http://empowerautism.com A Site for Autism Stakeholders Fri, 02 Dec 2011 13:36:17 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The holidays are not always easy for people on the autism spectrum. Holiday parties, lengthy meals with relatives, crowded houses, and gift-anxiety can be really stressful for people on the spectrum. The behavior expectations are different, and familiar adults are often acting unpredictably, and generally have less time ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/12/hectic-holidays/ Common Holiday Scenario in Autismville: Parent: Ok, let's pick out a gift for Mama ASD child: NO. I want elmo/thomas/Xbox 360! Parent: Yes, I know. At Christmas we give gifts to other people. What would Mama like? ASD child: I don't know. Parent: Well, do you want to get her this necklace? ASD child: No. This scenario ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/11/holiday-gift-making-party/ Our popular cooking group is back! We have received so many compliments and requests to continue this program, so we revised it and are offering it again this fall. It is for adults and older teens in the Asheville, NC area. Please contact us for more information. ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/10/cooking-group-in-asheville/ You can ASK SYLVIA by clicking on 'ASK' above. Dear Sylvia, My son is 7 years old in the second grade, and at school is takes too long to copy assignments and complete his work . How can I help him improve? He also randomly forgets to pack up all that he ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/09/2nd-grader-with-autism-struggles-to-finish-work/ Dear Sylvia, We have been attempting to teach our son to do some household chores. He uses a picture schedule and after completing three tasks he gets a reward (usually a milkshake from McDonalds). The problem is that he comes home from school, rushes through the chores not doing ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/08/help-my-son-with-autism-does-chores-poorly/ You can ASK SYLVIA about autism by clicking on the 'ASK' tab above. Dear Sylvia, My daughter is 10 and I am already worrying about puberty and especially the onset of her menstrual cycle. How can we prepare? She doesn't really tell us when she gets hurt and she is already ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/08/parent-of-10-yr-old-daughter-explains-puberty/ This is the second edition of Ask Sylvia, and I'm having a lot of fun with these! You can submit a scenario by clicking on the ASK tab above. Dear Sylvia, Whenever I want my teen to leave to go somewhere, he will say he is ready, but when it ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/08/ask-sylvia-teen-with-autism-struggles-to-manage-time/ So, I get a lot of questions from families about helping their children with autism. Sometimes people want to know about changing behaviors, improving school performance, finding friends, dealing with puberty, or clearer communication. I know that for every question someone asks, there are additional folks who want ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/08/ask-sylvia-about-autism/ The Spectrum by Dragonfly Forest is my favorite new project! It is so gratifying to work on something that is so much fun for everyone involved! Our interns are talented and dedicated, the activities they come up with are inspiring and hilarious, and the kids are so relieved to ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/03/a-rewarding-new-project/ Ben Mason is an NC local with a creative designer with a unique mind. I'm impressed with the way he expresses his ideas. Check out his new paper on cognitive media! Here is a portion of his paper that I like: Milestones in informative artifacts, such as the advent of written language, ... http://empowerautism.com/2011/01/cognitive-media-and-autism/