Josh/Camp Royall/2011 form notes

This page is a draft; editing is still in progress. Information may not be accurate or current.

Preface

As I write this, Josh is at The Hughes Center (since April 2010) where he is receiving intensive communication and socialization therapy. We are anticipating that he will be discharged from Hughes by this Summer.

Since Josh has not been at home, we have not yet directly observed many of the advances he has made in his training, so these updates are based on reports we have received verbally and at Treatment Team meetings. For a more detailed and accurate assessment, we will be happy to put you in touch with his treatment team at Hughes.

My camper communicates...

Josh is reportedly using a Talk-9 electronic device to indicate a limited number of needs; his usage of this will hopefully have expanded somewhat by this summer, as he only began using it in November.

He doesn't really use any means of deliberate communication; you have to anticipate his needs and discern his wants based on his actions. For example, at home he will often open the refrigerator door when he is hungry. He will not indicate what type of food he wants, however; the closest he comes to indicating a preference is that if you say the right thing, he will sometimes quickly turn his attention elsewhere (as if he's thinking "ok, that's settled, need to go somewhere else before they change their minds").

I communicate with my camper...

Using a sing-song voice works best when trying to convey information to him verbally. He responds well to many short phrases when said this way ("(put your) socks on", "(put your) shoes on", "(put your) seatbelt on", "(we're going for a) ride in the car-car"). We tend to address him as "Joshy" when trying to convey instructions to him.

He gets much of the meaning from context (rather than words); this can include pointing, handing him things, etc. (When he is cooperating with getting dressed, for example, you can just hand him the various items of clothing and he will put them on to the best of his ability.)

Sleeping

The patterns I have checked off on this form are how he sleeps at home (and recently at the Therapeutic Foster Home) -- we're not sure how he sleeps at Camp Royall, but the impression we get is that it hasn't been a problem because he is engaged enough during the day that he is tired out at night.

It has been mentioned that he was unhappy and restless during afternoon nap; perhaps an activity could be found for him during that time as well? He certainly doesn't seem to need any down-time during the day.

Activity / Attention Level

Josh can maintain focus on an activity if it interests him, but he may or may not find any given activity interesting. He may also need prompting to get started.

Behaviors

He only hits when very agitated or when he needs something (usually food) and feels he is being ignored.