Thread: Asberger's

A lady I know who is a special ed teacher actually has a son with Asbergers. I'll try to give her the name of this website, but I don't know if she'll have time. Only thing I know is that it's similar to Autism.

I have a student that visits me for science this year who struggles with this. Last year his big issue was he kept pulling his hair out. He had huge spots all over. His other diagnosis is obsessive compulsive disorder, so I'm sure that had something to do with his hair.

I think we got a handout at school to help us with this. I'll check to see if I can get my hands on it.

My son has Asperger's Syndrome. Depending on the limitations, most kids w/ As are extremely easy to redirect- but like most kids don't want to be singled out. His third grade teacher developed a signal- Like Carol Burnette's ear tug to give Ian a clue he needed to focus on her. It was amazing. He also carried a card in his pocket that had steps- touch all your finger tips, count to five , take a deep breathe to help him when he was getting frustrated to prevent him from acting out.
Perhaps the best thing was that she partnered him with a very kind girl who helped - he had spacial relation challenges- and he would dump his stuff all over his desk- and invade other people space- she helped to organize him- a nudge of sorts. COlor coded folders and notebooks help with organization. Black and white language- a set schedule- all these things helpes. My son is now in 8th grade- he started school at 2. He is completely mainstreamed and play sfootball in the local league- He still is Ian- but with the help of great therapist and caring teachers- he has developed strategies to deal with most situations that come up- I am forever thankful that his teachers were willing to work with me.
The key to success I found was the partnerships.
His IEP had concrete things like speech goals, fine motor skill goals, his test are read to him if they are scan trons, he always has a desk at the end of a group so his fidgeting doesn't disrupt people. He has a note buddy or the teacher makes notes available if he can't keep up with the speed or alot is on the board. ANd he had a handwriting tutor. good luck.

I teach in a school that has numerous Aspberger kids. I'd be happy to help you with ideas. First step we take with these kids is to get some ear filtration going. Sometimes a filter in just one ear lowers their anxiety level and helps them to cope socially. I have lots of other ideas too, and have no idea where to begin. Maybe you could tell me what you've tried already?

Miriam

I have worked a little with aspbergers students. As you probably already know, it is on the low end of the autictic spectrum. These kids need much more order in their lives than others. They benefit from knowing exactly what is expected of them and at what time everything will happen. You also need to reduce anxiety and stress in their lives. Get down to their level, lower the pitch of your voice and slow down. These children are often very interested in certain topics. They can become experts in their areas of interest. If possible try to incorporate their interests into other things they need to learn. I haven't tried the sound filtration with the boy I work with, but It porbably would be a good idea, as many are highly sensitive to noises, even those that don't bother others. If you have a Regional Center in your area, they porbably have videos and material that will help. Hope some of these ideas help.

Originally Posted by Kelley_the_Gardener

Does anyone out there have any experience with Asberger's Syndrome? One of my kids is in the process of diagnosis/identification, and I'm preparing for an IEP when I get back on track. Any help with modifications that will increase my student's comfort level while practicing "socialization" situations?

I have a borderline case of Aspergers (that is, I balanced on the edge when I took the online test a while ago).
We basically are great in one or few areas of knowledge (in my case it is animal systematics and zoogeography). We read all about it and know all about it, and almost think only about it.
When I read Gerald Durell's book "My family and the other animals" where he explains how his teacher had to teach him history and geography by putting some animal in every sentence, I thought :? "Is there any other way to study history and geography?" :lol:
We may have problems with school subjects that are not our "field" partly because we have no time to study them (spending time on what interests us) and partly because we are not interested in them because they don't look connected with our field of interest.
Anyway we usually have a hard time understanding other people's facial expressions and therefore their intentions. In "Human face" one guy explained it that he has to watch the corners of the mouth in order to distinguish between fear and surprise (he actually had to learn that "if corners of the mouth go in this direction, it means fear. If they go that way, it is surprise" etc).
That brings us to "social stories" where we have to think in advance about each "step" we are to make in social interactions. If we do not do social stories we get confused and lost. In school it is usually teachers that present the social story to a student, and student follows. Student should also be taught how to make their own appropriate social stories. As a kid, I came by the idea of "social story" myself because it kept me out of trouble; only later I heard it had a name.

Zheljko, that sounds a lot like what we've done for my student. It is 2 1/2 years since I first wrote that post; he's been officially diagnosed and has an IEP focused on social interactions and some occupational therapy for motor skills.

I've learned a lot from this one incredible person; this is my last year with him, and I will miss him.

Originally Posted by Druidawn

I teach in a school that has numerous Aspberger kids. I'd be happy to help you with ideas. First step we take with these kids is to get some ear filtration going. Sometimes a filter in just one ear lowers their anxiety level and helps them to cope socially. I have lots of other ideas too, and have no idea where to begin. Maybe you could tell me what you've tried already?

Miriam

Hi Miriam,
I am a school counsellor and would be interested in strategies that have worked for you. We have a high functioning but oftn disruptive and impulsive boy with /Asberger Syndrome in one of our year 4 classes. The new teacher is a bit at a loss with his constand attention seeking and disruoptive behaviour.
Regards
Marlies :roll: :roll:

[url="http://www.udel.edu/bkirby/asperger/"]www.udel.edu/bkirby/asperger/[/url]

This is probably the best single source of information about all things Aspie you will find. I also strongly suggest you read Tony Attwood's books (available from most good libraries).

Some fell that Asperger's represents the high end of the Autism Spectrum, others feel it is a similar but unique state of being. There are many crossovers between autism and Asperger's; however there are also significant differences, most notably the fact that Aspies generally have much stronger language skills that Autists and also do not display the same bio-medical needs that many Autists have.

Many Aspies will have a very bright future if they can be protected from bullies and allowed to develope their individual talents. Usually this will mean being taught is a very low student to teacher ratio, which unfortunately most public schools cannot afford.

They tend to have rather profound difficulties in understanding the less-than-ordered rules of social engagement we nt's learn by kindergarden. Social stories may help (google Carol Gray for sources).

It is important when working with these children to understand that they do not always react in anticipated manner to stimuli. They also can have hyper-senses (one example is being distracted by flouro lighting which flickers and buzzes) which can lead to problems. They tend to be frequently alone, both because people are hard to figure out as well as being more focused with their particular interests and subsequently not caring to be around others.

Good luck to you!