One of the most important yet difficult skills for children with autism to learn is effective social interaction. This book introduces social skills programs to parents of preschool- and kindergarten-aged children diagnosed with one of the Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD), including Autistic Disorder, Asperger's Disorder, and PDD: Not Otherwise Specified. The book is based on the authors' decades of clinical experience using Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), a proven educational method, to teach social skills at home and school. This book focuses on four broad topics: play skills; the language of social skills; understanding another person's perspective; functioning in an inclusive classroom. This book helps parents to work with their child's strengths to improve social skills. Following the suggestions and exercises in this book, parents can teach children to: pretend-play, use toys appropriately, know when to use conventional responses like -- excuse me -- tell jokes, recognise that others' feelings and thoughts are different from their own, and initiate social interaction with peers. Included are tips for using games, modelling, rewards, role play, videos, activity schedules, and social stories to teach social skills and make the learning experience fun for parents and children. A case study of one family's efforts and successes provides a real-life example that's informative and reassuring. Appendices listing resources such as books, games, and activities give parents additional material to explore.

This book has been replaced by Adolescents at Risk: Home-Based Family Therapy and School-Based Intervention, ISBN 978-1-4625-3653-5.

A practical guide to building valuable career connections—through tools you already have and people you already know Success in life is more than having goals and skills. You need connections. And to get connections, you need to Reach Out—fearlessly, strategically, and every day of the work week. For many, this is a daunting and confusing task. Reach Out shows readers how to use social media and simple digital tools to begin building and expanding the number of people they know. Author Molly Beck explains how to: •Establish and strengthen your digital presence •Develop career goals that Reaching Out can help you obtain •Think strategically about who you have already met, who you could strengthen a relationship with, and who your current connections know •Determine who to Reach Out to and push past common networking fears to do it • Apply step-by-step instructions on how to craft email and social media messages to those you want to connect with •Optimize your efforts by managing both your time and your inbox The book features personal stories on networking from some of today’s top thought leaders. Studies, statistics, and real world examples illustrate the key concepts of Reaching Out. Whether you’re just starting out, changing jobs, or well-established and just eager to know more people, Reaching Out will help you turn career dreams into professional success by helping you connect with others who can put you on the fast track.

With clarity and depth characteristic of the classics, this spiritual bestseller from the author of The Return of the Prodigal Son lays out a perceptive and insightful plan for the spiritual life and achieving the ultimate goal of that life—union with God. “One of the world’s greatest spiritual writers.”—Christianity Today Henri Nouwen views our spiritual “ascent” as evolving in three movements: The first, from loneliness to solitude, focuses on the spiritual life as it relates to the experience of our own selves. The second, from hostility to hospitality, explores our spiritual life as a life for others. The final movement, from illusion to prayer, offers penetrating thoughts on the most mysterious relationship of all: our relationship with God. Throughout, Nouwen emphasizes that the more we understand (and not simply deny) our inner struggles, the more we will be able to embrace a prayerful and genuine life that is also open to others’ needs. Reaching Out is a rich book to be read, reread, pondered, and shared. It “does not offer answers or solutions,” Nouwen cautions, “but is written in the conviction that the quest for an authentic Christian spirituality is worth the effort and the pain, since in the midst of this quest we can find signs offering hope, courage, and confidence.”

“This sequel to Breaking Through and The Circuit again brings to the forefront the daily trials of poor immigrant families . . . compelling and honest.”—School Library Journal From the perspective of the young adult he was then, Francisco Jiménez describes the challenges he faced in his efforts to continue his education. During his college years, the very family solidarity that allowed Francisco to survive as a child is tested. Not only must he leave his family behind when he goes to Santa Clara University, but while Francisco is there, his father abandons the family and returns to Mexico. This is the story of how Francisco coped with poverty, with his guilt over leaving his family financially strapped, with his self-doubt about succeeding academically, and with separation. Once again his telling is honest, true, and inspiring A Smithsonian Magazine Best Book of the Year “Rooted in the past, Jiménez’s story is also about the continuing struggle to make it in America, not only for immigrant kids but also for those in poor families. Never melodramatic or self-important, the spare episodes will draw readers with the quiet daily detail of work, anger, sorrow, and hope.”—Booklist (starred review) “In this eloquent, transfixing account, Jiménez again achieves a masterful addition to the literature of the memoir.”—Smithsonian Magazine “No one who reads these life stories will forget them. Jiménez reaches out to let us walk in his shoes, feel his pain and pride, joy and sorrow, regrets and hope.”—Sacramento Bee

When children's communication skills lag, all areas of learning and socialisation are affected. This book describes how an ABA approach can help children aged 2 to 10 years who have significant communication problems -- difficulty making requests, perseverative speech, a lack of fluency in conversational exchanges, trouble reading others' signals, and more -- learn to understand and use speech and language. Enriched by case studies, this straightforward and information-packed book examines using the Applied Verbal Behaviour (AVB) method to tackle a wide variety of communication problems typical of children with autism. In a nutshell, AVB consists of observing and analysing a child's communication behaviours, breaking them down into functions, and then teaching and reinforcing needed skills. AVB strategies and the other methods profiled (PECS, sign language, video modelling, scripts, social stories, etc.,) can greatly boost a child's understanding of verbal and non-verbal communication, and help him improve his expressive abilities. The authors provide helpful suggestions on how parents can support this process and teach and reinforce communication skills at home. With this book parents and professionals can help young kids, both those with and without speech, expand their communication abilities and opportunities, enabling greater inclusion and progress in daily activities.