Learn What Your Autistic Child Is Doing During Recess

I was curious, so I went to a school to observe recess for autistic children. You may have a concern, and ask the question, what is your autistic child doing during recess? I observed and watched the children, and was amazed how some of them felt isolated, excluded because they did not know how to socialize or take part in activities that were offered.

Recess was developed for children to have a special time to be with their peers, friends, socialize, release tension, recharge their emotions and feel good about the time away from their classroom.

Your child who has autism, is probably not a child who wants to interact with other children during recess and does not always know what to do during that time.

You as parent(s), caregiver(s), may want to make a visit to the school your child attends, that offers recess, make notes of how your child acts, reacts, responds and socialize with other peers.

Taking this measure of evaluation and observing your child, you will understand what some of the issues are and what your child is doing during recess. For example:

* Your child with autism may not know what recess is, what to do or how to interact with other children. You as parent(s), caregiver(s), will want to observe other children who do not have autism. Those children will probably run around and enjoy various games, talk with their friends and participate with their friends. Therefore, after observing your child, he or she may need special instructions to understand what to do during recess.

* Your child might not be able to follow proper rules that are enforced during recess or is rebellious against the rules.

* Many autistic children are not able to understand why other children are interacting and having fun. Children with autism will sometimes stand away or at a distance from other children and watch what is going on, without participating. They may run, walk in front of a line, when instructed to line up, because they do not understand what acceptable behavior is.

* There are teachers who give instructions before recess, as what to do, wear proper clothing, or how to participate when given new rules. Your child who has autism might get confused and not have an understanding of what was given from the teacher, to be applied during recess.

* If there is a fire drill or an emergency that might happen, for example: Severe weather, change in schedule, new policies, new equipment, brighter lights, more noise, loud voices, running, your child may experience struggling with these changes and not recognize the difference, during recess.

If your child is having difficulties during recess, it is imperative to talk to his or her teacher, visit the school at recess, and find out if there are policies for children with autism who may struggle with interaction with their peers.

You and the teacher of your child can be creative with new positive suggestions that will enable your child to enjoy recess. In time he or she, will understand what it is for and how to participate, socialize with other peers.

Recess can be a joyous and a fun time. Are you willing to take responsibility and find out what your child is doing during recess? Will you listen to your child, if he or she is having a struggle during recess? Are you going to take the time and make suggestions to the teacher of your child for improvements, if your child is not enjoying recess? Will you give your child encouragement and not discouragement if changes have to be made?

Explain, communicate to your child, and to his or her teacher, that recess is a positive time for enjoyment, also to relax if need be.

Bonita Darula's informational web sight==> http://www.autismintoawareness.com is where you SIGN up and RECEIVE your FREE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER with updated topics regarding what is your autistic child doing during recess? In addition, crucial updated NEW E-Books that identify the symptoms of Autism and treatment options. Check it out.

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Communicating With Your Autistic Child

Hi parents,
Learning to communicate with anyone can be challenging at times and yet it is a skill that is crucial to life. Communicating with children, who don't think in the same way that adults do, may be even harder. One of the primary distinguishing features of autism is that these children have severe trouble with communication and social interaction. This makes it even more important to learn good communication skills and to learn how to communicate in a way that will truly help the child.

Treating autistic children with respect is a key factor in communicating with them, but there is much more to it than that. Good communication with your autistic child has two functions.

1. It helps to create a good and healthy relationship between you and your child.
2. It helps to reach your child when it may be otherwise difficult to get her attention or to have her change her behavior. Knowing how to communicate with your autistic child so that she really understands and so that you really understand her takes practice and it requires you to understand how you child takes in information.

Of course, there is another facet to communicating with your autistic child - the severity of the disorder. If your child is only mildly autistic with somewhat well-developed language skills or has Asperger syndrome, in which the child does have strong language skills, then communication is going to be much easier. However, if you child is severely autistic, then you will have to work much harder at determining how best to communicate with her.

Consider the human mind as a computer system, complete with all the hardware and software required for it to run efficiently. In a healthy human brain all the hardware and software is up-to-date and working just fine. In the brain of an autistic child, the software may be outdated and the hardware is incomplete. There may be missing circuits so that messages are not getting to the hard drive properly and there may be keys missing from the keyboard, which makes it difficult for anyone to input the messages in the first place.

In a mildly autistic child, most of the hardware is probably working and intact, which allows for relatively easy communication. However, in severely autistic children there are so many keys and circuits missing that it is really difficult to communicate with the hard drive. Depending on where your child falls on this spectrum, communication is going to be easier or more difficult. However, it is possible.

