Category Archives: Guest Blogging

Explaining the Pool Activity Level (PAL) Instrument

October 21, 2019Care Professional Contributions, Guest BloggingGuest Blogging

I am an Occupational Therapist with a specialism in dementia and in 1999, I developed the Pool Activity Level (PAL) Instrument with the encouragement and mentorship of Professor Tom Kitwood. I was convinced that a more helpful view of dementia is to identify the ability level of each individual. With that viewpoint, we are likely to enable rather than disable the person as we understand the physical and social environment required to sustain those abilities. If we only recognise the difficulties an individual is having, we will always disable them as we will only provide care and support to address their difficulties. So, the PAL Instrument uses a strengths based approach, underpinned by cognitive developmental theory.

The PAL Instrument has a Checklist of statements that identifies how the person can perform in nine every day activities. There are four statements for each of the activities and each statement describes a slightly different level of ability. By completing the PAL Checklist, it is possible to identify the overall level of cognitive and functional ability. From that knowledge, we can select the appropriate PAL Profile which describes how to support the person at that level of ability.

Pool Activity Level Instrument I began developing the PAL Instrument by building on the work of Claudia K Allen. She had developed an Occupational Therapy model for understanding cognitive disability, based on developmental theory. Allen’s model has a robust assessment for OTs and then relies on their professional knowledge to interpret the outcomes of the assessment. I wanted a tool that would self-interpret and provide a guide to those without the clinical skills so that they could enable individuals with cognitive difficulties to be less disabled in every-day activities.

The first draft of the PAL Instrument was tested out in a local Hospital ward for people living with severe dementia and also in care homes where people were living with early to moderate dementia. Following feedback, I refined the PAL Checklist and Profiles and, with the support of Professor Tom Kitwood, published the first edition of the PAL book. This was published by Jessica Kingsley publishers as part of the Bradford Dementia Group Good Practice Guide series.

In 2008, the PAL Instrument Checklist was validated by Jennifer Wenborn and team at the Department of Mental Health Sciences, University College London.

The book is now in its 4^th edition, with additions to the case studies and guidance on the use of the PAL Instrument. The PAL is now translated into several languages and is used within research programmes and also in health and social care settings to support care and activity planning. I regularly receive wonderful messages from care professionals telling me of the difference that using the PAL Instrument has made to their service. Their feedback describes the positive impact it has had on enabling people with dementia and other forms of cognitive impairment, including acquired brain injury, stroke and, learning disability to live meaningful and fulfilling lives.

Click Here to buy the Pool Activity Level (PAL) Instrument

Dr Anna van der Gaag talks to us about the CASP assessment tool

October 4, 2019Care Professional Contributions, Guest Blogging, InstallationsGuest Blogging

Dr Anna van der Gaag CBE talks to us about her background and the Communications Assessment Profile also known as the CASP profiling tool.

What’s your background?

When I finished school, I had little idea of what I wanted to do, and ended up volunteering in a school for children with learning disabilities. I met Pat Stephenson, a speech and language therapist, who encouraged me to apply, despite my lack of any science A levels. Much to everyone’s surprise, I was accepted at the National Hospital College of Speech Sciences (now UCL) in London, and qualified in 1981.

Immediately after I qualified, I went to India to work as a volunteer for 8 months, and when I returned I found myself in Glasgow, where I first encountered an “Adult Training Centre” for adults with learning disabilities. It very quickly became clear that all the communication assessments that used to assess adults had been developed for children. I returned to London a few years later, determined to use my Masters degree at the University of London as a route to developing an assessment designed for use with adults. It took many more years than my masters to complete this work, and I was fortunate to have the support of various research grants that allowed me to complete the work.

The Communication Assessment Profile was first published in 1988. It remains the only communication assessment standardized with adults – over the course of three clinical trials, its reliability and validity were tested with over 350 individuals, 66 SLTs, and 384 care workers working in 21 hospitals and 31 Adult Training Centres across the UK. We were incredibly fortunate to achieve this level of testing before we published the final version of the CASP. Since then, CASP has been updated, modernised and revised, with input from UK users and therapists, and is now in its third, colour, edition. All the data from the reliability and validity studies are included in the CASP manual. I am grateful to all those who took part and to the many people who helped me along the way.

