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Areas of need set out in the SEN code of practice

The particular needs of pupils with an autistic spectrum disorder

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Learning outcomes

You will:

be familiar with the original ideas of Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger

be able to recognise the similarities/differences in the diagnosis of autism and Asperger syndrome

recognise how the triad of impairments links to these ideas

be able to generate ideas for possible strategies.

Insert full point here

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Learning outcomes (continued…)

You will:

be able to identify ways to create an ASD-friendly classroom/learning environment, and

apply new knowledge to address potential barriers for pupils with ASDs.

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Questions

How many people in every 10,000 have an ASD?

Do more boys than girls have an ASD?

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Answers

It is estimated that 91 individuals in every 10,000 of the population in Great Britain will have an ASD

It is estimated that the population of people with an ASD in the UK is 535,000

At least four boys to every one girl are diagnosed with an ASD.

Source: National Autistic Society (www.nas.org.uk)

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“Autism isn’t something a person has, or a ‘shell’ that a person is trapped inside… Autism is a way of being. It is pervasive. It colours every experience, every sensation, perception, thought, emotion and encounter, every aspect of existence. It is not possible to separate the autism from the person – and if it were possible, the person you’d have left would not be the same person you started with.”

Jim Sinclair, ‘Don’t mourn for us’, Autism Network international newsletter ‘Our voice’, vol. 1, no. 3, 1993.

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Activity 1

Learning outcomes

You will:

become familiar with the original ideas of Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger

recognise the similarities and differences in the diagnosis of autism and Asperger syndrome

recognise how the triad of impairments links to these ideas, and

identify the unique presentation of the triad in different children.

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“Since 1938, there have come to our attention a number of children whose condition differs so markedly and uniquely from anything reported so far, that each case merits – and I hope will eventually receive – a detailed consideration of its fascinating peculiarities.”

Leo Kanner, ‘Autistic disturbances of affective contact’, Nervous child, 2, 1943, pp.217–50.

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Leo Kanner, 1943

Inability to relate to people and social situations from early life: marked by profound ‘aloneness’

Failure to use language to communicate

Anxious and obsessive desire to maintain sameness

Fascination for objects, which are handled with skill in fine motor movements

Good rote memory

Over-sensitivity to stimuli

Apparently good cognitive potential.

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“The children I will present all have in common a fundamental disturbance, which manifests itself in their physical appearance, expressive functions and, indeed their whole behaviour. This disturbance results in severe and characteristic difficulties of social integration. In some cases, the social problems are so profound that they overshadow everything else. In some cases, however, the problems are compensated by a high level of original thought and experience.”

Hans Asperger, 1944, translated as ‘Autism and Asperger syndrome’, ed. U. Frith, Cambridge, 1991, pp. 37–92.

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Hans Asperger, 1944

Social impairment – extreme egocentricity

Speech and language peculiarities

Repetitive routines

Motor clumsiness

Narrow interests

Non-verbal communication problems.

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social understanding and relating

socialcommunication

flexible thinkingand social

imagination

Triad of impairments

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Questions

In what ways are they similar?

In what ways are they different?

How do their descriptions fit in with the notion of a triad of impairments?

How do you recognise the triad as manifesting in any pupil you know with an ASD?

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Activity 2

Learning outcomes

You will:

recognise aspects of the triad of impairments

understand how areas of the triad relate to access to the curriculum, and

generate ideas about possible strategies.

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social understanding and relating

socialcommunication

flexible thinkingand social

imagination

Triad of impairments

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Potential barriers to learning

Social understanding and relating

Impairment in the ability to understand social behaviour, which impacts on interaction with children and adults.

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Social understanding and relating

“Social interactions that come naturally to most people can be daunting for people with autism... As a child, I was like an animal that had no instincts to guide me; I just had to learn by trial and error. I was always observing, trying to work out the best way to behave, but I never fitted in… I wanted to participate, but did not know how.”

Temple Grandin, 1996, ‘Emergence: labelled autistic’,Vintage.

Enter character space

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Impact of an impairment in social understanding

Not understanding unwritten social rules

Not recognising other’s feelings

Preferring to be alone

Not seeking comfort from others

Appearing to behave ‘strangely’ or inappropriately.

