Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Autism-friendly events and venues to enjoy with your child

These venues and events are created specifically for autistic people to enjoy. Usually, they are well planned and have lights, sounds and scents that are gentle for kids and adults on the spectrum.

Autism-friendly events and venues are particularly created for autistic children and their families. These events and venues are organized to help autistic people have a pleasant experience in the company of their loved ones. As we already know, people in the autism spectrum disorder usually go through sensory overloads that can cause meltdowns that make it difficult for them to enjoy specific activities. That is why these recreational alternatives were created.

What makes an event or venue “autism-friendly”?

Events and places for autistic people are usually trendy in metropolitan cities, like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Miami. However, there are many other places where families can enjoy with members of the spectrum.
From zoos, theaters, and cinemas, people are taking the time and effort to support people on the autism spectrum by modifying their public spaces. These modifications usually consist of: 

  • Lowering sounds and minimizing bright lights to avoid sensory assaults. 
  • Fewer rules when it comes to getting up and moving around or making noises.
  • Special shows and events created only for families with autistic members.

Others such as:
  • Less competitive (or non-competitive) sports leagues.
  • Small and less demanding classes, such as dance, yoga or swimming.

Autism-friendly venues and events bring a significant amount of benefits for autistic children and their families. Some of these benefits are:

  • These events and venues have prepared staff, ready and willing to help your autistic child accommodate. They are also well-prepared to deal with certain sensory issues or anxieties attacks that might happen during the event.
  • Autism-friendly events are created and designed to be easy-going for both parents and children.
  • These events are ideal to unite parents and siblings who rarely go out with their autistic relative.
  • Parents will likely be less anxious or stressed because other families that understand they will surround them.

Autism Speaks share on their web page an autism-friendly event finder. There you can discover plenty of events and venues depending on your location. You can find more information here.

Autism-friendly events and venues are created to help increase acceptance and understanding of the Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Autism Soccer usually performs activities focused on soccer that help these autistic children to develop socially, physically, and emotionally in the company of other children with the spectrum and with volunteers and staff prepared and willing to help. For more information, do not hesitate and contact us in social media.



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Tuesday, February 27, 2018

¡Hora de los cuentacuentos!

Los niños jamás dejarán de ser niños, y aunque todos sean distintos ¿qué niño no disfruta de los cuentos? 

A la hora de hablar de niños con autismo, el factor más importante a tomar en cuenta es que siguen siendo niños. Y tal como cualquier otro pequeño, muchos de sus gustos y preferencias los delatan. Por esta razón, muchas de las terapias están relacionadas con actividades atractivas para su edad. Ante esto, nos encontramos con un sinfín de posibilidades en cuanto a terapias y estrategias se refiere. Una de ellas tiene que ver con estimular a los niños a través de historias, cuentos y fábulas. ¿Te interesa saber más al respecto? ¡Continúa leyendo!

¿Por qué contar cuentos?

En principio, habrá opiniones divididas con respecto a contar cuentos a niños con autismo. Sólo debemos aclarar que la intención de esto es crear motivación a través de un proceso lúdico y creativo que se puede convertir en una fuente inagotable de información para los más pequeños. Contar un cuento a un niño con autismo, no será una tarea sencilla, pero tampoco será imposible. Para estos casos, se recomienda hacerlo siempre a través de la técnica motora, intentando dramatizar al pie de la letra lo que el cuento relata. Este tipo de actividades hacen al niño protagonista de una historia a la que puede reaccionar de la forma que considere adecuada, según las sensaciones que experimente. Hacer al niño partícipe de una dinámica como esta, le abre una puerta al mundo que nosotros conocemos, donde la imaginación y las emociones cobran vida a través del estímulo del cuento.

Debemos considerar también que, al hablar de comunicación, el lenguaje no verbal revela incluso más que el lenguaje verbal. Para los niños que viven con la condición del autismo, la comunicación no verbal es natural, por eso nuestra intención debe ser contar un cuento maravilloso haciendo uso de nuestro cuerpo. Moviendo desde nuestros pies hasta la punta de nuestra nariz, con el único objetivo de crear la situación ideal para que nuestro niño pueda sentirse parte de la maravillosa historia.

