Most of my work focus is devoted to drafting my prospectus. It is an exciting and rigorous task.  I plan to write a post about it once the project is off the ground.  In one sentence?  I will be examining how children with ASD initiate requests for communicative repair during communicative breakdowns (i.e., when they do not understand their social partner’s bid).   There is some evidence related to how children with ASD respond to requests for repair, but we know very little about how they may initiate requests.

Some of my work focus is thinking ahead to next week and the ASHA Convention in Denver. I am presenting a (fabric) poster related to treatment intensity and vocabulary acquisition in learners with ASD.  Conferences combine some of my most favorite things – learning, thinking, receiving feedback, seeing colleagues/friends (Bita!) and one of my least favorite things – flying on an airplane.

All of my focus wants to be on reading Dr. Barry Prizant’s new book, “Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism,” although I finally made it through the library queue and it is now in my possession until the end of the month. (Yep, I proudly read real, printed and bound, books from the public library.)  I plan to read it while I’m traveling next week and will write my thoughts in a future post.   Really looking forward to the book. I anticipate it is going to be a great resource for parents who are interested in learning about the SCERTS model and a strengths based approach to intervention.   I am certain he’ll use person-first language. Therefore, it will have nice examples for graduate students to consider as they are thinking about how we refer to the people and families with whom we work.

In general, I am trying focus on one thing at a time, like the frog in the photo. I walk by him when I leave the gym.  I guess he is a reminder to cultivate awareness, to focus on the present.  Perhaps next week, I’ll remember his message as I enjoy ASHA and the break from prospectus-writing.

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