PACTT got to be their guinea pigs as they roll out this new program. The Robert Crown folks were incredibly flexible in the planning and presentation of the material to meet the needs of our students, with lots of hands-on materials, photos and other visuals. We even had a student volunteer to demonstrate how to take a shower (water-free, of course!). We were impressed with how attentive and engaged so many of our students were throughout the one-hour session. Thank you, Robert Crown Center!

 

 

PACTT Family Open House - and special guests!

Ah, Open House! The rooms were spiffed up, student art decked the walls, and our new staff were excited to get the chance to meet some of our amazing families.

We also were privileged to have two members of Robert Crown Center's Health Education team join us at this year's open house, to talk about their brand-new puberty curriculum. They adapted their traditional curriculum to meet the needs of students on the autism spectrum.  Educators from Robert Crown will be visiting the school later this month, to do their presentations for our students. We are SO excited to be their "guinea pigs" as they roll out this new project - both learning from them, and sharing our experiences in this tricky-to-teach area. Here's a pic of health educator Laura, with her giant "Chompers."