Importance Of Social Communication Intervention And Children With Autism

Autism spectrum disorders are a class of developmental disorders that impair social skills, behavior, and communication (Center for Disease Control). ASDs are considered ‘spectrum’ disorders because each patient has a unique experience in the nature and severity of their symptoms (Center for Disease Control). Under the umbrella of ASDs, there are three types of disorders, including Autistic disorder, Asperger Syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (Center for Disease Control). Autistic disorder is the most severe of the three, and patients exhibit significant problems with language, communication, and behavior (Center for Disease Control). Furthermore, people with Autistic disorder often have some intellectual impairment (Center for Disease Control). Asperger Syndrome is a milder form of autistic disorder where patients have some developmental delays, but their language and intellect are not affected (Center for Disease Control). The mildest of the ASDs is the pervasive developmental disorder. These patients usually don’t meet all of the criteria for autistic disorder, but do show some signs of social and communication problems (Center for Disease Control). The number of children diagnosed with ASD is growing, and currently 1 in 88 children fall somewhere on the spectrum (Mari-Bauset et al., 2013). Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism, and while the exact cause of these disorders is unknown, both genetic and

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may be portrayed toward critical impairments in social interaction. It also includes restricted repeated behaviors, interests and activities. (Mayo Clinic staff, 2014)

According to Kids Health (2014), “children with Autism have difference in the way their brains develop and process information”. For example, “language delay, trouble communicating with their brains, perform certain unusual or repetitive behaviors, or have difficulties learning in school” (p. 1).

Social – Talking out loud helps children to work through ideas, feelings and frustrations. In doing this children start to empathise and see other peoples point of view, and gradually become able to think about other people’s needs and feelings. This helps children to develop socially acceptable behaviour and build their confidence. Communicating with other children or adults in social situations helps children to understand what is expected of them and to enjoy participating. Children that have difficulties with speech, language and communication may find that their social development is impaired and they become awkward in social situations.

What are several principals for teaching social skills to students with learning and behavior problems? The text expresses many key principals that educators may employ for teaching social skills to students with learning or behavior problems. Teachers are encouraged to develop cooperative learning activities and groups. Students should be encouraged to work with their fellow peers in supportive and structured activities. Teachers should employ effective instruction strategies such as identifying target behaviors, modeling, rehearsing, role-playing, and providing students with positive feedback. Learned and target social skills should be taught and modeled in a way that students are able to transfer these skills from the classroom to outside of the classroom. Teachers need to empower students and help them identify their strengths. Students should feel that they are actively involved with their learning, as well as, understand the consequences to their

Communication is a highly defined word that includes “talking” or “words”. That being the key component of talking, is a key component of communication. Communication is the use of both nonverbal and verbal behaviors to be able to tell others what you want, to express feeling, to share ideas and to solve problems big and small. Communication begins long before we learn to talk. In the first few months of life, babies show their interest in communicating by listening to the sound of the human voice. Being able to communicate will not only send clear messages, but be able to understand others message’s as well. The most intensive period of speech and language development is during the first three years of life, a period where the brain is

To be an effective special educator, one must possess knowledge of several, various disabilities and also knows how they can affect children so differently. For instance, there is an increasing rate of children being diagnosed with Autism; as a result educators need to be familiar with the characteristics associated with the disease. Symptoms and how severe they may be can vary from child to child, but all autism disorders affect a child's ability to communicate and interact with others. According to Gina Kemp, Jeanne Segal, and Deborah Cutter, specialists in learning disorders and disabilites, most children with Autism will not be able to communicate with the world around them. They have poor social skills, avoid eye contact, and tend to choose self play over group interaction (Cutter, Kemp, & Segal). A special educator needs to know how to interact with these children to have any hope of abiding by the standards of the NCLB. There is no known cause for Autism, therefore, it is important for any special educator to continue in their research in order to successfully educate these children.

His fingernails are penetrating my skin and his grip is getting tighter with each progressively loud screech. “Michael”, I sharply continuously say, as I attempt to slowly gain ability to release each finger from my imprisoned arm. I am not in shock or unprepared for this situation, as Michael has autism and is working on his communication skills and behavioral outbreaks. Minutes pass, the screaming has stopped, his tears are still visible, but he is starting to focus on pushing a fire truck back and fourth. I sit patiently waiting for him to completely calm down; I’m waiting to hear him hum.

My student teaching placement was in a 3rd-5th grade autism support classroom. Based on Piaget’s cognitive theory, 3rd-5th grade students are in the concrete operational stage. However, cognitively, the students in the class are in the pre-operational stage. As a result, they view the world through symbols, but are unable to concentrate on multiple aspects in a situation (T. Crandell, C. Crandell & Zanden, 2012).Students with autism also generally do not do well with task that are abstract because it is more challenging for them (Smith, Segal & Hutman, 2015). Instead, they do well on tasks that allow them to use their visual skills.

Investigators have stressed the lack of normal socialization as the key in defining this syndrome because "autistic children exhibit a fundamental failure in socialization, as exhibited by their lack of social interaction" (Cohen 28). If language is present, it is usually not used as a means to interact. For example, an older autistic individual "may begin a discussion without providing the listener with adequate background information and may fail to take social norms or the listener's feelings into account (like telling someone they were fat), (Volkmar 41). A mute autism may not use proper facial expressions or any expressions at all when interacting. If an autist does eventually establish a social relationship, he or she would "lack the richness and differentiation seen even in young normally developing children," (Volkmar

Researchers have focused on studies evaluating the usefulness of various autism intervention models to improve intervention with individuals on the autism spectrum. Newer models aiming to teach these individuals various communication skills have emerged, but the lack of experimentation has researchers questioning their overall effectiveness. A large percentage of individuals along the autism spectrum have difficulties with various communication skills and require intervention to address these sociable differences. Social stories, a recent intervention model, has become a popular method of

People with Autism are presented with difficulties with social interactions, in particular, establishing and maintaining relationships. There is a lack of responsiveness to non-verbal forms of communications, like facial expressions, physical gestures and eye contact. Often, they are unable to fully express needs due to being unable to interpret and understand others needs. These lack of social interactions effect their ability to share others interests and activities, which gives the appearance that they are socially distant. The cause of their inability to understand non-verbal forms of communication which causes them to become withdrawn socially; is due to a delay in speech.

People with autism have a lifelong developmental condition that not only affects the way they relate to their environment and interaction with others, but also non-verbal interactions may be misread. (Autism Spectrum

Children with autism often can not make connections that other kids make easily. For example,

I am very passionate about working with kids with autism. They have such amazing personalities and I feel like people don’t see past the disability to the unique person they are. For several years I worked at a residential facility for kids on the spectrum. I was a direct care staff that worked one on one with them to work on their goals their treatment plan was focusing on. My passion to help kids with autism comes from my previous experience working with these kids and watching them grow and learn new skills. This transformation that I watched happen and helped be a part of with these kids made me want to help more kids with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There are a lot of skills that need to be taught to these children. Socialization, communication, and positive behavior are just a few kids with autism need help improving. I believe that the earlier that you teach a child these skills the more successful they will be. Early intervention has had a positive outcome within many research experiments that professionals have done. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004) also requires schools to teach kids with disabilities alongside typically developed kids as much as possible.