A Teachers Brief Guide To Teaching Students With High
Learn more about talents and challenges in children with high-functioning autism. Get tips on how to make your classroom welcoming and supportive, including lots of ideas for creating physical and instruictional supports, and how to use specific interests to jumpstart learning adventures with other subjects.
Intense Craving Or Dislike For Certain Sensory Experiences
People on the autism spectrum often have difficulties processing sensory experiences. Some desire more of a certain type of sensory experience. Conversely, others have a strong aversion to certain types of sensory experiences.
So each either avoids and pursues experiences that soothe their senses. Theyll find different tastes, smells, sounds, colors, and sights exciting.
It only makes sense that they also will have an aversion to certain physical sensations. This includes specific smells, tastes, or textures, which are intolerable to them.
Examples here include are noisy and crowded places, certain fabrics, or certain scents. These seemingly insignificant details can cause a person lots of emotional distress. While some internalize their feelings, others are more outwardly disruptive.
Individuals displaying signs of high-functioning autism can regulate their own behavior. But others require professional help and activities to redirect their emotions.
Resources From The Organization For Autism Research To Support Hfa And Aspergers Students In The Classroom
To help teachers provide the best possible education for autistic students, the Organization for Autism Research provides a comprehensive kit called An Educators Guide to Aspergers. The kit gives teachers six ways to support students who are on the autism spectrum:
- Educate
- Collaborate
- Manage behavioral challenges
The guides essential messages are understanding students as individuals, reaching out to their parents and support staff who know them best, and helping to set social goals and encourage and support peer interaction. Some of the basic symptoms of HFA or AS make these students targets for bullying or teasing its important for classrooms to be well-armed against such events.
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How Are Asd Levels Determined
While its difficult to determine a persons ASD level, trained psychologists have some tools that can help them accomplish this, such as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition . This assessment is typically paired with a thorough developmental history.
ASD can be diagnosed as early as 18 months . However, many children, and even some adults, may not be diagnosed until much later.
Being diagnosed at a later age can make treatment more difficult. If you or your childs pediatrician think they may be autistic, consider making an appointment with an ASD specialist. Learn more about testing for ASD.
Social Communication / Interaction Behaviors May Include:
- Making little or inconsistent eye contact
- Tending not to look at or listen to people
- Rarely sharing enjoyment of objects or activities by pointing or showing things to others
- Failing to, or being slow to, respond to someone calling their name or to other verbal attempts to gain attention
- Having difficulties with the back and forth of conversation
- Often talking at length about a favorite subject without noticing that others are not interested or without giving others a chance to respond
- Having facial expressions, movements, and gestures that do not match what is being said
- Having an unusual tone of voice that may sound sing-song or flat and robot-like
- Having trouble understanding another persons point of view or being unable to predict or understand other peoples actions
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Where Can I Find Support
Given that women tend to be better at masking their symptoms, being a woman with autism can feel particularly isolating. For many women, its an emotional process that involves revisiting childhood behavior and social problems.
Consider reaching out to other women living with autism. The Autistic Women and Nonbinary Network is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting women and gender-nonconforming people with autism.
Even if youre not ready to interact with someone, you can find blog posts, first-person stories, and doctor recommendations online.
Signs And Symptoms Of High Functioning Autism
1. Repetitiveness
HFA is partly characterized by anobsession with a particular subject or activity. If you have noticed your child cannot get enough of a particular subject, it could be more than just a normal childhood love for dinosaurs or dogs.
The obsession can be positive in that it improves your childs understanding of a particular academic subject or art. The increased interest in a specific field and subsequent excellence in the area has led to many scientific and mathematical inventions. Additionally, it can be a means of finding similarly minded children to encourage social engagement and activities.
However, these obsessions can cause a negative impact as well. If the obsession is interfering with social interactions or quality of life, support services can help them use their ability to hyperfocus in more effective ways.
2. Emotional sensitivity
Individuals living with High Functioning Autism are also prone to high levels of emotional sensitivity. Slight provocations such as your use of language, noise, or even competition from siblings can ruin the whole day.
Insufficient autism awareness coupled with the fact that High Functioning Autism is challenging to detect can make many children suffer extreme emotional sensitivity. This can also lead to intense sorrow and isolation after a trauma.
If your child is easily angered by small things and unable to let it go, it may be time to see a doctor.
3. Social problems
4. Language peculiarities
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Difficulty With Verbal Communication
A child with HFA will typically have no problems understanding language. Learning individual words, grammar rules, and vocabulary may not be an issue for them.
The use of language to communicate, however, can be problematic. Someone with HFA may have difficulty understanding sarcasm, metaphors, or idioms. This is known as “pragmatic” language.
In addition, some people with HFA may struggle to speak when under stress or overwhelmed.
