My ASD Child

"As a teacher, I would like to ask you what method you use to find the real reasons [or triggers] for behavior problems in students with high functioning autism?" In order to identify the underlying causes of difficult behaviors in children with Asperger’s (AS) and High-Functioning Autism (HFA), a Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) must be performed. An FBA is an approach that incorporates a variety of techniques to diagnose the causes and to identify likely interventions intended to address difficult behaviors. An FBA looks beyond the actual problem behavior, and instead, focuses on identifying biological, social, affective, and environmental factors that initiate, sustain, or end the problem behavior in question. The FBA is important because it leads the researcher beyond the "symptom" (i.e., the behavior) to the child's underlying motivation to escape, avoid, or get something (i.e., the cause of the behavior). Behavior intervention plans stemming fr

“I'd like to ask you about a very big problem for our autistic son - his perfectionism! Can you give me some advice on what to do about this issue, because I believe it is a major contributing factor to his never-ending anxiety, especially when doing his homework?”    ==> CLICK HERE for the full article...

 "I need to come up with some ideas for my son' teacher. My son is on the spectrum. The teacher is really struggling with his behavior as well as his learning style (he's a very visual learner, I know, and he doesn't do well with lengthy verbal instructions)." Research has identified classroom characteristics that promote success for children with Aspergers and High-Functioning Autism (HFA: individualized instruction, interesting curriculum, positive reinforcement, predictability, short working periods, small teacher-to-student ratio, and plenty of structure. Research has also identified optimal teacher characteristics: consistency, firmness, frequent monitoring of the child’s work, humor, knowledge of behavior management strategies for students on the spectrum, patience, personal warmth, and positive academic expectations. Based on this research, here are 70 quick and simple – yet highly effective – tips and tricks to use in teaching your students who are