Whole family approach

Published on 8 December 2024 at 13:30

We understand that caring for a neurodivergent child can come with its unique challenges. That's why we offer a mini course designed to help parents, grandparents, teachers, and carers feel confident in recognising when their child is regulated and in the "learning zone".

We will take time together to notice the signs that your child show us when their system is overwhelmed and not in an optimal place to learn.

We will together explore ways we can scaffold and support them so they feel more balance and control in how they move, interact and communicate in their space.

Following a VERVE approach We will use video to allow us to analyse and notice how to best enable them to lead within play and exploration of movement. So your child can dictate the pace they learn at best. Noticing how and when their coordination is smoother and more complex, how to support their sensory processing and communication, their language skills...

What is VERVE?

VERVE is a form of video interaction therapy focusing on developing and integrating communication and learning abilities, with an emphasis on the foundational skills of regulation and face watching. Parents or practitioners focus on their timing and skill in interaction, using moment-by-moment video analysis and reflection. 

Several adult child interaction (ACI) approaches have developed over the past decades (for example, ‘Parent Child Interaction’ (PCI); Palin PCI; and ‘Pre-school Autism Communication Therapy’) with a growing evidence base (including Falkus et al, 2015; Fukkink et al, 2011).

 

  • Focus on foundational skills:
    VERVE targets core skills crucial for communication and learning, such as the ability to think things through, explore ideas through play, initiate interactions, and regulate emotions. 

     

    Analysis and Reflection:
    The therapy involves recording interactions between adults (parents, teachers, or therapists) and children and then analyzing the videos to identify effective communication strategies and areas for improvement. 

     

    Emphasis on Self-Regulation and Face-Watching:
    VERVE highlights the importance of regulation skills and face-watching (attending to the other person's face and expressions) in communication. 

     

    Building on Existing Strengths:
    Rather than focusing on deficits, VERVE aims to identify and build upon the child's existing communication skills and the
    adult's natural interaction patterns. 

     

    Collaborative Approach:
    VERVE encourages a collaborative relationship between the therapist, the adult (parent or practitioner), and the child, where everyone learns from each other's communication styles and strategies. 

     

    Applications:
    VERVE is applicable to a range of children, including those with speech and language delays, learning disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, and other communication challenges
     
The purposeful use of silence
 
The world can be frantic. It is hard to settle in situations where there are lots of other things going on, many people moving around and many demands being made of us.
 
Until we have balanced regulation, every movement or sound can interfere with what we are doing.
 
Many children have heightened senses, levels of energy and curiosity, which can place yet more demands on their developing regulation.
 
At Firefly, we start in a space that is quiet and comfortable so that the child doesn’t have to deal with too much stimulation.You will notice that the facilitators might not necessarily seem to speak a great deal to your child, although they will be highly attentive, engaging them with smiles, listening and waiting – only speaking when your child has looked at them, and stopping when they look away. 
This is deliberate, and is the start of a therapeutic process. 
 
The facilitators will have set up the space so that your child can experiment, explore and share a variety of things that are fun. Many children will engage with the toys/ materials in a complex manner and may well be talking in lengthy sentences. Many may not seem particularly interested with what has been put out, or interacting with you or the facilitators, and seem more interested in running and climbing or doing things that you wish they wouldn’t! Don’t worry, if this is the case: this ‘behaviour’ (or state of regulation) is part of the developmental process.
 
Children who present with elements of difficulty in their communication, language, speech, fluency and learning have reduced face watching because they are trying to manage and balance their own system. Not looking is necessary and adaptive. It indicates that they cannot tune in to what is being said right now. It shows their physiological state. Reduced face watching leads to misinterpretation by others who, without receiving a regulatory smile, tend to talk too much or direct the child, being unsure when to speak, what to say, how much to say and when to stop. This in turn makes it tricky for the child to seek, process, organise, exchange and build their own robust abilities.
 
With VERVE we adapt the timing of our own interaction skills to match your child’s initiation and invitation. By being consistent and predictable in our response to mutual face watching, we support their developing agency and communication skills. Gently stretching their natural skills by being specific in ours.

 

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