Es necesario realizar adaptaciones al cuento que deseemos contar, para que sea conciso, directo, pero igual de entretenido. Puede ser una tarea sencilla, sólo extrayendo el esqueleto del cuento y dándole la forma más simple: introducción, nudo y cierre. Por supuesto, al tratarse de una actividad casi teatral, hay que tomar en cuenta las modificaciones a realizar en relación a la entonación de cada línea. Será de gran ayuda a la hora de abordar al niño y hacerlo parte de la historia.

¿Cómo contar un cuento a un niño con autismo?

¡Los niños con autismo no dejan de ser niños! Y los cuentacuentos creen fielmente en que el arte de tocar al público, tiene que ver principalmente con conocerlo. Para contar un cuento a un niño con autismo es necesario conocer el autismo. Por supuesto, esto será lo que nos permitirá formarnos una idea de cuál es la mejor manera de relatar nuestra historia.

¡Olvídate de los libros! Cuenta un cuento de la forma más natural posible, dedícate a observar a tu público, aunque se trate de un solo niño. Es importante que veas sus reacciones, que las detalles y que encuentres lo que produce reacciones positivas y lo sigas haciendo a lo largo de tu cuento. Los niños con autismo son auténticos aprendices visuales, por lo que todos tus recursos deben ser visualmente llamativos. Conviértete en el personaje que deseas que él imagine. Conviértete en el lobo que intenta engañar a la Caperucita Roja, o en el príncipe que despertó a la Bella Durmiente.

¡Canta, baila, cuenta! Y no lo olvides: el autismo no lo priva de ser un niño. Aprende más sobre la condición siguiéndonos en nuestras redes sociales. Sé parte de nuestra comunidad virtual y únete a nuestro plan. ¡Nada es imposible si se desea con el corazón! En Autism Soccer deseamos que la información que les ofrecemos sirva de ayuda y estímulo para cada una de las personas que desean ayudar a nuestros niños. ¡Te esperamos en nuestras redes sociales!
Conoce las herramientas necesarias para ser el mejor cuentacuentos.



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Monday, February 26, 2018

Airplanes and children with autism: make it a pleasant experience

Traveling with an autistic child might be a challenge, it requires planning and patience to achieve success.

Traveling by air with kids can be difficult since they can feel very uncomfortable with the length of the flight and the plane noises. Children love places where they can run, jump, play and even lay down to take a short nap, but an airplane might not be the most comfortable place to do such things. For many families, air travel can be a little stressful. But when it comes to traveling with children with autism spectrum, traveling can be a major challenge.
Today Autism Soccer is sharing some tips to try and make air travel a pleasant experience for your special kids.

Speak up

This step is one of the most important in order to have a good flying experience. When booking a flight, call the airline and mention your child’s condition. Many airlines have policies to help people with specific disabilities and are willing to make the aircraft comfortable for their needs. When arriving at the gate, is a good idea to tell the flight attendant that your child has ASD and explain why is a good idea to board first, getting settled in the seats early can make the whole flight easier.

Pay for what matters

If your kids are happy, you will be happy too. If your child likes the window seat, pay the extra fee to get it. In the long run, it’ll be money well spent, and you’ll be calmed and relaxed because your child is having a good time.

Plan for the worst

Better safe than sorry. Plan for situations that might not even happen. Pack a few of your child’s favorite toys, favorite snacks, water bottles, some change of clothes if an accident happens when eating or drinking beverages and lollipops or candies that can actually help if his/her ears start bothering. If your child is into iPad or a gaming device, bring it along with a charger that can be used on the plane.

Communicate
It’s a good idea to introduce yourself and your child to the person who sits in front of you and illustrate his/her condition. Explain to them that you’ll try to keep your child content during the flight, but ask for tolerance because it’s hard for your both of you. When doing this, people are more understanding, can actually help and understand better what's going on.

Try to plan everything before booking a flight.

