https://michaelsjourney.org Michael's Journey Sat, 05 Feb 2022 23:32:05 +0000 https://michaelsjourney.org en https://michaelsjourney.org/Home Mon, 15 Nov 2021 22:16:36 +0000 Michael's Journey https://michaelsjourney.org/Home Michael’s Journey is a non-profit organization founded in 2012 by the Hart family. Inspired by their son, Michael Hart V, Jen and Mike worked with the School of Education, Counseling &amp; Human Development and the South Dakota State University Foundation to develop a regionally renowned annual autism awareness conference for early childhood education students, educators, and childcare providers. ︎&nbsp; &nbsp; ︎&nbsp; &nbsp; ︎ <img width="535" height="600" width_o="535" height_o="600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8db841fd2ea8d9625d18debae13da1a844c6a003716e98f18b343e02d0ff2101/Asset-9-1.png" data-mid="132554838" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/535/i/8db841fd2ea8d9625d18debae13da1a844c6a003716e98f18b343e02d0ff2101/Asset-9-1.png" /> https://michaelsjourney.org/About Mon, 15 Nov 2021 22:16:37 +0000 Michael's Journey https://michaelsjourney.org/About MICHAEL’S JOURNEY WAS FOUNDED IN 2012 BY THE HART FAMILY. When Mike and Jen Hart’s son, Michael, was diagnosed with autism at three years old, they started looking for ways to support his growth and searched for resources to help them build their toolkit around raising a neuro-divergent child. They learned about the significance of early intervention in autism, and noticed through their own work and education background that there was a lack of resources dedicated within early childhood education programs when it came to learning about kids with disabilities—especially children on the autism spectrum. While Jen, as a counselor in the local school district, knew of some tools and techniques, Mike realized that his graduate education in counseling and human development barely scratched the surface. From there, the Hart family started setting their own milestones and shaping what would be meaningful to them as they raised their two kids, Michael and Kenlyn. That led to them reaching out to the South Dakota State University Foundation about their interest in investing in something that would create autism awareness and equip pre-service educators with tools and techniques to support children who were on the spectrum. This led to them setting up an endowment fund at the SDSU Foundation and an annual autism awareness conference, Michael’s Journey, through the university’s School of Education, Counseling &amp; Human Development. Since 2012, Michael’s Journey—the annual autism awareness conference at SDSU—has hosted over 500 early childhood education students and educators. The conference has equipped its attendees with resources from renowned scholars and significant research in the field, as well as invited parents of kids with autism to share their journeys. <img width="696" height="518" width_o="696" height_o="518" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b825af6506279f9da9a407e2a222abf8dffaf231518cd86ad5944fe190c16306/Asset-13-1.png" data-mid="132573761" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/696/i/b825af6506279f9da9a407e2a222abf8dffaf231518cd86ad5944fe190c16306/Asset-13-1.png" /> <img width="1235" height="664" width_o="1235" height_o="664" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a99559256507a05e7c15777b54c260e46c9513116262cc6ba7bfadc16b54286e/Asset-11-1.png" data-mid="132566563" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/a99559256507a05e7c15777b54c260e46c9513116262cc6ba7bfadc16b54286e/Asset-11-1.png" /> https://michaelsjourney.org/The-Conference Sat, 05 Feb 2022 21:50:01 +0000 Michael's Journey https://michaelsjourney.org/The-Conference AN ANNUAL AUTISM AWARENESS CONFERENCE FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION STUDENTS. IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION AND THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, COUNSELING &amp; HUMAN DEVELOPMENT. &nbsp; Michael’s Journey was founded in 2012 to support pre-service educators start an informed journey as they shaped their future in early childhood education. In partnership with the School of Education, Counseling &amp; Human Development, the conference has been able to share practical, important and implementable strategies and techniques for pre-professional educators to support kids with autism and their families. The Michael’s Journey Autism Awareness Conference is hosted at South Dakota State University every March, and is currently open to early childhood education majors at the School of Education, Counseling &amp; Human Development. The schedule for the conference includes an introductory speaker on autism, followed by the keynote, and ends with four breakout sessions including one with a parent panel. “The conference has given us time to dive deeper into the topic with our students. The conference really helps equip them with diverse, real-world skills to work and connect with kids with autism in their future classrooms,” says Dr. Mary Bowne, Professor, School of Education, Counseling &amp; Human Development at South Dakota State University. Every year the conference is attended by 80-100 early childhood education majors who go on to be K-8 educators or daycare providers in the region. South Dakota State University is the only educational institution in the area that offers a degree in Early Childhood Education. “Not