How We Survived Teach Them Diligently Homeschool Conference

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TTD HOMESCHOOL CONFERENCE

I was so impressed with Teach Them Diligently Homeschool Conference. I had an opportunity to hear Ken Ham speak. I went to almost all of his sessions and loved the information he shared. He had some really on target points to make about today's culture and the Christian Church. I took home some amazing resources from HSLDA'S. Educational plans for special needs homeschoolers and one other form that I can edit to help me tract goals and such for the kids. All of that was very helpful. If you are not a member of HSLDA I would highly recommend it. For $1,000.00 you can become a lifetime member, which is a huge saving and you have complete access to all their resources. They had yearly memberships as well, I believe it was $120.00 for the conference price. Not bad. 

I was extremely excited to have a handful of classes that were just for homeschooling with special needs. I walked into the first class with other mom's homeschooling kids with special needs and I felt such an instant bond I didn't want to leave. It was like a sweet bear hug and a great pep talk of you CAN do this. I totally needed to hear that. Having kids with severe autism, I know our Homeschool days don't look like most. I'm okay with with not being typical in this way, but it is supper encouraging knowing that I'm not the only one out there braving this journey. 

 

 

So my kids don't do well in these types of events. 

 

And they don't like the change in the routine. But my heart always wants our family to experience this together. I enjoy seeing all the families at Homeschool conference and I want that desperately for me. However, I will not push my kids when it's just not necessary. I do have an amazing husband who really knows my heart and he understands our limitations well. So we compromised; he brought the kids during one of the breaks and I took my kids through the exhibit hall and sat down with my husband and told him a bit about what I was getting out of the days conference. After about 20 minutes the kids where maxed out and I walked with my family to the exit door to say good bye. I finished out the conference with my kids safely at home where they were much happier without out the craziness of the conference environment. 

In one of our sessions, they talked about the difference in modifications and adaptations. I do both in our homeschool day. A modification is to simplify the lesson and adaptation is providing the tools necessary to do the work without altering the lesson. In our world I make a lot of modifications; more than I want. This is a clear indication of the severity of how much autism affectes my children's life. The truth is they wouldn't know the difference. They are loved and well cared for. I have learned that I can't change everything, I do what I can and give the rest to God. I have found this is the best way to live and deal with the difficult stuff in our life. I pray often for wisdom and seek for God's direction. 

I am daily grateful to the love and support of my husband. He is my anchor, protector, and provider. I'm glad we get to walk this journey side by side. 

Teach Them Diligently Homeschool Conference

Today we are getting ready to head to Rogers, Arkansas for the Teach Them Diligently Homeschool Conference. This will be our first time going to this conference. This will also be the first time taking our kids to a conference like this. It's a big deal for them. YIKES! My husband usually stays with the kids while I go. He is such a trooper.

I know that anything like this is really intense for my two kids. We don't leave our children with many people. We are very, very choosey who we let into their little world. So we have put some contingencies into our game plan for the next few days. My husband is a big part of that game plan and I am so blessed to have his support. We are going today for registration and the whole family is going. YAY! We will stay as long as the kids can tolerate. There may be a lot of walking around and getting familiar to the building this evening. There are classes that Patrick will go to and I'll take the kids and classes that I'll go to and Patrick will  take the kids. We will make the best of what we have. We are a team.

I am excited to sit in on the sessions and meet other families on this journey. I wish there was more support available for families like ours to attend and spend time getting refreshed. Our homeschools are a bit different, I assume than a typical homeschool family. However, anything that I can include my kids in, even if it is just for a few minutes, is a special moment for me. This conference has a few more sessions geared specifically for homeschooling with special needs and for that I am thankful. I need a time to get new ideas and refresh from the day to day work that I do with my kids. I love hearing about new ideas and trying out new curriculum. This is really a treat for me. I'm so appreciative of my husband for helping make this a priority. ;)

Let me know if you are planning on being at the conference. I'd love to see you there.

I'll try to post pictures if I get a chance. I may have to clear up some storage space on my phone so I can. :) This is a never ending story for me. LOL

Hoping that everyone has a great day.

Shelli Allen,
That Autism MoM
www.thatautismmom.com

Understanding nonverbal communication in individuals with Autism

One of the hardest things for me as a parent is to see these two kids be misunderstood because they are nonverbal. I am fascinated by nonverbal communication in general. In a high tech world where the majority of communication is done behind a screen, we might be struggling a bit with this skill.

Both of my kiddos are nonverbal. My daughter seems to be developing some low functioning echoic language skills, but none the less is mostly nonverbal. Research is now showing us that girls on the spectrum do tend to have higher developing social skills than boys on the spectrum.

I look at this picture and not knowing anything about these two you would never know they are nonverbal or even affected by autism. They look like two very typical kids enjoying ice cream and honestly this is true.

Without ones ability to communicate thoughts, ones needs, and ones desires it creates frustrating moments. We experience  melt downs where there is a lack of understanding happening. As my children get older and their desire for more independence grows, my ability to effectively communicate to them is a necessity.  So today, I was looking into some information about nonverbal communication to share with you all. As I keep looking more into this to help develop my own training method for those that work closely with my children I will continue to pass on that information to you.

Today I found this on a website about nonverbal thinking. They give us some points to keep in mind.
More to this article can be found at: http://teacch.com/communication-approaches-2/nonverbal-thinking-communication-imitation-and-play-skills-with-some-things-to-remember

Things To Remember

1. The most difficult aspect of learning play, to imitate, and to communicate is learning the concept or "why" of these areas of development. Children with autism do not inherently understand the meaning or importance of any of these skills. This is why it is important to start at a level where your child can experience as much success as possible. If your child is not successful at the activities that you try, or is not able to complete them independently, it may be necessary to try a simpler activity. This should not be considered a set back. Children with autism can be inconsistent in their ability to use their skills. Your child may be able to communicate with single words on his or her best days but may need to use pictures on other days. Or your child may be able to build towers with his or her sibling some of the time but at other times can only be successful when playing alone. Making sure that your child masters skills at each level may mean that progress will be slow, but this approach will ensure that what your child learns is meaningful and useful.

2.There are actually many types of development that could be reviewed in this step by step manner. For example, social development, like nonverbal thinking, imitation, communication, and play skills, emerges in a sequence of developmental steps. At early stages of development, however, many types of skills are related. Improvement in play skills and communication will promote social development. Improvement in nonverbal thinking will help your child understand toys. Remembering to emphasize your child's strengths and interests in all areas is important because the development of his or her stronger areas will promote development in weaker areas.

3. As your child passes through each stage of development and takes on more complicated activities, remember to make each advancing step a small one. Change each activity a little bit at a time. For example, if your child can successfully communicate about food using pictures, you may want your child to start using words and start communicating about other topics. This will probably be too many changes at one time and will lead to frustration. Choose only one thing to teach at a time. For example, introduce a wider variety of pictures for your child to communicate about but wait to teach a new type of communication such as talking.

4. Remember that visual skills are usually a strength for children with autism. It may take some extra work or creativity to teach using visual techniques. Emphasizing this type of learning, however, is likely to increase your child's ability to learn and understand at all levels of development.