Who can use CASP?

CASP is designed for individuals with learning disabilities, used by speech and language therapists, psychologists and OTs, working with care workers, peers and families. It has also been used with young people on the autistic spectrum and with adults with dementia (particularly the section on communication environment and vocabulary use).

What was the purpose behind CASP?

The drive behind the research was simple – to develop a way of assessing communication skills of adults with learning disabilities that was respectful, relevant and robust. This meant using age appropriate photographs and materials, like money, toothpaste and shoes, rather than toys and farm animals.

There were three other important innovations – CASP was designed as a joint assessment – in which the care worker who worked most closely with the individual – was given a formal role in assessing communication. Hard to believe, but this was highly contentious at the time, as many professionals said they did not think that an ‘unqualified’ person should have a formal role in assessment. I argued that care workers (this included family members too) were frequently the people who really knew what was happening on a day-to-day basis and knew the most about the person’s experience of communication. Click here to find out more.

The second was that the CASP assessed not only the individual’s speech and language skills, their understanding and expressive skills, but also their communication environment, and the demands made upon them to use their skills. We conducted a piece of research which showed that adults with learning disabilities under-utilise their communication skills if they live in poor communication environments (click here to read this) and published this work in a paper called ‘the view from Walter’s window’ in 1989.

The third innovation was that CASP was designed to assess and build upon the person’s strengths – now called an ‘asset based’ approach – rather than their ‘deficits’ or what the person cannot do. The final part of the assessment is when the therapists, the individual and their care worker come together to talk about ‘priorities for change’ – which might mean change in their communication or it might mean change in their environment and the way that people around them communicate.

I’m delighted that all three of these innovations – seen as radical in the 1980s, have now become mainstream, part of how we approach our work, with many new advances and further innovations along the same lines occurring across the globe. CASP is now used in other parts of Europe, Canada, the US and Australia and New Zealand as well as continuing to be used in the UK. It has stood the test of time, I think, because it reflects contemporary approaches to working with people, rather than (as was the case) doing things to them.

What’s been your inspiration?
My inspiration was a man called William, who came to me for help during my years working as an SLT in Glasgow. He helped me make a short film about the CASP, and was as excited as I was that at last there was something that respected him as an adult. He had very limited expressive skills but his understanding of language far exceeded his ability to make himself understood – and he, like others, had suffered from discrimination, having been dismissed or ignored because he could not communicate like everyone else around him.

The other inspiration was a book by Joanna Ryan, called the ‘Politics of Mental Handicap’ (the title shows how long ago that was!) in which she exposed the systemic discrimination against people with learning disabilities that existed at the time. My sense from my days working in Glasgow was that people with learning disabilities and communication difficulties experienced even more discrimination – and part of my goal was to design an assessment that they were comfortable with, that showed them the respect they deserved, and was based on rigorous research.

Over the last few decades, I have been involved in teaching, research and regulation and have worn many hats. When I look at CASP, I feel that this is work I am most proud to have started, and most pleased that it continues to have practical relevance to the lived experience of people with learning disabilities.

References

T he view from Walters window (1989)
van der Gaag, A (2009) eliminating professional myopia

Chernobyl Children’s Hospital Revisited

April 26, 2018Guest Blogging, In the community, InternationalGuest Blogging

By Richard A Street M.B.E. Chairman Chernobyl Children Life Line

We have just returned from our visit to Belarus where we give support to the families and children affected in some way by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. This is a trip we undertake each year and sometimes twice per year. As I have told you there are not the facilities available in Belarus as we take so much for granted in the UK and over the years we have taken many things to support the care of the children and their recovery.

We have purchased a number of items from Rompa especially sensory lights which are not available in Belarus. We are also grateful for the items which were donated by Rompa to use to assist the children’s recovery and time, especially in the Children’s Cancer Hospital, however this year we also supplied some lights to the Social Services in Osipovichi for use with the day patients and users there. All of what we took was extremely well accepted and will benefit all that attend both places.

