Communication Course for Parents

It is believed that over 90% of children with Autistic Spectrum Condition will have social-communication difficulties, and approximately 65% of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Social-communication difficulties are also often associated with learning difficulties, including most commonly problems with literacy. Symptoms of social-communication difficulties include: *       Difficulties interacting with family, friends and key care workers *       Reduced eye contact *       Difficulty using and reading facial expressions *       Difficulty using and reading body language *       Poor awareness of personal space *       Poor understanding of emotions/empathy *       Poor awareness of rules of conversation; e.g. turn-taking of speech *       Go off topic/monopolise conversations *       Non-meaningful/irrelevant speech *       Difficulty following instructions *       Not able to adapt speech for different listeners- e.g. talks to teacher in same way talks to peers *       Problems understanding meaning conveyed by tone of voice/or implied meaning *       Not giving background information when speaking to an unfamiliar person *       Poor greeting/farewells *       Literal and poor understanding of sarcasm *       Often delayed development of speech Effects of social-communication difficulties: *       Poor parent/peer relationships *       Social isolation - difficulty making/keeping friends *       High levels of frustration/anxiety *       Emotionally volatile *       Inappropriate/poor behaviour - possibly method of disguising a lack of understanding *       Reduced literacy skills; including reading, writing and comprehension *       Difficulty in accessing curriculum - may cause child to fall behind academically/become disinterested in learning BIRD is pleased to be able to offer a 'Lets Talk Together' course, aimed at parents, grandparents and carers of children with social-communication difficulties. Alison Buckley, BIRD's Speech & Language Therapist will provide parents with an improved understanding of their child's difficulties, in addition to practical advice on how to support their child's language development. Parent feedback: "I have found this course extremely useful, lots of useful tips, but mostly, it has made me feel more positive about my child's development." "Excellent course. I wish I had known about this course when my child was younger." "It was great to hear other parent's experiences and how they handle situations. I have picked up lots of useful tips." "Brilliant course, I will be recommending it to my friends. Fun teacher, sad for the course to be finishing." "The course has taught me lots of new ways to communicate with my child and in some cases, adults too!" Improvements noticed in child when new strategies have been put into place: "My son is now more vocal; he now uses words rather than just pointing." "He is now more confident and has less anxiety about school." "We are having fewer arguments and meltdowns and our son is now more involved in family discussions" "My son is happier, and I feel happy knowing I can now help him to mix with children at Beavers/Cubs." "I feel much more able to avert meltdowns and deal with them if they do happen." This course is open to anybody, and is not limited to families already undergoing BIRD Therapy. In the same way, the course is not limited to parents of children with ASD/ADHD. If a child is presenting any of the difficulties mentioned above, then this course will be relevant. If you are at all unsure, please get in touch.  For more information or to book a place on the course, please see attachment or contact BIRD directly on 01244 678629. Early bird rates offered if booking before 15th September. Course starts 10th October and runs over 3 Saturday mornings and 1 Thursday evening. Venue: St Joseph's, Shaw, Oldham.   Helen Schielke  Charity Manager - B.I.R.D. Charity Old Coach House Eccleston Chester  CH4 9HT     Tel: 01244 678629  [ http://www.birdcharity.org.uk ]www.birdcharity.org.uk   Registered Charity No: 326194