Introduction to the Low Arousal Approach Online Training – October 20, 2022

October 20, 2022 – 9 am – 3:30 pm Mountain Time

Featuring Jill Wur

The one day, 6 hour Low Arousal Training focuses primarily on practical, non-confrontational approaches to supporting individuals who experience significant stress and present behaviours that may be difficult to manage. Training encourages support providers to focus on the person rather than the behaviour and try to understand the underlying causes of the behaviour, rather than viewing it as a problem that needs to be solved. Course participants are also introduced to a range of proactive and reactive strategies as well as being given opportunities to reflect on their own behaviour and how this may impact the behaviour of others. Time is also devoted to the development of effective coping strategies that can help support providers manage their own stress and anxieties around the individuals and behaviours they work with.

Introduction to the Low Arousal Approach Online Training – September 22, 2022

September 22, 2022 – 9 am – 3:30 pm Mountain Time

Featuring Jill Wur

The one day, 6 hour Low Arousal Training focuses primarily on practical, non-confrontational approaches to supporting individuals who experience significant stress and present behaviours that may be difficult to manage. Training encourages support providers to focus on the person rather than the behaviour and try to understand the underlying causes of the behaviour, rather than viewing it as a problem that needs to be solved. Course participants are also introduced to a range of proactive and reactive strategies as well as being given opportunities to reflect on their own behaviour and how this may impact the behaviour of others. Time is also devoted to the development of effective coping strategies that can help support providers manage their own stress and anxieties around the individuals and behaviours they work with.

Using Systems to Teach Social and Emotional Information

Featuring Kari Dunn Buron

Highly rigid and restrictive routines are a part of the autism diagnosis.  If we look at autism through the neurodiversity lens we might notice that repetitive routines are a learning strength  for autistic individuals.

The Incredible 5-Point Scale was developed with this assumption in mind.  The scale is a highly systemized method of teaching social and emotional information.  What we have found over the recent 20 years is that focusing on rigidity and inflexibility as a learning strength, and placing value on that learning channel, can assist educators and parents in creating successful strategies.

Mastering Executive Function Skills from School to Adult Life

Featuring Carol Burmeister and Sheri Wilkins

Students with autism and related disabilities often struggle with executive function (EF) skills. The good news for parents and educators is that EF skills can be taught. Furthermore, students can be taught to select and use strategies for building EF skills independently, leading to greater self-determination and success in school and life after school. Teaching through a gradual release of responsibility, teachers can prepare students to use strategies effectively across environments.

Social Engagement & the Steps to Being Social: A Practical Model for Developing Social Skills

Featuring Kathleen Mo Taylor and Marci Laurel

Social Engagement & the Steps to Being Social is a unique, visual tool developed to guide assessment and intervention across severity levels and age groups for individuals with ASD.  The model addresses the need to break pivotal social skills into smaller steps that can be easily measured and targeted for growth. Components of social engagement and specific steps of being social will be identified.  Evidence-based practices will be linked to teaching specific social skills. Emphasis will be on practical application.

Evidence Based Practices for Teaching Social Skills

Featuring Jennifer M. Schmidt and Megan R. Barrett

There are 27 Evidence Based Practices for students with autism (NCAEP, 2020) and many of these EBP’s are highly effective when teaching social skills to students on the spectrum. Through this webinar you will learn about the 7 EBP’s consistently used in the PEERspective Model. This model was created by Jennifer more than 15 years ago and many districts have adopted it with similar success. Learn about how to implement your own PEERspective Model and/or how to use EBP’s in your setting to successfully teach social skills to students with autism.

How to Incorporate Structured Strategies into Everyday Life

Featuring Amy Gaffney

Strategies that provide structure and predictability help individuals on the spectrum better understand a given situation, which leads to greater success and independence.   This webinar will discuss three structured strategies that can be used throughout a person’s day:  structured language supports, visual schedules, and work systems.  These strategies are often introduced at school but should also be extended into a child’s home and community, and continue to be utilized into adulthood.  Participants will have the opportunity to make an action plan as they learn more ways to utilize structured strategies throughout the day.

Using Attribution Retraining to Improve Problem-Solving and Self-Regulation

Featuring Sherry A. Moyer, MSW, LSW

This workshop gives audience members an opportunity to learn the critical role of assessing our circumstances, identifying our options and then taking action to improve the situation BEFORE it becomes a crisis. Using a side-by-side comparison of real-life examples for both children and adults, the presentation gives a practical approach to recognizing disruptive effects of negative or hostile attribution patterns on self-regulation and immediate steps that everyone can take to promote positive attribution and successful outcomes.