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She sits on the floor coaxing athree-year old boy into his shoes. Hejumps up, runs to the other side of theroom, and overturns a basket filledwith colorful plastic balls. Rather thanadmonishing the child, Traci Swinksmiles and says, “Those balls justlooked like they needed to be dumpedon the floor, didn’t they?”

The founder and Medical Directorof the Bridge Center in Marshfield,Traci works with parents of childrenwith autism, modeling the P.L.A.Y.Project. P.L.A.Y. stands for “Play andLanguage for Autistic Youngsters.” Agroundbreaking approach, the P.L.A.Y.Project helps parents learn a therapymodel to work with their children inevery interaction.

To introduce the program to morefamilies, educators and professionals,Traci is offering a conferencethrough the University of WisconsinStevens Point Continuing EducationDepartment. The 2-day professionalconference is May 12 and 13, and the4-day agency training is set for May12 through May 15, at the Holiday Innand Convention Center, Stevens Point.

Presenters are Onna Solomon,Program Director, from Ann Arbor,Michigan, and Traci Swink, MD.The conference will help parents andother family members learn aboutthis therapy model for working withautistic children. Educators andagencies throughout the state are alsoencouraged to attend. “We would liketo see more people trained to be homeconsultants,” explains Traci, who alsohelps to certify home consultants.

The P.L.A.Y. Project is currentlyavailable in Wisconsin in just twoplaces: the Bridge Center in Marshfield,and in Milwaukee through onecounselor. Traci is a Board CertifiedPediatrician and Child Neurologistwith fellowship training in PediatricEpilepsy. For the past eight years shehas dedicated her professional careerto helping families cope with thechallenges of autism.

Her own experiences led her to the

P.L.A.Y. Project. “My training was notin autism. When my son was two, Iknew something was not ok with hisdevelopment of language and speech.”He was subsequently diagnosed withautism spectrum disorder.

“I knew I had to find a way todeal with this, as a parent, not as aprofessional.” When she learned aboutthe work pioneered by Dr. StanleyGreenspan, she traveled to the eastcoast to learn more. After a coupleyears of working with her son, shesaw results. “I didn’t ever want to seeparents have to travel 1,500 miles justto help their children. That’s why TheBridge Center is here. I really feel likewe are providing something that hasnot been here before.”

A unique aspect of the program isthat the parents are viewed as expertson their child. “We’re the experts onsensory system and developmentalissues. We honor and respect that theparent is already an expert on theirchild. That is where our partnershipbegins. All of our work grows out ofthe parents’ primary relationship withthe children.”

Working with families in theirhomes, the staff of the Bridge Center,using the P.L.A.Y. Project, buildsa treatment program for each childindividually. Beginning with a three-hour consultation, a member of the staffobserves how the children interact withtheir environment, paying attentionto the way they respond to visual,auditory, and tactile stimulation.

“Our job is to understand how theyuse their senses to interact with theirenvironment and to teach parentsbehavior that their children canmake sense of. We want to help thechildren explore their environmentand stay connected to their caregiver,at the same time staying regulated andengaged with others.”

After observing the child, the staffcreates a developmental and sensoryprofile of that child. They then bring theparent and child together and coach theparent. “We do modeling. We understand

what works for the child based on theirprofile. We model the behavior andexplain to parents what we are doing,then give them a chance to try.”

When the parents change howthey relate to the child, eventually thechild becomes more attentive, calmer,and easier to engage with. “First youget the parents and children to haveshared experiences. Building on thatconnection, eventually the childrenwill be able to communicate, shareideas and get their needs met.”

The parents are asked to devote aminimum of one hour per week, but 10to 15 hours per week are ideal. “That’sasking a lot, but when they can do this,we see big changes in the kids. Theparents not only see results, they areresponsible for the results. They aredoing the work and getting the payoff.It is very rewarding for them.”

The conference will provide indepth look at this model and how it isimplemented. “We hope to reach morefamilies and also professionals whowork with families, including daycareworkers who may be puzzled by oddbehaviors. The conference is also a

great opportunity for students whoare majoring in psychology, specialeducation, or communicative disordersto be exposed to these ideas.”

The rising numbers of autismunderscore Traci’s sense of urgency.“One in 110 children -- one child every20 minutes is diagnosed with autismalong a spectrum. Those numbers wereunheard of two decades ago. With newtechniques such as functional MRI, wecan actually see how this work changesthe brain.”

Traci’s vision is for centersthroughout the state to offer theprogram she knows to be effective.“We want to reach more families, andwe also need more professionals whowant to complete the training portionso they can become P.L.A.Y. Projectconsultants.”

For information about theconference, go to www.uswsp.edu/conted/conferences/play. To learnmore about the P.L.A.Y. Project, goto www.playproject.org. To find outmore about The Bridge Center inMarshfield, go to www.bridge-center.org, or call 715-207-1512.

By Kris Rued-Clark

P.L.A.Y. Project Conference Reaches Outto Parents and Professionals

Traci Swink picks up balls after a P.L.A.Y. Project session at The Bridge Center in Marshfield.