The Christmas season can sometimes be a very challenging time of the year for autistic children. There are all sorts of unpredictable changes to usual daily life in the lead up to Christmas and the school holidays such as: changes to the environment at home, school and in the community Read more…
I love Christmas songs!! Here is a free interactive PowerPoint choice board that links straight to Christmas songs on YouTube. When the image is pressed, it opens the video on YouTube. This allows the child/ children to make a choice from a selection of songs. Choice making encourages communication. Whether your Read more…
Roleplay shopping can be a really fun way of learning about coins as well as practising counting, all with the inclusion of motivating toys and items! Items Needed: Firstly, find some toys or items that the child will be really motivated by, anything from bubbles, to cars, to balls to Read more…
The Garden School is a highly specialist school for children aged 4 – 16 years with autism as well as severe learning difficulties, located in the London borough of Hackney in the U.K. The Garden uses a child-centred approach to teaching and learning. A wide range of evidence based interventions and Read more…
Management of personal hygiene is a very important skill for all children to learn in order to grow and develop independence. Daily activities as part of a routine As a teacher of children with autism, personal hygiene tasks are a high priority on the school daily timetable. Dedicating time to personal Read more…
Like any abstract theme, the concept of ‘like’ and ‘don’t like’ can sometimes be challenging for children with autism to understand. Therefore, it is important to ensure a child really understands what it means to ‘like’ something. A successful strategy is to model the language at the exact time the child Read more…
Remembering to leave a space between words when writing can sometimes be tricky for children to remember. A visual support can often help to remind a child to leave a space between words, if it is in their eye view, such as on their table. A visual support will also Read more…
It can sometimes be easy to overlook that not every child knows what to do with certain objects or toys. Children with autism find generalising learning difficult and therefore, if they learn how to do something in one context, this does not necessarily mean they will then know how Read more…
New or unfamiliar experiences can be daunting for anyone. This is exceptionally true for a child with autism, who has difficulty predicting what could happen next and generalising knowledge and experiences. Going to a new place can therefore be scary and provoke a lot of anxiety. This is why preparing Read more…
Here is a free interactive choice board that links straight to songs on YouTube. The songs are some of the favourites of primary aged children I have taught. These interactive choice boards are easy to make and amend in a program such as Microsoft PowerPoint by creating ‘hyperlinks’ to a Read more…