Planning in Reverse, Sharing Social Secrets &
18 Additional Ways to Support, Include, & Teach Students with Autism
Paula Kluth, Ph.D.
pkluth@earthlink.net
website: www.paulakluth.com
Raising Student Achievement
December 2006
The contents of these pages are intellectual
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Kluth.
What do we think about when we
hear “autism”?
Who are these students?
The medical model
AUTISM
Unique
& highly individualized
social
• Qualitative
impairment
skills
abilities
inand
social
interaction
Communication
differences
• Qualitative
impairment
and complexities
in communication
• Restricted
repetitive
and
Often
have expertise
or deep interest
in one
or several topics;
may have
stereotyped
patterns
of
fascinations
with interests,
objects as well
behavior,
and
activities
#1 Question the Medical
Model of Disability
#2 Consider the “Insider”
Perspective
Communication
Differences
#3
#4
#5
#6
speak and write
use a visual schedule
whisper (shhhhh)
be clear & precise
#7
Use Indirect Communication
– Puppets/Toys
– Foreign Accents (or Second Language)
– Singing/Music
– E-mail
– Sign Language/Gestures
– Microphone
Junee Waites (2001), the mother of a man with autism shares in her book, Smiling at the Shadows,
that she couldn’t get her son to engage in household routines until she sang to him:
…I sang “We’re sweeping the floor, sweeping the floor! We’re
making the bed, making the bed! Would you like…dah de dah…a drink
of milk…la la la…?”
Sometimes I’d wonder who had the problem, but [the] scheme
worked. I sang merrily and Dane began to point to what he wanted—
-and he would look to me. (p. 41)
#8 Respect Gaze Avoidance!
Do Not Focus on EYE CONTACT as a Goal
Wendy Lawson (1998), who has Asperger’s
syndrome, claims that making eye contact with a
speaker can result in a break down in
communication:
• How much easier it it to hear someone if you can’t see his or
her face. Then words are pure and not distorted by grimaces
and gestures. I can listen better to the tone of someone’s
voice when I am not confused by the unwritten words of their
facial expressions.
Passions/Interests/
Strengths
#9
#10
#11
plan in reverse
use passions as teaching
tools
use passions to inspire
new interests
aloft
Example of “building on strengths” activity:
STUDENT LOVES WEATHER
disaster fiction
introduce student to weather section of newspaper
how to read barometer and other gadgets
hand-on science experiments
teach email and web skills – surf for weather information
teach music- “Singing in the Rain”; “Sunny Weather”
support communication skills; have student teach others about weather
or give daily weather fact
have student learn about jobs like weather person, volunteer with
disaster relief
teach about feelings- “are you feeling gloomy and rainy today or
sunny”?
#12 POWER Cards,
Mantras & Mottos
(cards, posters, book jackets)
You win some,
you lose
some!
1. Smile
2. Extend your
hand
3. Introduce yourself
Social
Differences
#13 Teach Social Secrets or the
“Hidden Curriculum”
• When people say “How are you?” in the hallway,
they don’t really want to know. Just say “Fine.”
• If you need a break, you can say, “May I use the
bathroom?” You can do this even if you don’t
need to use the bathroom.
[Father] held up his right hand and spread
his fingers out in a fan. I held up my left hand and
spread my fingers out in a fan and we made our
fingers and thumbs touch each other. We do this
because sometimes father wants to give me a hug,
but I do not like hugging people so we do this
instead, and it means that he loves me. (Haddon,
M. The curious incident of the dog in the night-time. p. 16)
Learning
Differences/
Curricular
Adaptations
#14
#15
#16
adapted materials
(props)
teach to the whole child
(movement, sensory)
keep learning active
Art Class
Mr. Finer
Josh S.
The Color Wheel is a chart that shows how colors are
related and sorted to make it easier for artist to mix the
right colors for paint.
The Primary colors are blue, red, and yellow and
cannot be made by mixing other colors together.
Secondary colors are orange, purple and green
and are made by mixing two primary colors from
either side of the color wheel.
Tertiary colors are made by mixing a primary
and a secondary color together. Like purple and
blue, green and yellow or blue and green.
Complementary colors are opposite from each other
on the color wheel and they contrast because they
do not have any colors in common. Green is made
by mixing yellow and blue, so
it will complement red.
The Masters
Georgia O’Keeffe
O'Keeffe's originality and integrity earned her a reputation as
one of the greatest American Artist of the twentieth century.
Always loyal to her own vision, she painted her works without
regard to public tastes or changing styles in American Art.
Her paintings have retained a timeless quality that makes
them look fresh and original still.
O'Keeffe's paintings of natural subjects-not only flowers, but
animal bones, sea shells, rocks and desert landscapes-carry
With them a peaceful balance of elements, reflecting the
artist's love of her subjects as well as a highly developed sense
of composition.
Calla Lily
Turned Away
Artists with Autism
Ricky Hagedorn likes to make pictures of cars and
airplanes on wood shingles using enamel and acrylic paint
in rich primary colors, and his representations come to life:
the chrome gleams and the sun beats down on the roof. He
annotates his works with his own hieroglyphic system that
identify the date of the work.
#17 Grab & Learn/Activity Boxes
A kindergarten mathematics activity box might include:
• calculator or adding machine
• dice
• various worksheets
• card games
• wipe-off board/mini chalkboard
• plastic or foam letters
• cassette tapes or compact discs of math-related music (e.g., Sesame Street
Numbers)
A high school U.S. history activity box might include:
• colorful atlas of the U.S.
• flashcards or playing cards featuring famous Americans
• crossword puzzles or word finds with historical themes
• issues of Time, Newsweek, or National Geographic magazine
• hand-held computer trivia game
• brochures/pamphlets of American landmarks
• small desk-top jigsaw puzzles with history themes (e.g., Civil War)
Sensory
Differences
#18 Change the Environment
-- lighting
--seating
--organization
Guy constantly disrupted lessons because he arrived late
to his classes, struggled to find a place to sit, and often
did not have the necessary course materials.
…it was suggested that he should be allowed to have
a fixed desk at which to sit in every lesson…. In each
classroom the desk would also contain the minimum
equipment necessary for him to cope with the lesson
(paper, pens, ruler, etc.). Some teachers were happy
to implement these suggestions and in their classes
Guy’s behavior improved rapidly. Others refused to
change long-established teaching practices and in
these classes his behavior remained highly disruptive
and erratic. (Howlin, 1998, p. 244)
#19 & 20
Listen to Students &
Listen to Families
Jasmine Lee O’ Neill (1999):
Good professionals in the field spend a lot of time getting to
know each new autistic client or pupil. They respect that
sensitive person’s characteristic to live like a shy sea
creature inside a vibrant, colourful, self-containing shell
home. They are interested in each one as a human being.
They delight in the surprises that unfold as they get to know
the autistic individual. (p. 22).
Autism means a different way of seeing the world and I
always invite my teachers to buy a ticket on the journey to
reaching the station called acceptance and full knowledge.
Some reach the final destination and some hop off at the
beginning. They need to be as a conductor and guide me
through the many places I may get lost in. The math maze
I am the leader. The English maze is confusing and then I
need my conductor. And so remember that teachers need
patience, and curiosity, desire to give life to education and
all persons who place their dollar in the gate and deem it
possible to come out a world class traveler.
Jamie Burke (The Advocate, 2002)