Transcript Autism

Strategies to Support
Students with Autism
Kate Weingartner, Consultant, State Education Resource Center
Jacqui Kelleher, Consultant, Bureau of Special Education, CT
State Department
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Web Resources
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www.autisminternetmodules.org
www.dotolearn.com
www.usevisualstrategies.com
www.images.google.com
www.tinsnips.org
www.mayerjohnson.com
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Major Strengths of People with ASD
Can understand concrete concepts very well.
Can memorize rote material easily and quickly.
Can recall visual images and memories easily.
Can think in a visual way.
Can learn chunks of information quickly.
Can learn to decode written language at an early age.
Can have extraordinarily good long-term memory
Can understand and use concrete rules and sequences.
Can be perfectionistic in approach to tasks.
Can be very precise and detail oriented.
Can be depended upon to maintain schedules and to be on time.
Can have average or even way above average intelligence.
Can be honest even to a fault.
Can be charming in their innocence.
Can have difficulty being devious.
Can have a strong sense of integrity.
Can have an excellent sense of direction.
Can be very compliant when expectations are clearly understood.
Can be very genuine.
(CT Autism Resource Center, 2007, pg. 7)
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Learning Outcomes
• Identify the major strengths of individuals
with autism
• Learn the characteristics of autism
• Learn strategies to support students with
autism in the classroom and school
environment
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Autism
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1 in 150 diagnosed
3 to 4 times as many males as female.
Fastest-growing developmental disability
$90 billion annual cost, 90% costs are in adult
services.
• Cost of lifelong care can be reduced by 2/3
with early diagnosis & intervention.
(Autism Society of America, 2009)
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Autistic Spectrum Disorders
• Currently, there is no consensus about the cause of ASD.
• Theories regarding the causes of ASD include genetic
components, environmental components, and some
combination of genetics and the environment.
• While no known cure for ASD exists, the general agreement is
that early diagnosis followed by appropriate treatment can
improve outcomes for later years for most children with ASD.
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Autism Spectrum Disorders
Child
Disintegrative
Disorder
Rett’s Disorder
Autism
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Asperger’s
Syndrome
Pervasive
Developmental
Disorder-NOS
Triad of Central Deficits
Social
Interaction
Communication
Repetitive
Behavior
Additional characteristics may include sensory issues, anxiety,
resistance to environmental change or change in routine, and
stereotyped movements.
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Social Interactions
• Personal Space
• Hygiene
• Relationships &
perspective taking
• Reciprocity
• Play, leisure, recreation
activities
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Communication
• Language skills-verbal &
non-verbal
• Expressing needs
effectively
• Ability to make choices
• Understanding language
• Conversational Skills
• Delayed language &
echolalia
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Behavior
• Interests
• Communication:
escape, attention, play,
& self-regulation
• Repetitive behaviors
• Preoccupation with
parts of objects
• Poor organizational
skills
• Impulsivity
• Time management
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Autism vs. Asperger’s Syndrome
Autism
Asperger’s Syndrome
Receptive language is higher
than expressive
Expressive language is higher
than receptive
Value sameness; may exhibit
problem behavior with
changes
Rigid; may “meltdown”
Perseverative, repetitive
movements
High stress level
Majority of individuals do not
relate to others
Majority want social contact
but do not have the skills
50 % of individuals have an IQ
in the MR range
.01 of 1% have an IQ in the
MR range; most have average
to above average intelligence
50 % are non-verbal, many
have echolalia
All are verbal
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A practical definition . . .Asperger’s Syndrome
• Awkwardness in communication, despite strong vocabulary
• Difficulty in “reading” the behavior of others
• A preference for predictability
• A tendency toward specific and intense interests
• (Sometimes) inefficient organization and productivity, despite strong
intellectual abilities
• (Sometimes) challenges in integrating sensory information
• (Sometimes) problems in regulating anxiety or mood
• (Often) clumsiness
(Bolick, T. 2001). Asperger Syndrome and Adolescence: Helping Preteens and Teens Get Ready for
the Real World.
