March Madness!

March 2020 was certainly one for the history books!  Before coronavirus (BC) hit NY, our students and clients were busy with their usual activities.

 

NSSA’s Embracelets Team at Hofstra’s Irish Fest

NSSA staff, one Barell student and one Adult Program participant spent March 8th at Hofstra University’s popular Irish Fest. The Embracelets table had many admirers and shoppers throughout the day. 

People especially loved the green bracelets, made especially for St. Patrick’s Day by students and adult participants.

 

Adult Services Newest Program:  Sandwich Shoppe

Last fall, NSSA’s Adult Services Program started running a Sandwich Shoppe for program participants. The shop allows participants to generalize their mastered skills across people, settings, and materials.

Task analysis is used to teach hygiene rules (e.g., wearing gloves) to promote a safe and healthy environment. Visual cues are used to facilitate client collaboration to assemble sandwiches. And the process of delivering sandwiches to staff who have ordered them allows for generalizing communication goals of speaking slowly and clearly in a real-world setting.

 And while it is benefiting participants, it benefits staff as well!

 

Smiles of Success

 

13-year-old Tommy recently celebrated a milestone—he got his braces off! 

Prior to getting braces put on when he was 11, Tommy would go into his dentist’s office monthly to just spend time and get acclimated to the dentist and other staff. He would sit in the chair and the dentist would count his teeth, allowing Tommy to get used to having someone put instruments in his mouth. Dr. Schindel would go over a social story with Tommy, telling him each step of what was going to happen. Sometimes Tommy was able to watch other patients having their braces adjusted so he would know what to expect. In the beginning some of his classroom teachers would go with Tommy and his mother to the appointments to help the process go as smoothly as possible.

Tommy looked forward to his appointments and visiting his friend, Dr. Schindel. Earlier this month, after two years, Tommy had his upper braces removed and he now has the most beautiful smile! He currently wears a retainer at night and had no trouble adjusting to it. In fact if Mom forgets to give it to him at night, he reminds her.

You did a great job, Tommy, at handling this entire process with such maturity!

 

Keeping Active

Since March came in like a lion, Adult Program participants continued making good use of the indoor exercise opportunities at the JCC and the Winters Bros. gym.

 

A Birthday Celebration!

Jamie, an Adult Services Program participant, turned 33 in March and her friends at NSSA had a party for her with balloons and cake. You can tell from her big smile that she had a great day!

Happy Birthday, Jamie!

 

Smiling Faces

We’re always happy to see smiling faces on students and participants as they go about their day at program and at home.

 

And Then…

NSSA’s school and adult programs were closed as of March 16, in response to the Covid-19 virus. But that didn’t mean that learning stopped! Our teachers, Direct Support Professionals, and clinical staff stay in contact with families, students, and adult participants via phone, email, text, and virtual learning via video conferencing.

Families shared with us how they’re all doing during this challenging time.

Exercise continues, even if indoors!

Students and adult program participants are putting skills learned at NSSA to good use in the real world.

And families are just enjoying having more time together,

 

And Last, But Certainly Not Least…

We hope everyone is well, and being safe and careful. We look forward to seeing everyone back at NSSA soon!