FloorTime! What's That?

FloorTime is an approach to help individuals on the autism spectrum make progress. It was developed by Stanley Greenspan. Here is how he described FloorTime.

1. A specific technique where a parent gets down on the floor for 20 minutes and works at engaging with the child.
2. A philosophy that dictates all interactions with a child and the goal of that interaction. The goals of an interaction might be social, speech therapy, occupational therapy, academic or some other area

This includes two components that sometimes work beautifully together. At other times, they seem like polar opposites.

• Following a Child's Lead. Yes, you join the child in an activity that is enjoyable for him/her. This is a window into a child's emotional life.
• After joining the child's world,the adult needs to pull them into a shared world for him/her to master the Functional Emotional Developmental Capabilities. The Functional Emotional Developmental Capabilities include: basic social, emotional, intellectual, language and academic abilities.

It may sound great but if you are like me, you may say, "I may need some "how "to strategies and examples. We will look at that next Tuesday. In the mean time, you may want to see if your local library of Dr. Greenspan's book, Engaging Autism.

Join me next week as we explore how to use the FloorTime Approach!

 

 

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