Autism Care Around The Home

Autism care as it relates to being around and in the home differs from the care strategies of school and excursions. Through appropriate care tactics designed with the autistic individual in mind, it is possible to make being home more comfortable for everyone. Parents who have autistic children should start implementing strategies around the home early so that their children learn valuable life skills.

Reinforcing Learning:
Someone with autism might learn skills in a therapist's office that seem to get lost by the time you reach home. This is due to inconsistencies in the environment between the office setting and the home. The only way to adapt skills an autistic child learns out of the home to the house setting is through reinforcement and consistency. After learning a skill with a therapist or teacher, such as sign language or making a bed, parents should use the same skill at home. This not only helps reinforce the skills so they are not lost later, but it also makes the task consistent between different environments.

Making a Schedule:
Scheduling the entire day is a key to success in autism, particularly in the home environment where schedules are often more relaxed than school or therapy settings. Make a schedule for the day from the time the autistic individual gets up to the time he or she goes to bed. Once the schedule is completed, always strictly follow the schedule. For example, meal times or play time should always fall at the same time each day. The keys to the schedule should not change for the weekends, holidays or summer break, though days without school should have a schedule that suits the family. Scheduling helps keep disruptive behaviour to a minimum.

Learn Non-verbal Cues:
Autistic individuals use non-verbal cues as often as or more often than verbal cues to show what they want or need. Watch for the signals like hand gestures or facial expressions that show common needs like hunger or drowsiness. Learning the common cues an autistic child makes to communicate needs requires observation.

Pay Attention to Sensory Sensitivities:
Sensory sensitivities are among the most common reasons for misbehaviour in the autistic child. Around the house, parents can minimise the sensitivities that result in irritation, misbehaviour or stress while maximizing the sensory stimulus that results in a calming effect. Each child is different, so you will need to watch for the triggers to tantrums and poor behaviour such as loud noises, specific colours, tastes or smells. Also pay attention to the stimulus that soothes or calms. Incorporate more of the soothing stimulus like soothing colours and comforting smells into your home decor.

Safety Proofing the Home:
Since autism often results in tantrums or self-injurious behaviour, parents and family members should take action to provide a safe environment in the home. If possible, move all breakable objects to an inaccessible area and use child safety locks on all cabinets. Minimising the furniture that has sharp edges will also help.

Conclusion:
Taking steps to provide a safe, calm and well-scheduled environment at home will result in better success from autistic individuals.

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Home-Schooling Your Autistic Child

If you have an autistic child, then you are aware of the many challenges you face raising your child. With the behavioral problems that many autistic children suffer from, raising an autistic child may feel like two full-time jobs at times. Educating an autistic child is also a difficult task that must be fully thought out.

While public schools are funded to handle children with special needs, these locations are not always the best arenas for autistic children. One of the reasons that home-schooling your autistic child is a good idea is because special education programs may lump autistic children in with others who have maladaptive behavioral problems.

Remember, autistic children have behavioral problems due to their developmental inability to properly function normally in social situations. If they are placed in with others who have emotional problems they may regress instead of progress. However, if home-schooled, parents can control the social influences that are likely to either help or hinder the progress of their child. They can keep them away from insensitive teachers, bullies, and have greater control of their education.

Due to their obvious differences, many autistic children are treated with cruelty. This horrible fact of life can undo much of the progress that your child may have already made. Most autistic children function best when routines are set. Home-schooling is the best way to ensure these routines are established and followed.

In addition, home-schooling is a good choice because many autistic children are sensitive to sound. If they are in a classroom with a bunch of other children making noise, it can be difficult for them to focus.

The home-schooling setting is normally more quiet and conducive to learning, besides, it offers autistic children a typically 1:1 teacher to student ratio. Plus, if you're following a GFCF diet it's much easier to implement this at home and you can be sure that your child is only eating what you're giving them.

Furthermore, research has demonstrated that autistic children who are home-schooled score better on problem behavior assessments.

In order to make the most out of your child's home-school experience, it may be a good idea to keep a journal. Write down anything about your child's behavior and performance that is important. For instance, you can keep track of when your child is most productive, when he or she learns best, and what are the potential distractions. Remember you'll need to adapt your teaching style to suit their learning ability. Trying to make them learn 'your way' will just lead to a lack of progress and frustration all round.

As a parent and a teacher it is important for you to read up on recent literature involving the education of autistic children. There are many resources that provide information on teaching strategies, learning methods, and the different types of intelligence. Knowing this information will enable you to tailor a home-school program that will meet your child's needs.

The beauty about home-schooling is that if one approach doesn't work you can adapt your style until you find an approach that does work.

Home-schooling is fast becoming a common educational choice for parents of autistic children. The research involved clearly outlines the benefits of home-schooling. However, you must ensure that you will have the time and the dedication to follow through with home-schooling. Simply keeping your child at home is not going to do any good if learning is not occurring. It is important that you address academic, behavioral, and social needs.

Grab your free copy of Rachel Evans's free Autism Newsletter - Overflowing with easy to implement methods to help you discover more on how to go about teaching a child with autism at home and also more information on autism schools. You can also visit Rachel's blog at http://www.the-essential-guide-to-autism.com/blog

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Finding a Care Home That Specialises in Autism Care

For those with autism, there are many different facilities and care homes with staff who are trained and willing to work with individuals with special needs and any learning disability. These homes are staffed by trained care workers who care for and assist people with autism, and other learning disabilities; these homes are geared towards the care and development of autistic individuals which require around the clock care.

When looking for a location to construct Autism Care Homes, specialists look at the surrounding environment as well as the facility itself. The philosophy of this approach is to guarantee that these people living in care homes have the opportunity to become involved in the community and events, which are appropriate to their abilities. For this reason the properties must have easy access to facilities and activities outside the home for the individuals who will be living in them. The homes must also meet specific criteria including: fire regulations, building regulations, and health and safety regulation, to properly care for and maintain these homes.

Autism care homes offer a behavioural support team which is trained and specialise in the needs of individuals with autism and other learning disabilities. These support teams are made up of people with a mixed range of experience, including: positive behavioural management trainers, support workers, and home managers, in order to care for and work with the individuals living in the home.

A care home is committed to provide placement for those with complex needs. To meet each individual's specific needs, the homes do an assessment process to evaluate every potential service which will be required, and the best possible support system to care for each person. The assessment is usually done following an initial inquiry from the patient's social worker or their families. Once the home has a basic understanding of each patients' needs, they will be able to properly assess their needs, and what kind of care is required.

These homes strive to make transition from the life patients are currently living in, to the care home environment, as smooth a transition as possible. The homes will try to make the transitional move as smooth as possible, and try to maintain a similar living situation for patients, as they previously had in their everyday lives.

These autism care homes are a way for individuals who have learning disabilities to strive in an environment that allows them to learn more easily, and to be around individuals who have their best interests in mind. The homes strive to be a location where patients feel comfortable, have around the clock care, and will be able to live as normal a life as possible, given their special needs.

Carl Liver

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