How we got an Elf on the Shelf our autistic kids can cope with

December came and so did a new comment from our youngest, Jane. “Sarah and Julian both have a magical Elf on the Shelf that talks to Father Christmas.” After a few days of  ‘Elf on the Shelf this..’ and ‘Elf on the Shelf that..’ it became apparent that what Jane was really after was an Elf of her own. She even made a video to Santa on my phone that I found late on Monday night. But Elf on the Shelf is a bit difficult in our house.

Guest Post: The importance of enjoying play via @About_ASD

Hi, my name is Jade and I am delighted to be able to guest post here. I found Rainbows are too Beautiful through its linky series #spectrumsunday. I really love the mix of activity posts, opinions and information shared.  It is great when you can really relate to a blog post and recent post from Rainbows are too Beautiful about restrictive diets and iPad use are certainly close to home for me.

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Good day SEND & Spectrum Sunday linkers and welcome back to the place you can share and find blog posts about autism, mental health, education and anything related to autism and SEND parenting.  It's our last one before Christmas and the New Year so I hope you all have a great time.  Any posts on sensory play, autism, disabilities, mental health (parents or kids), education and anything else you want to write about, can all be added and shared here.

Could my kids use of technology help them when they are older?

I don't shy away from the amount of time my kids spend with tech.  There's no doubt that David uses his iPad for far more than simply entertainment.  Anthony too learns from playing his computer games.  But I wondered, could these also be the basis for helping them develop skills they need for the future?  Or what could be done to help them take advantage of their comfort with tech?

Helping my kids eat

Restricted diets.  Honestly, sometimes it can be depressing.  There's no medical reason why my boys can't eat things.  They are not allergic to anything (that I know of) and to most people it looks like I feed my kids the same food every day due to laziness. But it's not that.  I am in fact desperate to get them to eat a greater variety of foods.  If you are in the same boat, here's some of the ideas we have tried.

Four inclusive and supportive kids books for Christmas

Through no fault of their own, many kids books miss out on the opportunity to be inclusive.  Many writers draw on their own experiences when writing and creating stories, so it's maybe not a surprise.  But I've found a few books that show inclusion in their stories and support kids in being themselves.  And one of them is a great Christmas story so I'm giving a copy away in time for the big event.

How my autistic son talks about the trees as they lose their leaves

For the last month or so, Anthony has spent several journey's to school pointing out all the trees that are loosing their leaves.   "They are dying," he says. We have talked about the fact that it is more like the trees are going to sleep, but Anthony rejected this. To him the tree doesn't look any different by winter to when it looks when it is dead. Instead he thinks about it coming back to life in the spring. 

Autumn to Winter motor skills craft - making a Pine Cone Snowy Owl Family

Learn about the seasons, autumnal materials and animals by making our Pine Cone Snowy Owls  with this fun and easy craft that helps motor skills development too.

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It's getting cold and I'm piling on the layers! However you are doing, I'd love you to come share your SEND & autism posts with me here on our SEND and Spectrum Sunday linky - the place you can share and find blog posts about autism, mental health, education and anything related to autism and special educational needs and disabilities parenting.