Floortime, or DIR: the politics of special needs

For those of you interested in people on the autism spectrum, you have probably heard of Floortime. For some of you, this may be a new term, which describes a treatment for people on the spectrum — but also people (usually young children) who have a sensory integration disorder. With Floortime (also called DIR), the child engages with the parent or other adult on the floor in communication activities to develop language, both receptive and expressive. I attended a screening of a fascinating film made by two parents of a boy who had autistic-like symptoms, who responded well to the