Written by Dr. Rachel Youngblom
It is likely that you know, have taught, or have interacted with a child who has a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Furthermore, it is possible that you may not even have been aware of the child’s diagnosis, based on the severity of his or her symptoms, let alone the social and emotional challenges that a child with autism experiences daily. While teachers should not attempt to make a diagnosis, they will likely encounter students, whether diagnosed or not, who have difficulty making friends due to their social, emotional, and communicative challenges.
Teaching Children Social Skills
A child with Autism Spectrum Disorder demonstrates social difficulties in various ways, such as deficits in social and emotional reciprocity (e.g., conversational turn-taking, sharing of interests and emotions), and difficulties understanding and using nonverbal communicative behavior (e.g., eye contact, facial expressions, gestures, body language) and developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships (e.g., understanding of friendships, “stranger danger”) (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
Currently, research indicates that Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Therapy is regarded as an evidence-based practice for teaching skills to children with autism (Roane et al., 2016), and children with autism often require direct instruction to teach social communication and social skills. While teachers may not be regarded as behavior interventionists, there are still opportunities for direct instruction to occur in vivo in the classroom and woven into daily activities and routines (Banda et al., 2010). For example, you might encourage a child to engage in conversational turn-taking or gently prompt them to respond to your greetings and social initiations. If a child has difficulty displaying or recognizing emotions or facial expressions, you could use pictures of various emotions and ask them to point to how they are feeling or how their friends are feeling. In the classroom, you might find yourself facilitating a conversation between a child with autism and their peers and supporting appropriate responses by giving them age-appropriate words or phrases to use in a specific context. These are only a few examples.
Children with Challenging Behavior
It is important to understand that children with autism can find social situations confusing and frustrating, which might also cause distress, resulting in strong emotions or challenging behavior.
As part of the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder, individuals might also display unusual or repetitive motor movements and/or speech (e.g., hand flapping, body rocking, repeating word and phrases that others say, flipping or lining up toys or other items). They might also have an insistence on sameness or inflexible adherence to routines (e.g., may need things to go a specific way or to remain consistent and reliable), display highly restricted and/or fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g., may perseverate on specific items or topics that may not always be consistent with their age or development), and may display hyper- or hypo-reactivity to sensory input, or unusual interest in sensory aspects of the environment (e.g., sensitivity to sounds, visual interest in lights or shadows, tactile defensiveness to various textures) (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
Strategies and Accommodations
These behaviors often vary, depending on the child and the severity of ASD-related symptoms, which leads to the need for strategies and accommodations that can be individualized for each student. In the classroom, a teacher may provide opportunities to allow movement or teach a child how to use novel items appropriately. Teachers might provide students a “heads up” of changes and transitions in the classroom when they are able. The use of visual supports can also be helpful, so that a child can see what is coming up next and prepare for any changes that might occur.
Children with autism may have unique and highly specific or fixated interests. Teachers can use these interests to engage a student in conversation, facilitate conversations with other peers who might have similar interests, and use as a source of positive motivation (if needed) to support engagement in academic tasks and activities.
Children with autism may also display challenges when processing sensory information in their environment. For example, a child may be distressed by noises that echo in a gymnasium or lunchroom. A teacher might allow them to use noise cancelling headphones in certain environments and/or during various events (e.g., assemblies, school concerts).
Cultivating a Loving and Positive Learning Environment
Perhaps most importantly, a teacher can cultivate a loving and positive learning environment for all children (Boutot, E. A., 2007). It is important for all children to feel included and accepted, and children with autism are no different (Lindsay et al., 2014). Age-appropriate conversations about personal differences and uniqueness can be embedded into curriculum and celebrated during circle time, morning meetings, and select text through stories and books. Children with and without autism learn in unique ways, and taking a strengths-based approach and highlighting the unique gifts and talents of all children in the classroom can show students that they are equally loved, supported, and included as important members of the classroom, regardless of their differences.
Dr. Rachel Youngblom currently serves as an adjunct graduate faculty professor at Martin Luther College-New Ulm MN.
Dr. Youngblom will be presenting on this topic at the WELS Education Conference in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, June 22. REGISTER HERE to attend the conference and this sectional.
References
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
Banda, D. R., Hart, S. L., & Liu-Gitz, L. (2010). Impact of training peers and children with autism on social skills during center time activities in inclusive classrooms. Research in autism spectrum disorders, 4(4), 619-625.
Boutot, E. A. (2007). Fitting in: Tips for promoting acceptance and friendships for students with autism spectrum disorders in inclusive classrooms. Intervention in School and Clinic, 42(3), 156-161.
Lindsay, S., Proulx, M., Scott, H., & Thomson, N. (2014). Exploring teachers’ strategies for including children with autism spectrum disorder in mainstream classrooms. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 18(2), 101-122.
Maenner, M.J., Shaw, K.A., Bakian, A.V. et al. (2021). Prevalence and characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorder among children aged 8 years – Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 11 Sites, United States, 2018. Surveillance Summary (70) No.SS-11. 1-16.
Ratcliffe, B., Wong, M., Dossetor, D. et al. (2015). The association between social skills and mental health in school-aged children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, with and without Intellectual Disability. Journal of Autism Developmental Disorders, 45, 2487–2496.
Roane, H. S., Fisher, W. W., & Carr, J. E. (2016). Applied behavior analysis as treatment for autism spectrum disorder. The Journal of pediatrics, 175, 27-32.