Teaching the Asperger's Child What do these children look like in the classroom?

Transcription

1 Teaching the Asperger's Child What do these children look like in the classroom? Profile of Abilities and Disabilities: STRONG - surface structure of language is advanced (complex sentences, sophisticated vocabulary) WEAK - language comprehension (vocabulary, sentence structures, question forms, abstract language) and auditory processing (dealing with auditory information "at speed", listening to one person in noise, switching attention when there is more than one speaker) CONSEQUENCES IN THE CLASSROOM SITUATION: deceptively "high" surface structure of expressive language causes adults and peers to have inappropriately high expectations of language comprehension abilities child looks like a behaviour problem - assume "non-compliance" with a direction, when actually the AS child has not understood what has been asked child may use "odd" behaviours to avoid high-demand language situations little or no information absorbed in a group learning context since the child has missed the auditory directions, he/she will tend to do what's most "visually obvious" in an activity child may also cope by copying the children around them (the effectiveness of this strategy will vary, depending on who they decide to copy) asks perseverative questions about information that is poorly understood high anxiety (which can translate into difficult behaviour) when the academic material or classroom situation is beyond the child's understanding STRONG - "mechanics" of reading, writing and spelling WEAK - ability to comprehend and generate stories (can repeat sequence of events, but has little comprehension of the cause-effect connections between events; great difficulty when causal links involve emotions and/or thoughts and perceptions of characters) CONSEQUENCES IN THE CLASSROOM SITUATION: child can decode and read a story, but may be unable to answer comprehension questions expressive writing can be a bit like a "shopping list" (starts at any point, lists items/events, stops without a conclusion) "hit a wall" between grade 3 and 4, when reading material becomes more complex, and abstract analysis is required (eg. inferring character's feelings from their actions, guessing probable and alternate outcomes) reading and remembering factual information (eg. from technical or resource books) tends to easier than following the plot in a "chapter book" STRONG - visual and/or auditory memory (especially for special interest topics) WEAK - ability to blend information from various sources and come up with creative and novel conclusions

2 CONSEQUENCES IN THE CLASSROOM SITUATION: "encyclopedic" knowledge of certain high-interest topics, but limited ability to engage in interactive conversation about those topics (tendency to speak and not listen) if you probe, you find that there are large "chunks" of information that have only been processed in a "shallow" way - the information is repeated, but not well understood by the child may be very difficult to engage the child's interest in learning information about an unfamiliar topic (eg. classroom theme) trouble with activities requiring creative problem-solving STRONG - ability to learn and use math "forms" (eg. counting, mathematical operations, number facts) WEAK - connecting mathematical forms to the concepts they represent in the "real world" - understanding word problems - dealing with probability and estimation CONSEQUENCES IN THE CLASSROOM: child may complete math "papers" with 100% accuracy, but be unable to discuss or demonstrate math concepts word problems may cause stress and anxiety higher levels of math (past counting and basic computation) may be poorly understood activities involving probability, estimation and guessing may cause high anxiety STRONG - in my experience, most AS children want to have relationships with peers WEAK - understanding of emotions, thoughts/perceptions of others, and social rules for dealing with daily social-emotional situations involving peers CONSEQUENCES IN THE CLASSROOM: frequent conflict in group situations, both inside the classroom and on the playground inappropriate and "immature" behaviour emotions may be expressed in an "odd" way (visible signs of emotion may not match the situation, eg. laughing loudly when another child starts to cry) may see "anger" behaviour (sometimes extreme) whenever the child feels out of his/her depth OTHER: ( trouble maintaining focus and staying on task in a classroom situation ( difficulty following the agenda of another person ( fine and/or gross motor skills may be delayed ( may have trouble with awareness/control of voice tone and voice volume ( poor internal sense of the passage of time ( may be an "ultra-perfectionist" - may have extreme difficulty dealing with winning and losing ( may have difficulty with transitions ( may have sensory differences that result in behaviour (eg. over-sensitivity to noise that

