( Everyday Life with Autism )

10- Ball Chair
It is a big rubber ball seated on a four wheels base.

Instead of sitting on a regular chair, fidgety agitated kids can enjoy sitting quietly and calmly on ball chairs. They are rare in special education classes because they are expensive.

11- Play Dough

A great learning tool. Rolling, squeezing and patting the dough works on sensory disorders, fine motor skills, besides teaching letters, shapes and colors.

12- Balance Beam

The play grounds are usually delimited by big, wooden edges or beams. It contains all the play structures/equipments within. I call it the balance beam, as an alternative for balance beams in the gym. As I mentioned before in tips for educators and aides, the time on the play ground is a golden opportunity for teaching. Use all the resources available.

Seize the opportunity during recess to help a child walk on the beam. This activity is great for kids with poor attention and balance. To walk on the beam, the child is obliged to pay attention otherwise he would trip. Make sure to hold the child’s hand in the beginning to find out about his ability to maintain her/his balance on the beam. Test her/him by letting go of her/his hand, and see the response. Encourage the child to keep going if you notice that she/he is lacking equilibrium. Give support then withdraw. Keep trying and be patient. Autistic kids learn-like anybody else- by repetition. Both balance beam and slide work well on vestibular disorders. When kids get over their fears they become self-confident and can go one step farther. Remember, we are working towards more independence.

There is no two autistic kids alike. Some of them are able to run on the balance beam, others need to be hold to maintain their balance, but they end up learning. I was so surprised when one day I realized that behind the boy I was helping on the beam, other kids were following him, that was my ultimate dream. Just to tell you one more time, kids learn by modeling. Being a role model is a short cut for teaching.

The other practice that I do on the balance beam is to encourage the kids with poor verbal skills to communicate.

How to do this?

• I block the child’s way on the balance beam and ask to use her/his words and say “excuse-me”.
• I wouldn’t move until the child at least makes an attempt, and tell the child:”here you go!” or “sure”.
• I step down and ask the child: “say thank you”.
• I simply respond: ” you’re welcome!”
• I keep doing this every single day for recess and after lunch.

The result I  was looking for happened only after three month of training. By that I mean the child didn’t need that much of verbal prompts.

Auistic kids are teachable and trainable!

13- Physical Activities

Physical education is on the daily schedule and can be as simple as running or walking laps. Many kids with autism have poor gross motor skills. They have difficulty playing group/team games (volley ball, basket ball, soccer and so on). These kinds of games require a lot of communication, coordination and quick response. But they can do other activities:

Throw and catch the ball (1:1) and it is preferred to count as the child throws the ball. As I said before when they are prepared they are more cooperative. So, tell the child from the beginning: “let’s do twenty-or fifty-throw and catch”. You’ll notice the child will immediately stop at the number you’ve agreed on. Amazing! If you are lucky, some friends -from regular education- might show up and offer to join. Seize the opportunity and broaden the circle and have the child play with a peer or more. Encourage the communication between the kids. This game also improves eye-hand coordination and works on vestibular disorder.

Another physical activity is stretching:

Include movements that invite as much muscles as possible -provided that the child doesn’t have any health problems- start slow then speed up slowly.

14- Spinner
Some autistic children can spin for long periods of time without getting dizzy. This reflects a vestibular dysfunction. The use of a small spinner can help the child calm his body and get better control on it.

15- Breathing

This is my favorite. I learned this technique from an occupational therapist:

• Put your pointer finger (index) on your mouth as if you are doing “Quiet” sign
• Tell the child to “copy and repeat”
• Breathe in and say: “smell the flower”
• Breathe out and say:”blow the candle”
• Repeat as much as you want

There is nothing like letting the oxygen fill in your lungs. This technique is very easy and relaxing. Sometimes, all you need to calm down a child, is to do this breathing technique with her/him.

Conclusion

The few ideas I’ve introduced help the child get over some of the sensory integration disorders. The goal was to regulate the body in order to balance out or compensate for an overwhelming environment.

The sensory integration disorders are endless and I might talk about this subject in future articles.

More Tips

Tags: autism, communication, occupational therapy, senses, sensory, techniques, tips