Update on MOONDOG training event for MNers

[moondog]

Messmonster and I are very close to booking a venue having looked at various options in London. Messmonster has put in a huge amount of time and energy so thank you to her for that.
Date will be February 23rd.
Does anyone now have any particular requests or areas they wish to focus on? I will make note of them and do my best to deliver.
My colleague and I will be doing some sessions simultaneously to hopefully give you all an increased choice.
I'll keep an eye on this thread and post again very soon.

I'll get the ball rolling.This is my wish list.It's all the things I'd like to know more about, some of it may not even be appropriate for the day and of course, everyone else has to state their aims too.

My DD starts school in Sept so some of this is pertinent to that.

? Total communication strategies for non-verbal children - how do we optimise combination of sign/gesture/communication book

? ABA-based principles and programmes to develop cognitive skills

? Practical suggestions for working with and "educating" new school (MS with full-time 1:1). What training should I suggest new TA has to best help my DD (either at my own cost or theirs - assume good relationship with school and school open to training opportunities although probably not with an ABA label!) Optimising the relationship.

? Techniques/activities to extend attention to task

? Strategies for teaching non-verbal children to read - use of phonics and/ sight word recognition or combination of both (we've just started sight word recognition at home with some success).

? ABA for social skills and integration

? Higher tech communication aids ? when to introduce, iPad Apps, new resources etc

? Refreshers on assessing status, tracking and measuring progress ? in simplest formats (that even a MS can do!)

? Refresher Precision Teaching, Direct Instruction

Look forward to seeing what everyone else wants

Thanks messmonster and moondog.

I read on one of the threads that its near liverpool street station? I would vote for that.

In terms of the topics - I am a newbie. So any basic principals, gotchas will be helpful

Is there any "desk-based" helpf I can do? Printing any material. Scaning stuff for electronic copied (So long as copyright isnt breached), calling people - feel free to PM me.

I think for us it's just a basic intro, (altho Mess monsters ABA for social skills would be very useful)

Really looking forward to this....

A basic intro and then how you can apply to a very verbal articulate , HF AS boy who can argue the hind leg off a donkey, but meltdown over plans changing.

How to improve disordered language. How and where to go back to basics.

A reminder on how to get and keep attention. For example in language for thinking Ds appears to switch off when I read the text and attempts to answer the questions from the picture alone.

How to educate school who have agreed to do the interactive diary, to stop them setting questions like: 'what did we start to make at the end of art?'

How to address pencil grip.

How to create a language-rich environment for verbal children who refuse to listen and say 'what' half way through what you are saying but then continue not to listen grrrr.

Thank you Salandon for very kind offer of help.
I think all under control but shall bear in mind.

Hi Moondog, DD and I would like the basics and what Messmonster said about passing it on to the 1-1 TA. DGS is also starting MS in September (thanks to tribunal). How do we book in please?

Great news, thank you.

I'm a beginner so the basics plus ABA in babies and toddlers if that's possible.

How to use it to encourage walking and speech and optimise cognitive development.

Thanks

CAn we please have a run through with SAFMEDS again?

How to persuade school to use the ElKAN assessments to set some of the questions for the interactive diary?

How to persuade school to extend the use of requesting to more than the questions on the sheet - how to get ds to start requesting/asking lunch time group what they are eating? If it is good? And how to extend it to making conversations.

How to attend to what is being said around him and listening in a group.

How to encourage independent play.

Will probably think of more later.

Precision Teaching/SAFMEDS will have a starring role.
I will focus on social skills as well this time, describing some successful interventions we have worked on to increase eye contact/initiating/using people's names/asking fror help.
Language for Thinking-oh yes!
Very excited about Active Support at present. A brilliant virtually paper-free way to get an overview of everythnig your child does and to ascertain engagement.

My colleague has a great presentation on motivation and reinforcement.

I'd like to talk more about TAGteach and Motivaider and reading.

Also it would be good to have a discussion on how to get your school staff on board. rying it is so depressing to hear that you are having difficulty persuading the school to use the TALC as a framework. This makes their job (and yours) so much easier. It also provides a baseline from which to measure progress.
It's such a race to get it all in.

I would recommend you get hold of the brilliant catalogues from Taskmaster and Speechmark as well.

Corky, Messmonster and I have finalised venue this w/end and next week my colleague and I will meet to finalise the day's content so after that will post with full details.

Yes please. I'd like help on how to get staff on board with the elkan questions and more explanation on the interactive diary for children at the HF. It all started well but one by one things have slipped. First no time-table, then lots of missed days, then no template and now no name.

It's obviously not something the school are understanding as beneficial or seeing the rewards, so how to reward THEM for doing it right woukd be good.

Really looking forward to it! I'm just looking forward to finding out what all of the above mentioned products and techniques are, so I have nothing to add! And meeting other MNers. I'm able to help with any admin or practical stuff too if another pair of hands is needed.

Moondog - I ordered Taskmaster after Birmingham and like you said, once you are on their mailing list, they will keep sending you their catalogue. I received my last week.

All sounds very exciting - am looking forward to it.

And yes, to getting ds to listen to answers instead of just shooting questions at me! I actually told him he had to stop talking for a bit today!.

Corky/Messmonster/moondog - What is the venue?

Thanks for your help

Hi, it's going to be in London, near Liverpool Street.
I will be booking tomorrow and the schedule of events and full details will be posted up next week.

I'd be interested in coming to this, please.

Plenty of room Rolf.

ooooh exciting!

DH wants to come too btw.

Great. I hope to come this time. Is it open to professionals too? Just thinking our SLT may be interested too.

Great stuff Star.
I'll have met three of the family then.

IA, I'm not pitching it at professionals and not at an audience of s/lt(s) who don't understand or are not interested in ABA. I don't want to waste the time of parent delegates getting side tracked into technical discussions.

I'm not saying she'd come but she is not like that at all. She is an independent SLT who is really measured and open to ideas and welcomes new strategies.

But I absolutely take your point and can see a very good reason for it! Yes, best left to parents.

Very interested in the social skills stuff as SLTs really struggle with doing this in any measurable way.