Unit assessment

• An assessor will contact you approx mid point to arrange to meet to discuss progress & offer any advice, guidance & support.

• Your work will then be IV( internally verified)• Following IV your certificate will be claimed & your work will be readyFor collection.

1.Understand the areas in which individuals with an autism spectrum condition characteristically have difficulties

1.1 The Triad of impairments

• Difficulty with social communication.

• Difficulty with social interaction.

• Difficulty with social imagination.

Language & intellectual abilities

Language & intellect variances

• No speech or communicative gestures• Articulated speech but only use as echolalia• Literal understanding of speech• Using speech inappropriately for social context• May ask questions to which they already know

the answer

2.1 Abilities, strengths, needs, preferences

• An individual unable to function well in society

• A person with unusual mental abilities

• Repetitive behaviour’s & odd speech patterns

2.2 Spectrum

What is Autism • IQ can be anywhere on the scale, however it many cases it is

likely to be below the average mean (100).• There is language delay• They have difficulties connecting socially to others• In severe forms of autism a person is likely to treat people like

inanimate objects i.e. neither greeting or acknowledging them.

• Likely to have perceptual difficulties & therefore are often hypersensitive & hyposensitive to touch

2.3 Other conditions

• Learning disabilities• Attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD)• Attention deficit disorder (ADD)• http://www.autism.org.uk/About-autism/All-a

bout-diagnosis/The-use-and-misuse-of-diagnostic-labels.aspx

Rett Syndrome

• Neurological & development disorder• Mostly occurs in females• Poor head growth• Loss of muscle tone • Most often diagnosed as autism or cerebral

palsy• Girls identified with Rett syndrome often

exhibit speech delays or loss of verbal skills

Williams Syndrome

• Williams syndrome is a rare genetic disorder that affects a child's growth, physical appearance, & cognitive development.

• People with Williams Syndrome show a pattern of overlaps with ASD

• Superficially they have good language skills but much is empty of content.

Tourette's

• Inherited neurological condition• It affects one schoolchild in every hundred &

more than 300,000 children & adults in the uk• Key feature are tics involuntary &

uncontrollable sounds & movements.

2.4 Sensory Difficulties

• Sound e.g. background noises• Vision • Touch e.g. may not feel comfortable or have

own rules.• Taste• Smell • Light sensitivityhttp://www.autism.org.uk/en-gb/living-with-autism/understanding-behaviour/the-sensory-world-of-autism.aspx

Perceptual difficulty• Time

• Personal space

"It seems that for success in science or art, a dash of autism is essential" Hans Asperger.

Hyper & Hypo sensitivity

Hyper:Sensations are registered too intensely

Hypo:Sensations are registered less intensely

Hypersensitive to touch, taste or textures

• The person might complain about discomfort caused by shirt tags or sock seams.

• The person might be a picky eater preferring crunchy or soft foods.

• The person may refuse to have their hair shampooed or brushed & may avoid messy activities.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygWdA244v6I&feature=related

Sensory overload

Hyposensitive to touch, taste or textures

• May crave ‘deep hugs’• Be unresponsive to cuts, bruises or injections.• Unaware of runny nose or dirty mouth.

3. Challenging behaviour

• Refusing food• Staying awake all night • Continuous humming • Removing clothes in public • Flicking fingers• Head butting etc……“ of course what seems inappropriate to one person may seem perfectly reasonable to someone else”

Challenging behaviour

“ To effectively communicate, we must realise that we are all different in the way we perceive the world & use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others”(Anthony Robbins)

Temple Grandin

4.1 Structures -The TEACCH concept

‘The primary aim of the TEACCH programme is to help to prepare people with autism to live or work more effectively at home, at school and in the community. Special emphasis is placed on helping people with autism and their families live together more effectively by reducing or removing 'autistic behaviours'.

The TEACCH concept• Improved adaptation: through the two strategies of improving skills by

means of education and of modifying the environment to accommodate deficits.

• Parent collaboration: parents work with professionals as co-therapists for their children so that techniques can be continued at home.

• Assessment for individualised treatment: unique educational programmes are designed for all individuals on the basis of regular assessments of abilities.

• Structured teaching: it has been found that children with autism benefit more from a structured educational environment than from free approaches.

http://www.teacch.com/

4.2 Further information & resources

Websites:• http://www.autism.org.uk/• Social care institute for excellence http://www.scie.org.uk/• OASSIS http://www.oaasis.co.uk/• About Autism http://www.aboutautism.org.uk/• BILD http://www.bild.org.uk/• Research autism

http://www.researchautism.net/pages/welcome/home.ikml• Autism Anglia: http://www.autism-anglia.org.uk/default.htm

National Autistic society Suffolk

• Library• Advice & support• Newsletters

Suffolk libraries

Books

http://www.facebook.com/

4.3 Person Centred

• Consistency is key

• Individualised

• Personal

• ‘Mum knows best’

4.5 Structuring the environment

• Reduce possible sources of distraction & confusion

• Remove where possible, potential triggers or temptations.

• Provide permanent visual cues or reminders.

5.1 Communication – Non verbal could be……

Use of pictures/symbolsHandshake DrawingBody language/facial expressionsAppearance i.e. clothes/hairstyle

‘flapping’Objects of referenceEmail/faxSmell/touch 34

Verbal examples…

TalkingShoutingLaughingCryingScreamingSingingHumming

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We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”Epictetus

Don't knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn't start a conversation if it didn't change once in a while.Kin Hubbard

"The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn't being said." Peter F. Drucker

5.4 Visual CommunicationSocial Stories

• Developed by Carol Gray in 1991• To assist people with ASD• To develop a greater social understanding • Social stories are short descriptive illustrations • Can depict an event or situation• Includes specific information about what to

expect in that situation & why.

0ther Aids

• PECS• Communication interactive boards• Communication cue Cards