Special Needs

Articles

Your daughter's best friend stopped texting three months ago. The play dates dried up... Your daughter's best friend stopped texting three months ago. The play dates dried up after the second hospitalization. Birthday party invitations...

...son struggles with turn-taking, your daughter melts down when she loses, and the...she loses, and the idea of structured play that ends in tears felt like volunteering...consistently shows that structured play develops skills that transfer beyond...15-minute increments that feel like play, not work. For kids with intellectual...

...option. The school IEP team suggests it. A friend says their non-verbal daughter started communicating through drawing. But you don't know if it's legitimate...confusion comes from the term itself: "art therapy" sounds like creative play, but the practice looks more like occupational therapy that uses visual expression...

...Importance of Neuro-Typical Play Dates for Children with...started to volunteer in my daughter's kindergarten classroom...children who seek her out to play that basically, my daughter...play that basically, my daughter has no idea what to...Sara–Whittier, CA. Dear Sara: Play dates, up to 3 X a week,...obstacles to knowing how to play well with other children...

...far too long for the well-being of their son or daughter. As a consultant I have seen how the pain and...the expectations parents have for their son or daughter with Autism, Asperger, Pervasive Developmental...homework, getting to soccer practice or carpooling to play dates, making them feel they cannot take the needed...

Dear Developmental Doc,My daughter is 5 years old and I think she has Selective Mutism. She is incredibly verbal at home but shy around strangers. Her camp counselor expressed concern...

...Morgan's Wonderland, inspired by the daughter of philanthropist Gordon Hartman,...American Soccer League team, will begin to play at Morgan's Wonderland. Hartman notes...Braille signage, and the Sand Circle™ play area where children and adults in wheelchairs...in wheelchairs can scoop up sand and play on swings. There is also the Sensory...

...thought about how it applies to my daughter Kayla, who has Down syndrome, and...quote is “Different, not less.” Yes my daughter is different in that she has an...doesn’t make them any less of a son or daughter, sibling, grandchild, niece or nephew,...deserving of love, respect, a chance to play sports, or to be included. History...

...to him as he grew up in a single parent home and we co-parented with our daughter. During our visit he described stress in his new job. We both listened,...those relationships I have seen the "grows toward separation" relationship play out in many ways. As a professional asked to guide some of those relationships,...

...residue that won't come off fast enough. What's supposed to be creative play becomes a shutdown trigger. Sensory art activities aren't about avoiding...sponges, or squeegees. A child who seeks deep pressure can work with clay or playdough that resists their hands. The goal isn't to "fix" the sensory preference....

...your hands, the temperature change as you work it. These are functional sensory tools, not decorative features. Why Clay Works Differently for SPD. Playdough compresses easily, kinetic sand flows, and slime stretches without resistance. Clay pushes back. That resistance is proprioceptive input, which is...

...turn-taking while they talk. The facilitator introduces the day's skill, like active listening, models it, and then the group practices through role-play. One child tells a story. Another listens and repeats back what they heard. The facilitator pauses the interaction. "I noticed you looked at the floor...