Understanding and Teaching Students with Autism

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Understanding and Teaching Students with Autism

• Aman, Brenda, Joan, and Terry

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Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)ORPervasive
Development Disorder (PDD)
..DSM-IV

• Classic Autism, Autistic Disorder Or Kanners
  Syndrome
• Aspergers Syndrome (AS)
• Childhood Disintegrative Disorder
• Retts Syndrome
• PDDNOS

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The Triad Of Impairments

• Socialization
• Unable to share and direct attention
• Have problem with imitation
• Unable to recognize emotions
• Imagination
• Lack spontaneous pretend or symbolic play
• Show little interest in fiction
• Great preference for facts
• Possess obsessional interests

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Communication

• Delay or lack of speech, without any compensating
  gesture
• Failure to respond to others speech
• Stereotyped and repetitive use of language
• Pronoun reversal idiosyncratic use of words
  abnormalities of prosody
• Failure to initiate or sustain conversation
  normally
• Semantic/Conceptual difficulties
• Abnormal non-verbal communication

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STEPHEN The Eccentric EntomologistStephen has
been interested in wasps for several years. This
is not just a passing fancy or a hobby that he
finds amusing or that fills in the time between
episodes of his favorite TV shows. He is obsessed
with wasps, passionate about them. He talks about
them all the time, with his teachers, his
parents, and grandparents, even with complete
strangers. He only wants to go to the park or the
garden centre to chase wasps around the plants
and bushes and try to catch them. Stephen has
been bitten several times, but this in no way
diminishes his enthusiasm. He catches wasps in a
bottle and then releases them in his bedroom and
enjoys watching them fly around the room,
listening to the sound their legs make when the
wasps fly through the air. During winter, when
the wasps go into hibernation, he spends hours in
his room, pouring over his collection of wasps
encased in epoxy. from A Mind Apart by
Peter Szatmari
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What causes autism?

• Biological Causes No single cause
• Autism runs in families Faulty Genes that causes
  abnormal brain development
• A link between the growing number of autism cases
  and the standard childhood vaccine for measles,
  mumps and rubella (MMR).
• Environmental factors such as viral infections,
  metabolic imbalances, and harmful substances
  ingested during pregnancy

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Autism Some Facts And Fiction

• It is a biological disorder
• It is not confined to childhood
• It is a developmental disorder which lasts
  throughout life
• It is not always characterized by special, or
  savant skills
• It is found at all IQ levels, but is commonly
  accompanied by general learning difficulties
• It is not caused by refrigerator parenting.

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• Prevalence Third most common Development
  disability 1 in 1,000 births
• As many as 1.5 million Americans today are
  believed to have some form of autism.
• Gender Ratio 4 times more prevalent in boys than
  girls.
• If a family has one child with autism, there is a
  5 to 10 percent chance that the family will have
  another child with autism.
• Source Centers for Disease Control (CDC),
  National Institutes of Health (NIH), National
  Alliance for Autism Research (NAAR)

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Autism and Aspergers

• Aspergers is described as a PDD along with autism
  in the DSM-IV
• Criteria Qualitative impairment in social
  interaction
• Restricted, Repetitive, Stereotyped
  Behavior
• Similar to autism, except no clinically
  significant delays in language or cognitive
  development
• People with Aspergers often gifted in one or more
  areas, with good verbal skills
• But they face similar challenges in the social
  arena as do people with autism
• Is Aspergers the high end of the ASD?
  Controversial

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Aspergers

• Intense absorption in certain subjects
• Little or no ability to form friendships
• One-sided interactions
• Lack of empathy
• Obsession with order and routine
• Clumsy movements and odd postures

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Aspergers Social and Emotional Issues

• Desire social interaction, but dont understand
  social cues
• Are easily stressed and overstimulated
• Desire continuity and routine, dont handle
  change well
• Naïve, and often bullied or teased
• Can suffer low self-esteem and depression
• Intense fixations/perseveration
• Problems with motor skills

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Autism Teaching Strategies

• Teach About Autism
• Students with autism are often relieved to know
  that others have the same kinds of experiences
  that they do.
• Knowledge helps them to understand their body and
  experiences.
• Makes it easier for students to understand issues
  such as sensory sensitivity and communication
  differences.
• Teachers can inform and communicate with the
  student more effectively with knowledge of the
  students disability.

