Writing about autism from experience

TWO autism information books, written by Clare woman, Dr Susan Crawford, are to be launched by international athlete, Olive Loughnane.

 

The handbooks are titled Autism and Physical Activity: What Every Parent Needs To Know and Adapted Physical Activity Interventions for Children and Adults with Autism. The launch will take place on Friday, April 19 in the Mardyke Arena, Cork.

Produced in conjunction with the HSE’S Health Action Zone, the books are designed to provide parents and practitioners with guidelines on the promotion of physical activity and fundamental movement skills for children and adults with autism.

Dr Crawford, who lives in Miltown Malbay, is a researcher in the field of fundamental movement skills for children and adults with autism and is herself the parent of a young man, Tomás, who has moderate autism and associated learning disabilities. She is a lecturer in sports studies and physical education at the School of Education at University College Cork. She has been actively engaged in promoting educational provision for children and adults with autism and has completed fundraising marathons from Antarctica to New York in her bid to raise physical activity awareness for autism and other disabilities.

“From when Tomás was a three-year-old child, I realised that difficulties in the area of movement skills and both fine and gross motor skills, including running, catching, throwing, jumping, balance activities, holding a pen or fork, using a scissors, tying buttons and zips, were inherent in the condition of autism,” Dr Crawford explained.

“These skills are the basis of all physical activity and, indeed, are essential for tasks of everyday life. As someone regularly engaged in fundamental movement, skill development and physical activity myself, I endeavoured to get Tomás as active as possible from early on. This had the further effects of promoting social engagement and providing a means of keeping Tomás regulated,” she explained.

“Hence, he can comfortably sit in company, without exhibiting stereotypical mannerisms and tics frequently associated with the condition. Tomás’ training schedule includes running, swimming, long hikes and he recently commenced a gym programme. Last year he completed his second half-marathon and is currently in training for this year’s event,” she outlined.

The book launch will coincide with a conference called Learning to Move, Moving to Learn: Exploring Fundamental Movement Skill Development across the Life Span.

Both books and a supportive DVD will be freely available at the launch and for conference delegates. The conference will provide an opportunity for parents, practitioners (teachers, coaches, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, medical/nursing personnel and community workers), researchers and policy makers to come together to develop and promote an agenda of fundamental movement skill development across the life span from preschool to old age, including addressing issues of diversity and disability in the area of movement.

The conference will also have a practical component, where participants will have the opportunity to engage in active workshops addressing fundamental movement skill development for different ages, abilities and settings over the two days.

The keynote address will be given by Professor David Sugden of the University of Leeds, who is internationally renowned for his co-development of the movement assessment tool Movement ABC. Other international speakers include Professor Caroline Bond, co-author of the Manchester Motor Scale of Assessment and Professor Phil Vickerman, author and researcher in the fields of special educational needs and disabilities in areas of movement.

Health Minister James Reilly will address the conference to reinforce the importance of developing and maintaining movement skill development across the lifespan from a health perspective, while renowned runner, Catriona McKiernan will be among the workshop facilitators.

The conference will also facilitate the establishment of a Fundamental Movement Skill Hub, which will provide a forum for exploring together research, policy and practice from national and international perspectives. This initiative was recently awarded seed funding by the Standing Conference on Teacher Education North and South (SCoTENS) (2013 call), in line with its objective of providing a supportive framework for collaborative research and professional activities in teacher education in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to promote and develop the area of fundamental movement skill development from preschool to old age, including a range of abilities and disabilities with key experts and practitioners in the field,” Dr Crawford commented.

“The conference is interdisciplinary and boasts a huge hands-on component, so there will be lots of opportunity for delegates to develop and explore new skills. Being part of the fundamental movement skill (FMS) hub will provide individuals with a clear base to further explore FMS from research, policy and practice perspectives. As fundamental movement skill delay is often a feature of autism, this is a particularly appropriate forum for launching the publications on physical activity and autism for both parents and practitioners,” she added.

Further details on the book launch and the conference are available at www.conferencing.ucc.ie/conference or by contacting Dr Crawford on s.crawford@ucc.ie.

Later this year, Susan and a group of cyclists will undertake a cycle from Crawford in Scotland to West Clare as part of the Gathering initiative to raise awareness and funds for identified charities, including autism.