Although conversation skills generally develop naturally in neurotypical children, autistic children may need to be taught how to engage in conversations with the neurotypical world. How to Talk with Friends, by Janine Toole, is a step-by-step social skills curriculum that teaches conversation skills. Overview of “How to Talk with Friends: A step-by-step social skills curriculum” […]
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When I taught in a self-contained classroom for autistic children, one of the speech therapist introduced me to Matt and Molly stories. These are officially called, Autism & PDD Picture Stories & Language Activities by Patricia Koski. This article reviews the 5-pack set of language activities for social skills for children ages 3 to 8. […]
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Playing games can be a motivating way to work on social skills. Most board games require turn-taking, following rules, and good sportsmanship (accepting both winning and losing gracefully). CLICK HERE to read about the procedure I use to help my children learn to tolerate losing. My husband bought this 4 Game Shopkins set last week. […]
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One skill that may be difficult for an autistic child is how to handle losing a game. Autistic children tend to thrive in predictable situations. They love their routines and may become very distressed when a routine is disrupted. Playing games can be unpredictable. Although each game will have its own set of rules, different things […]
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Social stories are a teaching tool used to explain social situations to individuals with autism. Stories can be written for a specific child or for children in general. The story will include specific information about what occurs and why it occurs in a social situation. Relevant features including an explanation of perspective will also be […]
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Video modeling is an instructional technique where a video is used to demonstrate a particular skill or activity. Video modeling has been effectively used with individuals who have autism. The following list is a brief summary of skills researchers have taught individuals with autism using video models. Video Models can be effectively used to: increase conversational […]
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One of the key diagnostic criteria for autism includes deficits in social skills. Social skills are the set of unwritten rules we use to interact with other people using both our words and our bodies. Neuro-typical children acquire social skills through observation and interaction with other people in the home and community. Children with autism […]
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