Hello, and welcome to Our Week Online. This week Ireland became the second country in the world to declare a climate and biodiversity emergency. It’s safe to say that the deputies involved would not have been so moved without the tireless advocacy and activism of a young autistic woman, and her millions of followers around …
Tomorrow evening, Sinn Féin will be submitting a Private Member’s Bill to establish an All-Party Oireachtas Committee on Autism to mark World Autism Day. This is the first of its kind in Ireland and calls for the development and implementation of an interdepartmental Autism Empowerment Strategy. This Strategy will seek to assess current shortcomings from …
Last week, Education and Skills Minister Joe McHugh TD stated that his Department would be appealing a High Court ruling over a Leaving Cert student whose points were incorrectly added up. Justice Humphreys found that “in the modern world, it is difficult and in some cases impossible to earn one’s livelihood without access to higher …
Welcome to Our Week Online. Don’t know what it is about December, but the autism and disability stories just keep coming. That, or we just like reading them! This week the Department of Health published two reports, one on the prevalence of autism and another reviewing and making recommendations on autism services, with a view to publishing an …
AsIAm is hosting twenty four Community Support Seminar talks around the country over the next twelve months. These events are for the autism community, on issues important to the community, informed by the community. All of these events will be free to attend, but places must be booked on our Eventbrite page (see below). All Community Support events …
Community Support – Autism and the Law, RCSI, DublinRead More »
Day #16 of our #AsIAmChallenge is about preparing for autism-friendly interviews. Businesses have begun to recognise the valuable skills that autistic employees can bring to the workplace. A meticulous attention to detail, excellent memories and task-driven minds are traits any employer would love to have! However, entering the workforce remains a huge challenge for many …
Sensory rooms or quiet spaces are designated areas where autistic people can use to stim or retreat to when feeling overstimulated. The space itself is designed to aid in a person’s key life skills, chiefly with their communication, coordination, self-organisation and sensory-management. Autistic children often make use of such facilities in their schools, but they …
Social stories are short guides of a particular situation, event or activity. They include specific information about what to expect in that situation and why. Day 14 of our #AsIAmChallenge is about supporting autistic people to prepare for social situations by creating “a social story”. Autistic people often find it challenging to read social situations or …
Create a “Social story” for your business or organisationRead More »
Day#13 of our #AsIAmChallenge is about using Plain English when communicating. We often think of autism’s major difficulties with communication and language as an almost exclusively childhood problem that is eventually resolved. It’s true that many on the spectrum do learn social skills as they mature, enabling them to make friends and build positive relationships …
Day#12 of our #AsIAmChallenge is about being aware of people’s sensory needs. Autistic individual’s brains often struggle to process the information we receive about our surroundings from our senses. If there is too much stimulation, it can cause serious anxiety and even meltdowns. By being aware of one another’s needs however, we can all make …
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