Los Angeles Unified School District
Division of Special
Education
Schools for All
Children
Autism Spectrum
Disorder
Donnalyn Jaque-Antón
Associate Superintendent
Developed by:
Pat Grayson-DeJong, M.Ed.
& Debbie Moss, M.A.
Autism Specialists, LAUSD
Autism Program Support
(213) 241-8051
Pervasive Developmental
Disorder
Autism
PDD – NOS
Asperger Syndrome
Childhood Disintegrative
Disorder
Rett’s Syndrome
AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER
Profound (severe) Autism
Moderate
Mild (High Functioning)
Asperger Syndrome
Autism Spectrum
Disorder
• First described by Leo Kanner in 1943
• Lifelong disorder: there is no cure at this
time
• Can be present at birth, but typically
appears prior to age 3
• Affects 1 in 166
• Four to five times more common in boys
Autism
Worldwide Increase
Possible Reasons:
• Medical and Educational
community better
informed
• Genetic evidence for
predisposition in some
families
• Compromised immune
system and environmental
factors
• Vaccines???
IMPORTANT FACTORS TO
CONSIDER WHEN PROJECTING
STUDENT OUTCOMES

Early Intervention
Quality of Intervention

Consistency of
Intervention
Cognitive Ability
Core Areas of Deficit
•
Speech and Language Deficits
Non-Verbal
Echolalic/sterotypical language
Hyper-Verbal
•
Social Skill Deficits
Range from isolative to indiscriminately
social
•
Limited/Repetitive Behavioral
Repertoire
Self Stimulation
Rigidity
Perseverative
Inflexibility
Measured I.Q.
Autism Continuum
Severe
Gifted
Social- Emotional Interaction
Aloof
Passive
Active but Odd
Communication
Non-verbal
Verbal
Motor Skills
Awkward
Agile
Fine Motor
Uncoordinated
Sensory
Hypo
Coordinated
Hyper
Communication Deficits
• Severe delay or complete absence of speech
• Immediate or delayed echolalia
• Poor auditory processing
• Odd voice quality/volume
• Understanding of language is literal/concrete
(e.g., “listen up.” “It’s raining cats and dogs”)
• May repeat sounds/questions/phrases
Strategies to address
Communication needs
• Language occurs throughout day and
taught by everyone
• Use augmentative communication to
stimulate verbal language (e.g. PECS)
• Use visual cues to facilitate understanding
of abstract concepts (e.g. pictures,
drawings, written words)
• BE CONCRETE
Communication
Strategies (con’t)
• Teach for generalization by teaching
in variety of settings, using different
materials (e.g., color red: apple, stop
sign, shirt, crayon)
• Auditory processing deficits: allow
extra time for student to respond
Social Skill Deficits
•
•
•
•
•
Infants/children irritable
and hard to comfort
Isolative
Poor/no eye contact; odd
eye gaze
Inappropriate giggling or
laughing
No understanding of
“friendship”
Strategies for
Improving Social Skills
• Shape desired behaviors
• Teach and practice appropriate social skills in
natural environments
• Establish a “friendship system” for community
integration
• Have neurotypical peers or adults prompt/cue
appropriate social skills
• Capitalize on child’s strengths in integrated
settings
Academic Challenges
• Children adapt
poorly to others
and changes in
routines
• Do not use toys for
intended purpose
(e.g., spins, lines
up, flips, etc.)
Academic Challenges (con’t)
Uneven development of
skills:
- Decodes words but
unable to comprehend
meaning
- Good computation
skills, but unable to
apply
- Excellent visual
matching skills
- Gross/fine motor skills
range from superior
to very poor
Strategies that Address
Academic Challenges
• Avoid surprises
• Visual Schedules assist with
daily routines and
transitions
• Provide predictable
structured, safe,
environments
• Use priming techniques
• Visual supports
Visual Supports
Today’s Schedule
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Breakfast
Speech – Ms. Jane
OCR – Ms. Nelson
Written Language
Recess
Math
Social Studies
Lunch
Reading Comprehension
Art or Music
Homework Review
Dismissal
Michael
Strategies that address
Academic Challenges
• Break tasks into
smaller parts
• Teach how to use
toys/games
appropriately
• Stress “functional
use” of academic
skills
• Fade cueing
Sensory Deficits
• Sensitivity to
environmental
conditions
• Hyper or hypo
sensitivity to
auditory, visual,
smell/taste,
tactile/kinesthetic
Response to Sensory
Input
• Under/over reaction
to sound
• Eye contact avoidance
• Focus on details of
objects
• Avoids specific
foods/odors/textures,
etc.
Strategies to Address
Sensory Differences
• Remove environmental conditions, if
reasonable (e.g., odors)
• Desensitize in small steps (consulting
with O.T.)
• Implement sensory diet, as
prescribed by O.T.
