What is my professional experience?
I am a Speech and Language Pathologist, specializing in the treatment of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. I work in a clinic setting in Duluth, Minnesota. I am employed by the Scottish Rite Clinic for Childhood Language Disorders where we see children younger than nine years of age. I involve parents in every aspect of intervention and believe that parents are my secret weapon of success. The Scottish Rite Clinic has supported a high degree of professional creativity, which I appreciate. This website is possible only because I have incredible workplace support.
I was educated at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. I have worked in schools, in a county Birth-to-Three program, at a university, and in private practice. But my recent work (the last ten years) where I have been closely involved with parents and children with ASD has been the most exciting work of my career.
Please see the acknowledgements page to get a clearer view of my perspective on autism and my professional training and study.
What are my goals?
I created this web site as a resource for the families and friends of young children who have ASD. In this place I hope to collect a set of games and activities that are fun, educational, and learnable for both children and adult play partners. I both explain and demonstrate in video clips how to play many of the games. It is my hope that the players, understanding the procedure and the principles involved, will go on to create their own games and activities.
I love the process of empowering parents to teach their own child. But I have learned that this can be complicated. Parents vary so much in their knowledge and disposition! I keep finding that I need a richer tool box for parent education in order to meet all the individual needs. This web site is my latest tool. I will be using it with the parents that I work directly beside--at least those who are computer savvy. The site can also be used by other SLP's and ASD professionals in their work. Anyone wanting to seriously understand what is on this web site will need to print off a copy of the Site Map. I hope to create a Video Clip Map as well one day when I have an extra few hours.
Lately, I have been interested in using video clips to teach new ideas to children in a strategy that is called Video Modeling. I know that the actual implementation of video modeling is rather daunting to some parents even if they own and use a digital video camera and have already put video clips on their computer. So one goal for this web site is to show how simple video modeling is done. I use an inexpensive video camera, I edit with Window's Movie Maker, and I barely edit at all. I am not offering professionally created video clips on this site. I want parents to look at these clips and think, "I make video clips that are at least that good!"
There are luminaries of thought out there in the world of Autism Intervention. I see my role not as originator of great ideas but as a collector and translator of great ideas to the parents and caregivers who come into my clinic each week, who come to my workshops, and now, to those who come to this web site looking for ways to help their child. I want to inspire parents to try ideas. Once they try some of these games and strategies, they will learn and improve and create on their own.
Who am I?
Besides my professional life, I am the wife of a very patient man, who has not complained about my spending hours and hours trying to figure out how to make a website. Nor has he complained about my other rather extravagantly ambitions projects.
I am the mother of four wonderful children who have provided me with a enough humility, joy, sorrow and wonder to work in this field with parents who are on an emotional roller coaster. My children, like all children, have been incredible teachers. I love to garden and travel. The photo at the top is one of me on a recent bike tour in Holland where I went with one of my daughters to see the tulip fields and gardens. I am blessed with supportive and wise friends — many of whom have helped me with this project.
Contact me
I'd love to hear how you are using these games. Send me an email or post me at my blog. I want to hear about games that you have created for your child and learn what you have learned about playing together. Send me the stories about what you have found that works to engage and delight and educate your child.
Email me at autism.game@gmail.com or visit my blog autismgames.blogspot.com