Coming to a Lanterman Support Group Near You
Everything has changed so suddenly. For persons with developmental disabilities, sudden, unexpected changes can create added hurdles that may be more difficult to overcome. As you provide support to someone in your family in coping with COVID-19, there are simple but effective strategies to help you and your family member adjust to the changes together, until such time as our communities are safer again.
Simple evidence-based strategies such as visual supports, picture scheduling, prompting and reinforcement, task analyses, shaping and chaining, and self-management are key tools for supporting someone with a disability to learn new routines and “rules of the road”. Teaching strategies to support understanding of the pandemic, promote expression, develop coping mechanisms, and maintain social interaction are discussed as important supports for someone with a disability.
As schools and day programs reopen in new and different formats, the importance of hand hygiene, wearing masks and maintaining social distancing become key. Choosing the safest way to travel or to shop for groceries requires forethought, preparation and practice.
A simple overview training of helpful techniques is coming to a Lanterman support group near you. Please connect with the Koch-Young Resource Center family support group coordinators Evie Jung (ejung@lanterman.org) or Joe Perales (jperales@lanterman.org) to learn more.
Available for download:
Supporting Individuals with Autism through Uncertain Times.1 Resources for supporting individuals with autism during COVID-19 “Stay Home-Stay Safe” Guidance – The seven support strategies in this booklet are designed to meet the unique needs of children and young adults with autism during this period of uncertainty, including examples and ready-made resources to promote understanding of the virus, learn strategies to develop and maintain structured routines, practice coping skills, and self-manage personal care activities, exercise routines, and school connections while engaging in social distancing. (Available also in Arabic, Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin and Spanish)
1. Hume, K., Waters, V., Sam, A., Steinbrenner, J., Perkins, Y., Dees, B., Tomaszewski, B., Rentschler, L., Szendrey, S., McIntyre, N., White, M., Nowell, S., & Odom, S. (2020). Supporting individuals with autism through uncertain times. Chapel Hill, NC: School of Education and Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Retrieved from: https://afirm.fpg.unc.edu/supporting-individuals-autism-through-uncertain-times
Supporting Adults with Autism through Uncertain Times: Companion Guide.2 This guide was developed as a response to self-advocates and family members seeking resources for adults. It is intended to centralize many different adult-specific resources and can serve as a supplement or companion guide to the Supporting Individuals with Autism through Uncertain Times toolkit, which was developed for families of children and youth with autism. This is an excellent resource ARFs, ILS/SLS, day programs, and any other agencies providing adult services to individuals with ASD.
The materials are divided into four topic areas: COVID-19 Resources, Daily Living Resources, Social Connectedness Resources, and Mental Health Resources. Each section contains developed materials and links to websites for other materials that may be useful.
2. Sam, A., Dees, B., Waters, V., Hume, K., Steinbrenner, J., Tomaszewski, B., Perkins, Y., White, M., Rentschler, L., McIntyre, N., Szendrey, S., Nowell, S., & Odom, S. (2020). Supporting adults with autism through uncertain times: Companion guide. Chapel Hill, NC: School of Education and Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Retrieved from: https://afirm.fpg.unc.edu/supporting-individuals-autism-through-uncertain-times