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For Students/Families/Educators

This informational site is provided to professionals and families for information on fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). It is not intended to replace professional medical, psychological, behavioral, legal, nutritional or educational counsel. Reference to any specific agency or organization does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by FASD Maine.

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Supporting Students with FASD in School Transitions  Kindergarten through High School

Learn more about the Alberta FASD Service Networks

​"Transitioning to a new school or advancing to the next level can be a challenging time for any student. For students with FASD, these transitions can be particularly overwhelming due to the unique cognitive, emotional, and social challenges they may face.”

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Eight Magic Keys of Success for Students with FASD (recorded webinar)

​See complete Eight Magic Keys Piktochart here

Created by Deb Evensen and Jan Lutke

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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FASD Collaborative Project 

Our organization is focused on supporting the creation of fully inclusive communities that address the needs of all individuals who are neurodiverse, which includes extremely underserved populations like the FASD community.
Currently, we have over 50 partners collaborating to provide support groups, online webinars, special interest groups, innovative online training, and organizational development.
Our work is centered on advancing research and implementation of best practices while embracing the belief that everyone has a story to tell.

Recorded Webinars for educators, families, people with an FASD, providers, clinicians, any person who wants to learn more about FASD. E.g., "Middle School:Spotlight on Challenging Behaviors."

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Duke University

Understanding Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders  A Comprehensive Guide for Pre-K-8 Educators

This guide is designed for every educator (e.g., teachers, special education teachers, resource specialists, speech and language specialists, school nurses, psychologists, and occupational therapists) who works with K-8 elementary and middle school level students. The guide addresses the impact of prenatal exposure to alcohol and how it affects the K-8 grade student.

Many educators believe they do not have students in their classes who have FASD, and they may even wonder why this guide would be useful in their own teaching and classroom management.

  • Alcohol is the most commonly abused substance in the United States.

  • Despite health warnings, in the U.S. one in seven pregnant people use alcohol in pregnancy.

  • Of those who report alcohol use, 5.2% binge drink.

  • Therefore, it is not surprising that there is a high incidence of children (2-5%) in the United States with FASD and they are likely present in every classroom.

  • Maine overall rate of alcohol use in pregnancy is 10%.  In six of our sixteen counties the rate is 10% and higher, the highest at 16.5% in Cumberland county.

Download the Duke guide here

Video of 2017 Symposium here

Up-to-date data on FASD prevalence, alcohol use among pregnant people, rate of reported substance exposed infants, rate of child removal due to factor of parental substance use here

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CanFASD Canada FASD Research Network

Kirsten Morrison, BA, et al. Individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and Experiences of Stigma Stigma can negatively impact individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and can decrease individuals’ capacity to access services and supports, while perpetuating feelings of shame and contributing to social isolation. Increased access to information about FASD must be shared with and amongst health and social service providers, teachers, and the media in order to reduce discrimination and other effects of stigma on individuals with FASD.

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Stigma  Language Matters

FASD is a developmental disability. Like other people with disabilities, people with FASD have many strengths and skills and can lead happy and productive lives. The language we use can challenge stereotypes about people with FASD, promote compassion for women who drank during their pregnancy (for whatever reason), and help others to see people with FASD as more than a disability.

Thank you CANFASD (Canada FASD Research Network) for this information on "Talking About FASD".

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Nate Sheets    Cognitive Supports

Nate's brain-based approach is unique and allows for us to value a person's brain regardless of who they are. He helps parents and professionals understand the complex demands of everyday situations, allowing us to problem-solve alternative support strategies. 

NATE'S APPROACH:

  • Values neurodivergence

  • Meets the person where they are at

  • Focuses on connection & safety over compliance and "normal" behaviors

Videos:

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Eileen Devine LCSW I'm a parent coach, consultant, trainer, and mom to a teenager with neurobehavioral differences. My unique practice with parents and caregivers, supported by more than 50 years of research on the brain, centers on understanding neurobehavioral conditions as brain-based physical disabilities with behavioral symptoms. Experience has shown me that with increased education and understanding, frustration and anxiety decrease and challenging behaviors begin to resolve.

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FASD Hub Australia

What Educators Can Do  Educators can raise concerns and work with health professionals to inform a diagnosis. Along with parents and carers, teachers play an important role describing what they see, identifying triggers that may stimulate a response, and other factors that provide challenges. It is critically important that educators understand the strengths and difficulties of a child or young person with FASD and work in partnership with the family.

 

The Provincial Outreach Program for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder POPFASD*

POPFASD is funded by the British Columbia Ministry of Education and has been in existence since 2006. We are located in Prince George, British Columbia and hosted by School District No. 57. A multi-district Steering Committee offers advice, direction and feedback. The mandate of our program is to increase educators’ capacity to meet the learning needs of students with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.

The POPFASD website contains extensive well-researched resources for educators and families.

