+

An OverviewAutism –

Belinda Dunnick Karge, Ph.D.Roxane Moore, M. S.

+Outcomes:

2

Understand the Basic Concepts related to the term Autism

Understand the Basic Vocabulary used in the research

Have a short list of things you can do to support students with autism

Increase your autism awareness level

Autism is . . . . A lifelong disability; there is no

cure at this time It is found worldwide in families of

all racial, ethnic, and social backgrounds

Four to five times more common in boys

Affects brain development in areas of communication skills, social interactions, and sensory processing

+Teaching Optimum Topic Exploration

+

Are you ready to learn about Autism?

+ResearchIn 1943 Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) was first identified by psychiatrist Dr. Leo Kanner at John Hopkins . The research has verified several areas of challenge including limited communication skills, social interaction, restricted range of interests or behavioral repertoires. Additionally, impairments in social skills are a defining feature. The National Professional Development Center (NPDC) and the National Standards Project (NSP) have identified evidence-based instructional practices. (Bellini, Peters, Benner, & Hopf, 2007; Kasair, 2011; Koegel & Koegel, 2013; Shavelson & Towne, 2002)).

 

 

+Basic Concepts

1 in 88 U. S. children has autism

1 in 54 U. S. male children have autism

Usually identified during childhood

Lifelong disability with no specific physical characteristics

Characteristics typically include limited eye contact, preference for sameness and routine, noticeable physical over activity or extreme under activity and a dislike of cuddling or touching.

Major areas (DSM-IV) of the Autism Spectrum Disorder-

Language/Communication

Social

Behavior

Autism is a “Umbrella Disorder”

Autism

Rhett’s Syndrome

PDD-NOS

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder

Asperger’s Syndrome

ASD

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Students can fall anywhere along the continuum; thus not all students will exhibit the same characteristics.

Classic Autism

Prefer to be alone Engage in self stimulatory behavior Limited communication skills May not want to be cuddled or touched Like to watch parts of or the same movie

over and over Routine bound Prefer sameness Little or no eye contact Noticeable physical over activity or extreme

under activity

Vantage Point

The low-functioning child with autism, “lives in a world of his own,” whereas the higher functioning child with autism “lives in our world but in his own way.”

(VanKrevelen, 1991)

+Evidence Based Practices

Prompting

Applied behavior analysis

Task analysis

Discrete Trial Training

Pivotal Response Training

Self Management

Peer Mediated Intervention

Visual Supports

Overview

+PromptingAlways wait at least 5 seconds after the natural cue

Least to Most - The least intrusive prompt is the natural cue.

Allow student to make a response waiting the specified latency period, if no response or if response is incorrect introduce the least intrusive prompt such as an indirect verbal (e.g. "Did anyone hear the bell ring?”)

+Applied Behavioral Analysis

ABA: a framework for the practice (application) of a science not a specific program

ABA: includes the use of direct observation and measurement to investigate the functional relationships between environment and behavior to promote learning and change socially important behaviors in meaningful ways

ABA is designed to permit people to understand, prevent, and remedy behavioral problems and to promote learning

Applied Behavioral Analysis

+Task Analysis

Teaching story:

Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich

+Discrete Trail Training A specific method of teaching used to maximize

learning. It is a teaching technique or process used to develop many skills.

These might include cognitive, communition, play, social or self help.

1.Break skills in small steps

2.Teach each step of skill intensly until mastered

3.Provide lots of repetition

4.Promote correct response – fade response asap

5.Use positive reinforcement procedures

+Pivotal Response Training

PRT consists of motivational procedures-

antecedent strategies &

consequence strategies.

+

Antecedent Strategies

These are the strategies you use to set up the learning opportunity or trial.

These strategies set the student up for success and effectively elicit the

student’s response.

Pivotal Response Teaching

+

Shared Control & Child Choice

This refers to sharing the control over the learning-

the teacher gets to give the choices, the student gets to make the choices; the student chooses the reinforcers, the teacher

decides when the reinforcers are provided; and so on.

Remember this saying, “The teacher decides what to work on, the student decides what to work with.”

This strategy sets up the language opportunity.

PRT: Shared Control

+

When the teacher has all the say, students tend to check out or

become disruptive.

When the student has all the say, the teacher can’t do her job effectively!

PRT: Shared Control

+

For example, Rosi wants to use the vending machine for morning break instead of going to the cafeteria. Miss Martha decides this is the perfect time to work on labeling coins, so

she has Rosi identify what snack item she wants, then creates the language opportunity, by presenting an

antecedent and requiring Rosi to respond to the antecedent before she can gain access to her snack.

Can you see what the teacher is controlling in this scenario and what the student is controlling? The teacher’s control- working on money & not

allowing Rosi to have the snack until she responds; The student’s control- choosing to go to the vending machine and choosing the

Doritos.

PRT: Shared Control

+

For example, Rosi points to the Doritos and says “Dorito chips. 75 cents.” Before Miss Martha begins

teaching the coins, she checks to see if Rosi is looking at her or the coins. She sees Rosi still

looking at the snacks so she holds up a quarter and then as soon as Rosi notices it, Miss Martha

models “Quarter?”. Rosi answers “Quarter”, gets the coin, and puts it into the machine.

PRT: Student Attention

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Clear, Concise Cues (Antecedents)

It should be clear to the student that you are wanting them to respond in a particular fashion.

If a teacher gives a student with ASD a long, complicated antecedent, then the student is not as likely to understand it

and respond.

Makes sense?

PRT: Clear Cues

+

Some Examples:

“Okay class, since the fieldtrip has been postponed until tomorrow, I want everyone to check your schedules and get to work”

versus

“Check your schedule.”