only are they getting expert knowledge, but they're getting to hear about experiences from parents and they're getting to hear about teachers who have experienced children in the classroom, and things that the teachers have done within their classrooms as well,” says Dr. Bowne. “It's really given them a bigger toolbox of ideas, of knowledge; a better understanding of what the autism spectrum is—it’s completely different for each single child—and made them aware you can do different things to help each child and that there's a lot of resources out there.” <img width="889" height="800" width_o="889" height_o="800" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e5a3a38803144a91676a9161e286340ef6235adc22ee5af1e663990748f9af80/Asset-14-1.png" data-mid="132580592" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/889/i/e5a3a38803144a91676a9161e286340ef6235adc22ee5af1e663990748f9af80/Asset-14-1.png" /> https://michaelsjourney.org/Testimonials Sat, 05 Feb 2022 23:32:05 +0000 Michael's Journey https://michaelsjourney.org/Testimonials “Michael’s Journey autism awareness conferences are such a valuable experience for all of the educators involved. For me as a Mentor Teacher, it provides a way for me to refresh my understanding of children and families living with autism so I can better support them in the classroom. In reality, the strategies and conversations really help all children, not just children with autism. However, I feel most energized and optimistic when I see the teacher candidates come back from the conference. They tend to look at their classroom with new eyes and work to implement some of the strategies and techniques with the children they are working with in our program. They also share how much they enjoyed talking with families to get their perspectives. Working with families is something that they are nervous about at this point in their career and I feel they have a better understanding that they need to get to know each individual child and family personally in order to create a plan in the classroom. This is something that truly means a lot to me because I feel this is one of the most important aspects for educators to be successful. Thank you for providing this opportunity!” —LAURA GLOEGE “Participating in the autism awareness conference when I was a student at SDSU was one of the most impactful experiences. The things I learned will stay with me as I begin my career as an educator. The thing I remember most were the stories we heard from parents. Hearing what the parents need from the teachers really resonated with me.” —MAGGIE STANWICK https://michaelsjourney.org/Resources Wed, 17 Nov 2021 01:16:22 +0000 Michael's Journey https://michaelsjourney.org/Resources RESOURCES FROM PARENTS, EDUCATORS &amp; EXPERTS SENSORY PROCESSING PATTERNS︎︎︎An interview with Dr. Lauren Little In her keynote at the 2022 Michael’s Journey Autism Awareness Conference, Lauren Little, PhD, OTR/L, spoke about sensory processing patterns in all of us and spent some time guiding us to self-reflect on our patterns to connect it back to how sensory modalities occur. Read our follow-up interview her. EMPATHY, SUPPORT &amp; COMMUNITY︎︎︎A discussion with parents During the 2022 Michael’s Journey Autism Awareness Conference, four parents sat down with pre-service early childhood educators and shared their journeys as caregivers of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. [Article coming soon] MICHAEL’S JOURNEY SO FAR︎︎︎An interview with Mike &amp; Jen Hart Coming soon. https://michaelsjourney.org/Contact-Info Sat, 05 Feb 2022 21:21:03 +0000 Michael's Journey https://michaelsjourney.org/Contact-Info CONTACT INFO MICHAEL’S JOURNEY To contact Mike &amp; Jen Hart, email mike@pickfresh.com <img width="535" height="600" width_o="535" height_o="600" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8db841fd2ea8d9625d18debae13da1a844c6a003716e98f18b343e02d0ff2101/Asset-9-1.png" data-mid="132582925" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/535/i/8db841fd2ea8d9625d18debae13da1a844c6a003716e98f18b343e02d0ff2101/Asset-9-1.png" /> Our partners at South Dakota State University Foundation &amp; the School of Education, Counseling and Human Development are: KELI BOOKS keli.books@sdstatefoundation.org Development Director College of Education and Human Sciences South Dakota State University Foundation DR. MARY BOWNE mary.bowne@sdstate.edu Professor &amp; ECE Coordinator School of Education, Counseling &amp; Human Development South Dakota State University https://michaelsjourney.org/Dr-Little-2022 Tue, 16 Nov 2021 02:30:43 +0000 Michael's Journey https://michaelsjourney.org/Dr-Little-2022 SENSORY PROCESSING PATTERNS ︎︎︎An interview with Dr. Lauren Little It was so interesting to me that you approached sensory processing in a general, everyday sense at the conference. You made attendees consider themselves and check in on how their sensory processing works at different levels. Why is this practice important in how you approach ASD and why is it important for early childhood educators to have this knowledge and approach? We experience the world through our senses. So it's really important to me that we consider sensory processing from a broad, population based way and view the similarities of our experiences before labeling those with ASD as "other" or "atypical" or, even worse, "dysfunctional". Individuals with ASD don't have deficits in sensory processing, they have