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Is your child with ASD moving on to
Secondary School next year?
Autism Spectrum Disorder: Planning
a Successful Transition to
SECONDARY SCHOOL
A workshop designed for the transition team (parents & teachers)to work
together to develop a shared understanding of the student and
discuss a transition plan that prepares for a positive start to secondary school
for the child, family and educators.
Tuesday 30th OCTOBER
Regional Office 109 Armstrong St
1.30 – 5.00
Contact Kris Schmidt for details
5337 8414 OR [email protected]
Newsletter AUGUST 2012
Hi Everyone
Term 3 has just started! Where has the
year gone!
I hope everyone who joined us at Gold
Rush Mini Golf enjoyed the afternoon! It
did appear that the cold weather didn’t
dampen anyone spirits. It is a great place
to go and work on our children’s social
skills, eg. the aspect of them possibly
losing a game, waiting, turn taking and
let’s not forget our motor skills.
The lovely people at Gold Rush Mini Golf
are so obliging, and the room was a great
space to eat, keep dry and warm.
BAN will hold something similar in the next
school holidays, as we did have a few
families let us know that holidays can be a
difficult time for their kids.
Parent Tips for TRANSITION
This newsletter I will revisit “ Starting
Secondary School”. It is a good idea if
your child is in Year 5/6 to start looking at
these strategies whilst still in the comfort
and support of the Primary School
environment. We can’t anticipate
everything that could be a trigger for a
meltdown, BUT being prepared as best we
can for these changes will help.
Our 14 year old son started Secondary
school in 2011 so I know first-hand how
unsettling it can be. He was over being at
Primary School but very apprehensive
about the change to High School.
These are some of the strategies that I
used to help our son with his transition.
Start preparing NOW
A SSG (Student Support Group) meeting
is a good start.
Plan with the teachers from both
the Primary and High School.
Write a profile about your child.
This helps teachers understand
YOUR child with ASD as they are
ALL different. Remember, having a
Student Profile on your child is like
having an action Plan for a child
who has Allergies or Asthma.
Teachers, aides and staff need to
know how to deal with your child
when they are about to become
distressed.
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You will receive a Transition
workbook that assists in building
your child’s profile when you attend
the Planning a Successful
Transition to Secondary School
workshop
CHANGES
Timetables – even Primary
Schools have classroom
timetables. Ask for a copy to be
placed on your child’s desk for a
reference to follow. Even the most
basic timetable can help to teach
them to read one
Map – of the new school to help
them to know their way around.
Make arrangements to visit the
new school, as often as it takes for
your child to feel reasonably
comfortable. (At least know where
to find toilets, office, library, and
safe quiet place.)
Most schools do have extra
orientation days that whoever
needs to can attend.
Go to the school at different times
of the day. There is a lot of noise
and traffic/crowds at bell times.
Lockers- it is always a good idea to
request that your child’s locker is
near a teacher’s staff room/office
or a quieter area.
ORGANISATION
Discuss with your child’s teacher
the importance of using these
methods for the rest of the year
and explain why.
Use folders with coloured
dividers with loose leaf paper.
Ask your child’s grade 6
teacher how they divide the
subjects.
This won’t take much for you
to set up and explain to your
child.
Have a pencil case with basic
writing
equipment.
You can find
these folders
at Big W and
Kmart. Get
your child
used to
using these so they will feel
confident before they start high
school.
IN THE HOLIDAYS REORGANISE THE
FOLDER TO SUIT SECONDARY
SCHOOL
TEXT BOOKS-
Colour code the
textbooks, novels
etc. the same colour
as the dividers for
the subject. Eg. If
the divider for maths
is red, get a red piece of paper and
use clear contact to stick it to the
spine of the maths textbook.
TIME TABLE- If a time table isn’t
available before the end of the
year, ask to have one emailed to
you in the holidays.
SCHOOL MAP- Colour code the
school map to the timetable by
room numbers.(not subject
colours)
Example of colour coded timetable
Period Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
1 Maths Rm;7
English Rm;11
Maths Rm;8
Science Rm;3
Home Eco Rm;81 2 Japanese
Rm;1 Music M 82
VCD Rm74
RECESS
3 P.E Gym
Humanities Rm11
English/ Humanities Rm;11
P.E. Gym
Maths Rm;8
4 Maths Rm;2
LUNCH
5 English Rm; 11
Maths Rm4
Japanese Rm;11
VCD Rm;74
Maths Rm;2
6 Japanese Rm;1
Science Rm 4
Music Rm 82
Maths Rm;7
Music Rm 82
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Autism Spectrum Disorder: Planning a successful transition to PRIMARY school
Do you have a student with autism spectrum disorder enrolling in Prep class in 2013? A full day workshop designed for the transition team to work together to develop a shared understanding of the child and prepare a transition plan that prepares for a positive start to school for the child, family and educators.