You have probably heard at some point that every child, every person for that matter, has a specific learning style. This is because each person has what is called a primary sense system. "Primary sense system?" you say. Let me explain. The human senses of sight, hearing, and touch are more important than you might think. These senses are the key ingredients in learning and conveying information. It's true! And what's even more important is that, while people use all three sense systems to a degree, each and every person has one of these sense systems that operates as the primary sense system. Some people are visual (V), some are audio (A), and some are feeling or kinesthetic (K).

Even autistic children have a primary sense system. In general, all young children tend to be at least somewhat kinesthetic, but their primary sense system will begin to dominate by the time they reach school age. When it comes to autistic children, research shows that they operate primarily out of the visual. However, they also tend to respond well to music as an auditory stimulus. Autistic children also tend not to like being touched, which is one of the early signs in infants to suggest that autism is present. How do you determine your autistic child's primary sense system? There is a very easy method to determine this and it can be used on mildly autistic children who have fairly well-developed language skills.

You can determine the primary sense system of your child simply by listening to the way she talks. Really, it's that easy. All you have to do is pay attention to the predicates used. These descriptive words will fall in line with one of the sense systems. If your autistic child went for a walk in the forest how might she describe it? Would she talk about what she saw, what she heard, or what she felt? After all, your child's primary sense system is part of her filter, part of what forms her perception of the world.

Do you like this positive strategy with communicating to your autistic child? please comment on my website

Rachael Mah is a Master Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) Practioner and Coach. Rachael's passion is to help parents and teachers to coach their children and students to succeed in life as individuals. Please visit http://www.motivateschoolkids.com for the FREE Report and valuable details.

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Does MMR Cause Autism?

Do MMR vaccines cause autism?

The answer based on current research is NO. The association between MMR vaccines and Autism can be traced to the late 1980s, when it was noticed that there has been an increase in the number of autism being diagnosed. Rates from that time were almost double previous years and individuals started looking at the possible causes of autism. Among the earliest link between MMR vaccines and autism stems from an article done in the UK in 1998. In it, it suggested that the the vaccine introduced a series of events (colon inflammation, release of proteins) that lead to changes in the brain causing autism. In February 2010, that study was retracted after investigation showed that the physician involved in the research was paid by lawyers planning to sue the vaccine manufacturers, and that he himself was applying for an alternate vaccine. The doctor was found to be falsifying results with the intentions of profiting of it. In 2010, the doctor was stripped of his right to practice medicine.

So where does that leave us today? At this point there is one study done in 2002 that suggests MMR vaccines may contribute to autism. However, it methodology is flawed and numerous follow-up studies contradict those results. Since the initial 1998 research, there have been multiple studies (in excess of 12) with a couple done by the CDC that show no link between these vaccines and autism. It is likely that the rise in diagnoses for autism since the 1990s was caused by the change in the criteria needed to diagnose autism and greater awareness of the illness.

Research exploring the possible relationship between MMR vaccinations and autism is ongoing. To date, no scientific linkage has been established. Numerous large, well designed studies fail to support an association between MMR vaccine and autism.

With no clear evidence of an association between MMR vaccine and autism, and numerous studies supporting the lack of association between the vaccine and autism, it is still recommended for children to get their MMR vaccinations. The use of childhood vaccines has led to a significant decline in childhood diseases that had severe consequences. Declining vaccines because of a theoretical risk, places the child at risk of real infections with real consequences. Of note, as a result of the 1998 study, vaccination for MMR declined from 90% to 80%. Over the last five years, the rate of measles in the UK has risen to endemic levels. Luckily, rates of vaccination in the US have not been significantly changing, although there have been local outbreaks.

George Chai, MD Hand in Hand Pediatrics Edgewater, New Jersey Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=George_Chai

Identify Learning Deficits In Autistic Children - Are There Clues?

Are there clues that indicate autistic children identify with having learning deficits? Do they seem to struggle to imitate others? When new skills are being introduced, do they avoid spending time with other individuals? Do autistic children have a difficult time making eye contact or understanding facial expressions in other people? Could these be clues for identifying learning deficits in autistic children?

Children learn and grow by finding out how to interact socially and imitating others. It has been revealed that clues through research and testing, have indicated children with autism have a difficult time learning from others, even their siblings.

I have experienced from my brother who is autistic, that his lack of attention to make eye contact, is a trait that is often present in the early stages of autistic children. They seem to look away from a person, as though the other person was not present.

Some researchers claim to have clues to identify learning deficits. They believe that children with autism struggle with learning. This was determined due to the fact, of their inability to pay attention, focus and the use of poor motor skills.

The researchers and professionals are now understanding that this study has positive hope, because autistic children can develop better social and learning skills from these clues.

Identifying learning deficits in autistic children have revealed clues, that autistic children pay the same amount of attention to instructions given, as children without autism. This clue, discredits the theories that autistic children do not pay as much attention to the tasks or instructions given to them.

