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10 Great Games to Help Kids Learn About Their Strengths

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10 Great Games to Help Kids Learn About Their Strengths

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These fun games will help kids and families learn to recognize the strengths in themselves and others.

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A Family Strengths Night is a celebration of all the good that exists within the people in your school's community.

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Follow these 6 steps to learn how be a Strengthskeeper for the people you want to strengthen and encourage.

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How to use your signature strengths to help yourself and others right now... or during any challenge.

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5 tips to help parents navigate the unique needs of children with autism learning from home

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5 tips to help parents navigate the unique needs of children with autism learning from home

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Children on the autism spectrum will face unique challenges as they learn from home during the COVID-19 shutdown. These children process information and learn in different ways to their peers.

They may find it more difficult to independently complete tasks and struggle with managing their time. They are also more likely to have difficulty in writing tasks or ones involving high amounts of language and communication with others.

Children on the autism spectrum often associate specific tasks with locations. This might mean they resist doing schoolwork at home. Anxiety levels, which are often high in this group of students, may increase further due to changes in routine or uncertainty about what they should be learning.

General tips for schooling at home such as setting up a learning space, creating structure and routine, and becoming familiar with resources in the Australian Curriculum are good ideas. But parents of children on the autism spectrum may need additional strategies.

Read more: Trying to homeschool because of coronavirus? Here are 5 tips to help your child learn

Studies of students on the autism spectrum in distance education (studying at school without being physically present) or experiencing homework difficulties suggest several helpful strategies for parents.

1. Put together a homework plan

Students learning at home will likely need to engage in independent learning tasks such as completing worksheets or writing assignments. This is somewhat similar to doing homework assigned by a teacher.

But students on the autism spectrum often do less homework than their peers. And they report finding homework too hard, frustrating and overwhelming.

Parents helping their child may be confused about assignments from teachers if the communication is limited or unclear. Or they may find their child needs breaks and is unable to complete all their work.

These issues can increase children's anxiety, lead to meltdowns and create tension between parents and children. Research shows creating a homework plan can help.

Read more: Children with autism may use memory differently. Understanding this could help us teach them

In a homework plan, a teacher clearly communicates to parents what the student needs to learn and which tasks can be prioritised over others.

Once parents know what specific knowledge and skills their child needs to learn, they can adjust the amount or nature of tasks to fit the needs of their child.

For example, a teacher sets out in a homework plan that at the end of the task, a student must be able to explain their knowledge about the early settlers. A parent may see their child is struggling to write a full essay.

In this case, the parent can adjust the task so their child can use puppets to tell and record the story instead.

Children on the autism spectrum may find it stressful to think about what may be going on in someone else's mind. Using an outside tool, like a puppet, to tell another person's story can take that pressure off.

2. Use your child's special interests

Students on the autism spectrum often focus on special interests to calm themselves. Special interests can also be used to help them manage additional anxiety during the shutdown.

Research shows adapting teaching to incorporate students' special interests can help students on the autism spectrum learn academic and social skills. For example, a teacher can use a student's interest in Lego to help them learn maths skills such as fractions and measurements.

Special interests can also increase a student's engagement in learning tasks, as they see them in the context of an activity that's important to them.

A parent can help their child learn across the curriculum by using their special interest. For example, a student who is interested is space could work on a project in which they learn about early scientists who developed the solar system (history), write about the importance of space exploration (English, science) and design a new space station (maths, art).

3. Use technology

Technology-aided instruction can help students on the autism spectrum learn a range of skills. It can also help them understand task requirements, communicate their concerns and complete tasks.

Apps are an accessible and fairly inexpensive way to use technology. Apps may motivate students on the autism spectrum as they present information in ways that support their visual learning style.

Apps have been found to be effective in helping children on the autism spectrum learn language, literacy and numeracy skills. Apps can also be used to create schedules, checklists and language cards.

The Learning App Guide to Autism and Education provides parents with reviews for a number of apps grouped by skill areas and age groups. A parent can select the literacy group, for instance, and find apps for teaching spelling to children in lower primary grades.

4. Find ways to connect your child to others

Although students on the autism spectrum often experience difficulty in social situations, many say peer support can help make school a more positive experience. During the COVID-19 shutdown, classmates or friends can provide encouragement and information on learning tasks. This may decrease uncertainty and increase students' confidence.

Read more: It's 25 years since we redefined autism - here's what we've learnt

Connecting with peers on the internet is particularly well-suited to students on the autism spectrum as it reduces sensory distractions and the amount of language required.

Students can use programs such as Discord or Google Hangouts to talk to their classmates, play games and work together on assignments.

5. Seek help and don't try to do everything

Accessing support can help parents cope with feelings of isolation and anxiety. Education departments in Tasmania and Western Australia provide parents of children on the autism spectrum with activities and curriculum information. And Queensland provides specific learning strategies.

