Overview
The Davis Autism Approach has been designed by an autistic genius to gently and progressively unlock the beautiful minds and gifts of individuals on the autism spectrum.
Ron Davis
"What inspired me to help others with autism is that I am myself autistic. I know what it feels like and I know the limitations that exist as a result of it. I realized that, given I had found my own way through this chaos (of autism), I could provide a ‘map’ for others of my kind to follow – then there would be value in my existence. The Davis Autism Approach is my best effort at providing that map."
Ron Davis
"What inspired me to help others with autism is that I am myself autistic. I know what it feels like and I know the limitations that exist as a result of it. I realized that, given I had found my own way through this chaos (of autism), I could provide a ‘map’ for others of my kind to follow – then there would be value in my existence. The Davis Autism Approach is my best effort at providing that map."
Who would benefit from a Davis Austism Approach program?
Any autistic individual aged eight years or over, who has receptive language (i.e. they can understand what is being said) can benefit from this life-changing program.
If an individual does not yet have receptive language, we can still help. However, their Davis Autism journey will take a different path, starting with the Davis Stepping Stones Program, the beginning steps to the Davis Autism Approach Program.
Do you long for a life where every day experiences don’t become a source of stress and overwhelm for you or your child?
Do unexpected changes in routine or in your environment cause confusion and make the world feel perplexing and maybe even scary?
Do you or your child struggle with relationships, or feel at a loss to understand emotions or interpret social cues?
The Davis Autism Approach® is your guide to clarity, providing solutions that address the challenges and perplexities of navigating a complex world.
Imagine a world where autism is not a barrier but simply a part of what makes you extraordinary. Our shared aspiration is to help you or your loved one embrace autism, supporting you as you turn challenges into opportunities for growth and self-discovery.
What is involved in a Davis Autism Approach program?
The Davis Autism Approach program takes a unique approach in supporting autistic individuals by helping them to unlock their unique gifts and intelligence, and to participate more fully in life in a way that empowers and fosters growth.
Our program helps autistic individuals to develop the understanding of fundamental life concepts that enable them to make sense of, and interact with the world, in way that is easeful and eliminates their confusions.
This is achieved through communication and visual learning, creating each life concept as a 3D real-life model using modelling clay, allowing images to ‘do the talking’ rather than using too many words, which can often cause confusion.
The understanding of each concept is then integrated through fun experiences, opening the doorway to new learning and development, with the individual experiencing each concept as being a natural part of everyday life.
The program also covers social integration, but this is dealt with as the last step, for it is critical to have a solid understanding of the foundational life concepts first, in order to make sense of and navigate relationships in the social world without having the need for learning a set of social skills.
Davis Autism Approach is a three-step program.
Step 1: Individuation and Self-Regulation
The facilitator will begin by supporting the individual to become more present, develop accurate perceptions, gain a greater sense of self-awareness, and develop the skills to regulate their focus, stress, and energy levels. This process includes:
Auditory Orientation – the participant listens to a specifically engineered sound through headphones leading up to and, if necessary, during program sessions. This auditory stimulus – affectionately referred to as the ‘Davis ting’ was designed by Ron Davis to help each participant to develop accurate, stable perceptions, and an awareness of being separate from others. This technique can greatly enhance a person’s ability to maintain a calm state of focus.
Release – a simple, effective technique to empower the individual to manage their stress and anxiety levels.
Dial – a visualization technique that enables the individual to monitor and regulate their energy levels according to any situation.
Self-awareness – using modeling clay, the individual creates a model that represents themselves (Self). This model of Self is used in every part of the program that follows, to allow true understanding of how Self relates to all of the fundamental life concepts.
Step 2: Identity Development
This Davis facilitator supports the individual to actively create the fundamental life concepts using the engaging hands-on method of modeling clay as a visual representation of the concept. Concepts include:
- change, consequence, cause and effect, before and after, time, sequence, order and disorder
- continue, survive, perception, thought, experience
- energy, force, emotion, want, need, intention
- motivation, ability, control, responsibility
Meaningful, positive learning experiences in the environments allow the individual to explore these life concepts in a safe and fun way. This enables the individual to integrate their experiences into their personal identity, as a framework for understanding the world, and creates a solid foundation for stimulating positive and lasting change.
The facilitator supports the individual to establish order in their physical environment by learning how to use the concepts to establish order, determine order, and create and maintain order.
The individual is empowered to develop self-responsibility, through identifying which life concept/s are missing and thereby preventing or limiting the individual's capacity for self-responsibility.
Step 3: Building Bridges (Social Integration)
Once the fundamental life concepts have been integrated for an individual, they now have the foundations to start building a bridge into the world of other people.
The Building Bridges stage of the program focuses on facilitating social awareness by exploring the different types of relationships and behaviors we engage in with others.
Rather than having the individual learn a set of social skills, we work with them to explore different categories of relationships and associated behaviors that can be applied across any social situation they may encounter.
Social awareness is facilitated by exploring different types of
relationships and behaviors we have with others. Emotional awareness
is facilitated through exploring what messages our feelings are giving
us, and what they motivate us to do.
What kind of results do people see with the Davis Autism Approach program?
• Improved wellbeing. Experience a sense of empowerment as you navigate life with greater self-awareness, the ability to create boundaries and manage stress, with less anxiety and overwhelm.
• Increased sense of safety. Enjoy the freedom to feel safe, equipped with greater
understanding and tools that will help you better manage yourself, reducing sensory
overload symptoms and meltdowns.
• Strengthened relationships. Become well-equipped to navigate the intricacies of daily interactions and relationships without the need to rote learn behaviors or social skills. Enhanced resilience. Increase your flexibility of thinking, capacity to cope with change and willingness to try new things.
• Taking control of your life. Learn how to effortlessly create change and order, and take responsibility for your life. Gain a sense of control and mastery – transforming confusion and chaos into clarity and certainty.
What are the options for accessing this program?
Every individual has unique needs. We have developed a variety of delivery options to choose from, so you can find the best solution to suit your needs.
Program Timeframe?
The time it takes to complete a Davis Autism Approach Program is flexible according to each individual’s needs, however, a typical program will take somewhere between 60 and 120 hours (2, 4 week time blocks). Our approach involves wrap-around support, which means that a support person has the opportunity to be involved in the program every step of the way.
At Davis, our core belief is that autistic individuals have great potential and don’t need to be ‘fixed’. You simply need a road map to help you materialize what you would like to achieve in your lifetime. The Davis Autism Approach is that road map. Let the Davis Autism Approach be your partner on this transformative journey into a world where you or your loved one can thrive.
*Information used with permission from davismethod.com and Davis Autism International
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