Contact
Rachael Benson
Administrative Assistant
Spiral Foundation
courses@thespiralfoundation.org
(617) 969-4410 ext. 231
Occupational Therapy Practitioners/ Occupational Therapy Assistants: The Spiral Foundation is an Approved Provider of continuing Education for occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants by the American Occupational Therapy Association. The assignment of AOTA CEUs does not imply endorsement of specific course content, products, or clinical procedures by AOTA.
ADA/Section 504: If you require special accommodations, please contact us at the address above.
The Adult/Adolescent Sensory History is available now!
The culmination of years of research and work, the Adult/Adolescent Sensory History, is designed as a self-report assessment of sensory and motor behaviors commonly observed in individuals with difficulties processing and integrating sensory information. The purpose of this assessment is to help identify adults and adolescents ages 13 to 95 who experience problems in sensory processing and integration as well as assist therapists in clinical reasoning when creating interventions for these individuals. Based on the conceptual model of sensory processing and sensory integration proposed by A. Jean Ayres, this measure is designed to identify difficulties in five key areas of functioning: Sensory Discrimination, Sensory Modulation, Postural-Ocular Skills, Praxis, and Social-Emotional Functioning.
Winter Sale
Terms and Conditions: Sale ends December 14, 2015. Discount does not apply to CDs, DVDs, books, or other non-downloadable items, or items purchased during course registration. To receive your discount purchases must be made through the Spiral Foundation webstore, and the discount code 'CYBERDEC' must be applied prior to checkout. The Spiral Foundation will not provide refunds to retroactively match sale prices for purchases where the discount code was not applied. There is no limit on the number of purchases to which the code may be applied. Sale discount may be applied in place of, but not in addition to, other price reductions, e.g. discounted group rates for clinic or school groups.
Program of Essential Competencies in Sensory Integration
Register for the five course program today!
Starting in 2016 the Spiral Foundation's 'Sensory Integration Essentials' series will be expanding and rebranded as the Program for Essential Competencies in Sensory Integration. In addition to the sensory integration theory, clinical assessment and intervention courses that form the core of our program, we are adding a NEW 3-day course, Essentials of Administration of Sensory Integration Assessments (including the SIPT and Ayres clinical observations), and a NEW 2-day course, Essentials of Interpretation of Patterns of Sensory Integration Dysfunction. Participants who complete all five courses will receive a certificate of completion for the program.
As the WPS/USC SI certification program is being discontinued, we believe our new program will provide clinicians with a solid foundation of skills to understand, evaluate and treat sensory integration difficulties. This program includes courses on sensory integration theory, clinical assessment, test administration, interpretation of patterns of sensory integration dysfunction and sensory integration intervention. Courses 1, 2 and 5 will also be available in an on-line format, but courses 3 and 4 must be attended in person. Participants of both live and on-line formats will complete competency tests after each course segment to reinforce and assure learning of material.
2015 Annual Appeal
Help Support the
Spiral Foundation
Your support of the Spiral Foundation’s work in the field of sensory integration and Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) makes an incredible difference in our ability to carry out our professional education and support services for people with sensory processing issues and their caregivers. We’ve spent this year working hard to bring you even more of the quality programs you’ve come to expect, including our 2015 LiveTalk series and our brand new four-part ParentSpeak webinar series.
In addition, we have rebuilt our website and added dedicated toolkit pages for both parents and adults. These toolkits, which can be found here, are collections of free resources about sensory integration and sensory processing disorder for non-professionals. We look forward to expanding them in the coming years!
Finally, and perhaps most exciting of all, this year we were able to come to AOTA where we announced the release of our new self-report assessment of sensory and motor behaviors: The Adult/Adolescent Sensory History. You can learn more about the sensory history here.
None of this would be possible without your help and commitment. Thank you so much!
With 2016 just around the corner we are looking forward to the future of Spiral and we are very excited about what we have planned. For example, starting in January we will be launching our ‘Program of Essential Competencies in Sensory Integration,’ a five-part series of courses that will expand on our existing Sensory Integration Essentials series. We believe our new program will provide clinicians with a solid foundation of skills to understand, evaluate and treat sensory integration difficulties, and we are very excited to be able to bring this to you. More information about these courses can be found here.
For this year's Annual Appeal we are offering one of two gifts for all donations of $50 or more made before January 31.
First, last year’s exclusive webinar ‘The State of Sensory Processing and Motor Performance in Individuals with Autism’ is returning. If you missed last year’s appeal, or weren’t able to get it at AOTA, now’s your chance.
We are also offering an early release of a special self-study video, featuring a conversation with the Spiral Foundation’s late co-founder Dr. Jane Koomar. This video, ‘A Personal Perspective on the Art of Sensory Integration Intervention,’ will be available for purchase in our webstore after the New Year but for a small donation you can get it today.
The Spiral Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and as such your donations are tax deductible. Please note that you will only be able to deduct a portion of your donation if you choose to accept a donation gift. Each gift is worth a total value of $40.
To make a donation please click the ‘Donate’ button below and fill out the following form and complete the short survey about your donation gift in the confirmation email. If you choose to receive one of the donation gifts you will receive a download link for it via email within one business week of completing the survey.
About the Webinar
The State of Sensory Processing and Motor Performance in Individuals with Autism
Presented by Teresa May-Benson, ScD, OTR/L, FAOTA
Over the past twenty years there has been an increased understanding of sensory processing and motor performance needs of children and adults with autism. New information on prevalence, neurobiology, co-morbidities, and functional performance related to sensory-motor functioning is made available each month. This webinar will present a summary of the most recent research on sensory and motor functioning in children and adults with autism.
This webinar is available for a limited time only and is offered only as a gift to those who support the Spiral Foundation with a donation of $50 or more. This webinar will not be available in the Spiral Foundation webstore.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course participants will be able to:
- Identify three sensory and/ or motor characteristics of individuals with autism.
- Identify two ways that sensory processing and/ or motor skills in individuals with autism differ from individuals with sensory processing disorder.
- Identify three early sensory processing and/ or motor skills signs in individuals with autism.
To receive contact hours for this course you must view the recording in its entirety and successfully complete the accompanying exam. This course is worth a total of 1.0 contact hours or .1 AOTA CEUs.
AOTA
Domain: Client Factors
Process: Outcomes
About the Self-Study Video
A Personal Perspective on the Art of Sensory Integration Intervention
With Jane Koomar, Ph.D., OTR/L
In this special video occupational therapist and Spiral Foundation co-founder Dr. Jane Koomar discusses her thoughts on the art of sensory integration intervention, discussing topics such as developing therapeutic intentions, joining with children, creating safe spaces for bonding, using language to facilitate children’s performance, holding hope and promoting joy, and creating new stories for children’s lives. Originally presented in May of 2008 to the staff of OTA Watertown, now OTA The Koomar Center, this lecture was one of a series on core components of occupational therapy and remains a mandatory part of the training for new therapists and fieldwork students at OTA.
This video will be available for purchase from the Spiral Foundation after the New Year.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course participants will be able to:
- Describe two examples of how to promote therapeutic intentions in sensory integration intervention.
- Identify two ways to create safe spaces for bonding with a child.
- Describe three ways to use language to facilitate children’s performance.
To receive contact hours for this course you must view the recording in its entirety and successfully complete the accompanying exam. This course is worth a total of 1.0 contact hours or .1 AOTA CEUs.
AOTA
Domain: Client Factors
Process: Intervention