[Deleted User]

My son began using Risperidone when he was 6 and it made the difference in him being able to stay in school. He is 14 now, still taking risperidone, and is in a regular grade 9 class –with the help of a teaching assistant. Hope this helps.
Bev

[Deleted User]

Hello everybody,
thanks to you all that replied to my message on the board. It was great help and we finally got our account set up with CIBC (youth account) just like you said Stella. And will be able to deposit directly in it as it is in my son's name and I'm approved to do transactions in it too.
Thanks again for all your help. I also would like to know if anybody as used Aba centre with Dr. Jacobsen and what you think about them…
Thanks to you all this forum is really of great help; I never thought I would get so many answers in no time for my last post.
Thanks
Anne

[Deleted User]

Hello,
my 3 yr old son has recently been diagnosed with mild autism. We are currently still going through all the funding stuff. I seem to be having a bit of a hard time trying to figure out what is the "in trust" account that is needed. Is it an regular chequing account in my name made in trust by a lawer, or is it saving or chequing under my son's name… We're usually dealing with CIBC but they seemed a little confused as to what we had to do, as well as the government's funding unit. So is there anyboby who would be kind enough to help me out on that one??? you can e-mail me back at ajsimoneau@hotmail.com It's very appreciated.
thank you
Anne

[Deleted User]

Hello,
my 3 yr old son has recently been diagnosed with mild autism. We are currently still going through all the funding stuff. I seem to be having a bit of a hard time trying to figure out what is the "in trust" account that is needed. Is it an regular chequing account in my name made in trust by a lawer, or is it saving or chequing under my son's name… We're usually dealing with CIBC but they seemed a little confused as to what we had to do, as well as the government's funding unit. So is there anyboby who would be kind enough to help me out on that one??? It's very appreciated.
thank you
Anne

[Deleted User]

EVENT REMINDER — TONIGHT IN SOUTH SURREY

Regardless of the choice you’ve made treatment wise, if you are the parent of an Autistic child you absolutely need to attend this event in order to know which questions to ask and know what is possible in the field of Autism treatment.

It is an absolute gift to have such leading edge information being presented here in BC, four months prior to publication, FREE of charge!

Space still available – All are welcome – See below for details.
____________

Recovery from Autism Possible

Dr. Glen Sallows, Director of Early Autism Project, presents powerful new research that proves full recovery from Autism possible in 48% of treated cases.

In his presentation Dr. Sallows will describe the treatment approach, predictors for success and residual symptoms of “best outcome” children as well as cognitive improvements made by all children in the study using Lovaas-ABA.

The Early Autism Project is one of several worldwide research projects working to replicate the original findings of Dr. Ivar Lovaas in his groundbreaking work with young children with autism.

EAP is the first of these projects to achieve the same proportion of "best outcome" children as the original study. 48% of children receiving Lovaas-based treatment developed cognitive abilities, language skills and adaptive functioning in the average range–and would no longer be diagnosed as Autistic. Results of the four-year study will be published in the American Journal on Mental Retardation in November 2005.

Glen Sallows, Ph.D. is the Director of both the Wisconsin Early Autism Project (WEAP) and the Early Autism Project in Vancouver. He has been working in the field of autism for over 20 years. Dr. Sallows trained under Dr. Ivar Lovaas at the University of California, Los Angeles becoming proficient in using techniques known as Applied Behavioural Analysis(ABA), otherwise known as The Lovaas Program.

All are welcome for this groundbreaking event, graciously sponsored by the Autism Society of BC. Entrance is by donation. Coffee and treats supplied.

Thursday, August 4, 2005
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Semiahmoo House Society
15306 24th Ave
South Surrey
RSVP: wiklo@shaw.ca
604-434-0880

[Deleted User]

Hi Christine,

Regarding preschool, that is really a consultant call. THat decision is best made by someone who can assess your child's skills and strengths and determine whether they are ready for school.

That said, my advice is, your child is still very young and likely does not yet have the skill set that would make preschool advantageous. While I have not met your child, it is likely that a year of intensive treatment at home, perhaps with some weekly activities accompanied by an instructor/therapist/tutor or yourself would be most beneficial. A year of home therapy might provide your daughter with an excellent skill set that would allow her to be more prepared for preschool the following year. I don't think that 2 years of preschool provides any child, including an nt child, with an advantage over a child who attends for one year. Having worked in preschool settings accompanying clients, I have not noticed a significant difference in social skills among those who attended for an extra year vs. those who are attending for their first year.

