Autism and Relationship Based Disorders
Shirley has over 20 years of experience working with children on the autism spectrum. In addition to hundreds of hours of coursework, seminars, and workshops she has completed many certification processes in individual approaches. She completed an 18 month certification process under the direct supervision of Dr. Arnold Miller, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and Executive Director of the Language and Cognitive Development Center of Newton, Massachusetts and is one of only a select few certified Miller Method® specialists in the United States and the World. This approach takes a cognitive developmental systems approach that uses elevation to build body awareness and focus the children on people and objects. The Miller Method® works on the premise that children with ASD learn more effectively when their whole bodies are physically and repetitively involved in a learning process or "system."
She is certified in Hanen’s More Than Words, a family-focused program that gives parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and related
social communication difficulties, practical tools to help their children communicate.
Shirley has taken seminars and training in Responsive Teaching (RT) and Communicating Partners developed by Dr. Gerald Mahoney, Ph.D. and Dr. James McDonald, Ph.D. RT is a comprehensive, parent-mediated intervention curriculum for children from birth to 6 years of age who have, or are at-risk for child development and social emotional problems. This curriculum addresses cognition, communication, and social emotional functioning. Communicating Partners is a developmental series of clinical programs for helping children to socialize and communicate in the daily world. It is based on over 30 years of clinical research.
Shirley is an RDI ® Program Certified Consultant (see RDI ® autism treatment).