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Social communication

Impairment in the ability to understand and use non-verbal and verbal communication.

Potential barriers to learning

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Impairment in the ability to think and behave flexibly, which may be shown in restricted, obsessional or repetitive activities or interests and difficulties in

developing play skills.

Potential barriers to learning

Flexibility of thought and social imagination

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Difficulties with social imagination

People with ASDs often find it hard to:

understand and interpret other people’s thoughts, feelings and actions

predict what will or could happen next

understand the concept of danger

engage in imaginative play

prepare for change and plan for the future, and

cope in new or unfamiliar situations.

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Other related features of an ASD

Love of routines

Sensory sensitivity

Special interests

Learning difficulties.

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Activity 3

Learning outcome

You will understand the features of autism and Asperger syndrome.

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Autism and Asperger syndrome

Asperger syndrome

Delay in language development is unlikely

Some social communication difficulties exist

Cognitive function falls within the typical range.

Autism

Three-quarters of the population will have additional learning needs, some at a severe level.

Both groups share the triad of impairments with some differences in emphasis.

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Additional features in Asperger syndrome

Sensory sensitivities and unusual responses to some sensory experiences may be present

Isolated areas of skill unrelated to general cognitive functioning (seen in about 1 in 10 of the population)

Uneven developmental profile

Good rote memory and circumscribed special interests

Motor coordination difficulties.

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“My hearing is like having a hearing aid with thevolume control stuck on ‘super loud’. It is like an open microphone that picks up everything. I have twochoices: turn the mic on and get deluged with sound,or shut it off.”

Temple Grandin

Sensory sensitivities: auditory

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“Together, the sharp sounds and the bright lights were more than enough to overload my senses. My head would feel tight, my stomach would churn, and my pulse would run my heart ragged until I found a safety zone.”

Lianne Holliday Willey, 1999, ‘Pretending to be normal: living with Asperger syndrome’, Jessica Kingsley.

Sensory sensitivities: visual

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“(as a reaction to perfume) my mouth tasted like I had eaten a bunch of sickly smelling flowers.”

Donna Williams, 1994, ‘Nobody nowhere’, Jessica Kingsley.

Sensory sensitivities: olfactory

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“I was supersensitive to the texture of food and I had to touch everything with my fingers to see how it felt before I could put it in my mouth. I really hated it when food had things mixed with it, like… bread with fillings to make sandwiches. I never, never put any of it into my mouth. I knew if I did I would get violently sick.”

Sean Barron, 1992, ‘There’s a boy in here: emerging from the bonds of autism’, Simon & Schuster.

Sensory sensitivities: taste and touch

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“I pulled away when people tried to hug me, becausebeing touched sent an overwhelming tidal wave of stimulation through my body. Small itches andscratches that most people ignored were torture.”

Temple Grandin

Unusual responses

‘Temple Grandin’ is in 23pt – please change to 24pt

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Isolated areas of skill unrelated to general cognitive functioning

Skills often found in areas such as:

music

art

mathematical calculations, and

calendrical calculation.

Found in 1-in-10 people with ASD

‘Autistic spectrum disorder’, Wing, L 1996.

Insert full point here

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Activity 4

Learning outcome

You will understand the basics of creating an ASD-friendly learning environment.

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Inclusion as a process

“Inclusion is the process of including and educating a pupil within a mainstream school, where the school is able to recognise and assess the pupil’s particular needs and is willing and able to be flexible in how the curriculum is delivered and to adapt the routines and physical environment the pupil is expected to operate within.”

Glenys Jones, 2002, ‘Educational provision for children with autism and Asperger syndrome: meeting their needs’, David Fulton.

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Research indicators of effectiveness

Structured and task-orientated programme addressing academic and social competence

Focus on communication and social skills important

Explicit teacher intervention

Use of a range of strategies to improve skill levels and address undesirable behaviours.

Patricia Howlin, 1998 ‘Children with autism and Asperger syndrome: a guide for practitioners and parents’, Chichester, Wiley

Insert full point here

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“I visualise verbs… Adverbs often trigger inappropriate images…

For example, ‘He ran quickly’ triggers an animated image of Dick from the first grade reading books fast, and ‘He walked slowly’ slows the image down. As a child, I left out words such as ‘is’, ‘the’, and ‘it’ because they had no meaning by themselves…

To this day certain verb conjugations, such as ‘to be’ are absolutely meaningless to me.”

