Expert: James Michael Roan - 11/7/2009

Question
My six year old daughter has been tentatively diagnosed with aspergers, and has recently begun extremely violent behavior in school. This past weekend the violenc was brough home to me, when asked what she achieved from that behavior she said "I get out of school." Until this year she had a true love for school and learning and is very bright. Can you give me suggestions to help resolve this situation with the school and at home. I have tried timeouts, privilege taking away, rewards. The best tool used to be communication but is failing us now. Thank you very much for your time.    Sincerely, Shawna Bernard

Answer
Hi Shawna;

Please keep in mind that at no time am I diagnosing anything nor am I ruling out any potential condition, just providing guidance and direction.

I will be honest with you. This is very common with Asperger's syndrome (AS), and also very difficult to solve. It requires multiple solutions. School is a nightmare for kids with AS, with the combination of sensory sensitivities, social phobia, bullying, and generally low receptive language making their daily functioning extremely stressful. If you live in the U.S. have a full assessment of IQ, social/emotional, and sensory functions (Sensory Profile). This will let you know where she is functioning so you can adjust her program at school accordingly. It usually takes several months. A short term fix might be letting her spend her lunch with a favorite school staff member away from the noise of lunch, other children, and recess.

Kind regards,
James


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Bio

James Roan is a certified school psychologist who has been consulting in the areas of autism, Asperger’s Syndrome, and learning difficulties in the United States and in Ireland for over ten years (http://www.jamesroan.com). James earned his M.Ed. in School Psychology and M. Ed. in Adult Education and receives ongoing post graduate training in autism at the University of Washington’s Autism Center. James Roan has traveled to Galway, Limerick, Mayo, Clare, Dublin, Cork, Waterford, and other cities and counties across Ireland assessing children and adults, and consulting with solicitors (lawyers) in defense of children with disabilities. James Roan was the consulting assessment professional responsible for many of the autism and AD/HD screening tools and other content for Access Special Needs.Com. James Roan consulted with the graduate department of the Waterford Institute of Technology in Waterford Ireland in the development of their graduate program for the certification of private autism tutors. James has conducted formal assessments of students in the Autism Unit in the Claddagh National School in County Galway Ireland.