PRESENTED BY:
Kris Schmidt (Visiting Teacher Autism-Grampians Region DEECD) and Jodie
Drummond (Preschool Field Officer, Pinarc)
Monday 22nd October from 9.30 – 3.00 at the Ballarat Regional Office
Contact for further information:
Kris: [email protected]
Jodie Drummond: [email protected]
When I did this for Thomas, I used
highlighters and textas and just marked
over the room number on the time table
and the room number on the map. I then,
laminated them back to back, and put
them in the back of his organiser, or you
can put it in their folder.
Teachers are usually back a week or two
before the holidays finish. If your child
really needs to go over the school grounds
again, call the school and arrange a time
to look around again with their time table
and map.
One thing the Special Education Teacher
did say to me was, ‘When all else fails, tell
them to follow the rest of the class!’. As
long as they have one or two other kids to
follow they will be fine.
Whatever stage or year your child is in at
school, Pre-School to Prep or the
transition from Primary school to High
school, remember that we need to show
some empathy and understanding towards
each other when dealing with our children.
We all need to work together to do what is
best for our children.
If you have any queries about this
information contact - Tricia Murphy
___________________________________________________________________
Social event for the whole family
Friday 17th August 6-8 pm
903 Doveton St Cost: $10 per family
Nibbles provided, café open
RSVP to Kris 53412 768
Or Email - [email protected]
________________________________________________________________
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Amaze Early Days workshops for those with children aged 0-6 yrs with a
diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. The Early Days Workshops are for
parents and carers of pre-school children with an ASD, or who are currently
undergoing assessment for an ASD. Autism Victoria trading as Amaze has been
awarded the government contract to run these workshops in Victoria.
The Introductory Workshop covers:
Understanding Autism Spectrum Disorders: what your child’s autism spectrum disorder
means for you and your family
You can make a difference: how the everyday things you do as a parent can make a
difference to your child’s development
Early Intervention: why it is important to support your child’s development as early as possible
Choosing interventions and therapies: how to get the most out of services for children with
autism spectrum disorder and make decisions about which interventions will best support
your child’s development
Early Days Workshops in Ballarat – 21st and 22nd September. To attend these
workshops contact the Early Days Facilitator at Amaze on 1300 307 909 for details.
_________________________________________________________________________
MAKING FRIENDS Group -
SCOPE is running a group for young children who are experiencing difficulties
with social skills. Small groups are scheduled for 90 minutes for 5 days over
the school holidays and conducted by a team of SCOPE early intervention
workers including Speech pathologist and Occupational Therapist. A cost
applies but you can use Better Start for children with a Disability or Helping
children with Autism funding.
Contact for further information – Danielle Walker o 5331 3599
___________________________________________________________________
Medicare Benefits Scheme:
Chronic Disease Management Plan Previously Enhanced Primary Care (EPC) plan The Chronic Disease Management (CDM) Plan provides: • Five sessions with an Allied Health Professional per calendar year • $4,250 worth of dental treatment if the doctor writing the referral feels that the chronic condition (ASD) is causing the dental problems People with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are eligible for the CDM Plan because ASD is a Chronic Condition. The CDM Plan can be written by your GP and
people with ASDs are eligible for five sessions
every calendar year. Once the initial plan has
been made, the GP will not need to write a
new plan each year, but may review the plan.
Better Access to Mental Health Plan Also known as Mental Health Care Plan This plan provides: • Six sessions of individual therapy with a Psychologist, Occupational Therapist or Social Worker. An additional four sessions are available (a maximum of ten sessions per calendar year, although six more services may be provided under "exceptional circumstances" between 1 March and 31 December 2012). • 10 Group Sessions of therapy with a Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, or Social Worker.
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The Helping Children with Autism Access to Diagnosis and Treatment Plan This provides the following: • Four Appointments for Private Diagnosis referred by a Paediatrician or Psychiatrist to a Psychologist, Speech Therapist, Occupational Therapist, Audiologist, Optometrist, Orthoptist or Physiotherapist. This is called the ‘Helping Children with Autism Increased Access To Diagnosis’ • 20 Sessions with a Psychologist, Speech Therapist, Occupational Therapist, Audiologist, Optometrist, Orthoptist or Physiotherapist. This is called the’ Helping Children With Autism Treatment Plan’
Families have the option of using the
Medicare rebate system to help pay for
private assessments. The family’s
paediatrician or psychiatrist can diagnose the
child with autism, in collaboration with the
allied health professionals. The rebate allows
a total of four sessions with these
professionals (together not each). With a
diagnosis of a Pervasive Developmental
Disorder, the child will be eligible for 20
sessions of therapy with one of the above
listed allied health professionals.. These
rebates can only be used once in the child’s
life time, they must be written by their 13th
birthday, and used by their 15th birthday
Autism Spectrum Positive
Behaviour Victoria State Plan:
ASPECT Behaviour Support What is ASD Positive Behaviour Support
Victoria?
