Re: Son Rise Program

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 11/15/00 8:04:42 AM Central Standard Time, tguppy@...

writes:

<< Please share more on what Son-Rise is and how they do what they do for

children!! >>

You can get some info on this program from their website at www.option.org

and in Barry Neil Kaufman's books " Son-Rise: The Miracle Continues " and " A

Miracle to Believe In. " Many libraries carry the books or you can order it

from the site or find it at some bookstores.

The cliff note version of the program is that it is a one-on-one, intensive

program usually home-based and usually run by parents with the help of

volunteers. A fun, stimulating environment is set up in a room designed to

cut out distractions and put an emphasis on people being the most exciting

thing. Rather than setting up those who work with the child as teachers the

child needs to comply with, they are set up as friends who model/offer the

give and take of relationships. Children's interests are respected, no

matter whether we understand them or not, followed strongly and built into

learning experiences. And, as the children become more motivated and

interested in people, those working with the children encourage them to

follow the facilator's interests as well.

To give you an idea of the basic format of the work with the child, there are

two basic sides to the program. The first, Bonding through Acceptance, is

the main thrust of the beginning program and I think what makes the program

really strong at building motivation and communication. Basically this stage

involves facilators becoming totally comfortable regardless of what the child

or life in general throws at them. All kids, especially special-needs

kiddos, pick up on how we're feeling, our attitudes about them and our

comfort level. They respond best to folks who are comfortable and believe in

them. Plus, the more comfortable you are, the more creative and effective

you can be in coming up with ways to reach and inspire a child. Bonding also

includes showing a sincere interest in the child as a person and involving

yourself fully in their interests. At the most severe level, this could

include joining in their self-stim behaviors and making a game out of them.

As the child begins to make eye contact or show more interest in the person

working with him/her, you can move into the Inspiring Growth & Development

phase which involves building fun and exciting games around what you wish to

work on. Huge appreciation is given to the child for any step in he/she

makes in the direction you want. This step can be as small as simply looking

at you or the object you're trying to get them to do something with. As you

show appreciation and praise, you entice them to move more towards doing what

you want. Big emphasis is always placed on human interaction and contact

being the most important thing and skill building being secondary. The

attitude is " we're doing this together " rather than just getting the child to

do something. Children are also encouraged to actively explore their

environment and direct much of the learning. A balance is always set between

the bonding and inspiring phase by carefully watching the child's reactions

and adjusting accordingly.

Like any program, it has its limitations. But I believe it is the strongest

program I've seen thusfar at building motivation, communication and

interaction and at reducing or eliminating problematic behaviors. We did the

program fully for two years and then added more structured work as my son

became more motivated to learn and do what we wanted him to do. I still find

that keeping the delicate balance between bonding and inspiring is so

important and leads to much faster progress.

Gaylen

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 11/15/00 8:28:12 AM Central Standard Time,

svmohammed@... writes:

<< I am curious about the houston workshop, all I know about the son-rise is

that the founders claimed success but refused to have their son evaluated

by independent professionals, which led many to doubt the validity of their

claims.>>

Where did you hear this? I'm not aware of this and can't speak directly to

it but I can offer what I know about Raun. In the books, they say that a

full evaluation was done on Raun when he was a toddler. Later, about a year

into their program, a professional from a teaching university came out of

view the program and video tape part of it. I would imagine the records and

that video is still around somewhere.

Interestingly, there was a rumor of sorts going around several years ago that

Raun was still severely autistic and in an institution. This is not true.

I've met Raun and heard him speak. While I can't promise he doesn't stim in

private , I can say I couldn't see any signs of autism at all. He is a

very personable, dynamic young man. He's now on the teaching staff at the

Institute and recently gave a really great presentation in Houston.

<<does anyone know how much this 1 week thing cost or if they have

group discounts, if so maybe bunch of us can all go in together >>

It is expensive -- $1495. There are some scholarships available for those

who are really interested in running programs but can't afford to attend

training. I personally haven't taken the Start-up course since it wasn't

offered when we went through our intensive program almost 5 years ago. But

if it is like other courses I've taken from them, it is well worth every

penny. They are extremely thorough in their training, include training on

how to recruit, train and motivate volunteers as well as setting up and

running your own program. If anyone is really interested, I can put you in

touch with some folks who have attending Start-Up training to give you a

better idea of what's involved.

Gaylen