Expert: Dr. Sharon A. Mitchell - 3/23/2007

Question
I am a student at Penn State and we are putting together a mock agency, which is a school for autistic children.  We want to be able to divide the children into the  best suited category for their learning abilities no matter what age or school level that they are currently at.  Also, we are looking for programs to come up with that would be beneficial to the students, if you have any in mind or are willing to help us please let me know.
Thank You,
Jessica Galus

Answer
Jessica, this could be a fun and useful assignment, although not an easy one.

I'm glad that your goal is to divide the children according to their learning abilities. Sometimes people thing of kids with autism as a generic type, not accounting for their individual strengths, weaknesses and stages.

When you're looking at possible programs, I think it's key to keep in mind that while there are certain characteristics common in autism, each person is unique. Because of this, it would be hard to say that there is any ONE method of treatment for children with autism, just as you could never say that there is just ONE way to learn to read. Or ride a bike. Or make a paper airplane. Some strategies may suit certain kids, their families and classrooms better than others.

The best programs might take from various methods and use what works best for each individual child.

At the heart of your mock agency, you might want to consider relationships. Making a connection with a child with autism is key to making progress. There are many ways you can go about this. Here are a few theories and methods you could consider:

Greenspan's Floor Time - http://www.coping.org/intervention/floortm.htm and http://www.floortime.org/

Dr. Gutstein's Relationship Development Intervention -
http://www.rdiconnect.com/ and http://www.cureautismnow.org/site/c.bhLOK2PILuF/b.2214591/k.C45/Relationship_Dev...

Most methods of helping kids with autism work on:
- engaging the child's attention
- building relationships
- encouraging communication

While that may not sound like much, really it is. If you look at the attention aspect alone, you need to have an understanding of:
-  executive functioning (http://www.icn.ucl.ac.uk/2004/hill04TrendsCognSci.pdf)

- central coherence (http://dissertations.ub.rug.nl/faculties/medicine/2003/n.d.j.van.lang/)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weak_central_coherence_theory

- sensory influences
http://www.indigodreams.net/articles/sensory-sensitivities.htm
http://www.autism.org/interview/ljk.html

Communication, even for highly verbal Asperger's kids is a problem. (It's possible for such a child to have good verbal skills yet weak language skills). Auditory processing is frequently an area of weakness. Many of the undesirable behaviors kids with autism show stem from their difficulties in making their needs and desires known and in understanding what it is we're asking of them. You might want to read through some of the back issues of SLP Linda Hodgdon's newsletters on using visual strategies to increase communication and decrease behaviors. You can find back issues here: http://lindahodgdon.com/newsletters-mar-07.html

Also, you can download her free e-book called, "Seven Critical Core Skills to Teach Young Students with ASD" here: http://autismstuff.com/online/ebooks.htm

Along with visuals, social stories should play an important part in any autism program:

http://www.polyxo.com/socialstories/
http://www.thegraycenter.org/

Here are a few other treatment models you could look at:

Dr. Barry Prizant's Scerts Model (SCERTS stands for Social Communication (SC), Emotional Regulation (ER) and Transactional Support (TS) - http://www.scerts.com/ and http://www.commxroads.com/SCERTS.htm

TEACCH (Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication-Handicapped Children - http://www.teacch.com/info_primer.html and http://www.autism-pdd.net/teacch.html

Pivotal Response -
http://psy.ucsd.edu/autism/prttraining.html and http://www.autismteachingtools.com/page/bbbbfg/bbbbqc

Applied Behavior Analysis - http://www.mental-health-matters.com/articles/article.php?artID=293 and http://www.behavior.org/autism/

Your mock agency would benefit from an interdisciplinary team consisting of such people as special educators, psychologists, speech/language pathologists, and occupational therapists. Each holds just a little piece to the puzzle that is autism.

While it's important to look at what the research is saying, I believe it's even more important to listen to those articulate adults who have autism spectrum disorders and learn from their experiences. A few books I'd recommend are:

"Autism: An Inside-Out Approach" by Donna Williams (http://www.amazon.com/Autism-Inside-Out-Approach-Innovative-Developmental/dp/185...)

"Your Life is Not a Label: A Guide to Living Fully with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome" by Jerry Newport (http://www.amazon.com/Your-Life-Not-Label-Aspergers/dp/1885477775/ref=sr_1_1/104...)

"Emergence - Labelled Autistic" by Temple Grandin (http://www.amazon.com/Emergence-Labeled-Autistic-Temple-Grandin/dp/0446671827/re...

Thirteen year old Luke Jackson's "Freaks, Geeks and Asperger Syndrome" (http://www.amazon.com/Freaks-Geeks-Asperger-Syndrome-Adolescence/dp/1843100983/r...)

And, while this latter one is not written by a person with autism, Mark Haddon's novel, "the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime" is a great portrayal of a young teen with autism (http://www.amazon.com/Curious-Incident-Dog-Night-Time/dp/1400032717/ref=pd_bbs_s...)

I've given some suggestions about teaching kids with autism at www.autismsite.ca and at http://www.autismtoday.com/experts/experts_bio.asp?exp_id=69&name=Sharon%20Mitch...

As you investigate all the things people say about working with children with autism, don't forget to listen to the child. Rather than following any one particular method, the child may tell you what's right for him or her.

Best of luck with your assignment,

Sharon A. Mitchell