Opinion: Students Need More Options

My wife, Liz, and I have a 5-year-old son named Sam who, along with his little brother, Pete, is our pride and joy. Sam was diagnosed with autism-spectrum disorder at age 4. The symptoms of ASD vary but are characterized by social deficits and repetitive behavior. His doctor says he is high-functioning, which means that with the right schooling, therapies, teachers and family support Sam could be “mainstreamed” into a regular classroom with his peers in the future.But getting from here to there is going to take enormous effort, and our local public school has already shown an unwillingness to help. Sam is old enough to attend kindergarten in the fall, but after reading his progress reports and listening to his therapists, Liz and I agreed he was not ready to tackle the added challenges of kindergarten. His language skills are still delayed and he has sensory and social issues that could use another year of work.

Autism Study Identifies New Treatment Approach

INDIANAPOLIS -- A team of researchers from Indiana University and Rutgers University has developed a new approach that could help better pinpoint therapies for children with autism.
The method relies on a quantitative analysis of a way a person moves. Researchers say it could eventually revolutionize interventions for children who have a range of conditions, from autism to ADHD.

Social/Language Therapy: A Must

Kathie Harrington is a Speech Language Pathologist and a mother of a son on the autism spectrum. This is her blog post from Advanceweb.com's blog.

 Social skills aren't really so hard. Most children glean them during play and with appropriate guidance. No, social/pragmatic skills aren't hard at all, not unless you have ASD (as well as other mental disorders)

Does Utah's Medicaid Autism Pilot Need Higher Standards?

Nicole VanBuskirk walks with her
6-year-old autistic son, Austin.

Carol Embry and her husband have full-time jobs with health insurance, but neither their salaries nor their policies cover the cost of the autism treatment their 5-year-old son needs.

They’ve tried other therapies. They’ve borrowed money and tapped into retirement funds.