I have noticed with the disorder of my brother, that he could perform a task successfully, compared to his siblings. Doing the task, it became easier for him when he took time to study what he was instructed to do. It did not appear that there was an indication of poor motor skills.

Therefore, the clue that lack of motor skills is not the problem to imitate others in autistic children, to learn and grow.

I observed when my brother was with his peers, he would make an effort to look at the person who was giving him the instructions or demonstrating some particular task. But, he made this effort less frequently as repetition became more noticeable.

This clue identified for me, that imitating another individual, is not something that happens because of repetition of an actions, or directions given. It happens when the individual is able to understand the reason the action is being preformed or given to the individual who has autism.

Do you believe these are clues to identify learning deficits in autistic children? If you have an autistic child or know of someone who does, do you observe clues in them that may identify learning deficits?

Bonita Darula's informational web sight==> http://www.autismintoawareness.com is where you SIGN up and RECEIVE your FREE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER with updated topics about learning deficits that are imperative for your Autistic child and you. In addition, updated new E-Books that identify the symptoms of Autism and treatment options. Check it out.

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Find Out More About The Numerous Kinds Of Treatment Available For a Child With Asperger Syndrome

Since a child with Asperger Syndrome shows patterns of behaviors and problems that differ widely from others, any typical treatment regimen or medication cannot be prescribed. However, there are several treatments that are proven to help a lot with the child's condition and his development. These include the following:

Parents Education And Training - The parents, aside from being the first teachers are the primary guardians who can reinforce help to a child with Aspergers. It is crucial that they're educated properly with the nature of the kid's condition. Therefore, as a child's parent, you should undergo this type of training so you can even teach your child with Asperger self help abilities. Learning these skills helps children achieve maximum independence.

Social Skills Training - Since a child with Aspergers is having difficulty interacting with other individuals, even with kids of his age, the child must undergo social skills training. As a child's parent, you could start this training by yourself, however it's more advantageous on your part and your child if you ask for the guidance of an expert. Specialized training programs exist for the development of social skills intended for children with Aspergers.

Language Development Programs - Even holding a normal conversation might be difficult for a child with Aspergers. While most individuals learn these skills by observing others, the people with Asperger's Syndrome might need personal coaching using specialized language development programs. For faster development, parents should contribute by teaching the kid to start a conversation in the most approachable manner. Body language and eye-contact are effective approaches which promote connection between the parent and the kid.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - Psychological conditions such as Aspergers Syndrome in all ages might be treated utilizing this therapy. This therapy applies approaches designed to modify the way a child thinks, feels and reacts to a situation. It targets the overall behavior of the child, especially the repetitive actions the child often does. A therapist has the capability to establish a connection between him and the child in a way that the child can feel comfortable and conditioned.

Tender Loving Care - Adults, especially the parents, play a significant role in the development of the kid with Aspergers by showing extensive care and love to this kid. Teachers, babysitters, the rest of the family members, close friends, and everyone else must get involved in the training and should sustain strong affection to the child for its faster development. Never let the child feel isolated to its environment. Instead, make the kid feel that it belongs wherever it gets involved with, especially at home and school. And in every action you make, do it with tender loving care.

Access the best Asperger syndrome community to assist with your parenting by going to http://www.parentingaspergerscommunity.com

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Challenging Behavior: 4 Steps to Turn Things Around

These four steps are a powerful tool you can use to help get past challenging behavior and get your student back on track. Many of us tend to internalize reasons why challenging behavior occurs, "I shouldn't have tried that." On the other hand, it can also be tempting to use circumstances as an explanation, "He's always had a tough time with that." Focusing on these four steps when inappropriate or challenging behavior occurs can help you effect change and get on to teaching!

1) Stay calm!
This is easier said than done but a reaction from you will most likely reinforce the previous inappropriate behavior of the student. One way to tell if getting your attention is the goal of the challenging behavior is to look for eye-contact. When your student is making eye-contact during or immediately after the challenging behavior this could indicate attention seeking behavior.

2) Identify what reinforcer your student wants.
If your student is continuously distracted by something or trying to play with a certain toy, then it is fairly obvious that this is what he wants to be reinforced with. On the other hand, at times it can be very hard to tell what your student wants because they may have challenges communicating just what that is. In this case I find it helps to have a list of possible reinforcers that they can choose from. Another option would be to give them a little space (at the appropriate time {see the following steps}) and see what they choose to do on their own.

3) Get the student back on track.
Most teachers of students with special needs have experience with delivering a calm statement such as, "No" or "That's not appropriate". Deliver this statement, and then move them along. You may need to adjust your expectations- in other words, if you were attempting to have your student read an entire page, try having them read a few sentences or paragraphs instead. Do not drastically reduce your expectations though, since this might reinforce the inappropriate behavior if the root cause is task avoidance. If you've done your best, and the tantrum continues, deliver another calm, unenthusiastic statement like, "When you read nicely you can be all done." Continue doing this until your student calms down. This takes a lot of practice and focus but do your best to follow through here.

