Respite vs. Babysitting

All parents need to take breaks. We tell our kids to 'take a break', so we need to practice what we preach and take some time out for ourselves. When it comes to leaving your children in the care of others, most parents have a hard time finding (and keeping) babysitters around. By adding a special needs child into the mix, the struggle to find a babysitter intensifies exponentially. At Kahlon Family Services, we provide 'respite' care for parents whose children have developmental delays, behavioral differences or any other type of special need.

You may have heard the term 'respite' before, in the context of caring for people who have quite severe disabilities. While this term is probably thrown around a lot more in these situations, we would like to help you broaden this definition. Technically, 'respite' means, "A short period of rest from something that is difficult." We don't mean to say that your child is difficult, but if you're honest you'll agree that parenting a special needs child is actually quite difficult.

At Kahlon Family Services, we offer care under the term 'respite' because we feel that our staff are able to provide your family with not only childcare, but peace of mind. On the nights where you need to be at a meeting, or when you'd like to go on a date, or to a party - you can leave your children with a behavior specialist who is prepared for your family's unique challenges. On the days during school breaks where you need someone to watch your child, or you need a weekend off - we have it covered.

For more information about respite, or to schedule a consultation with a specialist, please contact us at info@kahlonfamilyservices.com

School Shadowing

Kahlon Family Services provides ‘shadows’ to people of all ages requiring extra help towards independence. ‘Shadowing’ is a relationship-based behavioral intervention. For children, a shadow refers to a Behavior Specialist assisting a child at school by first observing, taking data and consulting with the child’s family and teacher, wherein the specialist highlights areas of concern and develops a plan for behavior modification. 

The shadow helps the child on a daily basis, first by building rapport with the child and his/her family. The shadow then begins by meeting the child where he/she is 'at'. The next step is challenging the child to develop further self-sufficiency, through open communication and incentive tools. The goal of a shadow is to assist the child without hovering or embarrassing them, while making discrete modifications to their behavior and classroom environment in order to set the child up for success. Oftentimes, the shadow will act as though they are an extra teacher in the classroom so that nobody knows which child is requiring extra help, to protect the child’s privacy. The ultimate goal of shadowing is that the child will reach full independence at school, with a greater awareness of how to self regulate.

Kahlon Family Services also offers shadows to very young children in Early Childhood settings, as well adults with disabilities in the work environment, with similar (but developmentally-appropriate) goals.

How do you know if your child would benefit from a ‘shadow’?
- Has your child’s teacher mentioned that your son/daughter ‘checks out’ regularly in class, and therefore, has great difficulty completing tasks?
- Does your child struggle with sensory integration or an attention deficit?
- Does your child have difficulty with executive function, fine motor skills, impulsivity, following instructions or being part of a group?
- Is your child ‘acting out’ and being sent away from group/educational activities because of behavioral issues? Is he/she ‘in trouble’ most of the time, and missing out on vital learning?
- Has your child’s school mentioned that without extra assistance, your child may be excluded because of behavioral issues or special needs that they can not reasonably accommodate?

If it has been suggested that your child receive extra help, or if you feel as though his/her educational future is jeopardized by any of the above issues, we can help you. Please contact us for a consultation, on kahlonfamilyservices@gmail.com 

Our Services

YEAS (Yoga Education for Autism Spectrum) 

YEAS is a program developed by the founder of Kahlon Family Services (Vanessa Kahlon) and is built on a combination of yoga and behavior management strategies. We offer individual or group yoga sessions for all children, including those with special needs. KFS recognizes and appreciates each individual's unique needs with customized programs, created to fully engage each participant in our unique children's yoga program. YEAS sessions can be done in the comfort of your own home or at a convenient studio.

Shadowing

Kahlon Family Services also provides 'shadows' to people of all ages requiring extra help towards independence. 'Shadowing' is a behavioral intervention. For children, a shadow refers to a Behavior Specialist assisting a child at school by first observing, taking data and consulting with the child's family and teacher, wherein the specialist can highlight areas of concern and develop a plan for behavior modification. The shadow then helps the child on a daily basis - first building rapport while meeting them where they are at - then challenging the child to develop further self-sufficiency. The goal of a shadow is to assist the child without hovering or embarrassing them, while making discrete modifications to their behavior and classroom environment to set the child up for success. 

