World Autism Awareness Day

#WAAD2015

Today is World Autism Awareness Day and it really got me thinking about how powerful community support can be. Many of our families experience daily challenges with getting their children affected by Autism out into the community. They face the stress of a meltdown, the fear of being judged when their child acts a certain way and the panic of an unexpected change of schedule. Awareness and education are the best ways to show these families that we as a community want to support and understand Autism. World Autism Awareness Day brings a lot of attention to Autism through social media, sharing stories, taking the time to celebrate the unique abilities that each child has and ask questions about how we can further support them to reach their goals.

Education is a huge factor to supporting families with children with Autism. Professionals and parents need to learn strategies to support kids in school, home and the community. By taking the time to gain understanding about Autism Spectrum Disorder we can impact the accessibility, acceptance and awareness our community provides to all individuals.

It is with great excitement that Children’s Autism Services of Edmonton would like to invite you to learn more about individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder. We invite you to increase your awareness at our upcoming events:

Working with Families in Natural Environments with Robin McWilliams on April 10 at the Oasis Conference Centre. Robin will be sharing amazing information about Routines-Based Interviews, functional intervention planning and using collaborative consultation. To register please visit: http://www.childrensautism.ca/net/images/Robin_McWilliam_presentation_April_2015.pdf
or call (780)495-9235

Emily Rubin, co-founder of the SCERTS program will be coming to Edmonton from May 19-21 at the Oasis Conference Centre to educate professionals and parents in the community about how to determine meaningful, purposeful, and motivating goals and strategies based on a child’s developmental stage, functional needs, and family priorities. For more information and to register please visit http://www.childrensautism.ca/net/images/SCERTS_May_2015.pdf
or call (780)495-9235.

We are so excited that the Oasis Conference Centre has agreed to sponsor these events. The Oasis Centre was incredibly accommodating to us last year with amazing AV support and incredibly friendly and knowledgeable staff. We look forward to coming together with members of the community to learn and increase our awareness!