Below is a letter I received from Elena the child psychologist at the Children’s Cancer Hospital just before my visit where she is telling me about the benefits of items we have taken on earlier visits. The letter refers particularly to Laser Sky Projector, the LED Projector and the `magic ball` is the Laser Sphere Projector. I think the letter describes the great benefits gained by the lights at the Hospital.

Thank you once again for your help and support in the work we do with the children of Belarus in giving them some hope in their lives.

Dear Richard!

I congratulate you on the coming Easter holiday! I wish that you, and all members of your family, all volunteers of the organization have everything in the best way. All of your health, joy, strength, happiness, success!

Thank you very much for helping the children of Belarus! I especially thank you for helping children with cancer. Many and many children and parents find comfort when they come to us for relaxation sessions and have the opportunity to observe the starry sky (and other pictures) on the flow of the relaxation room. It became possible thanks to the projectors transferred to our centre. Still in the procedural room of the day hospital a special love is enjoyed by the “magic ball”, shimmering with different colours, which the child can look during the procedure and be distracted, and after the procedure, children can put their hand on it and make a wish – the ball is “magic”! .. This not only raises the mood – it’s comforting! It is interesting that many children say that wishes come true!

But have not miracles happened during the years of our friendship and cooperation? The day before yesterday I saw Nastya, yes, that girl, who was sick of myeloblastic leukaemia, who was lying in an isolated box, dreamed of drawing, but she could not, because on her right arm was connected a dropper. The very one I gave to the beautiful pencil brought by you said that it was a pencil for your left hand, specially brought by you from England – and she learned to draw with her left hand and was very happy about it (which is important, when you lie in an isolated box and other joys are not available to you! … she did not even have a TV, or a computer to watch cartoons ..) Now this is a big, beautiful girl who defeated the disease and became so strong that she could come to children’s holidays without a mask! Please accept greetings from Nastya and her family!

If you would like more information about the work Chernobyl Children Life Line do or would like to make a donation you can contact them directly:

Richard A Street, 91 Wharf Road, Pinxton, Derbyshire NG16 6LH

Charity No. 1014274

Tel :01773 810712 / 07816 913787

email [email protected]

Understanding Makaton

March 7, 2018Care Professional Contributions, Guest Blogging, Product HighlightmakatonGuest Blogging

Makaton is a language programme using signs and symbols to help people to communicate. It is designed to support spoken language and the signs and symbols are used with speech, in spoken word order.

Using signs can help people who have no speech or whose speech is unclear. Using symbols can help people who have limited speech and those who cannot, or prefer not to sign. With Makaton, children and adults can communicate straight away using signs and symbols. Many people then drop the signs or symbols naturally at their own pace, as they develop speech.

Being able to communicate is one of the most important skills we need in life. Almost everything we do involves communication; everyday tasks such as learning at school, asking for food and drink, sorting out problems, making friends and having fun. These all rely on our ability to communicate with each other.

For those who have experienced the frustration of being unable to communicate meaningfully or effectively, Makaton really can help. Makaton takes away that frustration and enables individuals to connect with other people and the world around them.

Makaton is extremely flexible as it can be personalised to an individual’s needs and used at a level suitable for them.

- share thoughts, choices and emotions
- label real objects, pictures, photos and places
- take part in games and songs
- listen to, read and tell stories
- create recipes, menus and shopping lists
- write letters and messages
- help people find their way around public buildings.

Today over a million children and adults use Makaton symbols and signs. Most people start using Makaton as children then naturally stop using the signs and symbols as they no longer need them.

However, some people will need to use Makaton for their whole lives.

The Makaton Charity exists to ensure that everyone living with learning or communication difficulties has the tools and resources they need to communicate. Our nationwide network of over 1,000 licensed Makaton Tutors and Trainers across the UK deliver training to over 30,000 parents, carers and professionals each year.

Our wide range of printed and electronic resources extends from nursery rhyme DVDs to vocabulary books covering a wide range of subjects. Our vision is a world in which all people with learning or communication difficulties are able to communicate, participate and achieve their potential.