4) Deliver the reinforcer.
You have helped your student through the task, they have gotten back on track and they have calmed down. Now you can completely switch your demeanor, and deliver that reinforcer that you determined they wanted in step 2. It may be tempting to deliver the reinforcer before step 3 occurs, but this may result in an increase in the behavior! After following these procedures and helping your student be successful, pay close attention to your rate of reinforcement and consider increasing it for this skill.

About the author:

Mr. Jeffrey Young is the President and Founder of Innovative Piano, Inc. Mr. Young has published over 17 books dealing with music and autism. To learn more about the author and the program please visit http://www.innovativepiano.com/

Innovative Piano, Inc.

Offering piano lessons for students with autism - Nationwide! http://www.innovativepiano.com/

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What an Increase in Stimming May Indicate About Your Current Treatment For Autism

As parents work to find effective treatments for autism, many of the usual symptoms their children display will continue. In the majority of cases, this often includes some form of 'stimming'. Stimming is an extremely common autism symptom that includes certain repeated behaviors or movements. These behaviors are self-stimulating and consist of repetitive behaviors that are performed to stimulate the senses. Examples of stimming include clapping, running in circles, humming, or manipulating objects (such as bending straws or ripping paper).
Though stimming behaviors may appear to be unnecessary or even unsuitable to some situations, they're not done to draw attention or to disrupt. Instead, stimming behaviors are often used in order to decrease the stress levels of the child performing them. As autism causes children to react atypically to sensory stimuli, they often use stimming to help to deal with their sensory issues.
Rocking is another kind of stimming behavior that is common among autistic children. Many autistic children feel that rocking back and forth allows them to reestablish a sense of focus when they feel overly sensitive to the stimulus from their surroundings. It can also help with concentration and focus.
Though it is more obvious in autistic children, non-autistic children and adults also participate in forms of stimming. Consider the number of times you've seen someone drumming their fingers, tapping their pencil, fidgeting with paper, or bounced a knee when sitting down. Anxiety tends to worsens these behaviors. Though behaviors such as biting nails or whistling are often done involuntarily, they do help us to keep control over our emotions and calm us down in tense situations. As children with autism usually find stressors in more of the stimuli in their environment, they often 'stim' regularly throughout the day and especially when placed into a new environment.
If you find that your child's level of stimming increases in line with the introduction of new of more frequent treatments there could be a number of reasons for this.
1. They are looking for reassurance as they learn something new
2. The situation is stressful for them so they are retreating to what is familiar - the stimulatory behavior
3. They don't like the change to their routine that the new or increased frequency of treatment is introducing.
Of course these reasons aren't the only ones. However, the key is to monitor behavior and see if the stimming levels out, increases further or decreases as the treatment program progresses.
It is also important to keep in mind that stimming behaviors can turn into obsessions. When identifying characteristics for treatment for autism, divide your child's stimming into two groups: excitatory and calming.
Stimming that is calming is the kind that helps your autistic child to regain focus when feeling stress or anxiety. On the other hand excitatory stimming sends your child's focus in a negative direction.
An example of excitatory stimming could be when an autistic child gets wound up and instead of smiling and giggling, he or she might start clapping, running, or yelling. This can be detrimental behavior as it encourages behaviors that can be inappropriate and are not conducive for effective learning.
Stimming may also be an attachment to specific objects. Though most small children will often have a favorite toy such as a doll or blanket, in the case of autistic children they may struggle give up their attachment to this object. It may be something that they like to smell, look at, hear, or touch.
Stimming can also take the form of organizing things. For example, an autistic child may self-stimulate by placing things in order, lining them up, or stacking things. This, like other stimming behaviors, can easily become an obsession.
Stimming habits can be very challenging to break as they are often relaxing and enjoyable and provide a coping mechanism for an autistic child. As a parent you will need to decide what stimming behavior is acceptable both in terms of the action itself and frequency. Bear in mind that trying to stop all stimming could be very stressful for your child. So concentrate on the behaviors that are excitory or inappropriate and leave the calming or harmless activities alone.
When considering a treatment for autism for your child, make sure that the doctor or specialist is aware of all of your child's stimming behaviors so that they can be properly addressed. Keep in mind that stimming often differs from one form of autism to the next.

Grab your free copy of Rachel Evans' brand new Autism Newsletter - Overflowing with easy to implement methods to help you discover the most effective treatment for autism and for information on autism repetitive behaviors please visit The Essential Guide To Autism blog.

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