Homeschooling Special Needs Australia helps parents connect and provides links to sites specifically set up to help them during the COVID-19 shutdown.

Parents should can also use these sites to connect with other parents. These networks can decrease parent's stress and help them connect with their child.

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5 tips to help parents navigate the unique needs of children with autism learning from home

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Children on the autism spectrum will face unique challenges as they learn from home during the COVID-19 shutdown. These children process information and learn in different ways to their peers. They may find it more difficult to independently complete tasks and struggle with managing their time.

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Cusp Emergence uses a compassionate constructional approach to facilitate new behaviors, repertoires, and interaction patterns. They collaborate with clients to engineer changes and challenges that improve the behavioral wellness of individuals, families, teams and organizations, and communities.

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Free resources on prompting, functions of behavior, and more

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Free Strengths-Based Games from Dr. Lea Waters

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Free Strengths-Based Games from Dr. Lea Waters

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VIA-INGO: The Bingo of Strengths
Strengths and Ladders
Libro Ania - Strength-Based Children's Book

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At The Strengths Exchange our talented collaborators are busy designing some wonderful games. VIA-INGO is our first FREE online game that was developed by Claire Fortune and Professor Lea Waters. Claire has also designed our latest game, Strengths and Ladders games, too. How good are you at spotting strengths?

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At The Strengths Exchange our talented collaborators are busy designing some wonderful games. VIA-INGO is our first FREE online game that was developed by Claire Fortune and Professor Lea Waters....

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NYSTART Region 5: Art Therapy Directive, "Put it in the Jar"

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NYSTART Region 5: Art Therapy Directive, "Put it in the Jar"

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This art therapy technique can be done in a group setting or independently.  This activity encourages emotional regulation through self expression.

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NYSTART Region 5: Art Therapy Directive, "Put it in the Jar"

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Visible Wellbeing Free e-Program Downloads from Dr Lea Waters

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Visible Wellbeing Free e-Program Downloads from Dr Lea Waters

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Visible Wellbeing Free e-Program Downloads

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COVID-19: Five Helpful Responses for Families

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COVID-19: Five Helpful Responses for Families

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Kids don't say, "Beloved parent, I'm having difficulty in my daily life. I don't fully understand what's happening, I miss my friends, I'm afraid someone I know is going to die and it feels like life will never be normal again." Instead, they throw tantrums, become clingy, sulk, backtalk, refuse to do anything you ask, wet the bed, pick fights with siblings and suddenly forget how to do basic tasks they mastered years ago.

Whew! Let's step back, take a few deep breaths and learn a little about your child's brain: Safety is the brain's most basic need, followed closely by connection. When we feel unsafe or disconnected, our brains downshift from the higher centers responsible for learning and problem solving, to the lower reactionary centers. That's why all those challenging behaviors are popping up, and why a minor frustration is now Titanic in size.

We can help children (and ourselves) by creating a sense of safety, connecting, and cultivating a new sense of normal with these five tips:

1. Young children co-regulate with trusted adults and older children feed off our internal states. Our calm nurtures their calm. Our distress increases their distress. Check in with yourself. How are you faring? Practice active calming by taking three deep breaths when you feel yourself becoming frustrated, fearful, angry or desperate. Seek out activities and call people who calm you. Limit your news intake, social media and other sources of stress. Be a Safe Place for your child.

Acknowledge your feelings and your children's. Know that children's fits and meltdowns aren't just about the momentary point of frustration that triggered them; they're about the underlying state of uncertainty they're experiencing. Offer them calm, comfort and reassurance with deep breathing and phrases like, "You're safe. You can handle this. We'll get through this together." Encourage them to name and manage their feelings. And forgive yourself when you're the one who's had the fit or meltdown.
Helpful Free Resources:
2. Focus on safety and connection. The brain functions optimally when it feels both safe and connected. Children need to know that life is going to be different and that you will find a new normal together. Make safety and connection your top priority, especially in the first days; you can always add academics, chores and such later.

If you don't already practice active calming, start! Conscious Discipline uses S.T.A.R., Balloon, Drain and Pretzel breathing, and there are dozens of other websites with helpful breathing games and yoga for kids.

Build extra togetherness into your day. For young children, this might look like extra reading or playing blocks together. For older children, it might be doing a puzzle or playing a favorite video game together. Notice whatever your child is doing and join in their play. Go outside and play. Get down on the floor and play. Wrestle. Giggle. Snuggle. Hug, high five and enjoy. Connection isn't just good for your mood, it builds neural connections in your child's brain and increases cooperation (and who couldn't use a little of that right now?).

