Workshops

To read an abstracts click on the titel.

Some Workshops will be in english, those will be translated into german.

Mathias Gottstein & Oleg Mathushevich

Releasing is a principle of freedom

This Abstract is still in progress.You can find more information in communities.

Beate Birner-Janusch

TAKTIN - an approach for the treatment of motoric speech disorders within autistic people

Within the autistic spectrum language and speech development disorders are frequently observed. Sensory difficulties such as disturbances of the speech muscles are frequently characteristic. New Studies show that the senses of hearing and awareness, especially for speech are impaired. Consequently the development of communication by autistic people is one of the central questions of an independent and self determined life within society. TAKTIN is a therapy for the treatment of speech motor disorders. It derives from the PROMPT-System which was developed in Canada in the 80´s. TATKIN is the German version which was further developed from the origin. TATKIN was firstly used and evaluated in Germany in 1997.

Through tactile manipulation of facial- and speech muscles the therapist helps to locate the articulation points of the autistic person. This help depending on the extend of the disorder can be applied from the articulation of a single tone or to a complete sentence . In frequency and intensity prompts can be dynamically adjusted to the needs of the autistic person. Through this support the sensory capabilities of the autistic person are able to be better integrated. For the development of speech the tactile and kinestetic (neuro-muscular) channel must be associated with the auditory channel. Also in normal speech aquisition models are discussed, that show through the use of articulation in the early Babble Phrase the foundation to immitate speech tones is already laid. A pre-requisite for the use of TATKIN with autistic people is their capability to allow body contact.

In this workshop the principles and the application of TATKIN will be introduced and discussed.

Angela Hallbauer

"Say it with your Talker!" – Augmentative and Alternative Communication with Autistic pupils in the everyday lesson in the mentally handicapped school special regard to electronic communication appliances and specific use for autistic pupils.

Autistic children and youth also learn at the mentally handicapped school. Many of them can not or only with great difficulty communicate with spoken language. A method to reduce the resulting mis-understandings and frustrations can be the provision and consequent use of communication appliances (Talkers) in the school day.

Rita Werner

School Support Assistance between Integration and Isolation

From the application for help from the appropriate Authorities until the actual Professional Assistance is often a thorny way. How and where do I apply for assistance. Where do I find the appropriate school and what do I want my child to achieve at school. What criteria can and must I take. This workshop informs one of the possible imminent legal aspects of the school support assistance and illustrates the various positive, but also negative aspects of the school support assistant. The lecturer with many years of experience with handicapped people has been assisting for 4 years an Autistic youth in a high school in Cologne.

Rosemary Crossley

Never Too Young - augmenting the communication of pre-schoolers

FAQ 1 - "How old do children have to be to use augmentative communication strategies (AAC)?"

FAQ 2 - "What augmentative strategies do pre-schoolers use?"

The answers to these questions depend on the child, the disability and the goal of the intervention . Children with Down syndrome may start signing programs at the age of 6 months, with the goal of providing a functional communication strategy while scaffolding speech development . Children with severe cerebral palsy may start using eye-pointing to make choices from a similar age. All pre-school children should be read to at least once a day, to provide language enrichment and much effort should be devoted to developing eye/hand co-ordination and finger-pointing. Simple communication aids can be introduced to some children around 18 months . By age three children may use communication aids of daunting complexity.

This presentation will discuss the answers to the When, What and Why questions and include examples of facilitated and un-facilitated communication strategies used with pre-school children with significant speech impairments.

Andrea Alfaré

I believe what you understand. About the (im-) possibility of independent communication.

Nobody can communicate alone. To say something or to write alone -yes. However that a communication is expressed, a second person is needed, who reacts, understands, so that the first person can once again react. Communication is a system that I can only visualize my beliefs when my opponent allows and understands. This also applies for FC communication. Why is FC good, awful and misunderstand, understood, reacted or not reacted too overinterpreted or interpreted. Why is physical independence not enough with FC. What sort of independence by FC users should the facilitator encourage. How independent actually are the supporters themselves by communication and why must that interest us ?

Hanne Pittroff

Tactile Gestures

With the expression "Tactile Gestures" is a special form of the sign language described for people who can not read gestures visually but also need touch to understand the gestures of their opponent. In this workshop the Speaker gives a short introduction in the development of tactile gestures that are particularly vital for the communication with the deaf and blind or with children who are born deaf and blind.