For further information visit makaton.org

What Are Carddies?

October 4, 2017Guest Blogging, Product Highlightcarddies, colouring inGuest Blogging

What are Carddies?

Raquel & Esther, creators of Carddies, tell their story

Carddies colouring in and play sets are Card People and animals who live in a box: you can bring them to life by colouring them in, giving them names and making up their stories. Carddies are perfect for outings and travel, as well as for play time at home. The toy is self-contained, very portable and durable.

Click Here to Buy Carddies.

Winslow kindly asked me to explain how the Carddies came about, and why they might be suitable for you and your child.

How did Carddies come about?

Carddies are loved by hundreds of children, typically aged 3 to 10, but they started off by chance. I used to make “cardboard people” for my three girls whilst on holiday. I would draw hundreds of little figures (on request), cut them out, and they would colour them in and play with them for HOURS AND DAYS, in fact over several years! They gave the Carddies names, made up stories, songs and games, and treasured them.

Over time, when I saw other children’s reaction to Carddies, I realised they had wider appeal… The first set I made for other children, was a Victorian family at the request of a little girl; her older brother asked me for a football set. It so happens that the boy has autism and moderate learning difficulties. Although he has poor fine motor skills, he enjoyed colouring in his Carddies and it was good for his imaginary play when he used them to play a football game.

With the involvement and hard work of my sister Esther, we made sure that the Carddies retain all the principles we care about. We wanted the Carddies to be hand drawn (by us!), top quality, Made in the UK, with strong eco credentials; packaging that was compact and sturdy, yet attractive to children so that they would keep their Carddies in a lovely little home… pencils of artist quality… Basically we wanted a toy that as parents we would be happy to buy for our own children.

What is a Carddies set?

Each Carddies set has:
-A theme that appeals to children (Knights, School, Football, Fairies, etc).
– 12 double-sided card figures, 12 colouring pencils, 12 plastic stands, a fold-out scene that also doubles up as a naming card.
-In the case of the Carddies Football set, a little plastic sphere so the child can play a pretend football game.

Colouring in. We made the figures double-sided to extend their colouring-in value and to make them more realistic.
Play value. The stands facilitate play (we realised that although my own children were happy to play with the little people flat, or holding them up, the stands enabled children to move them around as they would other little toy figures).
Imagination. The idea of a fold-out scene to colour in and use as a backdrop came from one of my girls, making the toy similar to a mini-theatre.

Personalising. The idea of a naming card (on the reverse of the scene) first arose from my children always wanting to give the Carddies names.

What makes Carddies special?

We have been delighted to see how the Carddies have appealed to a very wide number of children, including, for example, where attention, verbal or motor skills might be more limited, and also in the case of physical disability.

These are a few of the reactions to the Carddies:

Storytelling/Imagination.

Rebecca, who reviews toys from a disability point of view, (mainly from a child’s perspective), gave Carddies a big thumbs-up, and showed how brilliant they are for play (note the wonderful names she gave the Cavepeople!): http://critiquesandtests.weebly.com/carddies—cavemen-set.html

Educational

We have often been told that Carddies are a valuable educational tool, and could even be useful in therapy:

“These Carddies sets could easily be a great resource in the early years and primary classrooms, with the different themes allowing for a diverse array of storytelling opportunities. Adding the use of simple technology, stories can be developed, supporting language and literacy skills or used as a teaching aide so teachers create their own stories.”

https://ukedchat.com/magazine/

Fine Motor Skills/Creativity/Communication/Sharing.

“I love the idea behind Carddies and feel they would be brilliant for creating social stories for a child on the autism spectrum while encouraging creativity and improvements in fine motor skills… The fact Little man was sent a football theme box of Carddies made all the difference and he had fun actually designing the kits for the players. It was a great way to unleash some inner creativity that he has and he remained on task for a little longer than usual.”

(A Boy With Asperger’s: http://aspergersinfo.wordpress.com/?s=carddies)

If a child needs a bit of help with colouring in, or placing the figures in stands, the toy can be used with the help of an adult, or siblings/friends:

“My son sat colouring for about 15 minutes but because he has poor pencil grip he tends to tire of writing/colouring for longer periods however his 2 1/2 year old sister helped by doing some colouring too while my son kept saying thank you A you good girl!”