Asperger
Syndrome
Asperger Syndrome (AS)
• First described by Hans Asperger in 1944
(Mildest and highest functioning end of ASD)
• Abnormalities noted in 3 broad aspects of
development
 Social interaction and emotional
relatedness
 Unusual patterns of narrow interests
 Behavioral and stylistic characteristics
involving repetitive/perseverative
features
Asperger Syndrome (con’t)
• Students more likely found in general education
classrooms and often undiagnosed or
misdiagnosed as ADD, ED, LD, or just odd
• Genetic factors more prevalent in AS. Often
family history of autism, most often on the father’s
side
Characteristics:
• Higher cognitive abilities
(average to superior)
• Lucid language by 4 years
• Present with considerable
pragmatic language
difficulties
• Speech often stilted and
repetitive; conversations
revolve around rote,
factual topics
Additional
Characteristics
• Often engage in
rituals
• Worry excessively
when they do not
know what to expect
Deficits in Pragmatic
Language
• Turn-taking skills (within
play and conversation)
• Gestalt processing (seeing
the big picture)
• Perspective-taking
• Problem solving
• Organization
Additional Issues
with Pragmatics
• Social Expectations
• Proximity, eye contact,
intonation
• Conversational skills
- Talking too much
- Interrupting
- Changing topics without
transition
(From Gail Hallenberg, M.S.,CCC-SLP)
Strategies to Improve
Pragmatic Language
• Teach rules of communication
• Teach conversational skills step by
step, using visual aides and
representations
• Role playing
• Start with easier tasks and
add complexity as the student
gains skills and confidence
• Work on different contexts and
generalization
• Repetition/practice
• Always explain “why”
-- Helps students see the perspective of
others
(From Gail Hallenberg, M.S., CCC-SLP)
Academic Challenges
• Verbal abilities higher
than performance skills
• Lack higher level
abstract thinking and
comprehension skills
• Impressive vocabularies
give false impression
that they understand
(may be parroting what
read or hear)
Academic Challenges
(con’t)
• Excellent rote memory skills, but
mechanical in nature
• Exhibit poor problem solving skills
• Literal and concrete thinkers
Educational Strategies for
Academic Challenges
 Individualized academic
programming designed to offer
consistent success
 Make learning rewarding, not
anxiety provoking
 Redirect away from following
their own impulses
 Insure student’s understanding
of presented material via his/her
demonstration of it
Academic Strategies
(con’t)
Big job: Clean your desk
Little chunks:
1. Put pencils in pencil box
2. Close covers of all books
3. Throw away all wrinkled/
torn papers
4. Put important papers in a
folder
5. Put books in a neat stack
• Break reading comprehension
into smaller parts and analyze
1 section at a time
• Expectations must be set for
amount and quality of work
produced. Start small and
increase as skills develop
• Earning time toward doing
what interests them is often a
good motivator to do what is
expected.
Behavior Support
First
Then
Strategies
• Simplify abstract
concepts. Use visuals
as much as possible
• Teach the difference
between general
knowledge and
personal ideas to
help with writing
skills
Emotional Vulnerability
• Often don’t have the
emotional resources to cope
with the demands of the
classroom (esp. from 3rd
grade on)
• Easily distressed due to
inability to be flexible and lack
of organizational skills
• Intolerant of making mistakes,
low self-esteem
• Prone to depression
• Rage and tantrum reactions
common response to stress
and frustration
Educational Strategies:
Emotional Vulnerability
• Provide high level of consistency to prevent outbursts
• Teach students strategies to cope with their stress:
Make list of concrete steps to follow when they
become upset (e.g., 3 deep breaths, count fingers
of left hand 3 times, ask to take a break outside of
classroom, write steps on card, etc.)
• Be alert to changes in behavior that signal depression:
More disorganized, inattentive, isolative, crying/suicidal
remarks, increased levels of stress, etc.
Social Challenges for
Students with AS
1. Self observation/
evaluation of impact on
others
2. Perspective taking;
empathy
3. Applying problem solving
skills
4. Dealing with
change/novel stimuli
5. Body awareness/personal
space
Additional Social Challenges
6. Coping with change/not
getting your own way
7. Understanding subtle/
complex verbal and
nonverbal communication
8. Processing and
understanding emotion
9. Mastering the
increasing complexity of
games and rules
10. Learning to enjoy social
contact
Addressing Social Skills
in the School
• Social Stories
• Model desired
social skill
• Social skill
scripting
• Social skills
discussion
• Direct teaching of
desired social skill
Application to Natural
Settings
• Opportunities to apply new skills in a natural peer
context
• Start with more structured situations and then try with
less structures; provide enough support to ensure success
• Coaching should still be given before and after, as
needed
• Should be practiced across all settings
– School clubs, teams, activity groups
– Recess, P.E., lunch
– Mainstreaming classroom