Presentation Title: Strategies for promoting engagement, communication, and self-

regulation for children with autism

*Description of proposed paper or workshop (50 words)

This presentation explores how to promote inclusivity in the classroom by utilizing
physical supports and verbal prompts for children with autism. The questions that I will
be addressing are:
What is autism?; What strategies can teachers use to support students with autism?;
Why are these supports critical to their learning?

*Detailed description of proposed paper or workshop (300 words)

This presentation focuses on the strategies that teachers can use to create an inclusive
learning environment for children with autism in their classrooms. My interest in this
topic comes from my experience working as a behavior interventionist for children with
autism. In the beginning of this presentation, autism will be defined so participants gain
an understanding of how to differentiate their approach depending on where the child
is on the spectrum. Next, we will explore strategies that can be used to promote
communication, engagement, and self-regulation for children with autism. These
strategies are based off of Applied Behavior Analysis which focuses on behavior
intervention “that identifies variables that meaningfully and lawfully influence socially
significant behavior in real-world settings” (Dryer, 2013, p. 9). Applied Behavior
Analysis methods are used to aid people with autism by decreasing interferences with
the learning process, and personal wellness such as self-injury and aggression. These
methods are also to increase skills to transition activities, participation in play, and
social skills. The over-arching goal for the strategies used based on Applied behavior
methods is to equip the child with these skills in mainstream situations by teaching self-
regulation in order to become in control of their own environment and increase
independency (Dryer, 2013, p. 9). Once we identify the strategies that can be used, we
will take a look at why these strategies support children with autism, and how to use
them. The strategies that we will be looking at are the use of simple language,
sequencing tasks (first-then), approaches to questioning, token boards, schedules, and
visuals. Examples of visuals and dialogue will be provided to help as a basis for
inclusivity, and how to use these strategies in an appropriate setting.

Dryer, K. (2013). Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Encyclopedia of Autism Spectrum

Disorders, 9-9. doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-1698-3_100159