What is RDI?
Relationship Development Intervention® is a family-based intervention for Autism, based on the way typical children learn and grow. Families are given the tools to effectively assist their children to learn:
- how to be guided by their parents
- how to cope with change and adapt to real life “messiness”
- how to use emotions and thoughts to analyse the past and plan for the future
Current studies show that while typical children tend to form the ability for flexible collaboration between different parts of the brain, children with ASD don’t, instead working in separate centres of the brain. So while, as a rough example, a typical person may see a painting and be thinking of colour, shape, emotion, memory, words, and all sorts of ideas; the person with ASD will have one part of the brain activated and may only think of the colour.
This brain underconnectivity means children with ASD have difficulty with processing new things, processing communication (where you have to manage eye contact, words, body language etc simultaneously), and problem-solving where there’s not necessarily one correct answer. Because of this difficulty children with ASD tend to become rigid and prefer to only be in familiar places with familiar people doing familiar things. They also have difficulty learning new things.
The RDI® Program endeavours to give children on the Autism Spectrum another chance at developing the necessary connections in their brain, by looking at the way typical children have developed them – through exposure to guided opportunities with their families, through social connection, through situations where they have to think and make decisions.
It aims to support families to help their children by altering the quality of their interactions, through adjusting everyday activities to maximise the child’s participation, and by changing their communication style.
The Program involves:
- The Family Guided Participation Program: where the family learns about guiding their child and helping their child be guided;
- The Dynamic Intelligence Program: where carefully selected objectives assist children in developing the flexible thinking they need for real-world quality of life
- Relationship Development Assessment: regular assessments of the child and family
For more information, please contact us or visit the RDIconnect website.