*In the U.S., the term "FASD" is not considered a diagnosis, as it is in Canada. In the U.S., FASD is an umbrella term that includes the full spectrum of diagnoses. For more information about diagnoses and diagnostic protocols in the U.S. go here.

 

Video

British Columbia Ministry of Education

Young Children with FASD: Strengths and Challenges

Excellent webinar on common challenges and ways to support children in the classroom. 

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​How these Winnipeg classrooms are rethinking lessons for kids with FASD

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Books

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders  A Multidisciplinary Approach    

Editors Omar A. Abdul-Rahman, Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Pediatrics Weill Cornell Medicine New York, NY

Christie L. M. Petrenko, Mt. Hope Family Center, Department of Psychology University of Rochester  Rochester, NY  Springer 2023   ISBN 978-3-031-32385-0

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Guided Growth    Educational and Behavioral Interventions for Children and Teens with Fetal

Alcohol Spectrum Disorders and Early Trauma Ira Chasnoff, MD  Ronald Powell, PhD

NTI Upstream 2020  ISBN 9780578735894

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Research to support educators' understanding of FASD

Flannigan, Katherine, et al. Responding to the Unique Complexities of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. Front Psychol 2022 Jan 25;12:778471. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.778471

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Hammond, Leah, et al. Adaptive behavior, sleep, and physical activity in adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Research in Developmental Disabilities 131 (December 2022) 104366

  • Adaptive behavior describes an individual’s capacity to manage their everyday needs and encompasses abilities such as communication, social skills, personal care, and community use. Adaptive behavior deficits reflect an important clinical feature in FASD and are included in current diagnostic guidelines.

  • Adolescents with FASD displayed significant impairments to all domains of adaptive behavior and considerable sleep disturbance.

  • Worse sleep was associated with older age and sleep-related breathing disturbances were associated with poorer social adaptive behavior.

  • Participation in physical activity, particularly organized sport, was strongly associated with better adaptive behavior.

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Choline Supplementation Webinar Video    Jeffrey Wozniak PhD 2015 FASD

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Ernst, Abigial M., et al. Prenatal and Postnatal Choline Supplementation in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. Nutrients 2022, 14, 688. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14030688​

"Children who received choline had higher non-verbal intelligence, higher visual-spatial skill, higher working memory ability, better verbal memory, and fewer behavioral symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than the placebo group. No differences were seen for verbal intelligence, visual memory, or other executive functions. These data support choline as a potential neurodevelopmental intervention for FASD and highlight the need for long-term follow-up to capture treatment effects on neurodevelopmental trajectories."

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Carmichael Olson, Heather and Montague, Rachel A. An Innovative Look at Early Intervention for Children Affected by Prenatal Alcohol Exposure. Prenatal Alcohol Use and FASD: Diagnosis, Assessment and New Directions in Research and Multimodal Treatment, 2011, 64-107

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Paley, Blair, Ph.D, O'Connor, Mary J. Ph.D. Behavioral Interventions for Children and Adolescents With Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. Alcohol Res Health. 2011; 34(1): 64–75

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Petrenko, Christie L. M. PhD. Positive Behavioral Interventions and Family Support for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. Curr Dev Disord Rep. 2015 Sep; 2(3): 199–209

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Jirikowic,Tracy, et al. Children and Youth with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: Summary of Intervention Recommendations after Diagnosis. Intellect Dev Disabil. 2010 Oct;48(5):330-44

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Petrenko, Christie L. M., et al.The Association Between Parental Attributions of Misbehavior and Parenting Practices in Caregivers Raising Children with Prenatal Alcohol Exposure: A Mixed-Methods Study. Res Dev Disabil. 2016 Dec;59:255-267

“Caregivers who attributed their child's misbehavior to underlying neurodevelopmental disabilities were more likely to use antecedent strategies and feel more confident in managing their child's behavior. Parents who attributed their child's misbehavior to willful disobedience were more likely to rely on consequence strategies and feel more ineffective.”

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Jirikowic, Tracy L. et al. Prevalence and Patterns of Sensory Processing Behaviors in A Large Clinical Sample of Children with Prenatal Alcohol Exposure. Research in Developmental Disabilities 2020;(100)

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Fjeldsted, Brenda and  Xue, Lin. Sensory Processing in Young Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. Phys Occup Ther Pediatr​2019;39(5):553-565

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Franklin, Laureen, et al. Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: Problem Behaviors and Sensory Processing. Am J Occup Ther​. May-Jun 2008;62(3):265-73

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McLaughlin, Susan A., et al. Listening Difficulties in Children With Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: More Than a Problem of Audibility. J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2019 May 21;62(5):1532-1548. doi: 10.1044/2018_JSLHR-H-18-0359

 

Stephen, Julia M., et al. Delays in auditory processing identified in preschool children with FASD. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2012;36(10):1720-1727

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