active social engagement active social engagement for students with autism alice hammel, virginia...
TRANSCRIPT
Active Social Engagement
Active Social Engagement for Students with Autism
Alice Hammel, Virginia Commonwealth and James Madison Universities
Background
Challenges for students with ASD
• Little interest in objects of people
• May not play simple interaction games
• May not laugh or smile in response to positive statements
• Limited interest in social speech, imitation, and joint attention
• Lack of social function or understanding of social cues
Socialization and Academic Progress
• Social communication and academic progress are inherently linked
• We learn by observing others and through witnessing the outcomes of those behaviors
Fundamentals of Social Development
• Social speech
• Collaborative play
• Eye contact
• Joint attention
Jim Along Josie
Rhythm Game (imitation)
Eye contact
• Gather information
• Indicate interests
and emotions
• The intent of others
can be very
confusing
Why?
• Attention has been drawn elsewhere
• Anxiety related to the expectations of the classroom at the moment
• Sensory input needs (hypo or hyper)
• Delay in cognitive processing necessary to comprehend or retain information
Levelance (in pairs)
Joint attention
• Attending to the interest of others
• This can be extremely difficult.
• Some students are not interested in engaging with others, their objects, or situations.
• An inability to process via eye gaze, theory of mind, or other means can exacerbate joint attention miscues.
• Simon Says
Central Coherence
• Central Coherence Theory
• Focus on the local rather than the global aspects of an object of interest
Theory of mind
• Trouble predicting actions, intent by assuming beliefs or state of mind
• Tone of voice
• Often cannot understand looks, glances, figures of speech, tone of voice, etc.
Let’s make music!Pass the Ball
We are the Dinosaurs
Other Challenges for Students with ASD
• Language Delays
• Age Appropriate
Interests
• Difficulty
interpreting
behaviors and
emotions
• Difficulty
interpreting facial
expressions that
include emotion
Socialization StrategiesFor Music Educators who teach Children with ASD
Considerations for lesson planning
• Imitation
• Fine motor movements
• Motor planning
• Taking turns on instruments
• Performing partner songs
Bach Activity
Social Stories
• As individual books
• Using pictures of the student modeling appropriate social behavior
• “Setting up” social scenarios
Lets make music!Lucy Locket
Great Big House in New Orleans
Strategies for Educators
• Eye Contact
• Appropriate Responses
• Joint Attention
Interest
• Finding interests that connect students
• May not be typical or age appropriate
I love to Laugh
• The Prism Project
• Theory of Mind (revisited)
• What is means to be funny
• Telling Jokes
I love to laugh
Other considerations
• Appropriate Atmosphere
• Reverse Inclusion Opportunities
• Pairing or “Buddying Up”
• Literal Explanation (slang, etc.)
Lets playUp, Up, and Away
Reverse Inclusion
• Students who are neurotypical may be included in music settings with students with autism. Some models of this include:
• ASSET (Autism Spectrum Support Education and Training)
The Prism Project: Hip-Hop Experience
Concluding thoughts
Alice Hammel