Birdhouse Blog

This article is part of a series that seeks to highlight real-life stories of families using Birdhouse around the world. We love talking with our users and hearing how Birdhouse has made a positive impact. Have you used Birdhouse to learn something new about your...

This article is part of a series that seeks to highlight real-life stories of families using Birdhouse around the world. We love talking with our users and hearing how Birdhouse has made a positive impact. Have you used Birdhouse to learn something new about your...

This article is part of a series that seeks to highlight real-life stories of families using Birdhouse around the world. We love talking with our users and hearing how Birdhouse has made a positive impact. Have you used Birdhouse to learn something new about your...

Ben, Dani, & Mitch Mitch Albom, best-selling author, journalist, and Detroiter (among many other things!) heard about Birdhouse and what we’re doing in Detroit to help families with Autism around the world, and stopped by yesterday to interview us! He produces a...

Many families find that their children benefit from the use of weighted blankets. Just as the name would suggest, a weighted blanket is basically just a blanket that is filled with little weights to provide a “heavier” feel to them. This provides a little...

Our kids rarely fit into one single box. So why should we make you choose one single diagnosis? We all seem to have our own way of doing things, which is why Birdhouse can be so helpful to so many different people– you can use it in whatever way best suits your...

Gather those school supplies, pack those lunches, and stuff those backpacks. It’s that time of year again…. back to school! Transitioning from summer break and heading back to school can be confusing and overwhelming for a lot of kids. We’ve found...

You may have heard some news about the FDA recently regulating foods carrying a Gluten Free label. You may have also heard that they “won’t have to be technically free of all wheat and gluten, with an allowance of 20 parts per million of gluten.” And...

Birdhouse Is Growing UpWhen we started this project in 2012, we began by running surveys and talking with other families about how they track their child’s progress over time. The results of those conversations informed the design and development of what we...

Our iPhone app is LIVE Birdhouse for iPhone version 1.0 is available! It’s been downloaded over 100 times since we made the big announcement just a couple weeks ago.Remember: you must first create an account on the web to use the iPhone app. If you don’t...

Birdhouse can be used to track your child’s food intake and even compare it to moods, meltdowns, and poop. This is really helpful for many families, because quite a few of our little ones struggle with various ingredients or food types, and trying different diets can...

When we designed Birdhouse, we did so with the lives of parents like us in mind. We know how crunched for time and patience us parents can be, so when we thought about the type and amount of behavioral data parents would be entering, we included some features to make...

Thank you for all the great feedback! We’re listening, and have made improvements to Birdhouse to make it easier to use.1. Removed browser authentication.When we first made Birdhouse available a few months ago, we required that you enter a username and password...

In the last few weeks, there’s been increased attention given to a phrase that so many parents raising children with ASD fear: transition to adulthood. Parents face a feeling of desperation as their children age out of the system that has supported them in an...

Image compliments of Guide to Nursing Degrees

A parent running behind while holding on to the back of the bike. A caregiver just as nervous to let go as the kid who’s pedaling. That wobbly feeling. The wind blowing wisps of hair around. And then finally… you’ve got yourself a rider. For most families, teaching a...

We hope you’re enjoying spring so far. It is spring, isn’t it? Hard to tell in our neck of the woods, but hopefully all this rain will make for some beautiful May flowers! While we’re waiting for some sunshine, we have some great updates to share...

Me (Ben), Dani, and the Little Bird — Every year our very own Mama Bird (we also call her Dani) publishes photos on her personal blog of friends, family, acquaintances, pets (yep, pets!), and fellow parents who’ve chosen to wear blue in support of Autism awareness...

Today marks the beginning of Autism Awareness Month and tomorrow (April 2nd) will be World Autism Awareness Day (WAAD). You likely wouldn’t be here if you weren’t aware of Autism. In fact, it’s probably safe to assume that most people know at least someone who has...

A new study shows that animals significantly increase social behaviors in children with Autism. It’s been shown numerous times that bringing animals into a hospital or rehab environment can boost the spirits of those facing illness and/or recovery. Now, a study...

In March 2009, the Special Olympics began their valiant effort to eliminate the word retard from everyday speech. Advocates for individuals with intellectual disabilities want everyone to know that the word hurts and causes people to feel “less than human.” The Spread...

In the past 12 months, Birdhouse has gone from an ethereal blip of potential floating in the Universe, to a brainspark, to a conversation, to a business outline, sketches in a legal pad, a few wireframes on a computer, some soul searching and life contemplation, to...

"The pursuit of normality is the ultimate sacrifice of potential." (Faith Jegede) Faith Jegede shared some of the lessons she has learned over the years living with two brothers with Autism. We decided to ask around a bit: What is a big lesson you’ve learned...

Earlier this month Yale School of Medicine was awarded a $15M grant from the National Institute for Health (NIH) to study Autism in girls. Another grant, another study. But wait! What makes this one different is that it will help researchers study Autism in females....

Last weekend team Birdhouse For Autism participated in the annual Walk 4 Friendship to benefit kids with special needs through the Friendship Circle of Michigan. Amid a crowd of 5,100 walkers, the community came together to show support for individuals with...

We’re big supporters of the Friendship Circle of Michigan, an incredible international organization providing support for families of children with special needs. One of their most popular programs pairs children with teen volunteers, and it’s so successful that many...

Drugmaker Roche recently announced a partnership with small Massachusetts-based Seaside Therapeutics that has been actively conducting trials on a drug meant to treat both the intellectual disability and behavioral issues associated with Fragile X and Autism. There’s...

Randy Lewis, Senior VP of Logistics and distribution for Walgreens, is behind the huge company’s efforts to employ individuals with disabilities. As the nation’s largest drug store chain, Walgreens is setting a great example for other large corporations to follow. As...

Last week we talked about the American Academy of Pediatrics cautioning physicians against using Sensory Processing Disorder as a stand alone diagnosis. Their concern is that in doing so, one might miss some of the many co-morbid conditions associated with difficulty...

The American Academy of Pediatrics has released a new policy statement saying that pediatricians should no longer diagnose children with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) “because there is no universally accepted framework for diagnosis."  Cincinnati...

Last night, it was brought to our attention that someone had been posting some malicious content on Facebook. It all started with the post above, and continued with more comments: Like yours probably is, our pulse quickened and our blood pressure skyrocketed. We...

From now until June 15th, the American Psychiatric Association is accepting public comments and feedback on the proposed changes to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). There are many proposed changes, but the one that those in the Autism...

Is it okay to make fun of others with disabilities? What if the person making fun of the other has a disability him or herself? Does it legitimize their remarks or jokes? Or is it still off-limits? @ShaunJ72 asked us this question on twitter recently and got me...

Know what’s exciting? We’re holding a logo contest on logotournament.com. That’s what’s exciting! We wanted to spruce up our logo, so we’re having graphic designers from all over the world dream up new branding designs for us. In less than 8 hours we’ll pick our top 5...

One of the really special things we love about the process of creating Birdhouse is getting to connect with parents of kids on the Autism spectrum. Whether that takes place in person, over coffee, or through the telephone lines, the conversations we have are extremely...

Welcome to the Birdblog, the official weblog of Birdhouse for Autism! In light of the fact that World Autism Awareness Day happens to be TODAY, we thought it’d be a great time to dive, beak first, into the World Wide Flappernets. Raising a child with autism is a daily...