Way to Play is an approach that supports adults to promote the engagement of young children with autism spectrum disorder through play. The Ministry of Education in New Zealand has collaborated with Autism New Zealand to ensure the sustainable delivery of Way to Play within Auckland's early learning services by training early intervention staff to…

From the perspective of attachment theory, this paper discusses individual differences in the quality of caregiving by direct-care staff for persons with intellectual disabilities. Theoretical arguments and findings from related literature are cited to support the probable role of professionals' own attachment experiences and their mental…

A research project on computer applications for special education determined the needs of caregivers (teachers or parents), clients (persons with severe learning disabilities), and staff. Results were used to develop the Living and Learning Weekend, during which caregivers were trained in the use of educational software for persons with…

Background: To date, little attention has been given to the concept of quality of life around human resources employment programmes for staff working with persons with a dual diagnosis. Method: This article describes the implementation of quality of life principles to service provision for people with dual diagnosis and its application to staff…

A model of ongoing consultation was effectively implemented in a community group home for eight adults with severe and profound mental retardation. Two consultants taught staff members to use a token reinforcement system, engage clients in a variety of activities, and improve staff interactions with clients. (Author/DB)

The core concept of emotional intelligence is the ever-emerging process of self-awareness, where individuals are able to identify their emotions and manage them in various social environments. This capacity is viewed as an asset in child care because new insights in human development have highlighted the importance of children's social and…

The authors describe an initiative to improve child care for the children of teen parents. Since 1999, the Florida State University Center for Prevention and Early Intervention Policy has worked with seven childcare programs in four school districts to achieve this goal. The initiative included development of a quality improvement plan for each…

An HIV/AIDS education program was given to 121 family-based foster care providers and 61 supervisors of foster care facilities for individuals with mental retardation. Although these service providers had some prior knowledge about HIV and AIDS, there were significant improvements in knowledge following the training. Implications for serving…

There is paucity in both the literature and in the practice of integrated, evidence-based models of residential care for youth. This article describes the assessment and the process that led to the redesign of services at a residential center. The article describes how evidence-based models for each of the four major disciplines (residential…

The provision of a coherent "parenting," "teaching," and "developmental" program is a complex undertaking. It has all the makings of an organizational, managerial, and therapeutic nightmare when different types of workers, with marked differences in personality and values, become responsible for different children with a variety of problems in a…