“What do you want for lunch today? Do you want a turkey & cheese sandwich or a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, even

though you had that yesterday?”

versus

“Do you want a turkey sandwich or peanut butter and jelly”? Or “Turkey or peanut butter?” Or “What do you want?”

PRT: Clear Cues

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On the flip side, teachers shouldn’t “water down” their language so much that they sound like they are speaking

some subhuman dialect.

“Sit in seat” or “Hands in lap”

versus

“Sit down in your seat, please” or “Put your hands in your lap” or “Get ready”

“Want apple?”

versus

“Do you want an apple?” Or “Apple?” Or

“What do you want?”

PRT: Clear Cues

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Types of Cues

Model prompt:

Modeling exactly what you want the student to say.

For example, Miss Martha models “Quarter?” so that Rosi knows exactly what she is being expected to

say and can imitate the label, “Quarter.”

Choices:

Simply giving 2 options

For example, “Quarter or dime?”

PRT: Clear Cues

+Self Management

Child is expected to respond without adult vigilance or management

Child must manage own behavior without supports

A great technique for dealing with aggressive behaviors, on task responding, self stimulatory behavior, asking questions, taking turns etc.

+Peer Mediated

Problem solving between child and peer

Process whereby a trained student mediator works with the child to work out the problem

+Intervention

Turn to your elbow partner and share what you believe intervention means in the context you work in or in your home.

Everyone uses Visual Supports…

Visual Learners

“Many people with autism are visual thinkers. I think in pictures. I do

not think in language. All my thoughts are like videotapes running in my imagination.

Pictures are my first language, and words are my second

language. Nouns were the easiest words to learn because I could

make a picture in my mind of the word.”

Temple Grandin

NOW WHAT?

Core Deficits: COMMUNICATION – BEHAVIOR - SOCIAL

+Behavior

Task Variation

Natural Reinforcers

Reinforcing Attempts

Generalization

Observational Learning

The ABC Model

Overview

+Task Variation

Very the stimulus items and reinforcers during interaction

+Natural Reinforcers

Use reinforcers that are directly and functionally related to the task

+Reinforcing Attempts

Reinforce reasonable attempts, unambiguous and goal oriented

+Give Positive Attention to Positive

Behavior

Give positive attention to positive behavior.

Give little or no attention to negative behavior.

Positive attention given to positive behavior will increase that behavior.

ANY attention given to inappropriate behavior will increase that behavior.

+Generalization

Apply learned behaviors to other environments and practice in different settings (i.e. home and school) and over time for durability

+Observational Learning

Absence of good role models may cause children with autism to learn in atypical ways; children with autism can gain appropriate behaviors from being included in classrooms where they can observe typically developing peers

+All Behavior is Purposeful

Everything we do in life has a purpose. It is no different with typical children or children with disabilities.

Behavior may be to communicate something, to gain access to something, to escape an activity or to get either positive or negative attention.

Young children often exhibit behaviors that meet their own self-interests. For children with disabilities it can be their most effective way to communicate.

+ABC

There are three basic components of observable behavior that can be analyzed to explain behavior, often called the the A-B-C model. This model is the foundation for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).

Antecedents Behavior Consequences

Using pictures to teach expected behaviors

+Any Behavior Reinforced EITHER positively or negatively will increase!

Positive behavior increases with positive attention. We call that attention Positive Verbal Reinforcement (PVR).

It is your most powerful tool in shaping your child’s behavior.

It is as simple as recognizing appropriate behavior and verbally reinforcing that behavior.

+

Parents and Teachers can enhancesupports for child with ASD byusing these simple ideas……

+Things to Do……

Have a notebook that travels between teacher and parent daily to record progress.

Observe child during lunch break or times when he/she is interacting with peers.

Work on socialization during school, after school and at home.

Make a list of relaxing activities

Incorporate teaching into everyday activities both at school AND home.

Focus on child’ strengths rather than deficits

+Things to Discuss

What are the anticipated outcomes that align with the particular practices?

Are the anticipated outcomes in synchronization with the needs of the student?

What are the potential risks associated with the practice?

What are the most effective needs of evaluating a particular method or approach?

(Simpson, 2005)

+Things to ASK Yourself

Are you giving the child choices?

Are you including both easy and difficult tasks?

Are you reinforcing and praising the child when they make attempts to do task?

Are you providing activities for the child which will lead to a natural reinforcers?

Are you giving the child opportunities to use expressive communication throughout the day? (Koegel and Koegel, 2013)

+Suggested Routine to use prior to story time:

Wiggle my fingers (hold fingers up and move them)

I wiggle my nose (put a finger on nose and wiggle it)

I wiggle my shoulders (move shoulders back and forth)

I wiggle my toes (point to toes)

No more wiggles are left in me

I will sit still, as still as can be.

+Suggested Routine rhyme for active engagement

Stand up (Insert child’s name) Stand up (Insert child’s name)

Turn around, turn around,

Give a little clap clap, Give a little clap, clap

Now sit down, Now sit down.

+Create your own social stories

Social Stories were developed by Carol Gray in 1991 and were created to help break down a task or social situation into smaller steps with descriptive words and pictures. Among other uses, they can help to prevent temper tantrums or meltdowns in public places or aggressive behavior in children. The story is individualized from the perspective of the person with ASD. It is important to accurately describe the situation, skill or concept according to defining criteria, use a story voice format and relevant, descriptive meaningful content. The stories can be written in a variety of formats, including pictures with words, text alone, audiotapes or videotapes.

+Helpful Resources

www.autisminternetmodules.org Free online training modules addressing a variety of topics pertinent to ASD

www.autismspeaks.org Many resources, videos, assessment information

www.uctv.tv Free videos and podcasts from leading researchers

www.tinsnips.org Great website for teachers of students with ASD