(Sarah’s World: http://sarahandc.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/carddies-review.html )

Personal connection/collectability value.

A reviewer early on wrote this about her boy whose “attention span with this sort of toy can be quite limited”:

“S has particularly enjoyed his Carddies. He coloured in the background really carefully and some of his characters, making sure that the colours matched on both the back and the front of their clothes. He talked about the different members of his family, and has named some of them on the back of the background, where there are pictures of each character and a space for their name.”

This from another reviewer:

“I bought these Carddies for my 4 1/2 yr old daughter who was finding it hard to settle into school. She enjoyed colouring them in and name tagging them with the names of the children in her class, she has role played the time spent at school through her eyes with them and now knows all the names of the children in her class and is beginning to settle into school. A fantastic toy.”

Relaxing and Absorbing. My friend (whose daughter has ASD) said:

“We were meeting a friend for lunch and L asked if she could take her Carddies with her. She sat yesterday and named them all and wanted to carry on… She sat the entire time in the restaurant colouring them in and placing them in the “ballet classroom”. It was great in so many ways-so quick and neat to store away when the food came, such high quality pencils and colours AND she still has loads to do in terms of colouring and playing!! I will be taking them out with me on future trips!”

L wanted me to tell you “the Carddies are brilliant… I really love them. May many others love them too!!”

On that note, we really hope that you give the Carddies a go!

Carddies are available from Winslow Resources

Construction Cutlery for Picky Eaters

September 5, 2017Guest Blogging, Product HighlightGuest Blogging

Construction Cutlery

Unfortunately with toddlers, difficult mealtimes can be a given. How can parents possibly hope to make sure healthy options are included on the plate when some little ones won’t touch anything, let alone something green? With the Construction Cutlery, mealtimes becomes a fun affair instead of a dreaded struggle when their peas turn into gravel and their pasta into building blocks. Adding a little fun to mealtimes gets kids to the table and encourages them to stay there longer, which gives parents an improved chance to fill their tummies with yummy and healthy goodness.

Buy Construction Cutlery

Construction Cutlery Set

The folks at Constructive Eating know this because they’ve been there when the struggle was all too real. Parents Carter & Jackie Malcolm couldn’t get their toddler to stay at the table long enough to munch on anything before he was distracted by the draw of his construction equipment toys. The imaginary world where he was in control of building and demolishing anything his heart desired was so much better than the boring reality of eating his fruits and veggies.

He was absolutely obsessed with everything that belonged on a construction site, from cranes and bulldozers to excavators and jackhammers. The stage knew no boundaries. Anything and everything became focused on construction. Before long, their child was asking to put Cheerios on the floor to act as rubble for his bulldozer. This made them ponder… What if breakfast, lunch and dinner could become “rubble”? What if forks, spoons and pushers were the “machines”? Carter and Jackie put on their entrepreneurial hardhats, designed the fleet of Construction Utensils, and began Constructive Eating.

Since those early days, Constructive Eating has added several award-winning products to

Construction Cutlery Plate

embrace creative play at and away from table. The focus has always been on fostering a fun AND productive mealtime for parents and kids. Especially in children with sensory and developmental disorders, a positive association with food and sitting at the dinner table can be key in overcoming feeding challenges.

What parents say about Construction Cutlery

“My 5 year old son has severe apraxia of speech and autism. We’ve done three years of feeding therapy, countless hours of exercises, and so much begging for him to eat. He has about ten foods he will eat, and that is it.

I ordered the entire eating set thinking it was cute and I figured, it’s $35 let’s just give it a shot. My son just ate yogurt. A food we’ve tried over and over again without success. He just ate it, by himself, no incentives.

Thank you guys so much for making Constructive Cutlery! I was worried it was a fluke or that the novelty would wear off, but it hasn’t!

“He’s currently eating lunch- I put yogurt and peaches on his plate today. Normally that

Construction Cutlery

would result in him refusing to eat anything on the plate. He’s actually ate his yogurt first because he loves the pushing tool so much! Seriously, this product is ingenious.”

