Asperger’s Syndrome
Pragmatic and Receptive Language
What is Asperger's Syndrome/ Disorder?
- Two Main Criteria
- Social interaction deficit
- Restricted interests and behaviors
Quick Facts
- No known cause
- 2003 incidence was between 700,000 -2,000,000 (Safran S, Safran J, & Ellis, 2003)
- Currently 1 in 500 have some type of AS (www.aane.org)
- Normally takes a team of professionals (SLP,Psychiatrist,teacher & families)
- No specific cure or intervention, different for each person
Pragmatics
- Part of the Use domain of language
- Knowing when to speak in a conversation
- Knowing how to code switch between talking in a professional way or talking with friends
- Reasons for talking
- Be able to stick with a topic
Receptive Language
- Understand or comprehend language heard or seen
- Verbally when receiving directions/information
- Non-verbally like facial expressions, posture
- Being able to make inferences from non-verbal’s
Assessment Types
Pragmatics
- Observation
- Family and teacher questionnaire
- Pragmatic Rating Scale
- Assessment of Language Impaired Children’s Conversation
Receptive
- Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals–Revised (CELF-R)
- Sub tests like oral directions & word classes
Intervention Strategies
- Therapist direct modeling
- Turn taking in a card game like Go- fish
- Patient has to initiate communication to ask for cards,
- Respond to the clinician
- Topic maintenance
- Code switch through role playing different scenarios
Receptive
- Reading and composing stories
- Reading comics
- Using pictures to display directions
- Answering critical thinking questions about stories
Reference for picture
References
Falk-Ross, F., Iverson, M., & Gilbert, C. (2004). Teaching and learning approaches for children with asperger's syndrome. Teaching Exceptional Children, 36(4), 48-55. Retrieved from http://journals.cec.sped.org/
Koning, C., & MaGill-Evans, J. (2001). Social and language skills in adolescent boys with asperger syndrome. Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, 5(1), 23. Retrieved from http://aut.sagepub.com/
Paul, R., & Norbury, C. (2012). Language disorders from infancy through adolescence: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and commination (4th ed). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier
Safran, S. P., Safran, J. S., & Ellis, K. (2003). Intervention ABCs for children with asperger syndrome. Topics in Language Disorders, 23(2), 154. Retrieved from http://journals.lww.com/topicsinlanguagedisorders/
Schneider, A. B., Codding, R. S., & Tryon, G. S. (2013). Comparing and combining accommodation and remediation interventions to improve the written-language performance of children with asperger syndrome. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 28(2), 101-114. doi: 10.1177/1088357613475811