Conferences

Day D - Information and Agenda

Organized Thinking: Dealing with the Dreaded Homework Assignment and Everything Else a Student Wants to Postpone!

Course Outline, Objectives, Speakers, Agenda, Contact Info

Course Outline

The vast majority of students with social cognitive deficits have immense difficulty developing organizational skills to manage the increasing complex expectations of life in upper elementary, middle, high school and into their adult years.

Organizational skills are a set of executive functioning skills that develop through experience and minimal prompting for neurotypical students. These same skills can be mammoth overwhelming tasks for even our most intellectually sharp students with social cognitive deficits. The impact of poor organizational skills is immense; it affects one's outcome in school as well as at home and work. Weak organizational skills are poorly understood and often written off as pure laziness on the part of an academically bright student. Relatively little support is given to teach students to develop these critical skills that carry over into their future jobs and home-life as adults.

This workshop focuses on executive functioning skills and related practical strategies to track and tackle homework and other deadline-based duties. We explore two types of organizational skills: static and dynamic, and then break apart dynamic organizational skills into 10 concrete steps. Each step is integral in the completion of a "homework assignment." An educational strategy aligned with each step of the process will be discussed and an extensive take-home handout will be provided to support this teaching method.

The Organized Thinking Day D workshop has been enthusiastically received by parents, counselors, psychologists, speech language pathologists and all persons who teach students in both regular and special education. As with most Social Thinking workshops, hands-on activities help audience members relate their own experiences to their students' and children's challenges. This workshop is not a general description of the issues. Instead, we guide the audience to actively explore key concepts during the workshop, appreciate the pivotal role they play in educating their students/children, and brainstorm ways to create programs in their own schools and homes. We provide explicit strategies to help them teach these complex ideas once the workshop ends!

While this workshop was designed to help understand executive functioning challenges in students with social cognitive deficits it has proven to be relevant for all students and young adults. Mainstream teachers have embraced this information and used it widely in their regular education classrooms! This information is cutting edge for all populations!

Intended audiences: teachers; speech-language pathologists; therapists (MFTs; LCSWs; OTs; PTs); autism specialists; clinical, educational, developmental psychologists; clinical and educational administrators; physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, particularly those in developmental practice; social workers; paraprofessionals; parents and other family members and caregivers of students with social thinking challenges.

Populations to be discussed: School-age students  and adults who have social and communication difficulties, including but not limited to those related to high-functioning autism, PDD-NOS, Asperger Syndrome, NLD, ADHD and undiagnosed challenges. Information presented concentrates on students with near normal to far above normal verbal intelligence (verbal IQs above 70). Most strategies focus on school-age children and adults, although the information is helpful for those living and working with younger children.

Please scroll to the bottom of this page for the agenda.

Objectives for Day D:

1. Participants will increase awareness of their own organizational structures so they can better offer support to others.
2. Participants will be able to define the difference between static and dynamic organizational skills.
3. Participants will be able to define a strategy for helping students explore their own motivation when approaching complex tasks.
4. Participants will be able to describe the 10-step model to understand the deeper organizational skills and support each step with an instructional strategy.
5. Participants will be able to write three IEP goals that address these deeper organizational issues.
6. Participants will be able to describe the importance of time prediction and how analog clocks teach this concept differently than do digital clocks.

STTSC Members Available to Present Day D:

Michelle Garcia Winner

Stephanie Madrigal

Pamela Crooke

AGENDA - Times are Approximate

7:45-8:30
Register and use appropriate social skills to chat and find a seat! The conference begins at 8:30

8:30-10:30
Introcution to executive functioning issues in adolescents and adults. Define and discuss static versus dynamic organization

10:30-10:40
Break

10:40-12:00
Discuss each of the 10 Steps of the Organized Thinking Model

12:00 to 12:40
Break for Lunch

12:40-2:20
Continued discussion: 10 Steps of the Organized Thinking Model

2:20-2:30
Break

2:30-3:30
IEP goal writing related to organizational skills

If you have questions, please contact:

Social Thinking
3031 Tisch Way, Suite 800
San Jose, CA 95128

Phone: (408) 557-8595 ext. 302 Fax (408) 557-8594
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
website: www.socialthinking.com