Others suggestions are:

  • Take someone with you for support:
  • Take a friendly-face that can help you with your child during the flight, having a friend or someone close there to help you will be appreciated, especially for stretching your legs and taking a walk around the airport.
  • Be flexible:
  • You may have planned for different entertaining places like park or beaches, or other touristic places, but changes in routine for your autistic child can be a little difficult and can lead to meltdowns. Try to understand and be supportive. Be patient and give some love and help your child with the difficulties he may face.

If planned correctly, you can successfully have a pleasant flight with your child. Remember, try to walk in your child’s shoes to understand their needs and support them in every way possible.

For more content about the Autism Spectrum Disorder, facts, and general information about the topic, make sure to follow our social media and keep reading our blog. Autism Soccer is here to help autistic children develop safely and offer them support to achieve success!



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Friday, February 23, 2018

Learning Soccer: What It Can Do for Your Autistic Child?

Your child will love to experience soccer in a fun way.

Autism Spectrum Disorders are characterized by challenges in many social interactions, communication difficulties and a usual tendency to engage in repetitive actions. Children under the spectrum usually have a timid behavior and are generally taken as being introvert kids.
These difficulties, including sensory sensitivity, are usually manifested by delayed language development, problems in understanding and using non-verbal communication such as facial expressions or gestures, complications in forming and sustaining friendships and sensitivity to loud noises, bright lights, and strong scents.

That’s why soccer is a great sport, because it can help improve your child’s motor skills, strength, coordination and some other aspects like self confidence. Since Soccer is a teamwork sport, it enables your child to work on his social skills and communications with his or her teammates as well, it is a great option to face the spectrum with different and effective tools.

Here are some of the reasons why soccer is a good sport for your autistic child to play:

Motor skills development
  • Soccer is a great sport for helping in the development and further improvement of motor skills in autistic children. Soccer requires a certain amount of concentration when playing because the child has to focus on the ball while concentrating on his body movements.
  • This sport is an ideal activity to help children develop motor skills because it requires practice that, with the help of a coach who teaches step by step the movements, provides the necessary help in the development and improvement of these skills. Also, soccer practice will help with the child gain strength and coordination with the ball.

Social skills and communication, teamwork and cooperation
  • Practicing sports can help develop the ability to cooperate with others, and this will grant major success with the child's relationships. Since soccer is a sport that has a coach looking after everything that’s going on, he will motivate the children to work as a team to make the plays, instead of promoting solo performances.
  • Soccer also helps to develop social skills and establishing good communications because the child will need to interact with his or her teammates in order to achieve the desired play.

Self Esteem and confidence
  • For a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder, practicing a sport can be very meaningful and bring positive aspects in the self-esteem and confidence fields. When playing soccer the child can, as said before, interact with other children and at the same time this will allow him or her to get to know their self better and improve their confidence and self-esteem.
  • Since soccer is an activity that requires control of the ball and the entire body, self-esteem plays an important role because as the child starts growing comfortable with his or her body and his surroundings, it will allow him or her to perform different tasks correctly when playing. When playing team sports, confidence plays a fundamental role.

Children can learn social skills. They can also learn how to control their impulses and deal with stress.


Autism Soccer is a project created to help autistic children develop happily and in a safe environment by practicing a sport that can be beneficial to their health and ease up the love for sports. For more information about the project and how to enroll your child in this activities, do not hesitate to contact us through our social networks or website.



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Thursday, February 22, 2018

Una aplicación para aprender Día a día

Apóyate en la tecnología para estimular el desarrollo de tu pequeño.

La tecnología cada vez apuesta más por la utilidad que pueda prestar a diversas condiciones psicológicas. En esta oportunidad, vemos cómo desarrolladores y empresas han dedicado su tiempo al estudio y exposición de herramientas tecnológicas que pueden contribuir al desarrollo de los niños con TEA. Como bien sabemos, esta condición hace un poco más complicado el proceso de aprendizaje en los más pequeños. Es por ello que queremos compartir con ustedes información importante sobre una aplicación para smartphones capaz de facilitar este proceso, tanto para los padres como para los niños.

¡Vive Día a día!