3 causes child to fear and avoid certain situations; need for movement that causes child to constantly bump and annoy other children at circle time) Teaching the Asperger's Child Dealing with Stress and Anxiety Individuals with Asperger's Syndrome experience stress and anxiety on a daily basis. This high stress/anxiety level usually becomes obvious as loud and difficult behaviour. Your challenge, as a teacher, is to read the small signs of "anxiety rising", before you reach the stage of loud disruptive behaviour that will disorganize your entire classroom. Here are some of the common sources of stress/anxiety for the individual with AS: weak language skills (inability to follow a verbal interaction "at speed", misunderstanding of what another person has said, inability to quickly and clearly express needs and wants) weak social interaction skills (unable to follow a social interaction "at speed", unable to read more subtle social cues such as tone of voice and facial expression, misunderstanding of motivation of another person, negative association with previous "social interactions gone wrong") academic work which is above the student's level (may be able to do the "form" but not understand the "content", may not understand the language of instruction, may be overwhelmed by the total amount of work, or the speed of presentation of new material) homework (see Tony Attwood's article "Should children with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder be exempted from doing homework?", available on his website at under "Papers") measurement of performance (eg. making mistakes, winning and losing, being first in line, being ranked in class) - this can cause stress even if the child is first, because they fear falling from that position - for these individuals, perfection and winning seem to represent "safety" (they are not striving for the top for the same reasons as other high achievers) change in routine or schedule (especially if the change is not anticipated and is explained verbally) "missing things" - this seems to be a focus of anxiety for some individuals with AS (maybe because these individuals frequently "miss" pieces of information in the course of everyday events, and expend a lot of "thinking energy" trying to fill in the gaps in their knowledge - to miss an entire event may seem like too much to catch up on) seasonal disintegration - some individuals with AS experience higher anxiety at certain seasons of the year - this may correspond to seasonal allergies (some children may have conventional allergy symptoms like headaches, congestion, asthma and itchy eyes, as well as displaying frustration, inattention, emotional lability and other difficult behaviours) What are the "small signs" of stress rising? These will vary depending on the student. It is important for you to learn to identify these subtle behaviour changes in your AS student, so that you have a chance to intervene before more spectacular negative behaviours occur. Here are some behaviours you might see: small "tics" and repetitive behaviours (eg. eye blinks, facial grimaces, nose or throat noises, head movements, arm or hand movements) language scripting (eg. reciting language from a movie or book, apparently unrelated to the situation) - certain phrases may reliably indicate stress (eg. "Do I HAVE to do it?")

4 distressed or angry facial expression whole body movement (eg. getting up from desk and pacing) inappropriate laughter rising volume and/or tone of voice What can I do to reduce stress and anxiety in the classroom? Identify the sources of stress look at the context of the behaviour (what happened just before, at the same time, just after) make a "best guess" about the source, then make changes based on that guess (eg. if you think the level of the work is too hard, try modifying the academic materials, on the other hand, if you think the noise level in the classroom is too high, you might try to create a quiet working space for the student) if signs of stress lessen with the changes you make, you're on the right track; if stress level remains the same or rises, you need to look at the situation again, and see what else might be causing the student's distress Use visual supports to back-up verbal language it's a good "rule of thumb" to back up all verbal information with written (and/or picture) support individual written/picture information sheets at the student's desk are optimal (even if you have a large visual for the entire class) presence of visual supports can decrease the general anxiety about missing information Written schedules all students with AS should work from a written schedule large schedules can include all of the day's events - need to be readily available for checking throughout the day (may be posted in the classroom, or at the student's desk) anxiety over transitions and changes in schedule are reduced when the schedule is written down (student comes to count on the information being correct and the "last word" on what is happening) smaller "task schedules" can help students to manage academic work independently (they can see how much there is to be done, and when their breaks will be) Modified academic work focus on the language level of the academic tasks - this is frequently the stress-inducing piece (eg. student may be strong in math, but may not understand the language used to describe new concepts) instructions should use simple language structures and vocabulary support student's learning of new vocabulary (have appropriate level dictionary available at workplace, demonstrate how to use the dictionary, perhaps begin a "personal dictionary" of new words learned in the context of school topics) intersperse "language-intense" tasks with activities that are more visual, to allow "thinking breaks" Use of favourite topics

5 you can get an anxious child to approach new concepts by presenting them in the context of favourite topics use your imagination - eg., if a child likes maps, and your math topic is measuring linear distance, get the child to measure different driving routes through the city and compare to see which is longer Homework the student with AS expends a lot of energy during the school day, just keeping up with the requirements of the regular classroom activities if that student has to also do several hours of homework at night, they will constantly be running at a very high stress level if the AS student consistently cannot finish the regular workload in the classroom, you should probably decrease the overall amount of work (as well as modifying the way of presenting the concepts, so that individual tasks are not as taxing) if you want to encourage the pattern of doing some academic activities outside of the school environment, consider allowing the child to do special interest projects that they can work on at their own speed, and that can then be presented by the child to his/her classmates also consider the fact that many AS students already have extra therapy and tutoring sessions outside of school hours - their schedules are often formidable Direct teaching of social skills this is most effectively done through social stories, social problem solving and roleplaying as teaching staff, you have the best opportunity to observe the student's interactions with peers in the classroom and on the playground, and to identify problem situations this information can be passed on to persons who are working 1-to-1 with the student (may be the resource teacher, an educational assistant, tutor, parent or outside professional), so that direct teaching of more positive social responses can occur once social skills have been presented in a 1-to-1 setting, teachers and EA's in the classroom can support the student in using those new skills in everyday situations Body breaks intersperse sit-down thinking activities with chances for the student to get up and move around (some schools may have special rooms set up for students to take a fun "body break") physical movement can help AS students to release tension, clear their heads and be ready to sit down and concentrate again Seasonally modified classroom requirements certain individuals on the autism spectrum have extreme reactions to seasonal changes - this may correspond to physical allergies to specific substances (eg. mould, dust) changes you may notice are increased stress/anxiety and irritability, increased emotional lability (quick laughter, tears and anger), as well as an increase in difficult and disruptive behaviour if you have a student who disintegrates seasonally, you need to modify classroom requirements to handle the child's changed physical state generally, you might want to decrease the amount (and level) of spoken language that must be processed, allow more frequent "body breaks", work more through highly favourite topics,