Preschool will only benefit your daughter when she is ready and if she is not ready now, could actually prove to be a) a waste of time and money or worse b) a negative experience that actually causes harm that has to be worked through in ABA sessions.

And think of it this year, the extra year will give you time to find a trained ABA tutor to attend with your daughter, a chance to research preschools and find a welcoming school that will support your ABA program, as well as a chance to build up your daughter's social skills, language skills/communication skills and play skills.

Feel free to email me if you have additional questions
Michelle_Karren@hotmail.com
hope this helps!

[Deleted User]

I have a question for anyone out there is you have a child experiencing strange sleeping behaviours. Our daughter has been rocking and banging in her sleep since we can remember. When she was in the crib, we had to pad the crib with foam as she would bruise her back and head from the banging. Now, if she is even mildly disturbed in her sleep, she will either sway from side to side or bang her head on her pillow. She sleeps in a curled up position with her legs curled up under her tummy facing the pillow with her head on her hands. Looks very uncomfortable. We had her and our oldest daughter together in the same bed but had to put her in her own bed as she is impossible to sleep with. She is sleeping when she begins rocking or banging. If anyone else has experienced this, I am wondering what may have helped you if you were able to get your child over this behaviour. Please email me at cobrattack@telus.net
Thanks,
Tasha

[Deleted User]

regarding data collection:
Applied Behavior analysis (Lovaas or otherwise) is the science in which procedures derived from the principles of behavior are systematically applied to improve socially sigificant behavior to a meaningful degee and to demonstrate experimentally that the procedures employed were responsible for the improvement in behavior.
(not my definition, but an excellent one!)

ABA is effective because it is based on science. A scientific decision is based on facts and those facts are determined in our field by our data. Science does not factor in our opinions, it is not based on emotion, it is based on facts. Having worked in this field for over 5 years and having a child of my own (ABA exposure 24/7) I know that emotions are not reliable.

Its easy when an intervention is difficult and the progress is slow to "feel" as though an intervention is unsuccessful. It is also just as easy to think that a child's behavior has greatly improved or that they have mastered a skill when in fact they have not because we "feel" good about what is occurring. But this is not fact. If we base decisions on these feelings it is easy to discontinue an intervention that is effective too early or to move on to more difficult tasks too early. Ultimately the error will resurface, and no benefit has been gained. Our kids easily get stuck or run into learning, we don't need to create more roadblocks for them.

To maximize time (which is always in short demand) every decision about our child's program should be based on science. Fortunately science is easy to achieve through accurate, efficient data collection.

Data should be recorded for programs and behaviors immediately after it occurs. As Theresa mentiond, a data point should be recorded in an ideal world, immediately after the response:
SD-R(esponse)-Reinforcement/lack thereof for incorrect R – Data point

Sometimes this is challenging! There are times we decided to take anecdotal data (i.e. not trial by trial) because it isn't possible. When data collection is challenging, we can opt for solutions such as the tape on the leg that Barbara mentioned, taking anecdotal notes or estimated data (acknowledging that it is estimated and therefore not a final say for decision making) or using data systems such as checklists that can summarize what occurred. Even anecdotal data should occur as soon after the event as possible i.e. end of the sitting instead of during.

Trial by trial data is not only the most accurate it is the most efficient! When a data point is recorded immediately after reinforcement (i.e. during the reinforcment, prior to the next SD) it means that there is no wasted time at the end of the sitting where the child is unengaged while the instructor tries to remember what just occurred. A simple +/- system or circling the data point is quick and easy to do. It takes practice but proficiency is possible.

A dear friend of mine on the island told me a great trial by trial story about a male instructor who was able to take txt (trial by trial data while playing frisbee with a client.
inst: throw frisbee to client, take clipboard out from under arm, pen is attached with string, make data point as to whether frisbee is caught
client: throws frisbee
inst: catches frisbee, throws again, makes data point on throw and subsequent catch.

Now that is a work of data art!

