Balancing Act
By: Maura Aguuilars
*This article originally appeared in the Spring 2006 Company Newsletter.
Our curriculum utilizes a combination of different theoretical frameworks to help children with Pervasive Developmental disorders receive the best possible treatment.
One approach we commonly incorporate in our programming is based upon Floor-Time interventions. We use Floor-Time to recreate a dynamic state of equilibrium for a child who has been diagnosed with Autism, Aspergers or other Pervasive Development Disorders-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS).
One of the main goals of play therapy is for the child to select the game, direct the action, control the conversation, and take the lead in what you do together.
Our use of Floor-Time helps each child develop their individuality and learn to make choices which helps counter balance the more structured components of our program.
According to Piaget, a child develops schemes in order to assimilate and accommodate for changes according to their developmental stage. He theorized that a child coexists with their environment in a state of equilibrium. This is, of course is until some sort of event or stimulus presents itself to alter that environment.
Children with special needs may have a type of magnified response to changes or stressful situations. This change disrupts the child’s present state of equilibrium and has the ability to create a problematic situation for both instructors and parents who provide ABA services.
For this reason, Floor-Time should be incorporated into a therapeutic setting. It facilitates the establishment of rapport with a child and builds a foundation for future work. Most professionals recognize rapport as a key feature of any intervention program. In fact, research has shown that rapport alone can be the sole reason many clients receiving psychological therapy begin to change.
There is no doubt that a structured ABA program is critical for recovery. However, with building a solid relationship including strong play and social emphasis, the help of trained professionals, perseverance, and consistency, a child with a developmental disorder may achieve their best possible outcome and a bright future.
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