A general insight into Tactile Gestures with different application methods will be given. The Speaker will briefly introduce her personal experience with Tactile Gestures in the work with two not born deaf or blind people (with rests of sight and hearing, maybe with Autism). The value of these experiences can be discussed in so far as how the Tactile Gestures

Bruno Tieck & Aga Griesshaber

The Success or Failure of the Intergration of Autistic Children in Normal Schools lies close together. Which Requirements must be ensured ?

Pupils with Autistic characteristics have under certain provisions the right with a school support assistant to participate in lessons in the normal school. But the experience shows that the advancement of the cognitive capabilities of the child alone do not guarantee a successful schooling and Intergration.

Therefore in this workshop it is necessary to give the presentation a content that shows us how this has taken shape with FC and Asperger Autistics.

A distinct influence on the school career is the preparation phrase . In addition belong the careful thorough clarification of the learning performance, the work habits and the stress capabilities, the communication competence, the social behaviour and the established location of the school etc. Aside from these points the preparation of the school and the ensurance of a professional Assistance before schools begins.

For the school facilitators we have developed an extensive job description. The elements of the employment contract, for example there in are the activities such as the structuring of the lessons. The translation of the lesson in Pointing Impulse. To be able to deal with Testing. Take part in lessons, carrying out independence training etc and the practical application through obligated participation in further training and existing workshops.

Annette Kitzinger

Two Steps forward and one back- Meta`s Way into communication

Meta is an eight year old girl with Autism and mentally handicapped, and one of those children for whom it was initially not beleived that she could use assisted augmented communication.

Leonardo Emberti

Decision-making, Responsibility and Personal Development

The workshop will focus on the concept of "Dyspraxia" and its relation with fc. It will begin with the definition (the definitions?) of the concept of dyspraxia. The workshop will than continue with a discussion on the relation between dyspraxia and other neuropsychological disorders. From the neuropsychological point of view, the behavior of a person with autism has many similarities with the behavior of a person experiencing dyspraxia. These similarities are a challenge for us: they force us to focus our attention not so much on the possible mental "retardation" of the person, but on our own "retardation" in understanding the way in which the mind is working. The last part of the workshop will discuss and evaluate the concept of "facilitation by means of fc as rehabilitation of the motor act" and its relation with the development of the personality.

Ludo Vande Kerckhove

Technique and Fading of Support

In this workshop the basic techniques of support and the thereupon developed fading techniques will be explained. Each stage will be clearly presented with the new didactic video. There will be the possibility for participants of the workshop to reflect on their own techniques. Problems in introducing Fading will be discussed.

Uschi Strauß

Stimulation of spontaneous and verbal communication through FC

There is a communication´s axion from Watzlawick---- One can not not communicate. Many of our social behaviours have communicative meaning, often it is unknown to us ( for example closeness and distance to other people). Our spoken communication is embedded in other communication forms (gestures, mimic, etc) and in this mannner to some extent firstly receives its meaning.

People with Autism are very limited in their communication. In spite of this we can often observe varying and often very individual communicative forms.

Ursi Kristen

Alternative and Augmenative Communiation (AAC)

Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) is today an important component in the advancement of handicapped children and youth. It provides the basic requirements for the communication between a person and his/her Mentor, for the development of social relationships, for learning and for personal development.

The concept of the AAC shows very individual ways of communicating with so called none speaking children, youth and adults. It is not about a specific formula, in that every child needs a personal assessment and plan.

For this it is important to have a good knowledge that together with improvisation and sympathetic understanding a good concept can be developed. Augmentative and Alternative Communication means that (failing or limited) speech through other communication forms such as use of eye contact, sign language, picture boards or speech computers can be supplemented or replaced. At the same time AAC offers strategy for the interaction form and communication management that can ease and heighten communication with communication impaired people.

Programm

1. What does it mean when one cannot or can barely speak ? (video)
2. What is AAC?
3. Who benefits from AAC? (video)
4. What does AAC offer?
5. Speech Therapy and AAC
6. AAC Team
7. Information over financing
8. Discussion and conclussion.

Martina Otto & Annika Schöfisch

Possibilities and challenges in the Homework assistance with FC

The attendance in a normal school also brings for the FC user the afternoon pleasure of homework! The speakers report over their work as homework assistants with autistic youth.

The model of the all day school group offers the possibility of combining the cognitive advancement with everyday practical activities. This setting allows the pupil freedom outside of the parents home to organise recreational activities with other children and youth thus opening up a multitude of prospective learning.

