Transcript Presentation 2015 Autistic Spectrum Disorders

Raising Awareness and
Addressing ASD
Triad of Impairment
• Language and Communication
• Social Interaction
• Flexibility of Thought
Impaired Language and
Communication
Language
- Semantic
- Pragmatic
- Literal
Communication
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Eye Contact
Gesture
Facial Expressions
Volume
Tone
Speech
Manner
Listening and Attention
Impaired Social Interaction
• Friendships
– Difficulty playing with other children
– Rules of social play – ‘The Unwritten Rules’
– Lack of innate drive to be a social being
• Social Conventions
– Inappropriate comments and actions
– Difficulty with proximity
• Empathy
– Doesn’t recognise other people’s feelings
– Expects other people to know their thoughts, experiences and
feelings.
• Social Cues
– Poor turn taking in conversations
– Poor timing
• Body language
– Misses the signals
– Non-verbal communication
Impaired Flexibility
• Imagination
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Pretend play
Fiction books
Free choice / Dead time
Creative writing
• Interests and Obsessions
– All encompassing
– May not reflect culturally ‘normal’ interest
• Routines
– Loves repetition and rules / Hates rules to be broken
– Changed routines without warning
– Poor organisational skills
• Difficulty seeing another person’s point of view
Inappropriate Behaviour to Situations
Specific Behaviours
No response to: •Reprimand
•Warnings
•Adult’s anxiety
•No remorse
•Others’ upset
Underlying Difficulties
•Receptive language limitations
•Sensory – pain experiences abnormal
•Inconsistent memory retrieval
•Does not understand relationship
between behaviour and consequences
Aggression
Specific Behaviours
•Pushing
•Hitting
•Spitting
•Throwing
Underlying Difficulties
•Poor Social Judgement
•Unawareness of feelings of others
•Sensory misperceptions
•Frustration over communication
limitations
•Not understanding how to interact
appropriately
Poor Play Skills
Specific Behaviours
Cannot: – amuse himself
– use toys normally
– play with others
- breaks toys
Underlying Difficulties
•Does not understand concept of rules
•Cannot organise own time
•Lacks understanding of symbolic or imaginary play
•Likes and is distracted by specific details of toys
•Inadequate ability to structure self
•Prefers repetitive activities
Tantrums
Specific Behaviours
•Screams without
apparent cause
•Self-injurious
•Destroys toys
Underlying Difficulties
•Unable to communicate needs
•Emotional inconsistency
•Poor understanding of the situation
•Strong need for closure or sameness
•Low frustration tolerance
Lacks initiative
Specific Behaviours
•Unmotivated
•Waits for prompts
•Overly dependent
•Seems lazy
Underlying Difficulties
•Unable to organise behaviour
•Poor concept of time
•Does not understand future rewards
•Does not understand expectations
Classroom Strategies
General
• Avoid distraction – noise, disturbances, smells and sights.
• Use the child's interests as motivators or a reinforcers.
• Use of regular spells of physical activity, incorporated into the
timetable, are often beneficial.
• Recognise literal nature of understanding of:– Language
– Events
• Avoid negatives:-
“Remember to walk” rather than “Don’t run” – encourages
positive behaviour
Give clear rules and
Be consistent
Keep instruction / questions simple.
Ensure that the child understands what is required.
Use language that is clear, precise and concrete.
Always forewarn: Tell the person what to expect
Give plenty of notice
Structure
The person should always know:-
 Where do I have to be?
 What am I doing?
 How much do I have to do?
 When will I know when I have finished?
 What will I do next?
Free choice can cause anxiety.
Things must have a beginning, middle and a clear
ending.
Children respond best in a structured environment
where things are organised and clearly labelled.