'Mommy, is that Lady Gaga?' When my youngest was a toddler, he LOVED Lady Gaga. I have no idea why or where it came from, but he did. He would ask me to put videos of her on my computer. So, when we were watching the Super Bowl one year, the year that Madonna did| A Day in our Shoes
Inside: Learn what perseveration is, what causes it, and how to get unstuck if you are perseverating on something. Plus, IEP goals if a child perseverates and it's interfering with school. Perseveration is a term used in psychology to describe the tendency to repeat a particular behavior or response even when it is no longer| A Day in our Shoes
Does your child repeat back words to you, often? Are they repeating words and phrases over and over? Or maybe reciting movie and TV lines? Have you heard of echolalia or scripting? It's a common autistic behavior, though not everyone who does it is autistic. While beliefs and perceptions about autism are changing, there is| A Day in our Shoes
A sensory diet may help a child improve their self-regulation skills. Read how, why, and getting a sensory diet added to your child's IEP.| A Day in our Shoes
So your kid can recite every dinosaur that ever lived... but can't microwave popcorn or tie their shoes. Or maybe they’re nailing math facts but completely melting down over brushing their teeth. Sound familiar? If you're here, you're probably wondering how the heck you're supposed to teach your kid all these “life skills” on top| A Day in our Shoes
Work completion or task completion refers to the ability to finish a given assignment, project, or task to the best of one's ability, and to do so within the allotted time frame. It is an important skill in academic and professional settings, as well as in personal life, as it enables individuals to meet deadlines,| A Day in our Shoes
Getting an evaluation is the first step on the path to understanding and managing ADHD. But, for those unfamiliar with the disorder, it can be overwhelming to undergo the evaluation without knowing what to expect. So, what is ADHD evaluation like? For the purposes of this article, I will be discussing a medical diagnosis of| A Day in our Shoes
Nothing frustrates a parent more than to tell a child to 'go clean your room!' only to return two hours later to see the same mess. But just like I tell schools, I sometimes have to remind parents, 'Is this can't do the skill, or won't do the skill?' Some kids truly do not have| A Day in our Shoes
Lots of teens love video games. Everyone knows that. And many teens, autistic or neurotypical, play video games too often, which can interfere with daily living. That doesn't necessarily mean that they are hyperfixated on video games. But do you remember the story a few years ago about the young man who died after playing| A Day in our Shoes
Much like the other posts I have on this site about anxiety, I want to start with the same warning. IEPs are not diagnosis-driven document. They are needs-driven. Your child's needs, determined through their IEP evaluations, will drive the IEP goals that the team creates. Not a diagnosis of anxiety. Still, there are some commonalities| A Day in our Shoes
First, let me say that I am not in love with this article's title. IEP decisions are team decisions. No one IEP team member should be deciding things like this--such as eligibility. Still, I want parents to use it as a starting point. Chances are, if you landed here on this article, you may already| A Day in our Shoes
Here you will find Executive Functioning IEP Goals, executive functioning IEP goals for ADHD, and some IEP Organizational Goals. This is one of the oldest articles on the site and is updated frequently. Since this post has evolved so much, I have broken down executive functioning into its subsets of skills. Back when I started| A Day in our Shoes
Wow! What a discussion we had about Executive Functioning today! What is Executive Functioning, or what are Executive Functioning Skills? I'm so glad you asked because they are the foundation for most learning tasks. Even if you do not have time today, I am urging you to come back and watch the video at some| A Day in our Shoes
Student counseling is listed as a Related Service in IDEA. Actually, Parent Counseling and Training is too. But that's another post for another day. I| A Day in our Shoes
For almost 10 years, readers have been asking me questions about an IEP and autism. It's quite common in our message boards to have a| A Day in our Shoes
Several years ago, I took my boys up to my Dad's house. Kevin just walked into the room where we were, stood in the middle,| A Day in our Shoes
One concept or behavior that you may be exposed to as an IEP parent is elopement. Unfortunately, I am not talking about the fun kind| A Day in our Shoes
If your child has negative behaviors at school, they should receive an FBA and a Behavior Plan. Here are behavior goal ideas for your IEP.| A Day in our Shoes
The After School Meltdown, we've all seen it. Here's what to know about after school restraint collapse, and getting your IEP team on board to| A Day in our Shoes
Many parents and caregivers struggle to manage aggressive behavior in children. These are the situations that can deteriorate a situation quickly--because many schools have zero| A Day in our Shoes
So, there's a reason why I am now just doing this post after the blog is more than 13 years old. I am philosophically opposed| A Day in our Shoes
We have come a long way in recognizing and supporting executive function skill deficits in students. Still, when it comes to learning disabilities, I find| A Day in our Shoes
As parents, we want our children to succeed in every aspect of their lives. We enroll them in the best schools, provide them with various| A Day in our Shoes
Social Awareness You know how when we were little, and you wanted a sleepover with a friend, and one of our parents would come home,| A Day in our Shoes
Fun and engaging social skills games can boost teenagers' social skills. Designing activities that cater to their age group and interests is crucial. These games| A Day in our Shoes
Evidence Based Games for Social Skills If you go out to bars frequently, or you're in a phase of your life where you're attending a| A Day in our Shoes
Social Emotional Learning Activities 'Ugh!' (and insert eye roll) 'You want to talk about feelings again,' is what my 12-year-old recently groaned. I hope that| A Day in our Shoes
There are many scholars who think social capital is more important than any skill learned, especially for people with disabilities.| A Day in our Shoes
We do so much for our kids, and we mean well. But time marches on, whether we want it to or not. We have to| A Day in our Shoes
It's no secret that many kids with disabilities struggle socially and struggle to build and maintain friendships. When Brian tells me stories of kids at| A Day in our Shoes
Many students struggle with Impulse Control Disorders, secondary to other learning disabilities. Here are goal and accommodation ideas to add to an IEP or 504| A Day in our Shoes
Does your child struggle with Working Memory issues, and do you want them added to the IEP? Have you heard parents talk about working memory| A Day in our Shoes
Sometimes we get so wrapped up in getting our kids' needs met, we forget to address a Student's Strengths. What are your child's strengths? Grabe| A Day in our Shoes
As if today's parents didn't have enough pressure on them to be perfect parents....and as if some moms aren't already stressed out at the thought| A Day in our Shoes
Emotional self-regulation is a necessary executive functioning skill that all kids need to develop. Some will require direct instruction.| A Day in our Shoes
