PICTURE EXCHANGES COMMUNICATION WITH AUTISM

HOW DO YOU COMMUNICATE WITH A PERSON THAT HAS NO ABILITY TO TALK OR USE SIGN LANGUAGE? MANY CHILDREN WITH AUTISM CAN COMMUNICATE USING PICTURE CARDS. THE PICTURE CARDS OFFER THEM THE ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE NEEDS, DESIRES, OR EVEN IDEAS WITHOUT THE NEED FOR SPOKEN LANGUAGE.
SINCE MANY CHILDREN THAT HAVE AUTISM TEND TO LEARN VISUALLY, IT MAKES ALOT OF SENSE TO COMMUNICATE WITH IMAGES OR PICTURES. JUST AS IMPORTANT, IMAGES ARE A UNIVERSAL MEANS OF COMMUNICATION, AND THEY ARE UNDERSTOOD BY STRANGERS OR YOUNG PEERS AS BY PARENTS OR THERAPISTS.

AUTISM AND SLEEPING DISORDERS

IT IS BELIEVED THAT AUTISM IS ASSOCIATED WITH AN INCREASED LEVEL OF SLEEP DIFFICULTIES. FOR THIS REASON, IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THAT IMPROVING AN AUTISTIC CHILD'S ABILITY TO SLEEP MAY PROVIDE SIGNIGICANT BENEFITS FOR THE CHILD, AND ALL MEMBERS OF THE FAMIL

CHILDREN AND ALL PEOPLE ARE TAUGHT HOW AND WHEN TO SLEEP IN THE WAME WAY THAT WE AQUIRE OTHER BEHAVIORS. WE LEARN THROUGH SENSORY PERCEPTION AND SOCIAL INTERACTION. AS A BABY OUR SLEEP FOLLOWS NO ROUTINE, BUT AS WE BEGIN TO DEVELOP WHAT WE LEARN TO ADOPT THE DAY/NIGHT CYCLE OF SLEEP AND BEING AWAKE. CHILDREN WITH AUTISM CAN TAKE LONGER TO ACCLIMATE THEMSELVES TO THIS CYCLE. IT IS NOT UNUSUAL FOR THEM TO EXPERIENCE MORE DIFFICULTY IN GOING TO SLEEP OR IN SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT.

THE FIRST OF THESE PROBLEMS IS THE SLEEP ONSET STAGE. THAT IS, ABILITY TO FALL ASLEEP ONCE THE CHILD IS IN BED. AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME BETWEEN GOING TO BED AND FALLING ASLEEP CAN BE CAUSED BY DISTRACTIONS, A FEELING OF WAKEFULNESS, MEDICATION AND MANY OTHER FACTORS.

ANOTHER CHALLENGE FOR A CHILD WITH AUTISM, IS THE ABILITY TO MAINTAIN SLEEP FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD. PARENTS FREQUENTLY REPORT THAT THEIR AUTISTIC CHILD WAKE FREQUENTLY, OFTEN IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS. THE CHILD MAY BE UP AND ABOUT WHILE THE REST OF THE FAMILY IS TRYING TO SLEEP THROUGH THE NIGHT.

Here, too, the Adaptive Sleep Technology in the Sleep System may help. A person will experience interruptions in the sleep cycle if physical pressure points lead to tossing and turning. The technology in this System is designed to minimize localized pressure areas, providing more consistent support and helping to prevent waking episodes due to discomfort.

ONE STUDY SUGGESTS THAT TEMPERATURE REGULATION IS IMPORTANT IN MAINTAINING SLEEP CYCLES. KEEPING THE BODY'S TEMPERATURE REGULATED, SO THAT THE SLEEPER DOES NOT EXPERIENCE HEAT OR COLD, CONDITIONS THAT CAUSE DISCOMFORT AND LEAD TO WAKING UP PREMATURELY.

MY CHILD DOES NOT WANT TO GO TO SCHOOL

MY AUTISTIC CHILD OFTEN GOES THROUGH A PHASE WHERE HE DOES NOT WANT TO GO TO SCHOOL. IT IS NEW TO HIM, AND IT IS OUT OF HIS COMFORT ZONE. I TRY TO BE UPFRONT WITH MY SON AND ASK HIM IF HE CAN EXPRESS WHAT HIS FEELINGS ARE. MY SON USUALLY DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION. I TRY TO DOWNPLAY THE "YOU MUST GO TO SCHOOL" AND TRY TO FOCUS ON MAKING IT A FACT THAT WILL BE FUN. TRY TO HAVE RANDOM CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHERS ABOUT HOW FUN SCHOOL IS AND THE NEW EXPERIENCES AT SCHOOL.

