Happy Monday!

Here's your weekly update on the news from Autism Grown Up and around the autism community related to adulthood. There's so much to see, so much to do - so let's go!

Podcast

75. Fitness is Integral to Daily Living Skills (w/ Eric Chessen from Autism Fitness)

Eric Chessen, M.S. is the Founder of Autism Fitness and creator of the PAC Profile Method. Eric has spent nearly 20 years developing successful fitness and adapted PE programs for the ASD population of all ages and abilities levels. His work has been featured on VICE Media, Yahoo News, and Eric has presented for TEDx. He lives in Charlotte, NC.

In this episode, we discuss how Autism Fitness got started: Eric saw a need to create fitness programming that is actionable and combines his background in fitness and autism; how fitness is best when individualized and applied to one’s daily living and their own version of a better quality of life; we break down the PAC Profile Method - what does PAC stand for (Physical, Adaptive, and Cognitive); and Eric provides 3 actionable steps for families and individuals to start working on long-term physical skills.

Blog

In the Workplace | Autism Grown Up Podcast Roundup

We’ve curated this series of podcast episodes to reflect on gaps, experiences, and neurodiversity initiatives Inside each of these episodes are numerous ideas and strategies to support you wherever you are.

Facebook Fundraiser

Facebook Birthday Fundraiser - Supporting Virtual Learning

Let's celebrate our Executive Director's birthday by raising funding for Autism Grown Up to provide resources to teachers and parents to support virtual/hybrid/all learning!

This fall with school back in session, there are a lot of variables that students on the autism spectrum, parents and families, and teachers and staff at schools have to consider to support a smooth transition. This is such a huge need right now because schools are still experiencing cuts in special education funding and since the move to virtual in the spring, more and more students are getting overlooked.

We'll be partnering with several teachers and families around the country to share resource packages to better support their students' needs wherever they are. We're talking about visual supports, supports to teach academics, connections with peers, as well as those key areas like independence, organization, and vocational skills for our older students.

This will be the space that we'll be sharing resources, news, and updates from the community. We share upcoming conferences/trainings, autism-related news, blog posts, podcasts, and other resources.

Articles

How to Forge a Solid Parent-Teacher Relationship

by Maria Davis-Pierre (from Autism in Black) in the New York Times  | Read it here

Resource Share

Ever Learning: Autism Resources for Parents & Educators

Ever Learning provides parents and educators of children on the autism spectrum with the highest quality training, education, and teaching resources available to support a child’s learning needs.

As you navigate your child’s journey to independence, towards achieving a self-sufficient life – full of joy and happiness; Ever Learning can be your partner on the journey. 

Learn more at www.ever-learning.com

Promoting Healthy Dating - Research Review → Now a curriculum!

In 2019, OAR provided funding for a one-year study, “Safer Dating for Youth with ASD,” to principal investigators, Megan Bair-Merritt, MD, MSCE, an associate professor of pediatrics at Boston University School of Medicine and associate division chief of general pediatrics, and Emily Rothman, ScD, professor of community health science at the Boston University School of Public Health and co-director of the Violence Prevention Research Unit. They developed and pilot tested a six-session online healthy dating curriculum for youth with autism ages 14 to 18 and their parents/caregivers.

Read more and check out the curriculum here. 

Online Learning Resources from UNC-Chapel Hill

Many schools across the country have moved to partial or full-time online instruction due to the coronavirus (COVID-19), creating uncertainty and stress for many families and students with autism. This is a challenging and overwhelming time for many families and students as they adjust to remote learning and navigate new learning platforms. The purpose of this resource is to provide strategies and resources that may support students with autism and their families as they get ready for the school year.

This guide addresses five key areas: (1) creating a learning space and limiting distractions, (2) creating a schedule, (3) accessing learning platforms, (4) supporting active participation and social connection, and (5) maintaining healthy habits and taking breaks. There are ideas and tips for each of the areas, as well as ready to use tools and resources to support students and their families in preparing for and adjusting to online learning.

Read more and check out the resource here.

Click below to use the form to submit events, conferences, news, and resources to be included in AGU's weekly newsletter. Topics and resources should be focused on autism/neurodiversity, the transition to adulthood, and/or adulthood. Submit by Thursday at Noon EST to be included in the Monday Newsletter.

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+ Donate to the Autism Grown Up Resource Center to keep these resources coming!

We do this work to support you and the autism community to be better prepared for/navigate adulthood with a high quality of life. I appreciate every piece of feedback we receive - including any responses to these emails. Please feel free to send your questions and requests for resources. Whatever you ask for can also help another individual and family in need.