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

• 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 memoryCan 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

• 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.

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(Autism Society of America, 2009)

• 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.

Autistic Spectrum Disorders

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Autism Spectrum Disorders

Child Disintegrative Disorder

Rett’s Disorder Autism Asperger’s Syndrome

Pervasive Developmental Disorder-NOS

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Triad of Central Deficits

Social Interaction

CommunicationRepetitive 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

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• Interests• Communication:

escape, attention, play, & self-regulation

• Repetitive behaviors• Preoccupation with

parts of objects• Poor organizational

skills• Impulsivity• Time management

Autism vs. Asperger’s Syndrome

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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

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.SERC 2009

People with People with autism experience autism experience the world the world differently from differently from those without those without autism, because autism, because they process they process information information differentlydifferently

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Classroom Management: Structure

• 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

• 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:

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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

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 happenUse an icon in a schedule to identify/alert the student to changesTeach 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 CardsPower 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 out.

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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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Going Back to SchoolI 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.SERC 2009

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

• Attending to teacher• Following directions• Putting materials away• Independence in routines &

transitions• Independence in using a schedule• Coping skills• Communicating “help”• Communicating “break”

• 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

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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.