Last time, I blogged about being a member of a state speech-language-hearing association. In that blog I mentioned my state association's upcoming annual convention. Today's post is about some of my experiences at the PSHA Convention. I'll write about the other presentations I attended in my next post. My time at the convention was split among ...

Dear Kathie: ''Chad is 5 years old and ‘very' autistic and non-verbal. He covers his ears with his hands when there is a loud noise, such as a fire alarm, or even when he anticipates a loud noise, like a balloon that he thinks may pop. How can I help him, his classroom teacher, and his parents? - Payton, speech-language pathologist My ...

Dear Kathie: What are your thoughts on using an iPad with the autistic population?'' - Mary, speech-language pathologist and parent of a child with autism Kathie's Response: I like it. I love it. I want some more of it. But, instead of calling it an iPad for the autistic population, I think we should rename it a wePad. That is because WE ...

Last week, Sam asked a great question: if I could give one single word that best describes what autism is or how it feels to have autism, what would it be? That single word is anxiety. This week, I want to give you some techniques to use with people with autism to ease that high anxiety level they suffer. And I do mean suffer. Anxiety ...

  In my last entry, I wrote about a free, recycled object that makes a wonderful therapy tool. Today I'm going to share and (hopefully) get, some advice about something else I got for free! Check this out...   Yup, it's a free and completely blank bulletin board. There is a spot in our staff room where people put items they no ...

Anxiety Dear Kathie: I know that autism (ASD) is a complex syndrome. I had a parent ask me just the other day if I could give them one single word that best describes what autism is or how it feels to have autism. I guess because you know about autism and you've lived with it for so many years raising your son, I felt that perhaps you ...

With the winter holiday break coming to an end, I'm mentally preparing myself for my newest venture as a school-based SLP -- the role of a cooperating teacher! As I had mentioned in a previous blog, from 1/3/12 through 3/9/12, I'll have a graduate student extern.  As I had also mentioned, this is a first time experience for me! ...

  SLPs, did you know SLP stands for more than Speech-Language Pathologist? You stand for so much more. The other meaning for SLP is ''Simply Love People.'' As we walk into a new year, 2012 has many promises ahead for those who simply love people. The year will march along in its own way, day-by-day. Some of those days ...

Back at the start of the school year, I had mentioned four new therapy approaches I was trying this year.  About a month ago I talked about one of them -- my use of adapted story books to build early literacy skills in students with moderate to severe disabilities.  In today's blog, I will talk about a second one. I spend ...

  This blog is based on the following presentation from the 2011 ASHA Convention: Exploring Child Characteristics/Family Factors in Evidence-Based Practice for Autism By Twyla Perryman, PhD, CCC-SLP Assistant Professor East Carolina University, Greenville, NC perrymant@ecu.edu    Dr. Perryman and Kathie Dr. ...