Teaching Children with Autism There has been an increase in the number of children diagnosed with autism or other autism spectrum disorders. It is likely as an educator that you will have at least one child with this diagnosis in your classroom. This paper explores some of the methods used to teach autistic children. Autism is a disorder characterized by significant problems in communication and social functioning. Autism is actually called Autism Spectrum Disorder and encompasses a broad range disabilities such as Asperger syndrome, Rett’s Syndrome, and Pervavasive Development Disorder (Dunlap & Fox, n.d.). There are also varying degrees of the disorder from low-functioning (no communication and no social interaction) to …show more content…
Holding morning meetings helps autistic children by establishing a common routine that begins the student’s day in a predictable pattern (Sapona & Winterman, 2002, p. 31). Autistic children often need predictable routines, and a highly organized and structured environment in order to function. Since autistic children need routine there are some tips teachers can implement to make it easier for their autistic students: - Highlight most important concepts - Establish alternate modes for completing assignments - Prepare the students - Maximize comprehension and content retention - Graphic and visual organizers - Mnemonic devices (Marks et. al., 2002) Students with autism can become overwhelmed very easily by even minor deviations from the routine. It is important to be sensitive to the way autistic children function so that their potential can be reached. To encourage the development of social skills students are encouraged to interact with one another throughout the day in a variety of methods, including partner work, small group activities, and large group activities. These teaching techniques enable autistic children to relate to their peers. As autistic children relate to their peers more they are more accepted and in turn continue to learn and acquire new and improved social skills. Another way to encourage the
Autism is a form of neurodevelopment disorder in the autism spectrum disorders. It is characterized by impaired development in social interactions and communication, both verbal and non-verbal. There is an observed lack of spontaneous acts of communication; both receptive and expressed, as well as speech impairments. A person diagnosed with Autism will also show a limited range of activities and interests, as well as forming and maintain peer relationships. The individuals will display limited interests, which are often very focused and repetitive. He or she is likely to be very routine oriented and may show behavioral symptoms such as hyperactivity, impulsivity, aggressiveness, and self-injurious behaviors.
When dealing with individuals with autistic spectrum it is important that you treat them as individuals as each person likes and dislikes different things if you treat each individual as the same this could course upset with the person as they may not like what the other person does and in turn could course complex behaviour. If you try to get one person to
Autism is a disability that can create a barrier between the individual and his or her friends, family, and community. This disability often interferes with an individual’s ability to communicate, interact with others, engage in play or leisure skills, and to relate to the world around them. People with autism may exhibit repetitive movements, have unusual responses to people, be resistant to change and demonstrate aggressive and/or self-injurious behavior.
Taking your child to therapy or programs could be a good way in teaching your autistic child how the world goes. Some programs may take place at home with a professional specialist and trained
144). Some other techniques for improving the learning experience of students with autism are structured teaching, speech and language therapy, social skills therapy, and occupational therapy. Keeping a structured and predictable schedule is imperative when instructing a child with autism. The child will also, most likely, need some specialized classes in speech as well as instruction in appropriate social interaction, as one symptom of autism is a lack of comprehension of social norms. Educators need to keep in close contact with the team responsible for the student’s educational plan and diagnostic write-up to ensure that there are no large gaps in the educational programs suggested and the ones being applied.
Autism is categorized by deficits in maintaining social relationships and difficulty communicating. The number of children being diagnosed with autism is steadily increasing. Therefore the need incorporate effective interventions that focus on the development of the individual child has become an imperative component for their success. The key for children with Autism to achieve academic and social success depends upon the collaborative effort that is shared among all parties involved: family, teachers, peers; mental health professionals and the community.