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People with
autism experience
the world
differently from
those without
autism, because
they process
information
differently
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Classroom Management: Structure
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Classroom schedule
Work spaces
Minimal distractions
Visual cues
Consistency
Predictability
Language usage
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Visual Supports
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Tips for Working with Students with ASD
• Communication
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Teach language in context
Limit amount of language
Use visual supports
Identify communicative intent
Keep directions to 1-2 steps
Emphasize communication, not speech
• Establishing Routines
• Create choices
• Allow for sensory breaks
• Incorporate child’s interest in lessons
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The challenge:
•Visual thinkers “think in pictures”
Strategies:
•Allow adequate time to process and retrieve
information – it takes longer to process images than
words
•Limit verbal language
•Use visual aids
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The challenge:
Understanding and interpreting
social cues
Strategies:
•Social skills and social cognition
must be explicitly taught
•Avoid using sarcasm or
metaphors
•Pair gestures with other
modalities
•Use of exaggeration, repetition
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Activity
PROBLEM:
Miguel loves the gym. Whenever he leaves the
classroom, he assumes he’s going to the gym. If
his paraprofessional directs him in a direction
away from the gym, he lays down on the floor
and cries.
Think-Pair-Share
What are some possible strategies for addressing
his behavior?
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The difficulty:
 Coping with changes in routines/schedules
Strategies:
Schedules – when events will happen
Use an icon in a schedule to identify/alert the
student to changes
Teach coping skills through imagery, social stories,
self talk, etc.
Teach relaxation techniques
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Strategies for the Classroom
• Establish and use consistent classroom routines
• Provide visual instructions, rules, schedules, menus for
classroom situations, rubrics -show don’t tell
• Build in transition time and have child practice routine
• Provide models of finished products
• Identify important part of the task
• Capitalize on areas of interests
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Strategies Continued…
• Provide opportunities for movement
• Use timers
• Provide and encourage the use of keyboards for writing assignments
• Explore and be flexible in writing materials
• Create a menu of stress release activities including an escape plan
• Minimize auditory and visual distractions
• Consider the use of sensory input items- fidgets, water bottle
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Power Cards
Power Cards: Using Special Interests to
Motivate Children and Youth With
Asperger Syndrome and Autism by Elisa
Gagnon
Fireman Joe
1.
Follow a bedtime routine. Fireman
Joe takes a bath, brushes his
teeth, and reads for 15 minutes
before turning out the lights
2. Close your eyes and try to lay
still.
3. Stay in bed after the lights are
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out.
Social Stories
• Tool for teaching social skills to children with
autism. It provides an individual with accurate
information about those situations that he or she
may find difficult or confusing.
• The situation is described in detail with a focus on
a few important points: social cues, events and
reactions the individual might expect to occur in
the situation, actions and reactions that might be
expected of him, and why.
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30
Going Back to School
I will start school on Wednesday, August 30, 2003.
I will be in in 5th grade.
Some things at school will be the same.
Mrs. Grazino is still my teacher.
Mr. Friedman is still my teacher.
Some things at school will be different.
Mrs. Grazino’s class will be in a different room.
Miss Mary will not be my teacher.
Miss Ruth will be my new teacher.
I will try to do my best in school. If I need help with
something, I will try to use
my words and ask my teacher.
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Using Social Stories
• Typically once a day, usually right before the
targeted situation.
• For some students, it may be helpful to read the
story early in the day and then review it prior to
the activity.
• Monitor the effectiveness of the social story-may
need to be reworked because elements are vague
or confusing. Is the story truly addressing why
the child may be confused or misreading a
situation?
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SKILLS THAT NEED TO BE TAUGHT
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Attending to teacher
Following directions
Putting materials away
Independence in routines &
transitions
Independence in using a schedule
Coping skills
Communicating “help”
Communicating “break”
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Greetings & Farewells
Independent working
Choice making
Self-monitoring of behavior
Problem solving
Initiation of communication of
needs
• Social interaction skills
• Generalization skills
• Leisure & play skills
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Bibliography
Autism Society of America. (2009). About Autism. Retrieved August, 2009 from
http://www.autism-society.org.
Autism Spectrum Resource Center (2007). Autism Resource Guide: A
Comprehensive Guide for People of All Ages with ASD. 3rd Ed.
Wallingford, CT: Author.
Bolick, T. (2001). Asperger Syndrome and Adolescence: Helping Preteens and
Teens Get Ready for the Real World. Gloucester, MA: Fair Winds Press.
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