Autism Treatment Center of America
Son-Rise Program Created to Teach Parents to Work with Children
Nov 13, 2008
Created in 1974 by Barry Neil Kaufman and Samahria Lyte Kaufman, parents of a son with autism, the Son-Rise Program was created to teach parents how to work with their own child. “The Kaufmans' unique program, which marked a complete departure from existing methods of treatment, transformed Raun from a mute, withdrawn child with an IQ of less than 30 into a highly verbal, socially interactive youngster with a near-genius IQ.” (Source: History of the Son-Rise Program, Son-Rise website)
Program Basics
As with any methodology used to address autism spectrum disorders, the Son-Rise Program operates on some basic tenets. The first is that there should be no limits place on your child. Each child is unique and grows at different rates but by removing any limits, you are helping to ensure the best possible outcome. The second principle of the Son-Rise Program is that “autism is not a behavioral disorder.” Instead of looking at autism from a behavioral perspective, the program encourages families and caregivers to look at autism as more of a deficit in the relational realm.
Other tenets of the program are that stimming is purposeful, the parent is the best ‘professional’ for the child, environment is key to growth, families and caregivers should be comfortable with the child and that the program can be used with other treatment options.
Training Programs
The Autism Treatment Center of America provides four different training programs for interested families and professionals. The first level is the Start-Up Program; the program encompasses five days and serves as an introduction to the Son-Rise Program but is a prerequisite for the Intensive program.
The Maximum Impact Program is designed to build upon the foundations learned in the Star-Up Program. The Intensive Program provides simultaneous learning opportunities for parents and child. Finally, the New Frontiers Program focuses on social skills and is only open to parents who have attended one of the other Son-Rise Programs.
Traditional Behavioral Approach
Studies have been published that compare the results from families using the Son-Rise Program to those that used a more behavioral approach to autism. The Empirical Research Supporting The Son-Rise Program article, published on the Autism Treatment Center website, states “One study assessing the relative efficacy of behavioral programs with autistic children compared residential, out-patient and home-based programs. They found that only the home-based group showed significant improvements on the behavioral observation measures.”
The Son-Rise Program is one of many approaches used to foster growth and learning in a child with an autism spectrum disorder. Although the program has been available for more than two decades, it does not get as much media attention as applied behavior analysis and biomedical protocols like the one used in the Defeat Autism Now! program.
