1. A Child with Autism a presentation on select approaches Jackie Masters

2. Autism  Defined by the DSM-IV  Deficits in communication  Lack of imaginative/make believe play  Lack of social interaction  Overall, poor pragmatic skills

3. Therapy  Speech & Language Therapy  Play Therapy  Social Skills Therapy  Music Therapy

4. Speech Therapy Teaches the Child Social Awareness Pragmatic skills Appropriate forms of communication (Dempsey, 2001)

5. Play Therapy  Creates a structured environment  Encourages communication within the natural setting (Dempsey, 2001)

6. Social Skills Therapy  Teaches social communication skills  Recognizing nonverbal communication  Interpreting nonverbal communication (Barnhill, 2002)

7. Music Therapy  Uses music to interest children  The aim is to reduce autistic characteristics  Stresses importance of rate, intonation, and pitch. (Dempsey, 2001)

8. Research into Therapies  Many short term studies  Very few longitudinal studies  Early results usually look promising  Lack of extended research makes it difficult to make conclusions about validity

9. My own client  Enrolled in Speech Therapy for six years  Shown slow, steady progress  Experience fewer behavior problems  More verbal  More socially outgoing  Behaviors are more socially appropriate

10. Parents Report  He is easier to manage  He uses words more often than shouts or other verbalizations  He is more outgoing  He has started to ask for help

11. Peers Report  He acts less ‘weird’  He will speak sometimes  He sometimes asks for help or to join a group

12. Conclusion There are so many options for therapy. More research, especially longitudinal studies are needed to determine long term benefits of approaches.

13. References  American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4 th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.  Barnhill, G., Cook, K., Myles, B., Tebbenkamp, K. (2002). The Effectiveness of Social Skills Intervention Targeting Nonverbal Communication for Adolescents with Asperger Syndrome and Related Pervasive Developmental Delays. Focus on Autism & Other Developmental Disabilities, 17, 112-119. Retrieved July 24, 2002, from Academic Search Elite database.  Dempsey, I. (2001, March). A Review of Educational Approaches for Individuals with Autism. International Journal of Disability, Development, and Education, 48, 103-116. Retrieved July 6, 2002 from the Academic Search Elite database. (To continue with the MRP, click ‘BACK’ on your toolbar.)