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Improving Communication for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Individuals with Autism, Asperger Syndrome and related learning needs can experience significant difficulty developing effective communication skills. Their communication challenges affect both understanding and expression. The behavior and social skill difficulties these students can have are very often related to their communication challenges. The goal of this department is to present effective strategies for improving communication.
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Understanding and Decreasing Repeated Questions in Children with Autism
QUESTION: How can I use visual strategies to decrease the amount of repeated questions from students. ANSWER: This is a common question and a great one. Think of it like this. When a student is repeating a question over and over he is driving us nuts. But he is also expressing important information to us. So ask yourself. . ."What is his purpose? Why is he talking? Is he repeating because he is anxious about something? Is he asking about something that is going to happen? What is he trying to communicate?" . . .
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Using Writing on a Chalkboard as an Effective Visual Strategy for ASD Children- Video
Six year old boy with ASD uses a chalkboard to write words. He already knows how to spell a lot of words. In this clip the writing of words becomes a social activity with Mom. Mom explores how he is able to copy words to expand his written vocabulary. Writing messages can become an important form of communication since his spoken language is very difficult to understand. Notice the large chalk he uses which works better for him than the skinny chalk. . . .
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Tips for Working with Students Suffering from Severe Communication Problems
QUESTION: I have a new student age 13 who has no meaningful communication. She will repeat verbal information and she uses continuous unintelligible speech for self-stimulation. Help! I have never had a student this severe. ANSWER: I would need a lot more information to provide a complete answer, but I have a suspicion about this girl. Here is the question I would ask. What is her social connection like? How does she relate to people? I suspect she doesn't engage well with you or other people. . . .
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Create those Opportunities
Simone Griffin
Children with autism communicate at many different levels; some talk, some use sign language, some use pictures to communicate messages and some reach and point for the things they want. But no matter how your child communicates, there are many things you can do in your everyday interactions to help create and make . . .
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Helping Parents Understand the Need for Visual Strategies in Children with ASD
QUESTION: How do we help parents understand that students with limited verbal skills still need visual strategies to prompt and extend their abilities? Parents are always concerned, saying that if they use visual strategies, the students won't use the limited speech that they do have. ANSWER: This is a common concern. . .that the use of visual strategies will prevent students from talking. It is so important to look at communication in a broader way. We want students to develop the ability to express themselves. But another significantly important part of communication is understanding. . . .
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Using Photos to Communicate with Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Learning effective conversation skills ranks as one of the greatest challenges for students with autism spectrum disorders (and lots of other students with communication or behavior difficulties). Conversation is complex. It requires exactly the abilities that are difficult for these students. Success with conversations requires many skills such as: Engaging another person Deciding what to talk about Using appropriate language to share thoughts or information . . .
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Using Visual Strategies to Help Children Understand Life Events
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Life is full of events and circumstances that are difficult for children to understand. How do you explain? And explaining doesn't mean that they comprehend. And what happens when children don't understand? Emotional outbursts? Difficult behaviors? Problems can occur for good events as well as bad ones. Writing down information can provide a way to help understanding. Here is an example of how it can work. . . .
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Social Challenges for Individuals with Autism
Paula Kluth
For many with autism, engaging in a social interaction is like playing a game without knowing the rules. Some individuals report that the social demands of making small talk or walking into a party can create stress, anxiety, and panic; they may feel as if everyone else knows the secrets necessary for success and they do not. Liane Holliday Willey (1999), a woman with Asperger's Syndrome, illustrates how stressful it can be when one does not understand certain social requirements: "The most simple-sounding duties blew me away. For example, what exactly did it mean to plan a child's class party? With no precise guidelines or definition of terms in tow, I had no answer but plenty of questions. . . .
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Using a Schedule as a Visual Aid for Both Verbal and Nonverbal Children
QUESTION: What do you suggest for those students who are verbal and don't really need a visual schedule but want to use it regardless. ANSWER: WOW! This question highlights some points that are often misunderstood about our students and visual strategies. First, remember some of the primary reasons we use visual strategies are to help students understand better, to help them organize their thinking, to help them remember what to do. So it does not matter if they can speak. Visual strategies help both students who are verbal and those who are non verbal. . . .
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Using a Journal to Help Children with ASD Handle Life Changes
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Dear Linda: We've had situations with Bryan that have consumed us. Grampa died (someone that was very close to Bryan). Plus there have been some other major changes in his life. He has had many incidents at school. There have been altercations in the classroom. He is talking about violent things. I can tell he is depressed. He does not know how to handle himself when he is in stressful situations and his reactions are negative and have violent gestures. . . .
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Make the Most of 5 Minutes
Simone Griffin
You don't always need to purchase expensive toys or spend lengthy periods of time with your child to practice communication skills. By being alittle creative you can grab things which you commonly have around the house and turn it into a quick communication game! For example youcan quickly . . .
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Honoring and Including Students with Communication Differences
Paula Kluth
"I have a new student coming to my sixth-grade classroom and I am stumped. Ben does not speak very much but he sometimes uses an electronic device to make choices and greet people. He also knows some sign language. I am not sure how to include him in the class or how to build a relationship with him. HELP! " This note came to me in the form of an e-mail. It was sent by a fourth-grade teacher who has never had a student . . .
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Using Gestures as Effective Methods of Communication
Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
Gestures are great communication tools Our hands and faces and body movements are great visual tools. We can use them to communicate lots of messages effectively. But some people use them more naturally than others. Can you think of someone you know who is very expressive with gestures? Well, here is something to think about. . . . . .
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