Autism Toilet Paper
Here to Help You Clean Up the Messes
Tools to Add to the ToolBox
Considering autism is a spectrum disorder and no two individuals with it will experience it the same way, how as educators, do we possibly prepare to teach them? The first step is understanding the characteristics of autism (communication, social, restricted interest and possibly sensory), then consider how much each characteristic impacts your student, and finally look for ways to support the areas you identified. There are some basic tools that tend to work well with all individuals on the spectrum.
Talk Less!
It's natural for all of us to process language slower when we are stressed. Recall that shocking phone call, bad news from a friend, or the diagnosis you never wanted to hear; How much of what was said did you really "hear". Now imagine that possibly happening multiple times a day because you have autism. Individuals on the spectrum struggle with communication. This can include the verbal and nonverbal messages we send. When in a time of anxiety, stress, or crisis use concrete language. The fewer the words the better.
Use Visuals
Sounds simple, but it can be organizational feat for an educator. Sometimes it's faster to say it, but to reduce the demand and increase the performance of a student think about how to "show it". Examples include, visual schedules (pictures or words), pictures with vocabulary, visual organizers for writing, visual representations for concepts, the Incredible 5 Point Scale, and video modeling are all examples.
Answer the Critical Questions
It doesn't matter if your student is 2 or 21, if you have explicitly answered the following questions for them, you have a better shot of them completing your lesson. Here they are:
What do I have to do? (Explanation of the work required)
How much do I have to do? (Clearly set start and stop)
What do I get when I finish THIS? (Reward: This has to be motivating for them to work for)
CPS Autism Spectrum Disorders Team
Supporting Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) , Their Families and The Teachers Who Educate Them
Who Will Be Next Month's Shining Light? Show Us The Possibilities
Know an employee of CPS (teacher, paraprofessional, specialist, custodian, bus driver, cook, secretary, principal, etc) that strive to engage, connect, appreciate, or interacts with a student on the spectrum. Use the QR code with a QR reader on an iPad or smartphone to find the form nominate that person. Nominations will be selected each month and small tokens of appreciation will be shared. Individuals not selected will be re-entered for the next month's selection. This is our way of acknowledging all the pieces of the puzzle that support individuals with Autism.