Hi, I’m Silvia.

Did you know that some children with autism struggle to recognise people’s faces?

I was stunned years ago, at the start of my career, when I realised that one of my students didn’t know the names of his classmates. This boy, who had autism, enjoyed ...

Review of seven Lámh signs for school for the new term.

You, all teachers, SNAs, preschool teachers and principals have done your best in getting classrooms ready and safe to welcome children back to school for the new term

There will always be a b...

One of the questions parents and teachers often ask is, “What can I do to help my child say more words?”.

In this video blog, I answer a question that a mum of a 4-year-old boy with autism sent me asking for advice on how to help his son use more wo...

One evening, while I was driving home from work, a song came on the radio. It was “Summer Holiday” by Cliff Richard. It’s a catchy little song, and it caught my attention. I must confess that when I'm driving, I can’t help but listen carefully to the...

It’s been ten long weeks since Ireland went into lockdown. Although the situation is far from over, seeing the number of cases of COVID-19 dropping and restrictions easing as our country gradually begins to reopen gives us all a little hope.

Persona...

In this blog post, I want to share a quick recipe for making homemade playdough. I use a super simple recipe, so you probably already have all the ingredients you need for it in the house. You can make white playdough, or you can add some food colour...

In this blog, I am sharing another video of a children’s storybook signed with Lámh. The book is called Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Written and illustrated by Bill Martyn and Eric Carle. You might know it already, as it’s a children’s cl...

In this video, I’m going to read a book for you! I read books to my own children all the time, and I'm sure you do too. Books are great for engaging all kids, especially at a time when we find ourselves indoors a lot. Today I want to read and sign a ...

In this blog, I share a song with you!

I'm certainly not a good singer, but I do sing all the time for my students, and I'm sure you do too, especially with the younger ones. The song is called “Look at the Colours Over You” and it focuses on teachi...

Have you heard of Temple Grandin? She is an American autistic professor and an advocate for the rights of autistic people. I attended one of her talks in Dublin a few years back. At the talk, many parents asked her how many hours of early interventio...

On Valentine’s Day, I like to talk about love and relationships!

There is no question that having children has a big impact on any marriage. Having a child with special needs has an even bigger effect on every aspect of family life, from health to f...

During the early days of my career as a visiting teacher, I began to build my collection of toys from specialised catalogues. I was sure that I needed lots of these toys for my students with special needs. I really enjoyed browsing catalogues full of...

I would also like to introduce you to a really useful resource that I use with my young students, and that I used with my own son Sebastian during his preschool years.

Children with autism and other developmental disabilities benefit hugely from rou...