Data should be collected for all behaviors that are being targeted by an intervention. Initial data should consider antecedent information, an objective description of the behavior that occurred, and the consequence that followed (the true consequence, not what SHOULD have happened but didn't). Sometimes we reach a point where we know the common antecedents and they are no longer relevant so we focus on simple frequency or duration data only.

We (in my humble opinion) ALWAYS graph this information because it visually demonstrates the effectiveness or lack thereof of our intervention.

Regarding data collection and the need for accuracy and the problem of paperwork… great promise lies ahead in the use of technology. Much of the research being produced utilizes laptops and PDA's for data collection. And even more exciting – a PDA based system is being developed here in Vancouver by a FEAT family. All of the sto's (instructions for programs) are online and accessed through the PDA, all data collection occurs quickly and efficiently using the pda, the pda graphs it for you, tells you when mastery is achieved etc. the information is stored on computer and can be accessed online, allowing consultants to access client information quickly. I have not personally gotten my hands on this system (yet!!), have only seen it via an overlap client but I have looked at similar systems in the US. On some systems, behavior data can be recorded using frequency information or through duration measures where the computer stop watch is used to simply time each occurrence.

Exciting!

Okay so this was a very LONG post but my point is that we claim ABA to be scientifically proven and argue that it is essential because of the science behind it, therefore we must practice the methods of science. However we do so, not simply to be able to say "look we are using science" but because our data should guide our decisions. We should use our data to tell us whether an approach is effective, ineffective, whether gains are being made at an optimal rate, whether there are problems across instructors, whether we are seeing greater success in therapy but not outside of therapy…. the answers we need should be in our data. The answers should be sleuthed from our data.

We should collect it but more importantly we should analyze it. Be very wary of someone who tells you that data is not important or who collects it but never looks at it. THis is not optimal ABA. As the definition says we can not simply say something works, we must be able to prove, to demonstrate that it occurred because of ____.

THe most effective programs I have observed, have accurate data that is analyzed and understood by those who make decisions. I have also had the opportunity to see some poor quality programs in place, run by those who fight against the families of this board… their data collection, when collected is poor, inaccurate and rarely if EVER analyzed. The clients stagnate, progress is not achieved and I would argue that these programs are not true ABA programs… after all there is no analysis.

(A good program should collect and analyze its accurate data but should also be based on sound programming decisions. If your data is excellent but your programs come from a cookie cutter book… well at least your accurate data will demonstrate stagnation in progress.)

I am always happy to answer any questions anyone has about coming to grips with data collection and if people have specific challenges, I'm sure if you posted your challenges to the group someone will have a solution! Hope this was helpful,

[Deleted User]

My son's consultants take data using the Standard Celeration Chart. This method is the most effective way to chart accurate data required for scientific data based decision making. For more information check out this website:
http://www.celeration.org
As a possible note of interest my son has been involved in an ABA program since 1997. We have had consultants who used every conceivable "data" method imaginable but nothing compares to the accuracy and effectiveness of the standard celeration chart.
DeeDee Doyle
deedeedoyle@hotmail.com

[Deleted User]

Full Day Kindergarten SEA Funding provided for in School Act

Section 3 of the BC School Act states that if a child has an “autism” diagnosis he is eligible for full day kindergarten (and SEA support to attend for the full day)… http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/specialed/ppandg/10_kinder.htm

NOTE: Your school district has to apply for this funding by September 30 of the current school year, but you should start your negotiations now…

Good Luck!

t
_________

Full Day Kindergarten
References
School Act, section 3
Form Completion Instructions: Form 1513, Superintendent's Report on Special Education Enrolment
Some students who are identified as having special education needs are eligible for 950 hours of instruction immediately upon attaining the age of eligibility for Kindergarten. These are students who:
• are dependent handicapped;
• have moderate, severe, or profound intellectual disabilities;
• are deaf or hard of hearing;
• have visual impairment;
• have autism; and/or
• have physical disabilities.
School districts may claim these students for full day special education funding and report them on Form 1513 in September of the year in which they are admitted to school, providing that an appropriate Individual Education Plan has been developed to address their special educational needs.
To ensure continuity when a child has been in a special needs preschool or child development centre program, districts are advised to co-ordinate the entry of the child to school and the planning of the Kindergarten program with programs which have been offered in the preschool years. In some cases, school districts may elect to contract for services through a preschool or child development centre for some portion of the child's educational program in the Kindergarten year.

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