Building Attention and Self Awareness for Individuals with Autism Using Mindfulness

This workshop teaches strategies using mindfulness to help individuals with ASD to direct attention and build self-awareness. Participants will be guided through the practices progressively – from easy-to-do practices to the more difficult practices that will be helpful to build attention span.
  • Cindy Kua
  • Children and Youth, Special Needs

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e-Course
  • Date
29 & 30 September 2025
  • Price
S$600
Available Funding
  • Live Workshop
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Overview
Topics
Trainer Profile
Funding
Target Audience
What Others Say?
  • Course Overview

Individuals with ASD tend to present with difficulties to sustain attention when engaging in task / activities and low self-awareness (awareness of their thoughts, feelings and actions). Difficulties  in sustaining attention frequently affect their learning and performance in school as well as at work. Low self-awareness may also pose challenges to regulate emotion at times of anxiety and anger.

Mindfulness is a helpful method for individuals with ASD to learn to focus on the present moment instead of their pre-occupation. It also helps individuals to build awareness to their state of mind and body sensations.

This workshop teaches strategies using mindfulness to help individuals with ASD to direct attention and build self-awareness. All the participants will be guided through the practices progressively, from easy-to-do practices to the more difficult practices that will be helpful to build attention span. The easy practices can be taught and understood by individuals with ASD of all ages and across the whole spectrum.

This workshop is designed especially for parents and professsionals working with individuals with ASD. The practices taught are relevant for individuals with ASD of all age level and across the whole spectrum.

This skills training has 3 major components.

  • Part 1 covers challenges of individuals with ASD in attention and self-awareness
  • In Part 2, participants will be taught the basics of mindfulness and how mindfulness can be helpful for individuals with ASD. Participants will get to practice and experience varied mindfulness practices.
  • Lastly in Part 3, participants will be taught progressive steps in using mindfulness to help individuals with ASD to build attention.

Course Duration: 8 hours

  • What Others Say?
  • Course Topics
  • Understanding ASD difficulties in Attention and Self-awareness
    • Implications of these difficulties
  • How Mindfulness is helpful in building Attention and Self-awareness
    • What is Mindfulness
    • Practices for participants to experience what mindfulness is about
    • How will mindfulness help individuals with ASD
  • Step-by-Step activities to build attention and self-awareness in individuals with ASD
    Easy to Difficult mindfulness exercises for individuals with ASD – with practices

Case Study discussions

  • What to expect
  • How to plan mindfulness practices
  • Pitfalls and how to address
  • Trainer Profile
Cindy Kua
Cindy Kua has more than 15 years of experience in providing therapy for children and adolescents (age 2+ to 19 years old) with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Till date, Cindy has worked with hundreds of individuals with ASD, of all functioning levels. She has also provided many training workshops and talks for families as well as teachers and professionals on supporting children with ASD. Cindy has wide range of experience in working with children and adolescents with ASD; it ranges from being a therapist in the Early Intervention Programme (EPIC) at the Autism Association (Singapore), to being a Home- based Therapist, Educational Therapist, Shadow teacher and a Senior Psychologist in a child and adolescent mental health clinic (Neurobehavioural Clinic @ Child Guidance Clinic, IMH). Cindy is currently in private practice. Throughout her career in this field, she actively sought for opportunities to work with children with ASD in different settings so that she could gain good understanding of the difficulties of children with ASD across the different aspects of their functioning. Cindy holds a Master degree in Applied Psychology (Singapore) and a BSc in Psychology (Hon) (Singapore). ​
Available Funding

SkillsFuture Credit: ​Can be used to pay course fee fully or partially.

NTUC UTAP: NTUC union members enjoy 50% unfunded course fee support, capped at $250 or $500 (aged 40 years old and above)

  • Target Audience

This workshop is designed especially for parents and professionals who would like to learn specific strategies specially to build attention and awareness for individuals with ASD. The strategies taught in this workshop is relevant for individuals with ASD of all ages and across the whole spectrum, eg individuals with ASD who are studying /working and those studying in mainstream school / special school.

It is suitable for:

  1. Professionals working with individuals with ASD eg, Teachers, Counsellors, Allied Educators, Therapist, Psychologist
  2. Parents of children or adolescents with ASD of all ages and across the whole spectrum

Educational Institutions and Schools will especially benefit from this course.