The function of the facilitator is therefore to choose and combine other methods (alongside FC also TEACCH and AAC), to prepare material didactic, and to structure, to encourage independence in all areas of life and thereby be able to fading of the support.

Irene Leber

First steps in Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) with small children

AAC can be leveled at all people who cannot sufficiently communicate with spoken language. Also small children can be supported in their personal development through AAC. Depending on their individual capabilities and interests many children can learn to use extended communication forms such as sign language, graphic symbols or technical applicances.

Douglas Biklen

Literacy and Praxis: How Personal Narratives are Challenging Prevailing
Notions of Ability and Disability

This presentation will draw upon autobiographical accounts of
disability, written by people who first learned to communicate through
augmentative and alternative communication strategies and who later
achieved independent communication. The presentation will include
commentaries on strategies for achieving independent communication and
also on how disability affects participation in schools, family life,
and community.

Ludo Vande Kerckhove

Strategies to further independence

Often the result of fading is static. One only reaches the goal of independence when one can simultaneously enchance the decline of psychological and the communicative support . Therefore the workshop will be concerned with the actual accomplishment of letting go of the physical, pychological communative. Also here is a mixture of video presentation, practical exercises and relative discussion.

Annegret Schubert

Types of communication - Independence through the use of a variety of communication forms

FC is an important communication form but it is not the only one. As speaking people we use different forms of communication according to the situation. We speak, use body language and gestures, write, use telephone and E-mail. We choose our instrument appropriately (cell phone or preferably not). Users of the augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) including FC are also like speaking people more independent in their communication the broader and wider their communication methods are. This workshop should inform the participants of the possibilities, how users of the AAC through use of a variety of communication methods can build up their effectiveness as communication participants.

Sue Rubin

Living a Great Life in Spite of a Disability

As a non-verbal person with autism who also has movement problems and behavior problems, I require assistance 24 hours a day. In spite of this, I live a life very much like non-disabled people. When I am studying at school or at home I truly lose the feeling that I am autistic and only remember I'm different when I am in public. The staff who support me all treat me like an equal who happens to needs assistance in communication, behavior, and daily living skills. When we are in public they are my interface with society. We do all the things other people our age do and they intercede for me when necessary. When we are together we enjoy a full life.

Ellianna Mantaka-Brinkmann & Heike Ulrich

MAKATON – a multi-modal communication and speech development program

During the FC Conference we will be introducing the Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) method, MAKATON.

MAKATON is a communication and speech development programme within the sphere of AAC, which works with speech, gestures and symbols. At the same time the programme offers methodical and didactic suggestions for practical use. MAKATON can be used for developing communication with people who speak with assistance, for language and speech development, for communication problems and for problems connected with learning to read and write. It can also be used in learning a foreign language, for example with children of foreign origin.

Maud Deckmar

During this workshop Maud Deckmar will talk about meetings between parents and staff, about personal development when life changes, about descision-making and about responsibility.

• A child is born - about birth, the doctors´ diagnos and about parents crises and reactions
  
• People around - about environment, reactions in families, among relatives and friends
  
• A few minutes of rest - about how to ask for help, when one doesn´t know what kindof help that is needed. And to be honest, when one doesn´t know what kind of help that is available either.
  
• We have always needed the staff.They never needed us.- About always being the needing part.
  
• Adulthood - About growing, being a young adult, and finally moving from home to an own home. Who´s descision is it? The parents? Members of the staff?
  Or may the person him/herself descide?

About the importance for each individual to be noticed, to be treated with respect and to be able to have a good quality of life based on the persons specific needs and means available.

Francesca Benassi

Fc and executive functions

The FC (Facilitated Communication), known by most of people as an alternative tool
to communicate either with speechless or with no communicative speech persons,
involves the rehabilitation of the voluntary motor action.
The process of learning how to communicate is a long and hard training
that starts sharing means and codes through finger-pointing.
Autistics don't love isolation, they are forced to be isolated because
they don't know how to communicate and they haven't enough tools. We also
realise that the written speech of facilitated people, often with its own
grammatical rules and verbose ways, is not always communicative.
With FC we start a process which has been interrupted or which has never
started. To facilitate the communication, means to support the use of the
pointing as a first experience of a movement made in order to reach a goal
and to rehabilitate the executive functions.
The process goes on along with the increase of autonomy.