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• Help With Movement Problems
• People with autism often have difficulty getting
  their bodies to do what they want them to.
• Understanding and recognizing movement
  differences can help teachers to support their
  students more effectively
• Touch giving touch cues to body parts of the
  body that seem stalled (e.g. arm, back of
  hand).
• Rhythm and Music Music, chants, or rhymes may
  facilitate movement in some people with autism.
• Modeling Some students with autism actually need
  to see a task performed before they can do it.
• Imagery or Visualization e.g. running around the
  bases

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• Provide Opportunities for Breaks
• Some students with autism work better when
  allowed to take breaks between tasks, e.g.
  walking, stretching
• Teach to Students Strengths and Areas of
  Expertise
• Many students with autism have strong interests
  or preferences e.g. trains, horses, churches,
  basketball
• Allow these students some time for their
  interests as long as they are not disruptive or
  harmful
• Students often need these interests and
  activities to relax, focus, and make connections
  with others.
• Teachers can incorporate students interests into
  class
• Teachers can talk to their students about the
  positive and negative aspects of their obsessive
  behaviours

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• Provide a Safe Space
• Create a quiet area where students can study or
  relax when they need a safe place or break from
  the classroom.
• quiet area should not be seen as a place for
  punishment.
• Provide Nonverbal Supports and Cues
• Students with autism can feel overwhelmed by or
  not understand verbal interactions especially if
  speaker is loud or speaks too quickly
• Be patient and understanding talking to students
  with autism or when giving verbal directions or
  instruction.
• Other ways of communication e.g. sign language
  verbal/written instructions slides or overhead
  projector
• Written conversations can be effective for
  students who have difficulty with verbal
  directions, and can be calming

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• Give Options for Expression
• Writing can be stressful and challenging for
  students with autism.
• Some students cannot write at all and only with
  difficulty.
• Give positive encouragement when student attempts
  written work allow use of computer or word
  processor.
• Peers, volunteers, teachers, and
  paraprofessionals can also act as scribes in the
  classroom.
• Get to Know the Student
• Knowing student personally and seeing them as an
  individual helps teachers develop effective
  supports.
• Also allows the teacher to recognize when student
  is showing understanding

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• Sensory Differences
• Hearing, touch, smell, sight, or taste may be
  more or less sensitive than the average person.
• Touch avoid light touch add tactile materials
  to pens or pencils (masking tape, Velcro, Silly
  Putty) allow students to enter class before
  others, stand at the front or back of the line,
  or sit at a separate table
• Visual minimize visual clutter and accessories
  on teachers/aides (jewellery, bold patterns)
  give visual cues to define physical space (carpet
  square, desk flag)
• Auditory place felt or tennis balls on chair
  feet to minimize noise reduce volume on
  intercoms and loudspeakers provide
  headphones/earmuffs to muffle sounds (for fire
  drills, assemblies, classroom activities)
• Taste/Smell Minimize perfumes, deodorants,
  lotions, fabric softeners, etc. which are
  distracting or offensive

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• Communication Differences
• Many students with autism have speech and
  language problems many use few or no spoken
  words.
• Their speech may have unusual speech intonation,
  be repetitive, or echo the words of others.
• Conversational timing and rhythm may be difficult
  to use or learn.
• They may struggle with pronouns, jokes,
  metaphors, or the rules of conversation.
• They may also have difficulty with expressive or
  receptive language.
• Facilitate communication through typing, writing,
  and picture exchange communication systems.

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• Provide Calming/Organizing Activities
• Movement slow rhythmical swinging, rocking,
  bouncing, rolling seat/wall push-ups
  progressive relaxation
• Touch hold a fidget toy (small bendable toy,
  Silly Putty, bracelet, stress ball) stroke a
  soft material strip
• Oral Motor/Taste chew gum suck on a mild
  flavoured candy drink from a narrow or curly
  straw
• Other smell jars/sachets with calming scents
  (lavender, vanilla) small water fountains
  watching fish in aquarium
• Provide Alerting Activities
• Movement clapping games erase blackboard pass
  out papers walk to the water fountain
• Touch textured board fidget toys with variety
  of surfaces cold objects brush a feather across
  the skin
• Oral/Motor Taste candies or foods with strong
  taste (sour, peppermint) crunchy foods ice
  water or lemon-flavoured water
• Other smell jars or sachets with strong scents
  (peppermint, pine) smelly stickers music with
  an arrhythmic movement

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Personal Experiences/Case Studies

• Terry to provide, with input from rest

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RESOURCES

• Szatmari, Peter A mind apart understanding
  children with autism and Asperger Syndrome (2004)
  The Guilford Press NY
• Happe, Francesca Autism an introduction to
  psychological theory (1998) Harvard University
  Press Cambridge Massachusetts
• Richard, Gail J. The Source Of Autism (1997)
  Linguisystems Inc IL USA
• http//www.autism99.org The most coherent and
  comprehensive website for autism with great
  visual impact