My Parent has an Autism Spectrum Disorder: Barbara Lester talks about her new book for children and teens

“I always knew that my father seemed different from other fathers, but back then I didn’t know there was a name that described this difference or that there might be other people who had similar issues in their families. Once I realized that my father had an ASD, it helped me better understand and get along with him. I have found that over the past ten years there has been an exponential increase in the amount of information available to parents to help them understand their ASD children, but almost no information for children or teens to help them understand their ASD parents. I wrote this book to begin to fill that gap.”

February 14, 2011Autism

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with Books on Asperger Relationships from JKP

All relationships require constant care and attention, but the love between an “Aspie” and a “Neuro-typical” comes with its own set of challenges. Celebrate Valentine’s…

February 2, 2011Adoption and Fostering

When a Parent is on the Autism Spectrum: Tips for their Kids

by Barbara R. Lester, LCSW – author of My Parent has an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) has led to…

January 27, 2011Adoption and Fostering

Interview: JKP author Georgina Derbyshire Stands Up for Autism

“Some things that our children say or do can be especially poignant in certain situations and, quite often, they can say things that are so truthful, we just wouldn’t dare say them ourselves! There shouldn’t be anything sad or embarrassing about situations like these. We should see the humour in it and not feel guilty to laugh out loud. I think it is important to embrace moments like these as we have enough of a hard time and laughing can help redress the balance. Laughter is very good for stress too, so there’s no excuse!”

January 19, 2011Autism

How to Make School Inclusion a Success for Children with Autism – An Interview with Kay Al-Ghani and Lynda Kenward

“Children with ASD are not good at generalising. They cannot transfer knowledge from one situation to another. Something as simple as having a different symbol to show ‘choosing’ for example, may result in the child being unable to understand what is expected. Not all schools have access to symbol writing programmes or they may be different from those used by early years practitioners. Parents usually have no access at all and are not even aware of the visual symbols they could be using to aid their child’s understanding at home…The aim of the book is to promote and foster collaboration between the home and the school. This will result in improved generalisation of skills and opportunities to exchange ideas and to decide what methodology works best for the child.”

January 18, 2011Autism

How meditation can help people with Asperger’s Syndrome release tension and recognise body language

By Chris Mitchell, author of Asperger’s Syndrome and Mindfulness: Taking Refuge in the Buddha. Body language, or non-verbal communication, is an aspect of life that…

January 11, 2011Autism

How Social Enjoyment Groups Work: An Interview with John Merges

In December, JKP author John Merges shared some thoughts about his passion: helping young people on the autism spectrum enjoy social interactions – an important skill…

January 10, 2011Autism

Something Different: John Swogger on his innovative new graphic novel that helps children understand their Asperger’s parent

“Finding out about something as important and life-changing as your parent’s AS has the potential to overwhelm…I think using comics and graphic formats when talking about things to do with behaviour, health or illness can help integrate the very dense, sometimes technical and “clinical” information into the practical, emotional and deeply personal side of the issues.”

Photo: JKP author Dr. Charlotte Thompson

December 22, 2010July 4, 2017Adoption and Fostering

Tips and Ideas for Grandparenting During the Holidays

by Charlotte E. Thompson, M.D., author of Grandparenting a Child with Special Needs With the hustle and bustle of the holidays, parents often turn to…

December 20, 2010Adoption and Fostering

Mary Mountstephen on her new book ‘How to Detect Developmental Delay and What to Do Next’

“The important thing for me is that every child is valued and that we look at the causes of their difficulties rather than just the presenting symptoms: Why are they struggling in school and what can we do about it that is simple and easily implemented as the first stage in supporting them?”