Who Is This Childhood Asperger Syndrome Quiz For
Below is a list of questions that relate to life experiences common among children with Asperger syndrome , a less severe form of autism spectrum disorder . Children or teenagers with Aspergers have difficulties relating to others socially and understanding social situations and subtle forms of communication like body language. This quiz is designed to be taken by parents who are concerned that their child might have Aspergers.
Please read each question carefully, and indicate how often your child has experienced the same or similar challenges in the past few months. Please be aware that some behaviors are developmentally appropriate for young children and not signs of autism.
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Angelsense Gps Tracker For Autism
AngelSense is a GPS Tracker for Autism that gives parents peace of mind and children greater independence. As your child grows and wants to do more things on their own, AngelSense allows for more freedom without compromising safety.
AngelSense is committed to creating a safer world for those with special needs and providing peace of mind to their families.
What Is A Spectrum Disorder
Autism is a spectrum disorder, which means that people can experience a wide range of symptoms and of varying severities. For example, a person with autism who is towards the high functioning range of the spectrum will have a good grasp of language, but a person towards the low functioning range of the spectrum may not speak at all.
As such, it is important to note that a person with autism spectrum disorder will not display all symptoms and symptoms will vary in severity. However, a person with ASD will display several of these behaviors and signs.
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Can A Child Outgrow Aspergers
If the symptoms are very mild and the concerns are addressed through treatment, your childs symptoms may not be noticeable as they grow older and mature, says John Carosso, PsyD, a child psychologist and certified school psychologist at Community Psychiatric Centers at the Autism Center of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
As a child develops work-arounds and learns skills through social skills training, the deficits she has can be less noticeable and disruptive, says Eric Hollander, MD, director of the Autism and Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Program in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City. Many children learn strategies that can help them, like having a note taker in school. And with these strategies and skill gains, a child can be part of mainstream education.
Do People With Aspergers Need Time Alone
One of the hallmarks of a child with autism is there desire to be alone. Most people dont mind spending a little time alone, but we are social animals and most of us typically prefer the company of others. So much so that when we are alone, we will turn on the TV just to make it feel like someone else is in the room.
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He Drank From A Bottle For A Really Long Time
Not being able to adjust well to change is very normal for autistic children.
In hindsight, I am positive this is why it was so hard to wean him off the bottle. He never used a soother so at the time I thought the bottle was just very comforting to him but there was actually a little more to why he couldnt let it go.
This isnt the only way he was resistant to changes. He used to insist on keeping his shoes on in the house, sometimes wearing them to bed. It would take half the winter to get him to wear a winter hat, and then half the summer to get him to wear a sun hat.
My current challenge is finding him the same sneakers, over and over again, as he grows and needs a bigger size.
What Other Conditions Can Be Mistaken For Aspergers
Obsessive compulsive disorder , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , and social anxiety disorder all can look similar to Aspergers, says Eric Hollander, MD, director of the Autism and Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Program in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City.
For example, a child with ADHD, due to distractibility, may display inconsistent eye contact and not be entirely responsive to directives. So in that sense, a child with ADHD may appear similar to a child with Aspergers but the underlying reasons for the issues are far different, says John Carosso, PsyD, a child psychologist and certified school psychologist at Community Psychiatric Centers at the Autism Center of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. So Aspergers can be a challenging diagnosis to make.
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Difficulty Relating To Children Their Own Age
Of course, many children may feel like they dont fit in with children their own age but there are a few differences with children that have high functioning autism. Like my son, many children with high functioning autism will not engage in play with others and are not sure how to respond to other children.
My daughter, on the other hand, will watch other children and then play but has a hard time knowing when its appropriate to say certain things or how to respect others personal space.
Social Communication And Interaction Symptoms
Children and adults with autism often have difficulty connecting with others.
This can result in a range of symptoms, such as:
- inability to look at or listen to people
- no response to their name
- resistance to touching
believe that women and girls are more likely to camouflage or hide their symptoms. This is particularly common among females at the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum.
Common forms of camouflaging include:
- forcing yourself to make eye contact during conversations
- preparing jokes or phrases ahead of time to use in conversation
- mimicking the social behavior of others
- imitating expressions and gestures
While both males and females with autism can camouflage their symptoms, it appears to be more common in women and girls. This could explain why theyre less likely to be diagnosed with autism.
Its important to note that studies looking at differences between autism in women and men have been very small or flawed. Experts still dont have any definitive information about these differences, including whether theyre real or just a result of camouflaging.
Still, one of the done on the subject suggests that, compared to men, women with autism have:
- more social difficulties and trouble interacting
- less of an ability to adapt
- less of a tendency to become hyper-focused on a subject or activity
- more emotional problems
- more cognitive and language problems
- more problem behaviors, such as acting out and becoming aggressive
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He May Become Distant
People with autism sometimes need a break from constantly being on around you. They also wont want you to see these breaks and so they may become distant and spend time away from you randomly.