Age-appropriate information increases safety; "You're fine" does not. Information will help reassure and soothe children's fears, but it's important to know when enough is enough. Explain to children why life is different using the simplest terms possible. Answer their questions honestly, without offering too much detail or overwhelming them with information. Watch the news in private rather than having it running in the background all day. Limit social media for your children and yourself. Focus on statements like, "You're safe. You can handle this. We will get through this together," instead of dismissing with comments like, "Everything's okay," or "It's not something you need to worry about."
Helpful Free Resources:
3. Create your new normal. The brain thrives on predictable patterns. Our daily and weekly patterns have been turned upside down without warning. Creating a new normal begins with a new daily routine. Families with older children can work together to co-create your new daily schedule (co-creating gives children a way to exert some control over the situation), while parents of younger children will create the schedule for them. Plan it, draw it, label it, post it somewhere obvious and refer to it often so children know what to expect.

A successful daily schedule might be: Wake up, get dressed, eat breakfast, project time, outside time, lunch, free play, rest time, family time, dinner, wash/brush, PJs, read, bed. The activities during "project time" could vary between creative play (art, dress up, building blocks), academics, gardening, household projects, or exploring online resources like museum tours, dance classes or storytelling sites. Be certain your schedule has ample opportunities for play. Creating a rhythm to your days and knowing what to expect next cultivates a sense of safety.
Helpful Free Resources:
4. Give children ways to contribute. Contribution lights up the reward centers of the brain and releases feel-good chemicals like dopamine and serotonin. Verbally highlight the way your family is helping your community and hospitals by staying home. Draw pictures and make cards to mail, leave on friends' and neighbors' doorsteps, or drop off at a nursing home.

Provide lots of little ways for children to be helpful at home and offer authentic praise for their helpfulness. The contribution needs to be voluntary, not coerced, in order to release those feel-good brain chemicals. Ask, "Do you want to make my coffee this morning?" If the answer is, "No," let it go. If the answer is, "Yes," show them how to make coffee and then rave about how helpful it was for them to brew it.
Helpful Free Resources:
5. Shift toward seeing the best. Notice your inner and outer speech. Are you "stuck at home" with your kids, or do you have an opportunity to connect with family and keep the community safe while you work from home? Are you "stuck at work," or are you helping to keep the community running by staffing hospitals, grocery stores and other important functions in spite of the risks? Are selfish people hoarding things, or are frightened people trying to make sure their families have enough? Are government officials doing too much/not enough/stupid things, or are they doing the best they can with constantly changing information about an unexpected, unprecedented threat? Should those idiots know better than to go out, or are there millions of individuals who are helping each other by staying home to slow the spread of the virus?

It's easy to get caught up in what's going wrong. Instead, make an effort to consciously shift toward helpfulness. Use your words as a spotlight to illuminate the behaviors you want to see more of and aspects you find helpful amidst the fear. The more positive aspects you discuss around your children, the more they are able to see the best in the situation. The more you notice and verbalize children's helpful actions, the more helpful they will become. Shifting your perspective from what you don't want to what you do want paves the way for a healthier internal state for you and your children.
Helpful Free Resources:
For 20+ years, "We're all in this together" has been one of the basic tenets of Conscious Discipline. It seems ironic that a virus that requires social distancing to slow its spread has drawn our attention to how intimately connected we truly are as friends, neighbors, communities and nations.

Conscious Discipline offers a wealth of social-emotional information online to help you during this challenging time. Some of the items are purchasable, but in keeping with our belief that we're all in this together, many of our webinars, podcasts, videos, printables, articles and other items are absolutely free for you to use.

We hope these resources are helpful. We are holding you in our hearts and wishing you well during this challenging time. This article is also available in Spanish.

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COVID-19: Five Helpful Responses for Families | Conscious Discipline

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Kids don't say, "Beloved parent, I'm having difficulty in my daily life. I don't fully understand what's happening, I miss my friends, I'm afraid someone I know is going to die and it feels like life will never be normal again."

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Resources for Parents, Families, and Youth

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Resources for Parents, Families, and Youth

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The collection of resources includes videos, toolkits, activities to use at home and more to support parents and caregivers and their children during the COVID-19 pandemic. From the National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health

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COVID-19 Resources for Parents | National Federation of Families

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This page was created just for parents, caregivers, youth and families. It is a collection of resources and information to support them during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Discover our 1,500+ Free Adult Coloring pages : various themes (50+), artists, difficulty levels. The perfect Anti-stress activity for you !

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We can use all our 24 strengths to thrive! Use these weekly reminders to practice spotting strengths and flexing your unique combination of character strengths!

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Mindfulness is a type of meditation technique that helps to calm the mind in order to help manage emotions and to achieve an overall sense of well-being.  The exercise is best practiced daily, and can be used during times of increased stress.

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NYSTART Region 5: Self Care: The Importance of Taking Care of YOU!

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NYSTART Region 5: Self Care: The Importance of Taking Care of YOU!

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This video reviews why self-care is so important for all!  What is self-care? Burnout! Tools to support self-care are provided that you can use to support yourself and your self care, that way you can support others!

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NYSTART Region 5: Self Care: The Importance of Taking Care of YOU!

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Check out the resources on the TX START/MHMR Tarrant County Padlet