Stories like these from parents, caregivers, educators, and therapists overjoy the workers at Constructive Eating Headquarters. Knowing that a small company with an emphasis on quality products, good business practices, and top notch customer service can make such a positive impact on the lives of their customers makes every box that leaves the door with “Constructive Eating” emblazoned in yellow and orange special.

Where is Construction Cutlery Made?

All of Constructive Eating’s products are manufactured in the USA with only the best and safest FDA approved dishwasher and microwave safe materials, so parents can feel good about what they’re giving their kids. Specialty textured easy-grip rubberized handles make it even easier for little hands to lift and hold the utensils, which helps develop fine motor skills.

When parents purchase from Constructive Eating, they’re not just getting cleverly designed and cute utensils, but an entire experience of continually fostering development, fun, and healthy eating with their kids at the dinner table.

Narrative Therapy – The River, Roads and The World of Trains

August 21, 2017Care Professional Contributions, Guest BloggingGuest Blogging

By Gali Salpeter – Creator of Narrative Therapy tools, The River, Roads and The World of Trains

Background

Gali Salpeter

I am an Expressive Therapist with specialisation in Drama and Narrative therapy and a background in Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology.

My fields of study, work and life are closely intertwined; I have worked and volunteered as a therapist in a few countries and I feel blessed to have chosen this field of work, which enables me to connect with, support and be touched by, so many wonderful people across the world.

I live in beautiful Norway with my husband and 3 children (my most meaningful creation).

Projective cards – underlying concepts

I began to use projective cards as a psychological tool when I was working as a therapist with children having special needs. Combining the cards with art, drama and stories proved to be very useful and I realised it helped my clients raise and share the issues they were dealing with. It supplemented the verbal mode of communication in many ways.

However, with time, I felt that something was missing; putting separate cards apart from each other in order to tell stories, was in fact “losing” the idea of flow. It looked as if there was no connection or transition between the different parts of the stories that the clients were telling. I have started to search for ways to make the images illustrated on the cards “connect” so that the flow of the stories that the clients told will become visual as well.

Joining up the cards to create a story

The metaphors of the river and roads, flow and paths, were metaphors I found enriching when speaking of processes that people are dealing with. People often speak about journeys they make, paths they choose, steps they take or a continuum of periods in their lives.

Both the metaphor of the river and the metaphor of roads enabled my clients and me as the therapist to relate to the “whole” as made of different parts. It helped clients realise that the stories they tell are built of certain chapters and to observe the processes they described as made of many stages or several sub-periods.

Thus, using the metaphors of rivers and paths matched my goals as a therapist; to help my clients tell, observe, work with, and retell their experiences in life in new ways.

The River Set

The first set I have created is “The River”. Like most journeys, it begun with a personal experience. This time it was a sad one… My grandmothers died in a short period, I was a mother of young kids and as a way to cope with my grief, I wrote “The river story”. It dealt with my interpretation of life and death, relationships, identity and memories, strengths and weaknesses. I often use writing as a tool to process the personal experiences I encounter in life so that story almost ended up “in the drawer” like many others…

: The River Narrative Therapy Guide Book

: A Calm River

: Rough Waters

Since I was working with projective cards I came to the idea of drawing the story in the form of cards. Derived from the story, the atmosphere I chose for the cards was one of – nature – as I have perceived it. I looked for subtle stimuli, and not too much fantasy in the images drawn.

One thing led to the other, “The river guidebook” kind of wrote itself, the ideas for ways to use cards kept on flowing from my experience and imagination, and then – after a long “pregnancy” – ״The River set״ was born. Like many wonderful things, it was born out of pain but it holds the strengths of sharing hope.

Roads Deck

״Roads״ was created several years later when I was living elsewhere. I like travelling to new experiences and I have lived in wonderful countries around our globe. My journey and the paths that I have chosen (and the ones which have chosen me) always led me to interesting places both within myself and in the cultures around me.