Its not your fault. Its just something that he has to do.
Intuitive Facilitator Joseph Stasaitis says, I have found autistic folks to be quite empathetic. They may not express or exhibit their emotions freely, but this can be misinterpreted as not caring. The autistic person may then very well withdraw to keep safe. Although craving love and intimacy they tend to lack the ability to pick up on social cues.
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Difficulty Communicating And Awkward Communication
ASD can have a big impact on the development of your social skills. As a result, you may find some aspects of communication challenges.
Signs that someone is finding it difficult to communicate include:
- Difficulty reading social cues and participating in conversations
- Difficulty empathizing with other peoples thoughts and feelings
- Struggling to read peoples body language or facial expressions
- Using a flat, robotic, or monotone tone of voice that doesnt communicate feelings accurately
- Making up descriptive words or phrases
- Difficulty understanding particular phrases or metaphors
- Difficulty making or maintaining eye contact
Often, if you have high-functioning autism, you will be able to hold a conversation about topics that youre particularly interested in. However, you may find it difficult to switch topics suddenly or to keep up with spontaneous changes in conversation.
This can mean that you find it difficult to build and maintain friendships. That said, you may have some close long-term friendships that accommodate your communication needs. You will generally find it easier to communicate with people you have known for a long time and therefore understand better.
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Can People With High
Intelligence, focus, pattern recognition, and other common attributes of people with high-functioning autism make them exceptional employees. But they often need a little help from bosses and coworkers to succeed.
Temple Grandin says, for example, that she believes people on the high end of the spectrum often need to be “so good in a specialized field”that their bosses will overlook missing social skills. For example, if someone has extraordinary computer programming skills, a company might be willing to hire them despite their inability to participate in group brainstorming sessions.
This may sound fanciful or inaccurate, but the data bears out Grandin’s assumption. Researchers say about half of all people with ASD have no paid job or technical experience two years after college.
The Autism Society explains that three types of employment opportunities exist for people with ASD:
- Competitive: Employers offer no support during the workday. People may succeed here, despite the lack of support, if their jobs are focused and don’t rely on extensive human interaction.
- Supported: Employers develop structures to help the person succeed during the workday. Mentors, structured work crews, or individual coaching could be part of the program.
- Sheltered: Employment is guaranteed, and people get work training and skills while they work.
Each person with high-functioning autism is different. Some people might succeed with lower levels of help. Others will not.
Signs Of Autism In Young Children
Symptoms of autism spectrum disorder are usually clear by two or three years old. The range of behaviors and skills covered here may become apparent between two years old and five years old.
Some signs that a child has autism spectrum disorder may include:
- Not expressing emotion or only a limited range of emotions
- Difficulty interpreting different emotions in others
- Not seeming attached to parents
- Lacking interest in playing social games or the company of other children
- Interest in playing with one particular toy or object
- Echolalia, repeating other peopleââ¬â¢s words or phrases
- Repeating own words over and over
- Using formal language and expressions, rather than the slang of their peers
- Not developing language skills at all
- Difficulty toilet training
- Challenging behaviour, such as banging head on wall or picking at skin
- Engages in behavior such as flapping hands, rocking or twirling
Children with autism spectrum disorder have difficulty interpreting what other people are thinking and feeling, and often miss social cues. A child with autism may not be able to tell the difference between an adult who says ââ¬Åcome hereââ¬ï¿½ while happy and smiling, and an adult who says ââ¬Åcome hereââ¬ï¿½ while angry and frowning. This can be confusing and creates the impression the child is not connecting with people.
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Diagnosis Of Autism In Adults
There are currently no standard diagnostic criteria for adults with suspected ASD, but they are in development.
In the meantime, clinicians primarily diagnose adults with ASD through a series of in-person observations and interactions. They also take into consideration any symptoms the person reports experiencing.
If youre interested in being evaluated for ASD, begin with your family doctor, who will evaluate you to be certain that there isnt an underlying physical illness accounting for your behaviors. Your doctor may then refer you to a psychiatrist or psychologist for in-depth assessment.
The clinician will want to talk with you about any issues you have regarding communication, emotions, behavioral patterns, range of interests, and more. Youll answer questions about your childhood, and your clinician might request to speak with your parents or other older family members to gain their perspectives about your lifelong behavior patterns.
If the diagnostic criteria for children are being used for reference, your clinician can ask your parent questions from that list, relying on their memories of you as a child for further information.
If your clinician determines that you didnt display symptoms of ASD in childhood, but instead began experiencing symptoms as a teen or adult, you may be evaluated for other possible mental health or affective disorders.
Because most autism diagnoses are made in children, it could be a challenge to find a provider who will diagnose adults.