Respite

At Kahlon Family Services, we also offer respite for families with special needs children. Being trained in behaviors and developmental differences, our specialists can consult with you about your child before care begins. A big advantage of having a specialist providing respite (compared to using a mainstream babysitter) is that the specialist understands that your child will be unique and possibly challenging, yet coming at the situation with a toolbox of techniques to not only provide quality care to your child, but also have a good time.

School Consultations

 When teachers or directors feel that something in the classroom is not quite right they may choose to call us for a consultation. School consultations can be observations on a specific child, teaching teams or a classroom as a whole unit. The consultant comes out to the school, takes notes and submits a report containing observations, statistics and suggestions. 

Behavioral Consultations

When your kids have special needs or behavioral challenges, what seems like an everyday task can sometimes feel like mission impossible. We are passionate about helping families find joy in being together, despite the obstacles that may stand in their way. We help strengthen families by providing services that include Behavioral Consultations. The consultant makes suggestions and develops a plan of action from a toolbox of methods that they have been trained in, or previously seen evidence-based success in. At KFS, everything we do is relationship-based and individualized.

YEAS Teacher Training

Vanessa Kahlon also runs weekend courses to certify participants in becoming a YEAS teacher. Typically, a host has a group of people that would like training and from there the session can be advertised to the public, or kept private if there are enough participants. The training is based on yoga and behavior strategies, with plenty of opportunity to work in groups, explore new ideas and move your body. 

Parenting Workshops 

The course covers topics, such as;

• Communication
• Quality time
• Dealing with meltdowns, and
• Building the parent-child bond

Each session will involve practical content developed by Behavior Specialists, fresh ideas, strategies and challenges. There will also be time for questions, comments and discussion.

Social Skills

We conduct one-to-one sessions with individual students out in the community, where we spend time observing life as it happens and teaching vital skills that are relevant to the child's daily context. A general session involves capturing naturally teachable moments, such as:

• how to independently order and pay at a café
• how to cope with unexpected moments
• using appropriate voice level modulation for the situation
• how to express opinions in a way that doesn't offend others
• participation in conversation that involves/is interesting to everyone in the group and is back and forth

If we have the right combination of kids, we also run social groups. Contact us on info@kahlonfamilyservices.com for more information. 

New Year Challenge: Top 5 Reasons to Keep Less Toys

After the holidays, your house is probably groaning with your children's recent haul of new toys. Looking around your house right now, I wonder if you can spot some items that your kids have pushed to the wayside well before holiday season? If you can, you're in good company. Most families have so many more toys than they need. It's high time you gave some of them away.


TOP 5 REASONS TO KEEP LESS TOYS

(1) You need less than you have
In our society, we often become preoccupied with things we think we should have - instead of focusing on the things we already possess. When it comes down to the wire, do you really need more things? I wonder if you wrote down all of the "things" you bought in a month, if you would regret some of the purchases? The sooner you can live with less, the sooner you can promote these values to your kids at a young age.

(2) Decreases mess
When you have a lot of toys around the house, they tend to make a huge mess! While we all try to adhere to the rule of kids packing up toys after playing with them, sometimes we run out of time and by the weekend the house is a disaster. Kids with too many toys often don't take proper care of their belongings and lose interest in broken things. If you keep discovering your children's toys spread all around the house, maybe they need fewer toys?

(3) Promote generosity, not materialism
Why don't you gather up your extra toys and donate them to children less fortunate? Instead of teaching your kids to hoard items, there are so many reasons to show them how to be generous. There are probably a number of perfectly good toys that your children have outgrown that you can give away to a charity near you. You have the opportunity to teach your children some valuable life lessons surrounding their favorite possessions - toys!

(4) Boost creativity
If you buy your child every toy that they want, you are not allowing them the opportunity to be creative. When you buy a Barbie swimming pool, your child may never learn how to make-do with a bowl. With a Buzz Lightyear outfit, your child may not have the opportunity to paint cereal boxes and string them to their bodies as jet-packs! If you buy your child a new bike for no reason, they won't discover the creative process of negotiating ways to earn money for themselves. All of these creative lessons bring about life skills that develop children into smart, functional adults.

(5) Start the year fresh 
Starting the year with an organized home environment can do wonders for your family. While most people don't commit to New Years resolutions, this is something that you can do once at the start of every year and repeat it a few months later if you like.

Are you up for the challenge?