: The Road Life Therapy Deck

: Narrative Therapy Deck

: The Road Narrative Therapy

The metaphor of “Roads” for me means that I have a road that is mine, with the obstacles I encounter and the “gifts” I find along it, my own beginnings, the steps I take and the ends. However, it is also a road that goes in amazingly different surroundings, with interesting people I was lucky and maybe brave enough to get to know. So perhaps “Roads” for me is this journey as a whole – a journey that is one and unique and “mine”, but it is also many meaningful journeys, stories, paths and periods which I have experienced with others around me.

I believe that although each of us have a unique path in life, we are changing in many ways along it. I decided that the stimuli will be clear in that deck, I wanted to use fantasy and include obvious objects. The colours and atmosphere was completely different than the ones used in ״The River ״so as the method of painting used.

In a sense I think that the sets complete one another. Hopefully having these different sets enable clients to choose the most suitable tool and image they would like to work with, in each given moment.

The World of Trains set

״The world of trains” set is being edited for print in these days. I am not objective, but I think that it is a very special set. The set is designed for therapeutic work with children in settings of individual therapy and group therapy. It contains a deck of illustrated cards, a deck of story-cards and a comprehensive guidebook for therapists. The guidebook describes in detail numerous professional suggestions for application of the cards, according to the different settings and relevant issues children cope with.

Final Thoughts

It is my hope that every person working with the sets will enjoy the opportunity of telling her/his story and the wonder of discovering its rich layers and intertwining chapters.
We all have stories waiting to be told.
Thank you for reading a chapter of mine…
Gali

The Talkabout Series by Alex Kelly

August 1, 2017Guest Blogging, Product HighlightGuest Blogging

Alex Kelly

Alex Kelly talks to us about her Talkabout series of books and games for nurturing self estem, social skills and forming friendships.

Can you give us a brief overview of Talkabout?

Talkabout is a complete programme that develops self esteem, social skills and friendship skills. It is based on teaching children in group settings either in school or college but can be adapted to be used on a 1:1 basis or at home. It uses a hierarchical method of developing skills where basic or foundation skills are taught before more complicated skills.

How did Talkabout come about?

The original Talkabout book came about because I was working in a FE college with a large number of young adults with intellectual disabilities and after a year of social skills interventions, and with pre and post assessments on all the students, I noticed a pattern in who was responding well to the social skills groups and who wasn’t.

It all centred around the hierarchy of self awareness coming before non-verbal skills and non-verbal coming before verbal and assertiveness coming last. I decided to put together a programme of intervention for this college based on this hierarchy and thought the name TALKABOUT was quite good!

3 years later and lots of testing and piloting, I decided it was worth publishing. Later on I noticed the link with self esteem and friendship skills so these were added to the hierarchy about 5 years later. After that I realised that what people really want are resources that are right for a specific client group, so we started with writing a Talkabout book aimed at secondary mainstream children and then wrote the Primary series Talkabout for Children because you need very different approaches to different types of children and adults.

What makes your books stand out?

They are the only social skills books that I know of that work through a hierarchy from self-awareness and self-esteem to assertiveness (and now sex and relationships). They are a total package and include all the games and worksheets to work on these skills. they also have term plans which make them very easy to use in schools as they are a scheme of work designed around academic years (I am married to an ex-teacher! So I know what teachers need to make it easy to embed into school life).

The Talkabout Series

Which features do you think will be most useful to users?

As a busy therapist or teacher, I think the fact that each book is written with them in mind so the sessions are planned, the games are ready to make up and the books are therefore pretty easy to use.

What is the one message you want reader to take away with them?

The Talkabout books have developed over 20 years to be resources that work and that children enjoy. Please don’t dip in and use activities randomly. All of my research and experience has shown me that a hierarchical approach to teaching skills is the most effective. So if necessary start at the beginning and work through for as long as you need to. In this way we are setting children up to succeed not fail.

What are the benefits of using your book in schools and private practice?

Teachers like the Talkabout books because they can work as schemes of work for a whole academic year and the planning has all been done for them. similarly in private practice the fact that it is all planned out, is obviously attractive as it cuts down on planning time.

Are there any factors or adjustments needed for Talkabout to be introduced into a school or private setting?

