Atascosa McMullen Cooperative » Autism

Autism

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by a unique set of intense and pervasive impairments in the areas of social interaction, communication and behavior skills. Approximately 26,000 children in Texas are diagnosed with ASD at this time. Autism Disorders vary widely and the needs of students with autism are determined on an individual basis.

The DSM-IV-TR lists characteristics of ASD that include:
  • Difficulty understanding and utilizing facial expressions, body language, eye contact, and gestures to regulate social situations
  • Failure to develop peer relationships
  • Lack of shared enjoyment, interests or other's attention (joint attention)
  • Lack of social or emotional reciprocity
  • Delayed language or total lack of language skills
  • Stereotyped or repetitive use of language
  • Lack of spontaneous, make-believe and social imitative play
  • Preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest or focus
  • Inflexible adherence to routines and rituals
  • Repetitive motor movements and mannerisms (hand flapping or rocking)
  • Preoccupation with parts of objects

Strategies for Working with Students with Autism in the General Education Setting

If you only have 30 minutes for professional development, this series is for you!!! This twelve part series of 30-minute courses presented by Dr. Amanda Boutot was designed to give general educators, parents, administrators, paraprofessionals and others quick, practical strategies that can be easily implemented in the general education classroom.

 

(A) Strategy 1: Understanding Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Workshop #FA1738664

This is the first course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 1: Understanding Autism Spectrum Disorders, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) The primary characteristics of ASD: what it is and its prevalence, 2) The behavioral characteristics of ASD, including social characteristics, communicative characteristics and restrictive and repetitive behaviors, and 3) The learning characteristics of ASD, including executive functioning, Theory of Mind, joint attention, and auditory vs. visual processing.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/catalog.html#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38664

 

 

 

(B) Strategy 2: Get to Know the Individual Student

Workshop #FA1738689

This is the second course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 2: Get to Know the Individual Student a participant will be able to discuss: 1) The need to prepare before school begins, including talking to previous teachers, reviewing the student's IEP and reviewing the student's portfolio, 2) The need to get to know the family, and 3) The need to get to know the child.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/catalog.html#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38689

 

(C) Strategy 3: Create Predictability

Workshop #FA1738690

This is the third course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 3: Create Predictability, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Understanding an individual's need for predictability, 2) Establishing routines: Consistent schedules, 3) Establishing routines: Consistent activities and expectations, 4) Using visuals to support predictability, and 5) Preparing for changes.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/catalog.html#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38690

 

(D) Strategy 4: Establish Clear Expectations, Part 1 -- Social and Behavioral

Workshop #FA1738691

This is the fourth course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. Strategies 4 and 5 address the strategy of establishing clear expectations. After completing Strategy 4: Establish Clear Expectations, Part 1 - Social and Behavioral, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Developing social and behavioral expectations, including the hidden curriculum, and 2) Using visuals to support social and behavioral expectations including antecedent supports, consequence supports and video modeling.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/catalog.html#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38691

 

 

(E) Strategy 5: Develop Clear Expectations, Part 2 --Academic

Workshop #FA1738692

This is the fifth course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. Strategy 5 along with Strategy 4 discuss establishing clear expectations for a student with ASD. After completing Strategy 5: Establishing Clear Expectations, Part 2 - Academic, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Developing academic expectations, and 2) Using visual to support academic expectations, including workload supports, visual accommodations, and assistance supports.

https://ecampus.esc13.net/catalog.html#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38692

 



(F) Strategy 6: Create a Positive Learning Community

Workshop #FA1738752

This is the sixth course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 6: Create a Positive Learning Community, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Fostering a sense of community, including group activities and group interdependency, 2) Promoting awareness and acceptance, including modeling acceptance, promoting opportunities to actively and successfully participate, pull-out to special education and the role of the paraprofessional.

https://ecampus.esc13.net/transcript.html?year=all#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38752

 

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(G) Strategy 7: Promote Positive Peer Interaction

Workshop #FA1738753

This is the seventh course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 7: Promote Positive Peer Interactions, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Providing opportunities for students to socialize, including sample activities, supporting socialization and peer-mediated instruction, and 2) Providing opportunities for students to work together on academics, including peer groupings and peer-mediated instruction.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/transcript.html?year=all#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38753

 



(H) Strategy 8: Use Instructional Strategies That Promote Successful Learning

Workshop #FA1738754

This is the eighth course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 8: Use Instructional Strategies That Promote Successful Learning, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Understanding how students learn, including information processing model and breakdowns in the process, 2) Improving attention, including definition of attention, teacher behaviors and environmental supports that decrease attention and support attention, 3) Improving short term memory, 4) Improving long term memory, and 5) Improving output.

https://ecampus.esc13.net/transcript.html?year=all#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38754

 



(I) Strategy 9: Use Behavioral Strategies That Promote Success Learning

Workshop #SP1838844

This is the ninth course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 9: Use Behavioral Strategies That Promote Successful Learning, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Behavior management vs. discipline, 2) Using positive reinforcement vs. punishment, 3) Using positive behavioral supports, 4) Using group vs. individual behavior systems, 5) Using behavior contracts and self-management system, 6) Selecting a reinforcement system.

https://ecampus.esc13.net/transcript.html?year=all#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38844

 



(J) Strategy 10: Develop a Plan to Address Challenging Behavior

Workshop #SP1838841

This is the tenth course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 10: Develop a Plan to Address Challenging Behavior, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) "Challenging behaviors" AKA "Contextually inappropriate behaviors", 2) Determining what went wrong, 3) Identifying reasons for behaviors, and 4) Seeking help from special education team.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/transcript.html?year=all#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38841

 

 

(K) Strategy 11: Borrow from the Special Educator's Toolbox

Workshop #SP1838842

This is the eleventh course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 11: Borrow from the Special Educator's Toolbox, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Strategies for working with lower functioning students with ASD, 2) Task analysis, 3) Prompting levels and prompt fading, and 4) Sensory issues in ASD.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/transcript.html?year=all#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38842

 



(L) Strategy 12: Respect Each Student's Dignity and Need for Autonomy

Workshop #SP1838843

This is the twelfth course in a series of 12, 30-minute online courses. After completing Strategy 12: Respect Each Student's Dignity and Need for Autonomy, a participant will be able to discuss: 1) Treating students with dignity, 2) Providing choices, 3) Being flexible, 4) Remembering the student's autism, and 5) Remembering the students are children/adolescents, just like everyone else.

 

https://ecampus.esc13.net/transcript.html?year=all#url=/show_class_info.html%3Fclassid%3D38843