GETTING YOUR AUTISTIC CHILD READY TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL

THIS WORKS BEST FOR YOUNGER CHILDREN, BUT WILL WORK FOR ALL AGES OF CHILDREN WITH AUTISM.
FIRST OF ALL YOU NEED TO START PREPARING YOUR CHILD. YOU SHOULD CREATE A SOCIAL STORY OR A PICTURE SCHEDULE FOR SCHOOL ROUTINES. AFTER YOU DO THIS, YOU SHOULD START GOING OVER THE PICTURE SCHEDULE AND PRACTICE IT. REPETITION HELPS THEM GREATLY.
IF YOUR CHILD IS USED TO SLEEPING LATER IN THE SUMMER, START TO GET READY FOR EARLIER MORNINGS BY WAKING YOUR CHILD UP EARLIER EACH DAY AS THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL NEARS.
IF POSSILE ARRANGE TO GO TO VISIT YOUR CHILD'S TEACHER AND THE SCHOOL BEFORE THE FIRST DAY. TAKE ALONG A DIGITAL CAMERA ON YOUR VISIT TO THE SCHOOL. THIS WAY YOU CAN TAKE PICTURES AS A PHOTO REMINDER OF THE SCHOOL AND TEACHER. IF POSSIBLE HAVE THE TEACHER SHOW YOUR CHILD HIS DESK, LOCKER AND LUNCH ROOM. YOU CAN ALSO SPEND SOME TIME WITH YOUR CHILD ON THE PLAYGROUND TO RELIEVE SOME ANXIETY AND CREATE A POSITIVE FEELING ABOUT SCHOOL.
YOU SHOULD BUY SCHOOL SUPPLIES WELL IN ADVANCE, SO THAT YOUR CHILD CAN GET USED TO THEM. YOU CAN ALSO USE FAVORITE ITEMS FROM THE PAST YEAR. SOME KIDS MAY FEEL REWARDED BY ALL OF THE NEW SUPPLIES, AND OTHER AUTISTIC CHILDREN PREFER THE FAMILIAR ITEMS THAT THEY ALREADY HAVE AND LIKE.
COLOR CODE NOTEBOOKS AND MATERIALS, INCLUDING MAKING TEXT BOOK COVERS FOR DIFFERENT CLASSES. FOR INSTANCE, BLUE EQUALS MATH, RED EQUALS ENGLISH. COLOF CODING WILL ALSO HELP YOUR CHILD IDENTIFY AND KEEP THEIR MATERIALS TOGETHER. THE COLORS CAN BE INTEGRATED INTO THE PICTURE SCHEDULE YOUR CHILD WILL BE USING.

Teaching A Child With Autism

When you have an autistic child, teaching them can be extremely difficult. There is no given strategy that works the same for every child. Although, many advances have been made in the past few years. More than I could have ever dreamed of, when my son was young. I learned by trial and error.

Autistic children will respond more quickly to pictures and diagrams than verbal or written instruction. Using flash cards in correspondance to words can be especially effective. An established schedule needs to be put in place, autistic kids feel safe when they are in a routine. You should carefully introduce new items into the regular routine. Also downplay the importance of handwriting. If possible allow the autistic child to type answers, having the monitor close to the keyboard so that the child can make the connection between them. Loud sounds should also be avoided if at all possible. Autistic children can react very negatively with loud sounds. If a verbal instruction is sung softly or whispered, the autistic child may respond more quickly.

Using Picture Cards and A Printed Schedule

If you search online for boardmaker pictures, or picture cue cards. You can find many for free online, so that you can print them off, have them laminated and use them at home. The same cards may also be used at school. The more consistancy the autistic child has, the more effective the cards will become. It will also create less stress for your autistic child. They will know exactly what is going on at all times without any confusion or aggressive behaviors.
Coinciding with using the picture cards and visual cues, have a large schedule printed in several areas of your home, and also have the same schedule posted in your child's classroom at school there are several websites that you can go to online to create and print schedules for free. When the family and school all work together using the same cues, you will see success when working with your autistic child.


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TEENS AND AUTISM

Although many people with autism seem to improve as they get older, many of the symptoms worsen during adolescence. Repeating the same schedule and skills over and over again will help them and keeping them on a schedule is crucial. My son, whom I love dearly, went off of the deep end during adolecence. We went to doctor after doctor and therapist after therapist. The therapist thought it would be better just to give him what he was obsessing about. BAD IDEA!!! It was horrible. It made his obsession so out of control, you couldn't even help him. The only thing that worked for him was constant supervision and redirection when his obsessions and behavior became inappropriate. I had his schedule posted in several locations throughout the house so he could visually see what he was supposed to do. Picture cues and verbal cues were also used.
If you have an autistic child, go online, there are several sites that you can make free charts and schedules for children. Make one up, post it in their room, on the refridgerator and in many rooms of your home. Also, get the school involved with the schedules. Use picture maker (there are some of these free online too) to make cards to redirect and prompt the schedule. Be consistant. Everyone involved with this child need to be doing the same thing all of the time. Any change will throw them completely off.