Transcript Facilitating Membership in Head Start Classrooms

Educating Children with
Autism in Head Start
Classrooms
Ilene Schwartz
Head Start Center for Inclusion
[email protected]
Head Start Center
for Inclusion
•Overarching goal:
To increase the competence, confidence, and
effectiveness of personnel in Head Start programs
to include children with disabilities.
•Guiding Principals:
•The success of inclusion depends on everyone
realizing that it involves much more than children "just
being there".
•Inclusion refers to the full and active participation of
young children with disabilities in everyday settings.
Autism is a collection
of overlapping groups
of symptoms that
vary from child to
child
Siegel, 1996, p.301
What is Autism?
• Issues in three areas: social
interaction, communication,
ritualistic behavior
• A spectrum disorder: different
children affected to different
degrees in each area
Social Deficits (DSM-IV)
• Impairment in nonverbal
communication (gestures, eye gaze,
etc.)
• Failure in developing peer
relationships
• Lack of spontaneous sharing of
enjoyment, interests, etc.
• Lack of social or emotional
reciprocity
What You Might See
• Complete lack of interest in others
• Very attached to certain adults, but
no interest in peers.
• Inappropriate interest in others
• Wants friends, but doesn’t “get it.”
• Lack of understanding of facial
expression (sometimes with
disastrous results).
• Behavior problems related to lack of
interest in social praise or social
consequences.
Communication (DSM-IV)
• Delay in or total lack of spoken
language.
• Impairment in ability to initiate
or sustain conversation.
• Stereotyped use of language.
• Lack of make-believe play.
What You Might See
• Use of augmentative communication
systems or no communication system.
• Children with very good language, but
odd uses: pronoun reversals, strange
uses of words.
• Children with odd sounding language.
• “Scripting”
• Repetitive, unimaginative play or no play.
• Behavior problems because of limited
language.
Restricted, Repetitive and
Sterotyped Patterns of
Behavior (DSM-IV)
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Abnormally obsessive interests
Rigid adherence to routines
Sterotyped motor movements
Preoccupation with parts of objects
What You Might See
• Obsessions with trains, maps,
letters, etc.
• Hand flapping, vocalizing, spinning,
self-injurious behavior.
• Lack of interest in “normal”
childhood activities.
• Tantrums and other behavior
problems around routine changes.
• Behavior problems around
obsessions.
Other factors in autism
 Prevalence = 1 in 150
 Many children with autism also have
cognitive impairments
 The prevalence of autism is increasing
dramatically
 Genetic factors seem to play a role.
Higher incidence in twins. It seems to run
in families.
NO ONE WAY TO
EDUCATE CHILDREN
WITH AUTISM!!!
There are no
instructional strategies
that are autism-specific
Children with ASD
require
• Instruction to be more explicit
• Reinforcement to be more
explicit and perhaps extrinsic to
start
• More opportunities to practice
with feedback
• Planned instruction to facilitate
generalization
Three important
questions
• What are you going to
teach?
• How are you going to teach
those skills and behaviors?
• How will you know that your
teaching has been
effective?
Educating Children
with Autism
• National Research Council, 2001
• Report was developed at OSEP’s
request
Characteristics of
Effective Programs
• Entry into program as soon as ASD is seriously
considered
• Active programming 25 hours a week,
year round
• Small group and 1:1 programming
• Family component
• Low student/teacher ratios (no more than
2 children with ASD per adult in classroom)
• Program evaluation and assessment
Content of Programs
should include
• Social skills
• Expressive, receptive, and non verbal
communication skills
• Functional communication system
• Engagement and flexibility in
developmentally appropriate activities
• Fine and gross motor skills
Content (continued)
• Cognitive skills, including play
• Replacement of problem behaviors
with socially acceptable alternatives
• Independent organizational skills
and other behaviors that support
participation in general education
settings
So, what does this mean for
Head Start Classrooms
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Examine the classroom environment
Consider activities
Use clear instructions
Make expectations clear and
consistent
• Use effective and frequent
reinforcement, praise, and
encouragement
Classroom Environment
• A physical set up that delineates activity
areas
• Clear, consistent schedule
• Materials that are interesting to
students
• Materials to promote communication
• Minimal transitions
• Visual supports as necessary
Game Board/Play Script
Classroom Activities
• Help children feel successful
• Clear beginnings and clear ends
• Teach imitation, communication,
play skills
• Teach expectations
• Teach to mastery
Clear instructions
• Tell children what to do using
simple, direct language
• Tell children what to do, not what
not to do
• Provide children with an
opportunity to respond
• Show children what to do, do not
let them make lots of mistakes
Clear and consistent
expectations
• The educational team needs to
decide what the rules are and
teach them
• If children do not follow the rules -teach them how to
• The more consistent the team is,
the more quickly children will learn
• Start simple, keep raising
expectations
Reinforcement
• Children with autism often do not
respond to social praise or group
expectations
• We need to make rewards and
reinforcement individual and immediate
• Reinforcers follow the behaviors that we
want to occur again
• Teacher attention is a reinforcer
More resources
• Head Start Center on Inclusion -www.headstartinclusion.org
• Autism Speaks -- autismspeaks.org
• PDA Center -- www.pdacenter.org
• Polyxo.com (a good resource for
instructional programs, data sheets,
etc.)
• Firstsigns.org