Online Resources for Students with Developmental Disabilities During COVID-19

By Leah Kaufman OTD, OTR/L  
Marja Ruderman M.S., CCC-SLP 

[This column was published in The Randolph Herald.]

Many companies are providing online learning opportunities to support students at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, but navigating through all the different resources may be overwhelming. We have found the sites listed below to be the most relevant and comprehensive supports for families during this difficult time:

• https://www.autismspeaks.org/covid-19-information-and-resources
• https://www.autism-society.org/covid-19/

Here are some general tips to help support an enriching environment at home:

• Establish and maintain a daily routine. Encourage individuals to help out at home by completing any appropriate household tasks (matching socks, sweeping the floor, wiping tables)
  • https://autismawarenesscentre.com/household-chores-share-special-needs-child-grandchild/

 

• Stay connected. Utilize technology to plan phone/video calls with relatives and friends. Use social stories to describe difficult concepts.
  •  https://www.autismspeaks.org/sites/default/files/how-to-use-personalized-stories.pdf

 

• Stay active. Go for a walk at least once a day. Talk about what you see while on your walk (bring paper to draw different animals or flowers). Practice some yoga moves or play freeze dance.
  • https://studyclerk.com/blog/activities-for-kids
  • https://www.cosmickids.com/category/watch/

 

• Prepare simple snacks or meals together. Snacks such as trail mix and yogurt parfaits are easy recipes to follow. 
  • https://spoonuniversity.com/lifestyle/trail-mix-recipes-diy

 

• Support communication by providing choices throughout the day. Create a daily schedule together, give options for foods/activities, allow different choices for breaks.  

 

• Be okay with getting messy and having fun! Create sensory bottles together, play hide and seek with toys in a pile of shaving cream, and play with homemade bubbles. 
  • https://www.learning4kids.net/list-of-sensory-play-ideas/

Do you provide care to an individual with complex communication needs? Providing visual supports as much as possible will allow anyone the opportunity to be an active participant in their new daily routine. Free communication applications such as CoughDrop and Sono Flex Lite (free, and available on both Android and Apple platforms) provide visual icons that can help individuals who are nonverbal to communicate their feelings and daily needs. 

Regardless of how you fill your day, your continued love, care and support is what matters most! 

Leah Kaufman OTD, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist; Marja Ruderman M.S., CCC-SLP, is a  Speech Language Pathologist.

About May Institute
May Institute is a nonprofit organization that is a national leader in the field of applied behavior analysis and evidence-based interventions, serving autistic individuals and individuals with other developmental disabilities, brain injury, neurobehavioral disorders, and other special needs. Founded nearly 70 years ago, we provide a wide range of exceptional educational and rehabilitative services across the lifespan. May Institute operates five schools for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental disabilities, including one in Randolph, Mass. For more information, call 800.778.7601 or visit www.mayinstitute.org.