6 maintain academic activities rather than introducing new topics some children may need to have a shorter school day during their worst seasons * the student with AS should have identified "safety people" within the school, available at all times during the school day (these are adults, not peers) - these "safety people" are known to have the answers to difficult social questions and are able to help the AS student find workable solutions to everyday problems - all identified helpers should have a working understanding of this particular student's difficulties * Teaching the Asperger's Child Dealing with language comprehension deficits As we discussed in the introductory session, children and adults with a diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome have a lot of difficulty dealing with auditory information. Often, language comprehension problems go undiagnosed because these individuals have such an apparently high level of expressive language (perfect grammar, complex vocabulary, ability to talk at length on subjects of high interest). Here are some of the language comprehension / auditory processing weaknesses you will see in individuals with AS: receptive vocabulary (especially multiple word meanings, idiomatic meanings, words for abstract concepts) comprehension of directions of increasing length and complexity comprehension of questions, especially ones dealing with cause and effect, questions about motivation or perspective of others, and ones that require an opinion (rather than a fact) as an answer comprehension of story-lines (cause-effect, emotions and motivations of characters) listening to one speaker above background noise switching attention from one speaker to another processing auditory information "at speed" (usually see slower processing) miss "chunks" of auditory information in everyday situations stress/anxiety cause dramatic decrease in usual skills The effect of all of these weaknesses is that you have intelligent people working with consistently incomplete and incorrect information. They are aware

7 that they are missing things, and this awareness leads to a great deal of stress and anxiety, which in turn, causes a further decrease in functional comprehension skills. As an educator, your challenge is to find ways to "fill in" the information gaps, so that these children can use their intellect to learn with meaning. The penalty for not supporting the auditory comprehension is high anxiety followed by behaviour (usually spectacular enough to take down an entire classroom).

8 Here are some signs that the AS student is not comprehending classroom information: child speaks in a monologue that is difficult to interrupt (if you think about it, this is a smart strategy - if you're speaking, you don't have to listen) answers that don't match the question asked (maybe on the right topic, but not directly relevant to the question they are supposed to be answering) tangential comments about unrelated topics (maybe reflecting special interests of child) visual signs of inattention (eye gaze, body posture) child constantly changes the topic of conversation to one of their "favourites" (easier to predict the language and follow the conversation if you choose the topic) following auditory instructions to the group, the child does what's most "visually obvious" with the materials in front of them (may also try to cope by copying other students - this will become apparent if they choose the wrong person to copy) perseverative questions talking to self (maybe echolalic speech or scripting) apparently "high" emotion (maybe anger, sadness or giddiness) silly or disruptive behaviour the exact signs of non-comprehension will differ from child to child, but once you figure them out, you can fairly reliably identify situations that are beyond the child's comprehension abilities What you can do to support language comprehension in the classroom: 1. Visual back-up for all auditory information written text (maybe with pictures) matching information in oral presentation small task instructions at student's desk in a discussion, there should be some visual way to identify whose turn it is to speak (watch the pace when the child must switch attention from speaker to speaker) 1. Preferential seating clear "line of sight" to teacher and any large visual supports minimize visual and auditory distractions close to teacher to maximize ability to hear teacher's voice consider seating in various school situations (classroom desk, group learning area, assemblies, library, etc) 1. Teach "repair" strategies

9 use modified direct teaching programs like "Question the Direction" child must identify that they missed something, formulate a "repair" question, and then decide who to ask for help need on-going support in a classroom situation to monitor for signs of incomprehension, to check child's comprehension of classroom instructions, and to help child to directly "repair" the situation by asking a question 1. Use of Social Stories once disruptive behaviour is established, you will have to use direct teaching to show the child a better way to cope with stressful listening situations social stories and social problem-solving sheets can help the child to understand why the situation was difficult, and what they can do to fix it (that won't get them into trouble) Expressive Language Difficulties: weak vocabulary skills cause word-finding difficulties language formulation is often slow and laborious (child struggles to find words and information to match the ideas in his/her head), so you may see frustration or you may get "scripted" or "echoed" language you may see differences in rate of speech, intonation or sound pronunciation, which can make expressive language difficult to comprehend General Support for Language Skills: Vocabulary commercial games like "Pictionary Jr.", "Outburst Jr.", "Tribond Jr.", "Balderdash Jr.", "Scrabble", "Scattergories" and "Boggle" (just to name a few, there are more every year) are good ways to build word skills while also giving an opportunity to work on social skills (many of the games can be played in teams) start a "personal dictionary" where the child can record words that they didn't understand (a good child's level dictionary and thesaurus are critical classroom tools for these children - they should be readily available for all school work ) Language Formulation allow extra time to give answers encourage drawing formulation before verbal answers (eg. give children time to work on an activity and develop their ideas before having a discussion)

10 question/answer games like "Guess Who?" and "Secret Square" description games like "I Spy" or "Guess the hidden object" direction games like "Simon Says" and "Mother may I?" memory recall games like "Eye Remember"