You just need a group of people who need work at the same level or who will work well together.

How do you think your books help address SLCN?

Many children with SLCN also struggle with their social skills and with making friends and they can also struggle with their self esteem. So even though my books are not specifically aimed at improving Speech and Language, they are often appropriate resources for children with SLCN.

What are your future plans?

We are writing the second volume of the sex and relationships book this year. We are also doing some research into the effectiveness of Talkabout within schools Finally I am busy writing my theory book on social skills which will cover all the theory behind this subject!

Guest Blog – Emily from PAN reviews more products!

April 28, 2017General, Guest Blogging, In the community, Product DevelopmentDan Casey

Hi its me again. I’ve had the chance to play with some more products from Rompa and Winslow.

The first couple of products were the ‘Soothersack‘ and the ‘huggabuddies cat‘. I loved the cat and so did my son. Not only does is it quite heavy so it provides pressure, the soft fur is also a nice sensory experience.

: Soothersack

: Aroma Huggabuddy

The Soothersack is your standard pillow which you warm in the microwave and then can place on certain parts of your body to relieve aches and pains or across a child’s knees again to help ground them. Essential oils can be added to the pillow to help with relaxation. The ‘huggabuddies’ cat was a lot better for me as I sat with it snuggled on my shoulder with the heat going where I wanted it too whereas the pillow, as I’m sure many of you know, loses its filling to either end of the pillow so there was no heat on the top of my shoulder where I wanted it.

These two pieces of kit are nice to help your child but also nice to have around for when you might (if miracles occur) get 10 minutes relaxation to yourself!

I would give them both 3 stars.

Tangle Therapy

Another product which I looked at was the ‘Tangle Therapy’ toy. Again, a product which I’m sure many of you will have come across. I particularly liked this version as it was a bit larger than others I have seen. It is not recommended for children under 3 as the pieces can be separated and potentially swallowed, but with older children I have found they enjoy taking the tangle toys to pieces as it provides a nice clicking noise! Some of the sections also had a clear rubber coating with small raised bobbles. I did wonder if these would get picked off over time though.

4 Stars

On the whole I felt this deserved 4 stars

Guest Blog: Emily Brailsford of Parenting Additional Needs Reviews talks about Transition

February 24, 2017General, Guest Blogging, In the communityDan Casey

I should probably introduce myself, I am a married stay at home mother of three (2 boys and a girl) the oldest who has ADHD, Autism and epilepsy.

The guys and girls at ROMPA have asked me to have look at some of the products which they think might help my son as he’s going through a bit of a transitional period at the moment. Not only is he choosing his GCSE’s but hormones are setting in too (he’ll love me for saying that!)

So I looked at a few products, some good, some not as good, but on the whole ……Good

The first product was the ‘Coping with stress’ card game. I hate games. I’d rather stick a fork in my eye than play a card game with my son (other mums of ADHD kids will no doubt understand) but this game was different.

Its more of a talking game. It says for ages 6-12 and 2-4 players but I think it would have benefits for older children and young adults too depending on their level of understanding.

There were 4 types of card:- reducing stress, learning to relax, self talk and finally visualisation cards. There was also a 12 sided die with body parts listed on it to use with some of the cards and help with relaxation.

This game could even be used in the car as there aren’t loads of pieces to go missing

It is definitely worth the money and I gave it 5 out of 5 stars!

Another product which I looked at was the Theraputty. I liked the look of this because when my son has fidget toys in class, they need to be silent so not as to distract the other children. The Theraputty is like a very firm Plasticine which is also scented.

Now when I say firm ,I mean firm! We tried four different putties each with varying firmness and a different aroma. The tan Theraputty was supposed to be the softest but CRIKEY it was hard to manipulate! My son is 13 and 5 ft 7 and he struggled. On a positive note though, the scent was nice and it didn’t linger on our hands after playing with the putty. Also the putty stayed together so I wasn’t picking it out of school uniform for days to come! In my opinion it is better suited for hand injury rehabilitation, which I think is was the original idea behind this product.

I would give the Theraputty 3 out of 5 stars.