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 ...

In ''What to Include in a Language Sample, Pt. I,'' I expressed how important I feel a language sample is to complete an assessment for a verbal child or adult on the autism spectrum. I told you what to look for during a language sample and gave you an example of how I utilize a puzzle to elicit conversation with young children. When taking ...

Dear Kathie: ''Do you always take a language sample as part of an assessment with a verbal child or adult with ASD? If so, what do you look for and how do you elicit the conversation?'' - Adrian, speech-language pathologist My Response: Thank you for asking about the assessment aspect for a child/adult with ASD. I feel there are three ...

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 ...

Part I  I talked about the characteristics of the right and left sides of the brain and how they do not dance together in people with autism/ASD. I gave you twenty signs that I see that indicate how Mr. Left Brain and Mrs. Right Brain dance alone. Part II I was on a kick about strategies that SLPs bring to the table to assist ...

One of my favorite speech therapy tools is my trusty digital camera.  There's no end to the materials I use it for, and I'm sure that many  of you use yours too. Luckily for us, the days of finding lined drawings and coloring and cutting them out, or spending lots of money developing film for 1 or 2 pictures we want, are over. Here are ...