It is a FREE program to help support families
and Teachers with the tools to help
children/teens and young adult (6 to 25years)
with ASD, and their challenging behaviours.
This FREE program is a part of Autism State
Plan.
What does this FREE Program involve and
provide?
It involves intense BUT extremely helpful
workshops, to provide Parents with the skills to
help manage their child’s challenging
behaviours. The Parents are encouraged to
invite other professionals, involved in their
child’s development so ALL are going in the
same direction. EG; Parents can invite their
child’s teacher, aide, special education co-
ordinator, phycis, speech path etc, so the
same language is followed as far as the
behaviour management is concerned.
How will ASD Behaviour Management Plan
be rolled out?
This FREE Behaviour Management Plan will
be rolled out in partnership with Victorian State
Government, DHS Victoria and ASPECT
Australia. ASPECT is a N.S.W based entity
that has developed and run this highly
successful behaviour program in NSW, for
several years. So all the kinks will have been
ironed out!
There will be 3 levels involved in the roll out of
this FREE behaviour management program.
The first level will be for the
Parents/Professional workshop, opened to all
families, whom meet the criteria of having a
FORMAL diagnosis of ASD, and between the
ages of 6-25 years of age.
These workshops will be on a supply and
demand basis. Once you have registered on-
line, you will get into these workshop, although
there may be a wait.
Levels 2-3 are for more challenging
behaviours. They will be available on a case
by case basis for these families, but only after
the families have completed level 1.
You can register on line at for those
Registrations have not open as yet, BUT keep
checking the website to get some practice get
in and out of the site.
www.autismspectrum.org.au
Contact Aspect Victoria on 9377 6600 for
further inquiries.
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Useful Web sites
www.raisingchildren.net.au/autism
for parents of young children with
autism
www.autismtraining.com.au
Positive Partnerships National program
support for schools and parents
www.autismhelp.info Autism Help is an information site in question answer format for parents, teachers and other workers Also Google ACT-NOW project for great fact sheets from Monash Uni.
Ballarat Autism Network Committee –Raising awareness and promoting understanding in our
community about autism spectrum disorder- a voluntary group of parents who plan
events, autism information sessions & family activities
Meetings monthly on the 2nd Monday of the month at Eastwood Leisure Centre.
Interested parents are welcome to join anytime Contact Kris for future meeting date
s on 5341 2768 or email: [email protected]
The Pinarc Toy Library is closing but the Ballarat Autism Network library is still available
as our resources will remain at the Pinarc Resource Centre in King St Ballarat. FREE!
_____________________________________________________________
Ballarat Autism Spectrum Disorder Support Group (BASDSG)
A support group for families who have a family member with an
autism spectrum disorder.
A great place to share information and new ideas for helping the
special person in your life.
Meets monthly on the 3rd Monday of the month
At: Eureka Family Resource Centre at 507 Humffray St Sth.
Time: 1-3pm
For more information contact Emma on 0417 136 517
[email protected] Also on facebook
Pinarc Parent Support Worker:
Melissa Delaland-Desfosses 5329 1361
____________________________________________
Bacchus Marsh Autism Awareness Group
Contact Deb Doyle on 5367 4460 or email:[email protected].
____________________________________________________
Myrniong EMBRACE ASD –Parent support volunteer Amber Durante
Phone: 5368 7549 or Mobile: 0430 343 473
Email: [email protected]
________________________________________________________ Teen League—Asperger social group—Pinarc Support Services Providing social and recreational activities
for children and teenagers aged between 8—
18 years with Asperger
Syndrome. Activities run
two times during the
school term.
Contact—Pinarc PH: 5329
1300 Email: [email protected]
Asperger Adults social group meet the first
Saturday of the month at Eureka Pizza Pasta
for lunch at 12.00– an informal social
gathering that welcomes all newcomers.
_________________________
Heroes HQ
A fabulous place full of comics,
clothing, collectables and other
cool stuff in Shepherd St
Ballarat. Check it out!
www.heroeshq.com.au