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9866 Sesame Street and Autism: See Amazing in All Children

Friday, July 14, 2017: 10:45 AM-12:00 PM

Room: 102C (Wisconsin Center )

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. Join us as we dive into free resources, AMAZING tools, and get to know our new Muppet friend, Julia.

In 2016, Sesame Workshop launched 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 Autismfosters an affirming narrative around autism for all families and kids. The project offers free resources that participants can use in their everyday work and lives!

We know that 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 this initiative. Join us as we dive into these free resources, reveal even moreAMAZING tools, and get up close and personal with our new Muppet friend, Julia.

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.

3. All kids and families, especially those impacted by autism, can find a friend and example in our new Muppet, Julia.

Learning Objectives:

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

Track: Life Stage 1 - Birth to 5

Content Area: Inclusion

Presenter:

Kama Einhorn, M.Ed
Sesame Workshop; U.S. Social Impact

As Senior Content Manager for Sesame Workshop's U.S. Social Impact group, Kama Einhorn develops multimedia outreach materials for children, parents, and providers. Before joining the Workshop, she wrote and edited early childhood teaching resources for Scholastic. She holds a master's degree in education from University of California at Berkeley.

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