Ian's Special Playroom

As part of Ian's program we have built a special therapy playroom for him in our home modeled after the one at the Son-Rise Program at the Autism Treatment Center of America. The room is low on distractions to help Ian focus and not feel overwhelmed. There are no electronic toys and no bright or over stimulating patterns on the walls. All of the toys are up high on shelves, so that Ian does not have an overwhelming array of toys scattered all over. This also encourages Ian to interact and communicate with us so that he can get what he wants from the shelf. Another wonderful feature of the room is the soft, padded vinyl floor. This keeps our play safe and allows for easy clean up of any spills or messes. This is Ian's special place and we allow him as much control as we can give him within certain boundaries for his safety and health. Giving Ian control allows him to become comfortable and also lets him see that we are "user-friendly" and that he can trust us. Once we have that trust and comfort, Ian is more willing to come out of his world and join us in ours.

Ian's Therapy Sessions

In a full day, Ian typically spends 6-8 hours in his playroom. Each volunteer or "child facilitator" works with Ian for a two hour block of time. These playroom sessions are rarely longer than two hours. We find two hours to be the ideal amount of time for each child facilitator, allowing them to maintain optimal focus and energy. It is an ideal amount of time for Ian too as every two hours he has the chance to interact with someone new. Each person brings a different energy to their interaction with Ian. In this way, he receives the benefit of learning to interact with a variety of people.

Joining with Ian

The primary goal of Ian's volunteer or child facilitator is to "join" with him. This is where the acceptance and love that we emphasize really come into play. As so many autistic children do, Ian engages in a lot of repetitive play or what we call "isms." This is where Ian may take an object like a ball and tap on it over and over while circuiting the room. Another example of an ism would be Ian's current favorite activity of playing with a container with a screw-on cap or lid. He likes to tap the container with his fingers and screw and unscrew the cap over and over as he gallops and circuits the room. Our job in joining Ian is to literally do what he does and grab our own container and "ism" along with him. Joining is different than mimicking (which has negative connotations and is not respectful), in that we are trying to show him that we truly accept him through our own actions. When we go with Ian it creates a bond and trust that is key to unlocking the mystery of his repetitive behaviors and facilitates eye contact, social development and the inclusion of others in play.

Building Interaction

Joining creates a feeling of acceptance that allows Ian to bond with us. Once we have that bond, what next? There are certain cues or "green lights" that we look for from Ian that show he is ready and able to interact with us. Namely, eye contact (looking at us), verbal initiation of his wants (talking to us), physical contact (grabbing our hands, sitting in our laps) and watching our actions. When a provider gets one of these "green lights" from Ian, he or she will build on the activity that Ian is currently engaged in and make it more interactive. There are countless ways to build...funny voices, singing, tickling, counting, pretending with puppets and other props in the room, grabbing toys from the shelf to introduce into the activity and many more. The facilitator's job is to make it as fun as possible for Ian. We often use Ian's current motivations to create and build more interaction. As of now, Ian is motivated by physical games. He loves being picked up and given piggy back rides and airplane rides. He loves to bounce and be tickled and rolled up inside blankets. So, when providers get a "green light" from Ian, they will often build by creating new and fun physical games to play. Through these games, Ian moves beyond repetitive play and begins to engage interactively and meaningfully with his facilitators. Ian is learning that social interaction is rewarding and fun.

Requesting/Challenging

Building is all about creating a more fun and engaging environment for Ian, but WITHOUT requiring anything from him. In other words, with building, the facilitators do all the work of making the game fun. Ian just gets to enjoy our antics and our silliness and creativity. Once we have Ian's interest through building, we move onto requesting more from him. Requesting is a way to engage Ian even further. If Ian is enjoying a game we have created for him, we will begin to request more participation from him, as well as more eye contact and language. For instance, if a facilitator has created an airplane ride game for Ian, he or she might begin to model language that Ian can use to ask for the ride again, like "I want an airplane ride." When Ian is having fun and is engaged, he is more likely to use words to ask for what he wants. In order to increase the interaction, the facilitator might also request more participation from Ian, like asking him to help "fill" the airplane with gas before take-off. As Ian's verbal ability and flexibility within a game increase, we add more challenge and request to the interaction, all while keeping it fun. Little by little, Ian's language, eye contact, and interaction improve.

Following Ian

A facilitator is always very watchful and respectful of Ian in the moment. If a facilitator has been successfully building and requesting for awhile, but Ian suddenly becomes exclusive and returns to more repetitive behavior, the facilitator always returns to joining with Ian. It is extremely important to honor Ian's choices, to maintain that deep rapport and trust. As he moves away from an interaction, we simply join Ian with passion and warmth until he gives us another "green light" indicating we can start building and requesting again. And the process begins anew--- like a beautiful dance, back and forth, always following Ian's lead.