Assistive Technology to Help with Anxiety
Presented by: Matt Dennion
August 12, 2020, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
This presentation will focus on apps that can assist students from kindergarten to 12th grade in dealing with anxiety in school and in functional settings. The presentation will highlight mobile technology that can help create schedules with detailed directions, support reading and writing for students with dyslexia and dysgraphia, assist with writing research papers, and programs that can support independent functioning in a community setting. Examples of what the apps can do and detailed directions in the form of task analysis for the more involved apps will be provided as part of the presentation.
“In These Uncertain Times”: Returning to School in an Age of Anxiety
Presented by W. Eric Deibler, M.S Ed., Psy.D
August 26, 2020, 7:30 – 8:30 p.m.
“In these uncertain times“ is a phrase that has been thrown about so frequently during our struggles with managing and adapting to COVID-19 that it has become a cliché. Even so, the situation we find ourselves in is nothing if not uncertain, and nowhere is this more evident than the question of what school will be like for our children upon their intended return to the classroom after a five month absence.
Informal talks with parents, teachers, and other constituents, as well as consultation with colleagues, have already revealed a wide range of reactions. Some children are excited to return to school. Some children have exhibited newfound symptoms of depression, anxiety, and behavioral difficulties during the prolonged social isolation that has accompanied distance learning. Some children are terrified of returning to school for fear of becoming sick. Some children with pre-existing anxiety disorders have already shown an exacerbation of symptoms when faced with the possibility of returning to a situation that they feel may be unsafe.
While none of us truly know how it will be for our children when they return to school this fall , there are lessons that we can take from the experiences of children returning to school after other significant societal disruptions, such as after the 9/11 terrorist attack. In this talk, we will examine the long-term psychological experience of children during episodes of societal disruption, including factors that are associated with a higher degree of symptoms, as well as things that schools and others can do to try and ensure better outcomes. We will cover important concepts such as psychological triage and other effective interventions that can support children who are struggling emotionally.
These may be uncertain times, but that does not mean that we have to enter them unprepared.
Save the Date! Coming This Fall:
September 30: Suicide Prevention in Teens with Wendy Sefcik, child mental health and suicide prevention advocate, and Maureen A. Brogan, LPC, ACS, DRCC, Program Manager, Traumatic Loss Coalitions for Youth
October 21: Cognitive Behavioral Intervention Therapy (CBIT) with Graham Hartke, Psy.D., Tourette Syndrome Clinic Director at Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology
November 11: Ask the Neurologist with Michael Rubenstein, MD, Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology at Penn Medicine and Attending Physician at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
December 2: Neurodevelopmental Conditions and Anxiety: Common Causes and Effective Solutions with Christopher Lynch, Ph.D., Program Coordinator at the Pediatric Behavioral Medicine Department at Goryeb Children’s Hospital
(Topics are subject to change.)