Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Summer Training Program for Teens

The Illinois Centers for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (ICFASD) is pleased to announce that a 12 week curriculum based summer training program will be offered at the Naperville location. This social skills program is for teenagers (Age 13 -18) with an FASD or suspected of having an FASD. The parent-assisted intervention for teenagers is based on a comprehensive evidenced based PEERS (Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relationship Skills) and the success of the Children's Friendship training program also developed at UCLA. It is developed by Dr. Elizabath Laugeson and Fred Frankel of UCLA. Dr. Mary Connor of UCLA has also developed the 'Best Buddy' program for children with FASD.

The PEERS program teaches strategies for tackling issues such as developing conversational skills, choosing friends, using humor, get-togethers, teasing, bullying, gossiping, and handling disagreements. Each session chapter includes handouts, homework assignments, descriptions of what to expect.

As we all know that teens that are prenatally exposed to alcohol often display poor social skills, failure to consider the consequences of their actions, difficulty understanding social cues, indiscriminate social behavior and difficulty communicating in social contexts. Furthermore, the development of adequate and timely social skills is important because these teens with poor social skills acquire negative reputations among their peers and experience social rejections and a risk of engaging in delinquent acts.

This intervention is a 12 week, parent-assisted teens social skills training program for children ages 13 - 18 who are experiencing difficulties making and keeping friends. The goal is to assist them to become more accepted by peers and to make one or two new close friends. Parents attend separate, concurrent sessions to learn how to help and support their teenagers develop appropriate social skills.

This group will meet on Wednesday's from 4 - 6 pm. The group will start on June 6, 2012 and end on August 15, 2012. Week 11th and 12th (graduation) will be combined on August 15, 2012. The group on July 4, 2012 will be held on an alternate date that will be convenient to most parents.

The cost for the 12 week program is $500 with $150 due at registration and the rest can be paid in three installments.

Location: 1260 Iroquois Ave. Suite 300. Naperville, IL 60563.

Please feel free to contact Ajeet Charate regarding any questions or concerns you may have about this summer program, the UCLA curriculum or for other services that we offer. Please contact the center if you are interested and if you would like to register now or wait until Fall 2012

Summer Training Program for Children

The Illinois Centers for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (ICFASD) is pleased to announce that 'Good Buddies' an empirically validated, 12 week curriculum based summer training program will be offered at the Naperville location. This will be for children (Age 6 -12) with an FASD or suspected of having an FASD. This children's program called is developed by Dr. O'Connor's team at UCLA and is an adaptation of their project Bruin Buddies that was funded by CDC. A randomized study was conducted and the results indicate that the treatment group showed an increased understanding regarding social behaviors, improved overall social skills, and a reduction in problem behaviors.

As we all know that children that are prenatally exposed to alcohol often display poor social skills, failure to consider the consequences of their actions, difficulty understanding social cues, indiscriminate social behavior and difficulty communicating in social contexts. Furthermore, the development of adequate and timely social skills is important because these children with poor social skills acquire negative reputations among their peers and experience social rejections and a risk of engaging in delinquent acts.

This intervention is a 12 week, parent-assisted children's social skills training program for children ages 6 - 12 who are experiencing difficulties making and keeping friends. The goal is to help your children become more accepted by peers and to make one or two new close friends. Parents attend separate, concurrent sessions to learn how to help their children make and keep friends.

Targeted Skills Include:
- How to talk to other children in order to learn about common mistakes
- How to find peers who like to do the same activities
- How to join a group of children at play at school or in the neighborhood
- How to be a good sport or a good winner in games with peers
- How to behave when another child comes to play
- How to handle and resist teasing and bullying
- How to be respectful to adults

This group will meet on Tuesdays from 4 - 6 pm. The group will start on June 5, 2012 and end on August 14, 2012. Week 11th and 12th (graduation) will be combined on August 14, 2012. If July 3, 2012 is a problem for most parents an alternate date will be discussed.

The cost for the 12 week program is $500 with $150 due at registration and the rest can be paid in three installments.

Location: 1260 Iroquois Ave. Suite 300. Naperville, IL 60563.

Please feel free to contact Ajeet Charate regarding any questions or concerns you may have about this summer program, the UCLA curriculum or for other services that we offer. Please be in contact with the center if you are interested and if you would like to register now or wait until Fall 2012.

Friday, May 18, 2012


Announcing the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) “App”

CDC is announcing the launch of an FASD application (or “app”).  The app is a way for users to access the latest information related to alcohol use during pregnancy and FASDs directly from an iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad. From women planning a pregnancy to health care providers to families and educators, this app helps users easily find and share the latest in the prevention, recognition, and treatment of FASDs. This application is a companion to CDC’s FASD website and is CDC’s first health condition-specific app! Check out these features:

  • Alcohol consumption data by state
  • Easy-to-read information on diagnosis and treatments for children with FASDs
  • Individualized pages for different users – women, families, health care providers, educators, and partners
  • Training and education resources
  • Access to free materials on alcohol use during pregnancy and FASDs
  • Information on what CDC is doing in this area







Download the FASD app  -- from your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad, go to the Apple App store and search for fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. You can also find it under CDC. To access it directly, visit: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fetal-alcohol-spectrum-disorders/id517058288?mt=8&ls=1