1. Autism and Writing Rhonda L. Waterhouse, M.Ed. Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness The Pennsylvania State University
2. Session Description This session will examine how Autism Spectrum Disorders both positively and negatively affect students and their writing. Participants will explore methods, including using students’ interests, to improve their motivation for and engagement with writing tasks, ultimately improving their writing skills as a whole.
14. Doesn’t seek out play with other kids or doesn’t know how to approach other kids for play
15. Carries on only one-sided conversations where he dominates the topic and flow with little interest in the other’s opinions, experiences, or feelings
21. Since some of these behaviors are extensions of “normal,” the behavior must seriously interfere with the child’s ability to function socially or in the classroom
25. Autism’s Effects on Writing Aptitudes Strong interests Structured – rule following Factual Unique perspective Concrete Practical Individual strengths Visual thinking Challenges Pragmatics Difficulty thinking of particular words Considering audience Fine motor difficulties Brainstorming ideas Formulating a plan Requires direct instruction Staying on topic
26. Use strengths to deal with challenges Strong interests Brainstorming ideas Visual thinking Brainstorming or planning Strong interests Computer for overcoming fine motor Structured & rule following grammar, organization, revision requires direct instruction Factual non-fiction, teaching rules direct instruction Unique perspective brainstorming ideas Concrete non-fiction direct instruction Practical real life uses Individual strengths topics individualized instruction
27. Prevention vs. Intervention ABC – Antecedent Behavior Consequence Prevention known antecedent avoided or prepared for to prevent behavior Intervention consequence for known behavior Different situations call for different solutions. Discussion
28. Fine Motor Difficulties Fine motor skills in one area (e.g., musical instrument) does not indicate ability in other areas – different neural pathways Dysgraphia – inability to produce letter legibly and quickly Refusal to participate interferes with academic performance Acting out – throwing papers Self-esteem Fewest words possible habit Legibility judgment on intelligence Macrographia – larger letter size More effort is focused on handwriting so content and quality suffer Handwriting is not intelligence: it’s really an exercise in drawing!
29. Fine Motor Difficulties (cont.) Sometimes grown out of it or improve with practice, but MANY will have little or no progress regardless of method (even most gifted) Significant long term academic impact – all areas Not merely economy of words Neuroanatomical differences (cellular and structural) Difference in movement and motor planning “highly prevalent across the spectrum” (Brown, 2009, p.15) Hypotonia – low tone & strength Apraxia - difficulty executing skilled movement regardless of physical ability and desire Directly affect hands and ability to hold and use writing implements
30. Overcoming Fine Motor Difficulties Don’t overemphasize handwriting – really only necessary for name, address, and phone number Allow use of keyboard Practice when others are practicing handwriting Reasons given for not allowing computer (fairness, cost, importance of handwriting, instruction time) “Fair” does not mean “the same” Inexpensive laptops Keyboarding main communication skill now Paraprofessional or software for instruction Questions to consider Fine motor exercise or academic task? More important to print or give answer? Use interests
33. Tips for Keyboarding Instruction Keyboard bingo for letter location Remove physical prompts quickly Cause and effect of hitting key Show word on page & on screen Type word and student retypes Use Arial or other clear font (younger or less experience = bigger font size) Use class vocab or spelling for practice Software Single words phrases sentences paragraphs Fill in the blank or cloze Work independently Monitor web access
34. Theory of Mind The ability to consider another person’s thoughts or feelings as a way of understanding and predicting behavior (Tager-Fleisberg, Baron-Cohen, & Cohen as cited in Jurecic, p.426). Writing is a social practice Poor comprehension and communication when accounting for the thoughts or feelings of another (Frith & Hath as cited in Jurecic, p.424) Extreme egocentrism without deliberateness Lack of empathy Seeing another’s perspective Formulating argument or counterargument Transitions between and within ideas Eliminating extraneous background information Organizing thoughts Tendency to be writer-based rather than reader-based
35. Tips for Dealing with Audience Issues Direct one-on-one instruction “explicit teaching of implicit rules” (Frith as cited in Jurecic, p.436) Provide rules and structure for all steps of the process Require transitions Require topic sentences – helps see line of argument Use tutors – shows multitude of readers/audience Narrate experience as reader during conference
36. Behavior = Communication This is the key to understanding autism He can’t tell you what’s wrong – even if he seems very articulate If he’s “acting out,” there’s a reason. The team needs to decode the behavior in order to come up with a solution Punishing the behavior will get you nowhere if you don’t know the root cause Behavioral Assessments - BSC When teachers and other team members learn to decode these behaviors, they can provide the student with strategies to survive and learn in a regular classroom.
37. Military Family Readiness: prepared to effectively navigate the challenges of daily living in the unique context of military service; equipped with the skills to competently function in the face of challenges; awareness of the supportive resources available; and utilizing these skills and supports in managing challenges. Ready families contribute directly to the service member's state of readiness to accomplish the mission at hand.
38. Penn State’s Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness The Clearinghouse is a distribution and implementation framework for professionals (practitioners and researchers) supporting military families. Exceptional Family Member Program: The military’s program for families with a member who has special needs (educational, medical, or psychological)
39. The New Research (and Practice) Frontier: Dissemination & Implementation …very little is known about the processes required to effectively implement evidence-based programs/practices on a national scale. Research to support the implementation activities that are being used is even rarer.National Implementation Research Network, 2007
40. The Clearinghouse is designed to promote and support: the use of research-based decision-making; the selection, dissemination, and evaluation of evidence-based or evidence-informed programs and practices; the continued education of professionals assisting military families.
41.
42. An interactive program selection tool through a series of questions that provide a logical decision-making tree;
43. User-friendly practical guides, research reports, and briefs on various topics (e.g., family recruitment, principles of effectiveness in evidence-based programming);
44. Various features to help users navigate the site, answer questions, think through a program implementation issue, or make referrals (e.g., 800 number; a help email address, and a “Live Chat” feature);
