Sesame Street and Autism: See Amazing in All Children!

Sesame Street and Autism: See Amazing in All Children is an initiative developed for families and communities with children ages 2 to 5, with input from people with autism, parents, and providers. Join us to explore how the project’s free resources can be used in participants’ everyday work and lives! Every Sesame Street U.S. Social Impact initiative begins with a need. In the U.S., 1 in 68 children is diagnosed with autism. However, public understanding of autism has not caught up to its prevalence. Every child in his or her lifetime will meet someone who has autism—and Sesame Street is perfectly positioned to spread a message of respect, understanding and kindness to all children, and to remind us all that everyone has unique qualities and talents that make the world an interesting place.

That’s why we  created Sesame Street and Autism: See Amazing in All Children, a nationwide initiative aimed at families and communities with children ages 2 to 5. Developed with input from people with autism, parents, and autism service providers, Sesame Street and Autism fosters an affirming narrative around autism for all families and kids. At the same time, the project offers families step-by-step ways to overcome common challenges and simplify everyday activities.

Takeaway messages from the session will include:

1. Educators and providers can support kids' development of empathy, respect and understanding, especially when it comes to the unique qualities and abilities of the people they know and meet. This proactive approach can reduce misunderstanding and mistreatment of others. There are free resources available to help educators and providers do just that with kids ages 2-5.

2. There are free resources available to support families touched by autism, which also offer general communities an opportunity for increased understanding around autism. At the same time, these resources encourage all parents to "see the amazing" in their children.

Learning Objectives:

• Explore the goals of the Sesame Street and Autism project, and how these goals can frame an approach to education around autism.
• Learn how the project resources can be used with children ages 2-5 in multiple educational settings or within the family context. Learn ways that parents who are directly or indirectly touched by autism can engage with adult-facing project resources.
• Learn more about the creation of the initiative's content, and how multiple voices and perspectives came together to inform the development of these free tools for kids, parents, and educators/providers.

Track: Lifespan 1 - Birth to 5

Content Area: Education

Presenter:

Kayla Nalven
Content Specialist, US Social Impact
Sesame Workshop

Kayla Nalven is a Content Specialist in the US Social Impact department at Sesame Workshop. Kayla manages the creation and implementation of training, professional development, and engagement experiences around Sesame Street's US Social Impact initiatives. Through her work, Kayla aims to support the many adults in children's lives in their use of Sesame Street content and resources to help children grow smarter, stronger and kinder. She holds a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.

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