What You Must Know About Teaching Aspergers Children



Posted: Friday, February 25, 2011

by Dave Angel
http://www.parentingaspergers.com

I was recently asked the folowing question by one of my newsletter readers; "I'd love to see some information about how to teach in a way that Aspergers children will absorb. I am particularly interested in rote memory facts such as math, measurements and such. I'd also love more information about teaching basic social skills, manners and social graces."

Aspergers children will likely have excellent rote memories and often show intense interest in one or two intellectual areas, such as math, transportation, history, or the characters in a television series. Their fascination is often so intense that they ignore other subjects and just concentrate on their preferred subject. They will learn every fact about their subject and speak about it endlessly. They will assume that everyone they talk to has the same interest in it that they do and will not be aware if they are boring other people. Even if the child has little true understanding of the facts, they will continue their fascination. You can still use this fascination to teach him or her other subjects. For example, if teaching Aspergers children about measurement and the child has an interest in trains, you can involve him or her in measuring the length of train tracks or distances airplanes travel on various routes.

Many times, using computers and computer games help Aspergers children to retain factual information. Teaching Aspergers children with flash cards is often quite successful. Most rote teaching methods meet with success. Many Aspergers children are great with visual memory. They can memorize things they read or see on charts. Capitalize on this in teaching them most anything.

Etiquette and social graces are like a foreign language to Aspergers children. Particular training is required to teach children these skills, like looking someone in the eye and saying "Good morning" or "Hi." Communication specialists and social training groups can teach these skills to Aspergers children. Imitating and practicing new skills in realistic situations is very effective for Aspergers children. Often, skills' training includes:
•Learning nonverbal behaviors, such as using appropriate hand gestures, smiling, and verbal behaviors
•Interpretation of nonverbal behaviors of others
•Processing of visual information with auditory information
•Social awareness

An idea for teaching social skills involves teaching Aspergers children a specific skill at a time. To apply a specific skill in a variety of situations try this procedure: Chose a skill, such as responding to the question "What's new?" Teach the child the question/skill and several possible responses. Explain that there are many ways to respond. Model some appropriate responses. Set up situations that will require practice with the help of friends, family, and school staff Develop a plan for how the questioner will respond if the child answers incorrectly Keep track of the child's responses to see if he or she can demonstrate the skill consistently Reinforce with lots of praise for the correct answers, especially when correct answers don't require any prompting

The Aspergers child might form friendships with other children who share interests, such as computers. Having things in common like math club, science fairs, Star Trek club, etc. can help to facilitate social interaction. This is a way to build skills that can help a child to "fit in" better in general. Reinforce these skills at home with role playing. For those that still struggle with this, counseling and social training may help. Teaching Aspergers children is best achieved with support from many places.

So as you can see there are a number of particular approaches to take that will be effective when teaching Aspergers children. If you apply some of this practical guidance you will find the whole process much more effective for you and the child.

Dave Angel has been helping parents of children and young adults with Aspergers online for over four years. Read more of his information about Aspergers and Education
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