Joint Event: Autism, Behaviour, Life Skills and Relationships

This 2-Day Training Programme will focus on the needs of the teenager with autism.
The adolescent years can be confusing and challenging for the teenager with autism and the adults, parents, carers and teachers, who teach and support them.  The aim of this two-day event is to empower the key adults in the teenager’s life to understand how autism impacts on the teenager, and how they can plan and tailor resources and strategies to prepare and support the teenager with autism.

Day 1 of the 2-Day training event.
• Autism and the Teenager: will examine how autism impacts on the teenager and help delegates to prepare the teenager with autism for forthcoming adulthood.  The key role of supportive adults will be examined along with ideas and strategies on how to help the adolescent. 
• Autism and the Promotion of Positive Behaviour: Adolescents with autism can experience elevated levels of anxiety and stress and this often results in G88 behaviours. Understanding the triggers and knowing how to respond effectively is a concern for professionals, parents and carers.  This part of the training aims to empower the adult plan proactive strategies to defuse rather than escalate a demanding situation for the teenager.  Understanding and identifying  the function of behaviour will be highlighted as the starting point.
Overview of Day 1 of the two-day event:
• The core features of autism during the teenage years.
• How the teen with autism thinks and learns.
• Planning and the role of supportive adults during the adolescent years.

Expected Outcomes for Day 1 of the 2-day event
Participants will understand:
• How the core features of autism affect the teenager’s behaviour;
• The importance of identifying the function of a behaviour and developing a basic behaviour support plan incorporating practical strategies;
• Anxiety and its impact on behaviour.

Day 2 of the 2-Day training event.
Teenagers with autism go through the same difficulties and challenges associated with adolescence as their typically developing peers.  Day 2 of this 2-Day event focuses on how the supportive adult can develop and tailor resources and strategies to support the teen understand what is happening, what is expected and how to develop daily functional skills independently.
Life Skills:  Feeling valued and having a sense of autonomy is central to satisfaction in life; the development of independent functional life skills facilitates this. As acquiring such skills can be a challenge for the teen with autism, this part of the 2-Day training event will identify what these key skills are, and explore effective practical strategies that supportive adults can use to develop and progress these emerging skills.
Relationship and Sexuality: Effective teaching of issues around relationships and sexuality involves close collaboration between school and home to ensure messages are clear and consistent for the teenager with autism.  This element of the training will focus on the delivery of relationships and sexuality education for teenagers with autism.  It will incorporate behavioural interventions and visual strategies to help the teenager with autism cope with some of the typical issues of adolescence.

Overview of Day 2 of the 2-Day event:
• How to help teenager with autism develop a positive sense of self and self-determination.
• Some strategies for developing sexuality and relationship education.
• The key functional skills the teenager with autism needs to master independently.
• Practical strategies on how to assess readiness, devise a plan and implement practical strategies to support development of these key daily living skills.

Expected Outcomes for Day 2 of the 2-Day event.
Participants will:
• Be provided with strategies for the delivery of sexuality and relationship education to teenagers with autism.
• Understand why the development of practical functional independent skills is difficult yet crucial for the teenager with autism.
• Explore signs of readiness and how using visual support strategies can progress the teaching and development of functional life skills