differences. Those differences may be more pronounced than the sensory processing preferences and aversions that you and I may show, but they are nonetheless differences. I think it's vital for practitioners (all individuals that work with and educate those with ASD) to consider how sensory processing looks for all of their students, not just those with ASD. For example, a teacher that is really bothered by the student that is clicking their pen, moving in their seat, or making popping noises with their mouth - that teacher may be sensory sensitive and not understand that it's their own sensory processing preferences that are contributing to them being bothered. On the other hand, a teacher that is a bystander that has a sensory seeking student may not even notice the popping noises! Additionally, we all structure our daily lives to meet our sensory processing preferences and aversions (e.g., I like quiet, structured workspaces because I'm a sensor) - if we can better understand how we do this for ourselves and how those around us do this, we can be better educators and advocates for our students so they can learn how to structure their own environments and tasks to meet their sensory needs. I heard a lot of things about the significance of early intervention when it comes to ASD. What are the big benefits of early intervention or what impact does early intervention make in the life of someone with ASD? What if in those early years, it's harder for parents and caretakers to see the signs of ASD? Early intervention is meant to build family capacity among those with developmental conditions, including ASD. When we talk about family capacity, it's about making sure that families can structure daily routines that are sustainable and enjoyable for their family and that there are embedded learning opportunities for children throughout the day. So, for example, the research shows that it's not children's "symptoms" that necessarily pose the greatest challenges for families - instead, it is the daily "hassles". Getting your child out the door in the morning when you have to be at work at a specific time, getting your child to sleep at night, making sure that your child is eating healthy foods - early intervention is meant to support families to navigate these types of everyday activities so that families can create routines that are meaningful and satisfying. As for the second part of your question - sometimes it is harder for parents to recognize early signs of ASD. If we can structure our interventions to meet parents where they are and support them to build capacity (they are going to be the parents of that child forever), then we can serve as supports as they navigate the autism journey. Why is it important to equip early childhood educators with the knowledge of ASD and tools/techniques to build inclusive environments for kids with ASD? It's important to equip early childhood educators with knowledge of ASD so they understand the differences between autism and behavior. We never want educators to label children with behavioral disorders or conduct disorders, if the child is showing behaviors consistent with autism. Some research shows that black and hispanic children are more likely to be labeled with behavioral disorders v. autism, so some implicit bias about behavior can come into play in educational settings as well. It's important that early childhood educators recognize signs of ASD so they can implement interventions that are appropriate for those with autism. I've heard (and maybe this is totally off the mark) that early childhood education programs at universities often don't have the bandwidth/resources to really dive into work around ASD/disability. With autism numbers growing, how important is it to have conferences or intensives like the one at SDSU for these future educators? I cannot speak to the capacity of early childhood education programs at universities but it's understandable that teachers have so much to learn that sometimes a deep dive into autism may be difficult to fit into a curriculum. You made a great point though - with numbers rising, it's vital that pre-service teachers at least learn the signs of ASD so they can understand how to work with their educational teams (e.g., speech, occupational, physical therapies) to design and implement interventions. SDSU hosted an amazing event for their pre-service teachers. As I said at the conference, I was a preschool teacher before going back to school to become an occupational therapist and I wish I would've had this conference and training - it would have helped me immensely.&nbsp; With the importance of inclusion of children with ASD, conferences like this can also support educators to understand how to best serve all students in their classroom. — Lauren Little, PhD, OTR/L, has a clinical background in occupational therapy and a PhD in Occupational Science. Dr. Little’s expertise is in intervention for families of children with neurodevelopmental conditions, including autism spectrum disorders (ASD). She has practiced occupational therapy in early intervention settings and has been involved in numerous research projects for young children with ASD. Dr. Little has conducted research on the efficacy of telehealth for families of young children with ASD, and is active in state and national organizations to promote access to intervention services for underserved families of children with developmental conditions.