Fostering Development in Children with Special Needs: A Guide for Parents and Clinicians

Course overview

Children with special needs of any kind have the same need as other children to belong and feel significant in ways that elicit positive responses from those around them. And yet the ways in which they go about attempting to meet their needs frequently have the effect of alienating others and making them feel even more isolated and ineffectual. What is required is for us as clinicians, parents, and teachers to adapt our interactions with them to take their special needs into account without allowing these needs to block our vision of the children underneath. This is not an easy undertaking, as it involves managing to stay focused on children's individual strengths while helping them understand and manage their challenges. This course will provide perspectives, strategies, and techniques for helping children with special needs and their parents find competence - and confidence - in managing behavior, sensory issues, speech and language challenges, and frustration by learning calming, supportive ways to build a cooperative and nurturing relationship.