Programming for Students with High Functioning Autism (HFA) or Asperger Syndrome (AS) in the General Education Setting Presented by: Pam Leonard & Sabrina Beaudry Institute Day IPSD

First let’s take a few minutes to understand what HFA and AS are

 …a Neurological Disorder  …a Spectrum Disorder  …a Developmental Disorder  …life long  NOT… a result from poor parenting  NOT…curable at this time Does NOT have a determined cause, although there are many theories… What are HFA and AS ?

HFA ◦ Impairment in social interaction ◦ Restricted patterns of behavior, activities, interest ◦ Qualitative impairment in communication ◦ Before the age of three significant delays or abnormal skills in language for social interaction, symbolic play, social interaction ASPERGER ◦ Impairment in social interaction ◦ Restricted patterns of behavior, activities, interest ◦ Impairment significantly impacts social, occupational or other areas of functioning ◦ No significant cognitive delay ◦ No significant language delays What’s the difference? According to DSM-IV

THEORY OF MIND We’ve looked at the DSM-IV, but let’s think about one more thing

“the ability to infer other people’s mental states (their thoughts, beliefs, desires, intentions, etc.), & the ability to use this information to interpret what they say, make sense of their behavior & predict what they will do next.” (Howlin, Baron- Cohen, and Hadwin, 1999) Theory of Mind

Theory of mind test Sally&Anne False Belief Test False Belief Test: 1. Sally hides an object and then leaves the room. Anne moves the object. 2. Sally returns and the child with AS is asked, “Where will Sally look for the object?” 3. This requires thinking about others’ thoughts & understanding that others can believe something that is contradictory to reality.

Sally and Anne cont… NT child: points to the spot where Sally originally placed the object Child with AS: Unable to inhibit the knowledge that Anne has moved the object without Sally’s knowledge, s/he points to the spot where Anne has moved the object This perspective taking ability develops between 3-41/2 years of age in NT children

And so we will operate from the fact that ……. And so we will operate from the fact that ……. HFA/AS are neurological disorders and thus…. We need to accept that these students think differently than most of us because their brains are structured differently

And that these are students who Have strong cognitive skills Are able to access the general ed curriculum Are able with instruction can learn to take the perspective of others

Today we will look at how HFA and AS impact the skills of : Flexible thinking Social communication Organization Social problem solving

The ability to think in a variety of ways. Flexibility: What is it?

o Accept how others do things. o Manage our moods. o Transition o See the world through someone else’s eyes o Talk about a variety of topics o Demonstrate empathy Flexibility It enables us to:

Flexibility: What we may see Difficulty with taking perspective of others Extremely rule bound Homework issues Literal thinking Narrow interests Difficult to motivate Rigidity Difficulty with transitions

Michelle Garcia Winner Super Flex Social Detective Kari Dunn Buron & Mitzi Curtis 5 Point Scale Mind the Gap Flexibility…Resources

Let’s take one of the resources and talk about how we would apply it What we teach How we teach How we reinforce How we generalize

Resources: Flexibility MIND THE GAP FIVE POINT SCALE

It is the ability to effectively use and adjust communication messages for a variety of purposes with an array of communication partners within diverse circumstances (IRCA-Beverly Vicker) Social Communication: What is it?

◦ Repair our communication breakdowns ◦ Clarify what we mean ◦ Use our language to express emotions ◦ Know how to match what we say to who we are talking to (social role recognition) ◦ Demonstrate intent ◦ Demonstrate appropriate reciprocity ◦ Demonstrate appropriate conversational turn taking ◦ Demonstrate appropriate topic maintenance ◦ Interpret meaning…jokes, infer… Social Communication It enables us to:

Social Communication: What we may see Social Communication: What we may see Sounds rude or interrupts Lectures people Physical proximity May be verbose May appear manipulative Odd eye gaze Ineffective greetings Trouble initiating conversation

Michelle Garcia Winner Inside Out Thinking About You, Thinking About Me Think Social Worksheets! Carol Gray Social Stories Comic Strip Conversations Scott Bellini Building Social Relationships Video modeling Jed Baker Social Skills Picture Book Other Use of Social Scripts Social Communication…Resources

Let’s take one of the resources and talk about how we would apply it What we teach How we teach How we reinforce How we generalize

Resource: Social Communication MICHELLE GARCIA WINNER’S SOCIAL BEHAVIOR MAP

Being able to see the whole picture and how everything needs to work together to complete a project, or organize a physical space, or manage a group of people Organizational Skills: What is it?

◦ Follow directions ◦ Keep our facts straight ◦ Know what’s relevant and what’s not ◦ Save time ◦ Not be so anxious ◦ Complete assignments ◦ Know how to get started ◦ Locate things/Know where they are Organizational Skills: They enable us to

Organizational Skills: What we may see Messy desks and papers Doesn’t know how to start a project Can’t make a plan Poor note taking Homework issues Difficulty sequencing

Teach Me Language Software to facilitate graphic organizers Websites for free graphic organizers ( but pick one and use consistently ) Resources found at

Let’s take one of the resources and talk about how we would apply it What we teach How we teach How we reinforce How we generalize

Resource: Organization TEACH ME LANGUAGE

The ability to apply social rules when trying to solve a problem that involves others. Social Problem Solving: What is it?

Apply our understanding of social rules and roles. Generate solutions for interactions. Resolve conflict. It allows us to think about others perspectives. Keep and maintain friendships &/or intimate relationships. Social Problem Solving It enables us to:

Social Problem Solving: We May See Acting out Refusing/Arguing Literal interpretations Impaired perspective taking Recites rules but doesn’t apply to themselves May see withdraw May look like they are lying Don’t pick up on social nuances

Carol Gray Comic stripping Michelle Garcia Winner Behavior Mapping I LAUGH curriculum for perspective taking Kari Dunn Buron & Mitzi Curtis 5 point Scale A 5 Could Make Me Lose Control When My Worries/Autism Gets Too Big Other SOCCSS processing tool The Way from A-Z Social Problem Solving…Resources:

Let’s take one of the resources and talk about how we would apply it What we teach How we teach How we reinforce How we generalize

Resource: Social Problem Solving SITUATION /OPTIONS/ CONSEQUENCES/ CHOICE/STRATEGIES/SIMULATION SOCCSS

Some closing thoughts Students with autism think differently than the “typical” student The key to our success in working with students with autism is in presenting information in a manner that makes sense to them Remember- they want to be effective communicators and problem solvers but they simply don’t always know how.

Resources com