As many of you know, we are training Buddy, a goldendoodle, to become an OT dog. Animal assisted therapy has always been a dream of mine. Adding a dog to a therapy session can be a great way to add some fun, motivation, and regulation. Ryan, a GKTC client, is a part of Team Buddy […]
Man’s Best Friends Read More »
We have been so grateful to spend the last 6 weeks with Shelby Watson, our fabulous Australian intern! Shelby was so eager to learn how to teach nonspeaking individuals to Spell to Communicate (S2C) that she packed up her bags, hopped a plane and embraced American life and clinical skills as a participant in our
When I first started working at Growing Kids, I worked with students who were brand new to Spelling to Communicate, as well as some who started with Elizabeth beforehand. Over that time, skills began to build, goals were being met, and fluency was increasing. For the students and for myself, as well! Doing a regular,
A Myth of Giant Proportions Read More »
There are many reasons why I love being so involved with Tribe, but the UVa-Tribe exchanges are at the top. As a UVa alum, a friend of Vikram (who teaches the course), and as an educator at GKTC, it’s truly the case of my worlds colliding, and it’s the best thing ever. GKTC Tribe and
Tribe and UVA Part 2: Social Connections and Friendship Read More »
Today we welcome guest blogger, Michele Kukler, one of our ACTS (Accessing Community Through Spelling) professional practitioners and teacher extraordinare of the Connections School of Atlanta. Michele and the incredibly dedicated teachers and staff at Connections are leaders in education as they include nonspeaking students along side speaking peers inside and outside the classroom through
Mindful Inclusion at the Connections School of Atlanta Read More »
When people meet Buddy, our OT dog, they often ask me how I became interested in animal assisted occupational therapy. While this picture says 1,000 words, I will still write a few more! Well, the journey began when I was born. No, really! My family adopted a golden retriever puppy a few months before I
What a spectacular night at the Atlas Theater in Washington DC for the screening of Deej! Deej is the must-see documentary about DJ Savarese, a nonspeaking autistic and his journey to be included as a college student. The film is powerful and a story that we hope will become common for all of our students.
DEEJ The Movie: Inclusion shouldn’t be a lottery Read More »
GKTC’s Tribe has kicked off the fall schedule with an exchange between The University of Virginia students and Tribe members. The University of Virginia students are taking the undergrad psychology course, The Science and Lived Experience of Autism along with the young adults of Growing Kids Therapy Center’s “Tribe”. Last year, the Tribe completed the
GKTC Tribe and UVA: Creating Welcoming Communities, a kickoff exchange! Read More »
For our final week of Summer Institute, our guest lecturers were Meenu and Sarina from the University of Maryland. Meenu and Sarina work together at the Academy of Innovation and Entrepreneurship and teach students how to think outside of the box and bring new, interesting ideas to life! After the “getting to know you” portion
Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Summer Institute Read More »
GKTC Summer Institute kicked off the summer exploring multimedia journalism: photography, videography, television, and radio. The past two weeks in Summer Institute was all about media in a different context… A R T! Liz Michaels, GKTC’s longterm intern, is also an art instructor and led us in a discussion about types of art: fine art
Art as Social Protest: Let Us Show You The Wei! Read More »
I am so excited to introduce Diane Belnavis and Brent Sullivan as guest bloggers! We formed an instant friendship when I met Brent, Diane and Dylan at the TASH Conference in Portland Oregon in November 2015. They have one of the most beautiful stories I have ever heard and it keeps getting better and better
Letterboards, not just life changing.. life saving Read More »
Hi everyone! My name is Karen Dorula and I’m an occupational therapist at GKTC. Elizabeth has challenged us all to jump onto the blog. I’m very excited to be able to share all of the wonderful chess that has been happening here! I started teaching chess in January 2016 after one of my letterboard clients,
Chess Friends Forever Read More »