Children with autism spectrum disorder will be able to receive increased services in educational settings (Hatton, et al., 2006). Teachers who educate children with autism spectrum disorder may benefit from learning the general characteristics of the disorder and evidence-based instructional strategies. Children may benefit from
The purpose of social mainstreaming is so that children are better able to observe and learn how other children react and behave correctly in social situations. Autistic children often learn through imitation, or learning how to “copy” the behavior of someone else. Studies have shown that a structured routine is very helpful because it supports the need to be constantly aware of what everyone else is doing and begin doing it as well. If there is too much unpredictable change, most autistic children have the tendency to become more withdrawn socially. The most obvious reasoning for this is because they must work harder to imitate the behavior of the others around them. One helpful way to help children cope with change or transition is through the use of verbal or physical representations of the process of change (Davis 57). This not only demolishes the excuse for autistic children to remain in inclusion classrooms, but it also provides a very real suggestion in order to deal with the social and structural changes within a classroom. With a view of correct behavior within a regular classroom with regular learners, an autistic child is better able to grasp his or her personal behavioral patterns, and react or “imitate” appropriately in certain
Autism- is a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, generally evident before the age of 3, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory experiences.
The topic I chose to research for the final project of this quarter is Autism, this paper is geared towards early childhood educators, children and families who are coping with ASD. I have included resources for children and their families, and also included strategies and ideas in working with young children with ASD in the classroom. Starting, with the definition of Autism, which is also called Autism Spectrum Disorder, is a serious developmental disorder that impairs the ability to communicate and interact. Autism is a developmentally disability that involves delays within, speech, social skills, language and behavior. Children left untreated with ASD, can suffer from not developing social skills and may not learn to behave appropriately, very few children recover completely from autism without any intervention. There are a wide variety of treatment options that can be very helpful for children and their families with ASD. Autism Spectrum Disorder impacts the nervous system, common symptoms include difficulty with communication, social interactions, obsessive interest and repetitive behaviors. Early interventions, behavioral, educational, and family therapies can help reduce symptoms and support development and learning. Early signs of autism spectrum disorders may consist of, the ability to read at an early age but often without understanding what it means, may not cry if in pain or seem to have any fear, may be very sensitive or not sensitive at all to smells, sounds,
There are various instructional methods I will use within my classroom. I have been trained by Cleveland Clinic Children’s Autism Development Solutions incorporates ABA as well as using task analysis techniques to help make the student successful in what you are trying to teach them. The process starts off small but then as they master the smaller steps, they increase to larger steps and can become longer within the activity to show increased task duration. This helps the student become ready to perform certain jobs they may like. I would also have a behavior plan in place for each student so when they have their behaviors then there is a step by step plan to help myself and whoever comes in contact with the student to know
Autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disability that can cause significant behavioral, social, and communication challenges (CDC, 2015).
There are many different unique needs for children with autism spectrum disorder. These needs consist of developmental and behavioral needs. This paper will discuss five developmental and five behavioral needs unique to children with autism spectrum disorder. In addition, this paper will also discuss how teachers, families, and colleagues work together to identify the needs of children with autism spectrum disorder.
Individuals with autism demonstrate delays or deficits in social interaction and behaviours. Autism is apparent from early childhood, but can emerge in early adulthood. It is associated with a wide range of possible causes, but genetic factors are the main causes. Children with autism have impairments in cognition, language delays, and lack of or poor social interactions. Lack of communication may force these children to adopt repetitive behaviours such as self-inflicted injuries and violence. The teaching process requires interventions that address the repetitive behaviours, skill development, and play
Autism or Autism Spectrum Disorder is one of many developmental disabilities that affect students learning. In fact, in the United States, Autism is the fastest-growing severe developmental disorder (“What is Autism,” n.d.). Also, the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder is 1 in 68 children and the prevalence in boys is 1 in 42 children (“What is Autism,” n.d.). Furthermore, Autism Spectrum Disorders also affects the way a child learns and over the years, several teaching strategies have been developed to help teachers to effectively educate students with Autism. Research has also been conducted to develop and test new teaching strategies for Autism and continues in playing an important role in the education of students with Autism.