There are several factors to consider in choosing what programs to buy for your child. This is an important decision since the type of things your child spends his time using on the computer may determine what he learns and ultimately how he progress in school and with his social skills with others. The following is a list of factors you should think about before making a purchase.
1.  First you should decide whether you want a game or an educational program.
2. If you choose a game then consider the content of the game. Violent games may encourage violent behavior. Games with moral content may encourage moral behavior. Keep in mind that the type of game may effect your child' behavior.
3.  Consider the level of the game whether it is designed for your child's age group. Remember to consider if your child is smarter then most children you may want a game designed for an older age group so he does not get bored with the game. If your child is not learning quickly and his skills are generally lower then his age group you may consider programs designed for kids of a lower age group.
4.  Consider whether the game contains characters or topics of interest to your particular child. For example if your child likes the character Dora you may want to buy games that have Dora included!
5.  Visibility of the game may be important. If your child is color blind a game which uses a lot of colors may not be helpful to him. If the game has a lot of writing and subtitles and your child cannot yet read it may not be good for him. Generally, children that cannot yet read may respond with more elaborate and colorful games then a child that can read. Similarly, if the child cannot hear well then more visual pictures in the program may be more effective for him. 
6.  If you choose an educational game or other games it is important to check whether the authors describe research that confirms that the child will learn for the game. For example, there is a game called "Head Sprout"(recently purchased by another company)  that does have research that confirms that the children do learn to read from using the program. Games that have been scientifically validated to use psychological principles that are effective are the games to choose for your child! 
7.  Always consider the child's preferences before making a final decision discuss the options or even show him the games to get his input and assure that he will like the game. 
8.  Try to select games that include some reinforcer after correct performance if possible within the game! 
Generally, the most important factor is to choose games that are validated to be effective. Secondly, to choose games that match your child's individual needs. 

Children with disabilities, autism and a variety of behavior problems often do not display social skills such as sharing, greeting others, offering to help others, praising others and making small talk. The following are some tips on how to encourage these skills during your child's daily schedule.

1.The first step is to identify the skill you want teach.  Social skills can be taught, which is often not acknowledged by caregivers. 
2. Once the social skills are identified then prioritize which ones you will focus on first. Always work informally on all types of skills so that the training is even faster. Intensive focus on the highest priority skill does ensure that you will make faster progress with the more important skills for the child.
3. There is research that  Sharing and getting along can be reinforced and developed in a child. Some children are friendly and share on their own. The children that do not do this on their own can be taught to do so. Also, if caring and sharing are not encourage a child that is predisposed to be friendly might become less friendly.
4.  During the daily schedule be sure to include time for socializing. If your child's schedule includes only solitary activities such as his ipad or books and chores he may not have any opportunity to socialize and become friendly with others. For example, you can have time to talk at dinner, time for interactive games, talk in the car or at night before they go to sleep.  
5.  Include reinforcers for socializing such as a preferred item or activity if your children play a board game nicely. 
6.  If inappropriate behaviors do occur during the interactive activity be sure to stop the activity. Also,  do not give any preferred activity or item to anyone involved in the interactive activity. 
7.  Modeling and prompting appropriate conversations during interactive games can also be helpful for children. Often the children may not have the skill or forget to perform the skills. Social skills, sharing and friendliness are  important skills since getting along with others affects every area of the child's future including job, how they treat their family members,  friendships and general happiness of your child.

Caregivers and parents often prepare gifts for the holidays but not for the children. Here are some tips for the vacation days ahead!
1.  Prepare a schedule and review it with the children. Place strategic reinforcers during the day for good behavior on the schedule and discuss them with the children.
2.  Talk generally about the holiday and what it means and what others expectation is of their behavior. For example, grandma will be there she love to hear about your school and what you are learning. Also, more generally, the purpose of the the holidays is to be nice to family, enjoy our selves and have a peaceful visit so your father will relax if you behave yourself and ask him politely to play a game with you. 
3.  Make sure that items such as bedtime or other health related items are honored so that they are not overtired and cranky during the holidays. Before going on the trip make sure they take all vitamins and take those with you. Also, if there are any  medical issues such as coughs make sure to address them with your pediatrician before the holidays. A cold given to another  elderly relative could be very dangerous for that relative and create problems for you on the holiday
4.  Let children pack as much as possible and take responsibility for their own belongings.  They will feel more involved in the trip, have less inappropriate behavior when you do it for them and feel like they are more important and better about themselves. 
5.  Take small games or activities to use during time they are not occupied during the trip or vacation time. 
The extra effort to prepare for the holiday will make it much more enjoyable for you, your relatives and the children too!!

Exercise is important for children (and adults) with behavior problems, disabilities or autism spectrum diagnosis. Daily exercise can help to relax the child, redirect inappropriate behavior, replace inappropriate behavior with appropriate behavior, exercise can be a reinforcer, exercise can eliminate excess energy that might have been used for inappropriate behaviors. The following is a list of some methods of encouraging and arranging for the behaviors that are called exercise. 
1.  Parents or guardians can arrange a schedule for the day (including the week-end) to make sure that exercise is included each day.
2.  The daily schedule should have the exercise(if it is preferred) after the non-preferred activity (ex. such as homework). If exercise is a non-preferred activity then it should be scheduled before the preferred activity ( such as a computer game). 
3. Exercise can be an organized activity such as soccer or basketball outside or it can be built into the routine. 
For example, when parents go shopping they can park far away from the store so that the child has to walk. 
4.  Exercises should be designed to address any specific weakness the child needs to overcome. For example, if the child has poor fine motor co-ordination with the fingers games with the hands such as shooting basketball, playing with play dough, hand games with clapping, playing the piano or other games that require exercise and movement of the fingers would be great! 
5.  Another example is if the child has poor muscle tone in the stomach exercise such as aerobics with sit-ups. 
6. If the arms are week movements with the arms such as  pull-ups at the park, helping to carry groceries or carrying boxes of toys from the bedroom to the living room.
7. Finally a reward or reinforcer at the end of the day if the schedule is followed is important. The most effective is to have a choice from a token store of a variety of reinforcers or activities that they enjoy as a reinforcer!   
8. Finally social praise is very important throughout the day especially if that is a  major motivator for your child!:)

The latest trend is to purchase an iPad or computer and assume that this will teach your child everything!
There are three important things to note about the use of an electronic device.

First, the computer itself does not teach your child. If the software has reinforcers built into the games or activities that you purchased then this might work. However, if your child does not like the particular reinforcer in the program then the child will not learn. For example, if your child likes music and the reinforcer in the game is music delivered for a correct response then the child will not learn.  Before purchasing a game it is important to look at the game and see if the reinforcers are included.

Secondly, it should be noted that many games are specifically designed to include reinforcers and many are not.  Some are based on psychological research including games such as those developed by "Headsprout" ( recently purchased  by another company) and many others. Parents should read and look at the information about the games to see if they are based on research or psychological principles such as reinforcement. 

Third, parents should also consider the skills taught by the electronic device. Are these skills you want your child to learn. There are games to learn most anything such as spelling, reading, self-care skills, morals, social skills and much more.  I contrast it should be noted that children might model some behavior in games and there is such discussion and research that indicates that some aggression can be learned from modeling of television or games. This should be considered in your purchase of a game. Games your children might like might have some benefits and some deficits in their affect on your child's' behavior. All of these factors should be weighed and considered before purchasing a device and programs for your child.