My ASD Child

Many special education teachers are encountering students with Asperger’s (AS) and High Functioning Autism (HFA) for the first time – and have expressed some anxiety about this. So in this post, we will discuss a few ideas and techniques that will help facilitate an effective learning environment for these “special needs” students. The first step would be to get acquainted with some of the associated traits. AS or HFA students may exhibit many of the characteristics listed below. These are usually not isolated ones; rather, they appear in varying degrees and amounts in most children on the autism spectrum: spontaneous in expression often can’t control emotions find it difficult, if not impossible, to stay on task for extended periods of time if not interested in the subject matter low tolerance level high frustration level poor concept of time weak or poor self-esteem coordination problems with both large and small muscle groups difficulty in following complicated dir

“Why do children on the high functioning side of autism seem to experience more than their fair share of anxiety? And, are there any drugs that can be used to help with this problem?” Young people with High Functioning Autism (HFA) are particularly vulnerable to anxiety. This vulnerability may be an intrinsic feature of HFA due to a breakdown in circuitry related to extinguishing fear responses, specific neurotransmitter system defects, and/or their inability to make social judgments throughout development. Other reasons for anxiety in HFA children/teens include the following: Limitations in generalizing from one situation to another often contributes to repeating the same social gaffes. Limitations in their ability to grasp social cues - and their highly rigid style - act in concert to create repeated social errors.  Many experience the discomfort that comes from somatic responses that are disconnected from events and experience. The lack of empathy severely limits skills f

“Task-frustration” occurs when a child attempts to complete a particular task (e.g., tying shoe laces, riding a bicycle, doing a math assignment, playing a board game, etc.), but fumbles along unsuccessfully.    As a result, he or she has a tantrum – or a meltdown! If you are a parent of a child on the autism spectrum, you have no doubt witnessed your child being overly-frustrated on numerous occasions over seemingly trivial incidents. Well, help has arrived! Read on… “Backward chaining” can have different definitions for different fields, but when teaching life skills to young people with High-Functioning Autism (HFA), it refers to breaking down the steps of a task and teaching them in reverse order. This gives the youngster an experience of accomplishment and completion with every attempt. Instead of the youngster starting at the beginning and getting lost somewhere through the process (with the parent having to complete the task), the parent does all but the last step and le