Does anyone have any experience with this? I have a student that the school believes has Asperger Syndrome, however, his parents won't hear about it. He has been diagnosed with OCD. I have not had a student like this before and don't know how to deal with it. He is very disruptive and takes up a lot of my time during class. The administration isn't being very helpful. I have pretty much been told to just deal with it! I would appreciate any advice. Thanks!
I have little experiance but I know that keeping a tight schedule is VERY important. Maybe even a schedule right on his/her desk so he/she can refer to it. Also, if the schedule is gong to chage, then let him/her know ahead of time and maybe even give a revised "just for today" schedule. Someone on here had an idea for a velcro schedule that could be changed if needed.
My one guy I had also had "fidgets" for his hands in his desk, a small amount of playdoh, a koosh ball, some bubble wrap, etc that he could manipulate if he started to feel antsy.
I would Google Asperger Syndrome. You will get a lot of info that way.
I will be evaluating a student for SPED services soon who was supposedly diagonosed with Asperger. I plan to use Google in the very near future. I have with other syndromes/LDs and it has provided me with reputable sources. Very helpful.
Someone else mentioned this as well but it is worth repeating. {I worked with a student with Aspergers and it can be difficult at times.} The best thing is to keep a schedule that he or she can see every day. Also, you might want to bring in an consultant about the behaviors. We had a program in place for this student for disruptive behaviors. He started out with four stars. As he displayed inappropriate behaviors, stars were taken away. He always had a chance to earn them back. The experts say not to use this method, but if you do to be careful with it, but for this student it worked. At the end of the day, if he had all of his stars (I think it was 5) then he earned some reward.
I work with students with Aspergers on a regular basis. The key is structure. For my students they have a picture schedule at their desk, when we finish one task the cross it out and we move onto the next. If the schedule is going to change I have to prompt them way ahead of time. It is also important to outline expectations for these students. I would also research some other strageties, the is a ton on the web!
My little brother-in-law has Aspergers, he is now in high school. He has a lot of trouble paying attention to what is going on around him. For example, he could be sitting right in the kitchen and watch his mom cook dinner, and he would not know dinner was going to be ready soon. He only knows what is going on if you tell him the situation. I would recommend telling your student excactly what is going on and don't stray from a schedule.
I have worked with two students labeled as having Asperger Syndrome. I found that social stories can work very well with them. Individual's with this Syndrome have a hard time in social situations they need to be directly taught how to act at these times. Ask your speech therapist about social stories they often use them to work with autistic children but they can be easily modified to work with higher functioning children. Remember that change in behavior will come slowly but be consistant and calm and change will occur.
I just thought of something else...a sensory diet. For instance, a "fidget" or something to hold or mess with. Some of the things we have used are koosh balls, cold hair gel in a plastic bag, a small piece of sandpaper in his/her desk, putty, etc. Just something to be fiddling with to calm him/her down in stressful times. I have one student who gets a koosh ball to play with once an hour or so and another who has a ziplock bag ofhair gell in her desk that she can rub her hands over. It really helps with processing and de-stressing. Kinda in the same way people love playing with bubble wrap!
Hi, just my own 2 cents.
First thing...yes, go online and read...Tony Attwood has a book called "Asperger Syndrome" you can find this book at the public library and it is a valuable tool.
There is a website aspergertips.com - this site is awesome! Not only can you download pages - you can order the booklet for a nominal fee.
The soft side of velcro on the inside of his desk might help with sensory too and no one has to know he is using it.
These kids are a joy but they are a tough puzzle to figure out sometimes. There is no one answer to these children as the main description is that they are all very very different.
I wish you patience and you can email me anytime if I can help. I have taught many autistic children in the regular classroom setting and have one of my own at home. I understand.
Last year I had one of my students evaluated and tested for Asperger's. Her parents were not happy (to say the least) that she was being evaluated. Well, the results came back, and she was diagnosed with Asperger's. After that I was a godsend to their family.
I would recommend having a routine (visual) in your classroom. Some can get upset if they don't know the routine or it changes. If the schedule is going to change, make sure and tell the class in the morning. My student was disorganized and never had her homework done. We started using a daily planner for her to write her homework in. I always checked with her at the end of the day as the kids were getting ready to go home to make sure she had her things. I also kept in close contact with her mom.
Social situations and friendships can be difficult too. She had a difficult time making friends, so I picked two very nice and sweet girls in my class and asked if they could include other students (in particular this student) in classroom and group activities when I allowed them to "pick their own partners". I also talked to the entire class about being nice to everyone and sitting with others at lunch and playing together at recess.
Many kids with Asperger's need to be taught social norms. She went to a friendship group with our school psychologist. They did a lot of role playing, how to make friends, what to do with your friends, social stories, etc...The problem with some kids with Asperger's is that they prefer to be alone. One boy in my class prefers to work alone on group activities. I do encourage him to work with other students. Sometimes he will get upset and cry when something irritates him, so if this happens I talk to him privately about what he can do when he gets upset, how to calm himself down, what to do instead. He needs to talk about it and hear it a lot.
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11-11-2005, 11:56 PM