Monika Wegenke & Claudio Castañeda

The ABC of fading support

At this workshop, those taking part will see that fading out support from the very beginning plays a central role in working with FC. This involves training for both the FC user and the faciltator and is, in fact, a further development of the skills of both. The fading process is modelled on the personal potential of the particular FC user and, as there is no single way to do this, it is essential that the facilitator has as much knowledge and as many strategies at his/her disposal as possible so he/she can choose the appropriate strategy for each particular situation. The main principle here is: as much support as necessary and as little as possible, the goal being to promote the greatest possible independence right from the start. At the workshop the speakers will draw on their own practical experiences while acting as facilitators for FC users who were able, through FC, to increase their independence and self-sufficiency (both in communication and in everyday life). Various possibilities and ways to reach this goal (by means of video footage of practical experience) will be presented. This will be the main subject matter alongside the introduction of each seperate step towards fading physcical support, and a variety of support possibilities which, from the very beginning, can help the FC user move towards independence. Contents of the workshop:

? from support at the hand to the fading of physical support

? extending the ability and skills of the facilitator and the FC user

? advice on how to structure the fading of support

? competence and self-organisation

Jamie Burke

Supporting the Development of Speech Through Typing

This session will describe the experience of Jamie Burke, a young man with the label of autism who has recently developed useful speech. Jamie and his mother, Sheree, will discuss supports to this process, including the ways that typing has supported his use of speech. The video, “Inside the Edge, A Journey to Using Speech Through Typing.”
Time for questions and answers will be given.

Peter Schütterle

A lucrative exchange business – the PICTURE EXCHANGE COMMUNICATION SYSTEM (PECS)

The Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) was developed in the USA for non-verbal autistic children who never or rarely initiated communication. In a clear, structured, behavoural therapy-orientated training situation the children learn, step by step, to express their wishes by means of picture cards. The emphasis in PECS is on viewing communication as an actual exchange. The children learn to give their communications partner a picture card showing their wish and, in return their wish is met. PECS has already had considerable success in the USA and some children, unexpectedly, have even eventually begun to speak after PECS training.

Maria Munkelt

„It´s nice to be a part of something normal“

More and more FC users are exercising their right to attend a mainstream school, appropriate to their own ability, with the help of a facilitator. There are many ´typical´ challenges in such a situation and there are also differing factors and conditions specific to each school, but, most importantly, there are, time and time again, huge opportunities, here, to put the theme of the conference into practice: independence (fading of physical support, ability of the student to manage his school day by himself, the practising of social contact and behaviour with other students etc), with the goal of achieving participation. The speaker has had experience as a facilitator in a ´Hauptschule`, a ´Gesamtschule´ and a ´Gymnasium´ with two young FC users. Included in the workshop will be a short report (including video footage) on her experience, following which there will be a discusssion including, eg,

? Providing on-going information for teaching staff about FC and autism

? Opportunities for self-sufficiency and participation

? „Problem areas“ fading physcial support versus time and the performance required by the school

? Doubts among teaching staff and fellow pupils

? Communication within a team of parents, fellow pupils and teachers

Martin Degner

Structuring, visualisation and individualisation - methods from the TEACCH approach for the treatment and education of autistically handicapped people

TEACCH (Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communication handicapped Children) is already known to the staff in many schools, therapy facilities, ´Werkstätten´ etc as a possible treatment and educational approach for autistically handicapped people. This increasing use of TEACCH, although postive and well-meant, of course, has been made more difficult through a series of ambiguities and misunderstandings with regard to ist paedagogic implementation (eg „TEACCH“ is just yet more plans with pictures...“) and through the conceptions used („Is TEACCH a treatment and education programme, a paedagogic philosophy or a method of AAC?).

Against this background, in this workshop I would like to:

1. shed light on the relationship between TEACCH and AAC
2. explain the basic methods and principles of the TEACCH approach
3. show practical examples from the use of the TEACCH approach in a school

Annemarie Sellin

Ways towards more independence for FC users: write independently – act independently –live independently

More self-sufficiency in writing:

? strategies for physical self-sufficiency

? strategies for mental self-sufficiency

? write what one thinks oneself – get to know oneself

? speak for oneself – write what one oneself wants

? write to join in the conversation – accept social responsibility

? write in order to make decisions – take the responsibility for oneself

More self-sufficiency in actions with the help of FC:

? Motivation

? Developing strategies for action – how to structure an activity

? Training models

More self-sufficiency in life with the help of FC:

Concepts for living, practical examples

? living in the family

? various forms of living (in groups)