Temple Grandin

Visual thinking

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Clarity and order

Let the pupil know where their attention needs to be directed by reducing extraneous and unnecessary material

Maintain a predictable physical environment: a place for everything and everything in its place.

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Low-arousal work areas

Provide stimulus-free or reduced-distraction work area

Limit visual disturbance in these areas

Where possible use sound-reduction options (such as headphones)

Ensure the area is given high status (eg. by calling it a study area) that all pupils can use.

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Activity 5

Learning outcomes

You will be able to:

identify potential barriers for pupils with ASDs, and

apply new knowledge to address these challenges.

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Visual systems

May include objects, part objects, photographs, drawings, symbols or text

Use the means most appropriate to the child

Use simple text alongside other visual cues.

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coat

juice crisps

dinner

Picture exchange communication system (PECS)

Copyright of Pyramid Educational Products Inc. (locally supported by Pyramid Educational Consultants UK Ltd)

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Activity 6

Learning outcomes

You will:

be aware of the value of structured, predictable routines, and

be able to help pupils with ASDs to develop social understanding and cope with their feelings.

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Examples of routines

Hanging up coat and/or book bag

Start of day routine: calling the register

Start or end day with a piece of classical music

One-minute relaxation routine at the end of each lesson

Teach agreed signals for quiet or calling attention

Five-minute reflection time at the end of the day “One thing I did well today…”.

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“Many of my problems can be sidestepped by pre-planning. Schedules are very important to me. I need to know well in advance what is going to happen, how, who is involved and so on. Everything is always planned…

Any change of plan leads to frustration, powerlessness, anger and anxiety… Being late causes difficulties, but so does being early, and people who leave earlier or later than planned also make me feel uncomfortable.”

Dominique Dumortier, 2004, ‘From another planet: autism from within’, Paul Chapman.

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Widgit Literacy Symbols © Widgit Software 2008 www.widgit.com

Symbols from this PowerPoint are protected by copyright and cannot be extracted and distributed

Visual Timetable

Morning Register Assembly Numeracy Playtime Literacy Music Lunch

Afternoon Register Playtime Story HometimeArt

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start stop

This example of a visual timer can be placed on a table in front of pupil or on the whiteboard.

Small arrow (or pencil, ruler) is moved along large arrow to show how much time is left.

Simple visual timer

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Activity 7

Learning outcome

You will be able to help pupils with ASDs to develop social understanding and cope with their feelings.

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Role of thesocial-emotional curriculum

“For pupils with autism their future quality of life is… likely to depend on the degree to which they can learn to live with and understand others than solely on any academic skills they may possess.”

Jordan, Rita and Powell, Stuart, 1995, ‘Teaching and understanding children with autism’, Wiley.

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identify and name feelings in others

link to possible causes, and

identify appropriate responses.

Developing emotional literacy

name feelings

relate to experiences

predict feelings

regulate feelings, and

manage feelings.

Understand own feelings:

Recognise feelings in others:

Move text one character space along to the right so that it is in line with the others

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Frameworks for exploring feelings

Develop a feelings diary or journal:

“I feel (happy/sad/frightened) when I… ”

“I feel (happy/sad/frightened) when someone… ”

“When I feel (happy/sad/frightened) I can... ”

Art and drama activities, including mask work, can help pupils to explore the physical aspects of particular emotions

Use social stories to talk through a situation and to identify when the pupil might feel happy, unhappy or angry.

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Comparing happy and sad

Sort pictures, photographs, situations into happy and sad

Identify happy and sad music

Role-play such as the emotions game – pupils guess the feeling being acted out by a pupil through an activity (such as bouncing a ball)

Start to personalise the emotions: list what makes the pupil/pupils/others feel happy or sad

Introduce a daily feelings chart and support the pupil to assess which activities make them feel happy or sad (acknowledge that some activities may not elicit either of these feelings).

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irritated

cross

annoyed

angry

furiousupset

Example of a visual gauge: degrees of anger

calm

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Activity 8

Learning outcome

You will reflect on the session and identify key points of action for yourself.