Imagine a regular day, the sound of an alarm clock, clattering of vessels, different smells wafting from the kitchen, family members talking with each other, the sound of an ambulance from the road, honking, etc.
As neurotypical individuals most of us can selectively choose to ignore or acknowledge these different sensory stimuli. However, imagine all these sounds, smells, sensations and more all together at the same time at a much more amplified levels, what seemed like a regular day, soon seems like a nightmare.
This is more or less what a child with autism feels. Autism or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), refers to a broad range of conditions which are characterized by challenges in different categories like social skills, repetitive behaviours, sensory sensitivities, verbal and nonverbal communication. It is important to know that one cannot isolate autism as it a spectrum disorder. Hence, there is not just one autism, but there are many subtypes. The diagnosis for autism can be done as early as 18 months in some cases, however the signs of autism usually appear by the age of 2 or 3.
Autism is an extremely unique disorder and each and every individual with autism has their own skills sets, strengths and challenges. Some individuals with autism may require significant support while some may require less support in their daily lives, some may also lead an independent life.
This shows that the way in which people with autism problem solve, think, learn can range from having high skills to significantly challenged.
Some of the most common challenges that a child with autism may face are as follows, the range of severity can vary from high to low:
● Difficulty expressing one’s needs verbally or non-verbally.
● Learning content that is abstract.
● Lacking social skills hence difficulty in forming friendships and social bonds.
● Sudden change in patterns or schedule which can range from the smallest changes to bigger changes.
● Dealing with a lot of sensory overload, like loud sounds, bright lights or crowded areas.
● Repetitive behaviour also known as stimming which consists of either physical movement like shaking or flapping of hands, legs etc which in some cases can be dangerous or harmful for the child or saying a word repetitively.
Also Read: 10 Things Parents Can Do To Help Their Kids With Learning Disabilities
However, some children with autism can also display a range of abilities and strengths, such as follows:
● Being able to memorize things very quickly.
● Adhering to rules very strongly.
● Being extremely organized.
● Some children might excel in more technical and logical subjects like mathematics, science, engineering.
● Having a drive for perfection and order.
● Being detail oriented. Etc
With the ever-growing population of children with autism, exposure and awareness into this unique world of ASD is of an extreme importance for the educators and parents considering the current situation of the pandemic. Following are some ways in which students with autism can thrive in an offline or online classroom setting:
Try to avoid sensory overload but encourage a healthy amount of sensory based play: As discussed before children with autism do find it difficult to differentiate the different sensory stimulus and hence find a lot of sensations very disturbing and distracting. Bright lights, strong smells, loud noises etc can cause a child with autism to get extremely distracted and could also have a meltdown. Sometimes leaving the child on his/her own in a room provided that the child is in a safe environment, with little to no distractions around could help the child calm down. At the same time do try to engage the child in some sensory based fun activities and games. These activities can work on a variety of skills such as fine motor, gross motor, visual perception, speech skills, etc.
Teaching social skills directly: A lot of stories that we teach children usually end with a moral, while it might be easy for a neurotypical child to decipher the meaning or the moral of the story, a child with autism might not be able to do the same. Children with autism might find it challenging to understand the nuances, metaphors and may not benefit from inferential learning. Hence directly teaching social skills as explicitly as possible through social stories and other mediums which focus on the behaviours and its consequences will help the child with autism learn better.
Being predictable: As mentioned before any change in the schedule or routine might create confusion and anxiety in children with autism and hence having a set schedule or a timetable will help the child feel at ease and it will also help him/her focus better on task at hand. Scheduling can be done from varied levels of creativity, from a simple time table on a paper to attractive charts. This helps the child become less curious and anxious about what is to come and that helps them focus on task at hand.
Make it visual: Concrete learning makes it less challenging for the child with autism to comprehend concepts, hence making use of visual aids for preparing lessons, making schedules, making a to do list, classroom rules etc, will help immensely. A lengthy explanation will not resonate with the child with autism as much as pictures will.
Keep the language and tone of instruction concrete and simple: Children with autism may find it difficult to understanding figurative language, they, benefit from direct and concrete language. Hence, keeping the sentences crisp and concrete will help the children with autism comprehend the focal points of the instructions. They might even find a lot of instructions given all at once very overwhelming, hence breaking down a certain task into small short steps helps them perform those tasks better.
To understand autism, one has to understand the child, as autism is unique and different. There should not be a willingness to “change” the child, but a willingness to see the world from his/her perspective, as to what he/she sees, hears, feels, as they perceive the world completely differently and as stake holders it is our responsibility to accept it and to love the child and then to help him/her acquire skills to live successfully in this world. As said by Rosie Tennant Doran, “Autism is like a rainbow, it has a bright side and a darker side. But every shade is important and beautiful”.
Author: Laura Menezes
Teaching Faculty – DLP
The Aditya Birla Integrated School
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