A Neurodevelopmental and Neurodiversity-Informed Approach to Supporting Children and Adolescents on the Autism Spectrum: Using DIR Floortime® to Promote Development
**This course also meets the prerequisite requirements for professionals
to enter the DIRFloortime® Professional Certificate Program.**
Learning Objectives, Presenter's Bios and Disclosures
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
1. Participants successfully completing this course will demonstrate the ability to identify at least three neurodevelopmental features of autism.
2. Participants will be able to identify at least three common problematic assumptions of therapists that often lead to practices that are not conducive to neurodiversity-informed care.
3. Participants will be able to identify at least three therapeutic practices that support neurodiversity-informed practice.
4. Participants will be able to identify at least one of their own professional practices that they will consider changing or altering based on newly learned information from the Autistic Self Advocacy Network Toolkit on Ethical Considerations in Autism Related Services and Supports.
5. Participants successfully completing this course will demonstrate the ability to describe six core social emotional developmental capacities that typically begin to develop in childhood.
6. Participants successfully completing this course will be able to describe at least three ways the therapeutic relationship can support positive therapeutic outcomes.
7. Participants successfully completing this course will demonstrate the ability to describe at least three ways language development, sensory development, motor development, and other unique individual differences for each peson can impact social emotional development.
8. Students successfully completing this course will demonstrate the ability to identify at least three key principles and basic strategies of DIRFloortime used to promote development.
Additional Training Program Information: More information on the DIRFloortime Training Program and the DIRFloortime approach can be found at the ICDL website at www.icdl.com. The research and evidence to support DIR and DIRFloortime continues to grow. The www.icdl.com/research page has further information on the latest research.
** To ensure Learners successfully achieve the Learning Objectives above and to satisfy the completion requirements for this conference and continuing education credits, participants seeking professional continuing education credits must attend in-person for the full length of the course during the scheduled time. Participants must attend the whole class each day to receive a certificate of attendance and CE credits. No partial credit available.
BIOLOGICAL STATEMENTS
Jeffrey Guenzel, MA, LPC, DIR-Expert: Jeffrey Guenzel, MA, LPC, DIR-Expert, is the Chief Executive Officer of the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL) and Director of the DIR® Institute. He is a professional counselor and has worked as a psychotherapist for 30 years. He was formerly the Deputy Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Children and Families and Director of the New Jersey Division of Child Behavioral Health. He lectures and provides consultation throughout the United States and internationally on autism, child development, mental health, and program development
Gretchen Kamke, MS, OTR/L, DIR-Expert: Gretchen is a DIR-Expert works full-time for ICDL coaching parents and clinicians as they support their children and clients through their unique developmental journeys. Gretchen has advanced training in sensory integration and continues to have a passion for learning how individual differences affect the developmental process. She has worked in a variety of settings supporting others’ with increasing their meaningful participation and cultivating meaningful relationships.
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL AND NON-FINANCIAL RELATIONSHIPS:
The course content is focused on a specific product or service (DIRFloortime®) and there will be no mention of other products or services. ICDL does not receive any commercial support for the DIRFloortime certificate courses. If any commercial support is provided for a conference or event, it will be disclosed on the promotional material or webpage for that specific event.