Desarrollada por BJ Adaptaciones e impulsada por la Fundación Orange, “Día a día” es una aplicación que ya está disponible para los sistemas operativos iOS y Android. Es un diario visual pensado, especialmente, para la comunidad de personas que viven con autismo. Es para los padres, familiares e incluso para los jóvenes que viven con esta condición. Haciendo honor al aprendizaje visual, esta aplicación es amigable e intuitiva. Ofrece diversas opciones de personalización y todas están a la mano del usuario, de forma que este pueda familiarizarse rápidamente con la herramienta. Además, no hay necesidad de usar tutoriales, manuales, o de invertir más tiempo del que realmente requiere.

Una aplicación amigable y sencilla de utilizar

“Día a día” consta de un calendario que hace la función de un diario o agenda para llevar registro de cada una de las actividades previstas por parte de los padres. La aplicación es didáctica, ya que permite añadir textos, fotografías, imágenes e incluso videos como parte de la documentación de la rutina del niño. Asimismo, incluye una función que permite compartir los datos añadidos a través de un correo electrónico. Esto puede ser de mucha utilidad a la hora de compartir con especialistas lo que se ha trabajado en un plazo determinado. También permite realizar copias de seguridad, para tener constancia del progreso del niño y saber qué áreas de conocimiento deben ser más estimuladas.

Esta herramienta reconoce las necesidades individuales de cada niño y de cada familia. Por esta razón, BJ Adaptaciones desarrolla una aplicación de apoyo, que es sencilla y práctica, pero sumamente útil. Podemos ver una vez más cómo la tecnología presta sus avances para contribuir a una causa importante.

Esta aplicación, “Día a día”, es ideal para todos los padres que quieran documentar y tener a la mano en todo momento el progreso de su hijo. ¿Habrías pensado que una aplicación podría ayudarte con el desarrollo de tu hijo? ¡Pruébala! Síguenos en nuestras redes sociales y conoce otras herramientas relacionadas con el autismo. Nuestra intención en Autism Soccer es ayudarte tanto como sea posible; creemos en las capacidades de nuestros niños. ¡El cielo es el límite!
Familiarízate con las alternativas que la tecnología te brinda al momento de afrontar el autismo.



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Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Five Daily Activities for Autistic Children to Have a Healthy Routine

Help them create a stable environment to develop themselves healthily and comfortably. 

Sometimes, it’s hard for parents to plan the perfect routine for their kids since they might find certain activities boring or dislike them completely. But finding likeable activities for autistic children is not that hard. There are many activities that are great for developing their skills and communication.

What are the best daily activities for an autistic child?

People generally think that a child with autism can’t live a normal life, but they can. Daily activities are a bridge to the world for children with autism. Of course, since each and every child is different, every kid has his own interests, that's why daily activities may vary..

Since the most part of autism diagnosis occur at an early age, some of these activities work as well as therapies for toddlers. Such activities are:

  • Painting with their fingers: this is a great activity because it helps children to get familiar with colors. Practicing this activity helps in the improvement of the child’s knowledge of their surroundings, which is beneficial for their development. Painting either with paintbrush or with bare hands is great for them to grow.
  • Boxes and toys: for this activity, place your child’s hand in a box and wait for him/her to identify the toy inside. This is a great activity for helping them increase their abilities to perceive their environment, while simultaneously helping them to develop their sensory skills.
  • Bubble therapy: soap bubbles are a very friendly tool for games, that will also help the child develop their motor skills. Whether the child is playing with siblings in the garden, in the park or even at bath time, pointing out and bursting the bubbles will help develop their motor skills while enjoying a cool game.
  • Songs and rhymes: besides being a fun activity, singing improves their speaking skills. Children will be more interested in this game and will begin to learn new words gradually. A good idea is to try to make poems and turn them into songs that can be used to practice their new vocabulary.

It’s important to help your child commit to the activities of daily life because they mean a challenge, and sometimes they promote an interest in learning. Other activities such as solving a simple puzzle and role games have a significant impact on their growth too. Remember to be patient and give love and support to your child; they are both very important for their development.

Soccer is also a good activity to help autistic children to develop happily, swing in them a love for sports that will last a lifetime. Autism Soccer wants to help and support children to develop their skills and social relationships. For more information, contact us through our social networks or website.
If you teach your child early on to set regular habits, they'll develop confidence and responsibility.



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