Relationship Development Intervention, RDI®, is at this time, the only family centered approach that systematically targets the core deficits of Autism. The development of RDI® was based on a comprehensive review of research in typical development, autism, autism treatments, communications theory, systems theory, cultural and anthropology research, psychotherapy, brain development and function, developmental psychology and more. The treatment of autism through RDI® follows the path of typical development and is achieved through structured 'lab times' and the practice of the RDI® principles and techniques throughout the daily activities of life. Each program is individually constructed for the child's specific needs in order to decrease the child's obstacles and utilize their strengths to develop meaningful relationships, cognitive flexibility and relative information processing. Parents function as the primary interventionists with their children under the direction of a RDI®¨ Program Certified Consultant. Consultations vary in the form of video analysis, phone consultations, live demonstrations, home visits and peer dyads.
Relationship Development Intervention is appropriate if you want to improve your child's...- Experience sharing communication
- Emotional regulation
- Motivation to participate in interactions and experiences
- Mental engagement
- "Gray Thinking" versus "Black and White"
- Give-and take (Reciprocal) relationships
- Personal connection to those around him/her
- Behavior
- Quality of life
This service is intended for those families that feel that something just doesn't feel right, but doctors and professionals are telling them to "wait and see" if the child makes progress on his own. Through Next Steps you will: learn strategies to facilitate your child's early social-communication development, address early areas of weakness, understand your child's development and appropriate levels of challenge, calm your anxiety, validate your concerns, and determine if intervention is warranted.
This program is appropriate if your child is not yet consistently...- Showing and giving objects for the purpose of sharing
- Seeking me out to play
- Responding to his/her name
- Using 20 or more words in a purposeful manner (depending on age)
- Looking to you for reassurance in new situations
- Attending to social games
- Comforted by your voice or presence
- Using words and/or gestures to share with you
- Persistently tantrums
- Engages in repetitive and/or limited play behaviors
- Reacts unusually to how things smell, taste, feel, look, or sound
- Typically plays alone
- Uses language in an unconventional manner
- Repeats words or phrases
- Engages in movement without purpose (running, crashing into things, jumping, spinning)
This service is intended for those families that are at a loss when attempting to connect with, communicate with and discipline an emerging teenager with special needs. Next Steps is a parent training program designed to help you communicate with your child more effectively. Through Next Steps you will: improve communication with your teen or tween, learn how to help both of you manage frustration by understanding your child's development and appropriate levels of challenge, learn how to avoid power struggles, provide your son or daughter with the guidance that they need as they navigate the social world, become proactive in getting your child "on track", and feel empowered by the hope of your child's future.
Next Steps is appropriate if your child struggles with...- Demonstrating healthy independence
- Socializing with peers
- Taking responsibility at home and at school
- Handling frustration
- Organizing the day
- Understanding others' perceptions
- Effectively communicating thoughts and feeling
- Learning from mistakes
- Appears isolated
- Has very few friends
- Is socially awkward
- Is often inflexible
- Seems lost at times
Picture This! is a program focused at improving language processing, reading comprehension and written expression skills through the use of Lindamood-Bell Visualizing & Verbalizing program and Whole-to-Part Literacy Approach. Instruction is provided in groups of two or three children grouped by age and reading/language level.
Picture This! is appropriate if your child struggles with...- Decoding
- Encoding (spelling)
- Reading Comprehension
- Social interactions
- Flexible thinking
- Problem solving / inferencing
- Organization
Stacy Levy and Vicky Roy are certified speech-language pathologists and are able to provide speech-language evaluations and treatment upon request.
What is "speech?""Speech" is referred to as how a person articulates, or produces sounds for speech. The difficulty saying speech sounds may be the result of oral motor weaknesses, motor planning difficulties, phonological processing, or dentition. Your speech-language pathologist can work with you and your child in correcting the sounds that are being said in error.
What is "language?""Language" refers to a systematic means of communicating ideas or feelings by the use of conventionalized signs, sounds, gestures, or marks having understood meanings. Professionals separate Language into Receptive Language and Expressive Language domains.
- Receptive Language is the ability to comprehend spoken and written aspects of language. It includes tasks like "touch the..." or "show me..."; no verbal response is required.
- Expressive Language is the ability to use the aspects of language to convey ideas verbally and in writing and would be demonstrated in tasks, such as, "tell me...", "describe ..." or direct answers to questions
- Semantics, which is the comprehension (receptive) and use (expressive) of vocabulary. It includes single word vocabulary, categorization and contextual meanings.
- Morphology is the comprehension and use of rules to modify words in order to alter their meanings (tenses, plurals, etc.).
- Syntax is the comprehension and use of word order to convey meaning. (Morphology and Syntax make up what is traditionally considered to be Grammar)
- Pragmatics is the comprehension and use of social aspects of communication and it includes nonverbal communication, use of personal space, inflection and patterns of speech, and appropriate utilization of language to accomplish a desired outcome in the specific communication context.
