Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Students with ASD need Predictability
Strategies This strategy is important Suggestions for the Classroom and
because School
Develop Clear Rules Students with ASD may: ● Provide simple, short classroom rules
● Need a “roadmap” to help written in the positive (Walk in the
navigate the school day classroom, Raise your hand, etc.)
● Rely on a visual “check” of ● Collaboratively write rules with students at
rules rather than their the beginning of the year
memory ● Explain clearly why each rule is significant
● Need to calm anxiety about to them
what to do in certain ● Acknowledge when student follows a
situations difficult rule
● Try to enforce a rule on peers
Define Transitions Students with ASD may: ● Point to schedule & draw students’
● Struggle with “shifting” to attention to the next activity
new activities due to ● Give transition warnings
cognitive rigidity ● Provide “Get ready time” with 5 minute
● Become overwhelmed with warning
sensory stimulation during ● Write # of minutes left on board
busy transitions (chairs
moving, students talking, Develop & post rules, for example:
papers & books rustling, ● Put materials away quietly
students bumping into each ● Get what you need for next activity
other) ● Move quietly & quickly
● Keep hands & feet to self
Develop Consistent Students with ASD may: ● Clearly define procedures & routines in the
Classroom ● Forget what to do & then classroom
Procedures anxiety increases ● Examples; bathroom break, sharpening
● Do better with clear routines pencils, end of day, getting a drink, lining
up, etc.
Students with ASD need Social Opportunities
Strategies This strategy is important Suggestions for the Classroom and
because School
Identify Student Students with ASD may: ● Give student a classroom job that highlights
Strengths ● Have significant strengths in his/her area of strength
academic areas, memory, ● Promote acceptance and belonging by
problem-solving, etc. stretching the definition of “normal social
behaviours”
Support During Students with ASD may: ● Open up your classroom for these students
Lunch ● Prefer the company of adults to have a safe-space
and not peers ● Set up a job for the student right after
● Not know how to join in finishing lunch
conversation with others
● Become overwhelmed with
noise, smells, and activity
Support During Students with ASD may: ● Some students may need breaks from
Recess or Free Time ● FInd recess very stressful socialization
● Not have the skills to join and ● Develop free-time clubs (chess, etc.)
engage in conversation with ● Select several recess “buddies” who
peers volunteer to help the student get started in
● Be inflexible and cannot go a recess game
“with the flow”
● Get overwhelmed with the
physical, social, and
emotional requirements of
free-time
Increase Peer Students with ASD may: ● Explicitly teach the skills of how work with a
Interactions in the ● Be unwilling to work with partner and use pair activities
Classroom partners or in groups (Think-Pair-Share, Turn to Your Neighbour,
● Not understand the “hidden Prediction Pairs, etc.)
rules” about group work ● Consider who would be a good partner for
● Unable to read subtle the student with ASD (i.e. patient tolerant
nonverbal cues from partners of a different learning and social style)
or member of a group ● Explicitly teach students how to work in a
● Be rigid about the assigned group
task ● Consider what might be the best job for the
● Dominate discussion student with ASD (for example, a student
because of limited who struggle with handwriting would not
awareness of others be a good notetaker)
Students with ASD need Emotional and Behavioural Support
Strategies This strategy is important Suggestions for the Classroom and
because School
Support Students with ASD may: ● Focus on student’s strengths and find ways
Self-Esteem ● Be left out of social to let peers recognize these areas of
interactions strength (i.e. student who is excellent in
● Unaware of how students math becomes the math helper/expert)
“see” him/her ● Catch student in positive moments
● Use specific words to define positive
behaviour (“you really listened to those
directions”)
Support Compliance Students with ASD may: ● Use language that explains the “why” of the
● Appear rude or disrespectful, situation
but may not understand ● Use your classroom rules to redirect
● Need explicit instruction on ● Always think Prevention (remove student
what to do in certain from difficult situations, get support from
situations your classroom routine and visuals, redirect
● Need reminders about how the student, take a sensory break)
the rules apply to them ● Don’t get into power struggles (You will
● Struggle with transitions lose!)
● Have a limited awareness of
his/her own
actions/behaviours
Cope with Rigidity Students with ASD may: ● Implement a “Question Rule”; set a clear
● Ask the same question over rule about how many questions a student
and over can ask in a given period of time
● Get “stuck” and be unable to ● Use the classroom schedule to get them
move beyond the issue back on track
Cope with Emotions Students with ASD may: ● Model and teach calming strategies (i.e.
● Have very limited ability to take deep breaths, squeeze fidget items)
regulate his/her emotions ● Prompt students to take a “time away” for
● Become very anxious when calming (not a punishment)
things don’t go as they ● Acknowledge upsetting emotions, “I can
expect see you are frustrated with this…”
● Dwell on past experiences
and struggle to let go of past
“wrongs”
Cope with Difficult Students with ASD may: ● Meltdowns can be a result of the cumulative
Behaviour ● Seem to meltdown for no effect of different factors
(Outbursts and apparent reason ● Inhibit your natural response to talk; if you
● Be unable to explain why want to communicate something, write it
Tantrums)
he/she had a meltdown, down
especially in the moment ● If you need to talk, use slow speech
● Struggle to understand the ● Be calm; monitor your tone of voice and
perspective of others body language
● Act impulsively without ● Talke with the student later, don’t ask
thinking questions
● Engage in ritualistic, ● You may need to compromise, it’s not about
repeated or obsessive winning
behaviours
Support Work Students with ASD may: ● Catch the student when they are on-task;,
Completion ● Get “stuck” due to cognitive don’t wait until they are not working to
rigidity interact
● Show little interest in ● Develop a work completion chart to check
“pleasing people” (teachers, off tasks as they are completed
parents) for good grades ● Negotiate order of completion
● Be bored with grade-level ● Consider whether handwriting demands are
academic work interfering with completion; allow work
● Be unable to organize self to processing softwares
get work done ● Provide organization supports, such as
● Struggle with “whole” and graphic organizers, checklists, outlines,
over-focuses on the details skeleton notes
● Model calendar keeping and list making
● Consider technology such as laptop, phone,
etc.
Support on-task Students with ASD may: ● Seat student with ASD near on-task peers
behaviour ● Be easily distracted by inner ● Allow student to use buddies for help
thoughts or sensory ● Watch for signs of student losing
sensitivities concentration
● Be overloaded with sensory ○ Increased movements
stimulation ○ Facial expressions
● Be stressed and withdraw ○ Vocalizations
into inner world ● Redirect off-task behaviour before it
● Lack organizational skills escalates:
● Overfocus on details and be ○ Take a note to the office
unable to “see” the whole of ○ Clean the whiteboard
the task ○ Redirect the student back to
task
Support test-taking Students with ASD may: ● Be sure to give prior notice for tests; write
● Become anxious with tests on weekly schedule so student will not be
● Be impulsive in responses surprised
● Have poor handwriting that ● Allow student to take test in RSP room or
slows down test completion elsewhere
● Break test into several parts to take at
different times
● Watch for confusing or nonliteral language
on tests
Monitor Instructional Students with ASD may: ● When nonliteral language occurs in text or
Discourse ● Struggle to understand in oral instruction/discussion, explain what
nonliteral language it means
● Not read nonverbal ● Avoid sarcasm; students will be confused
communication cues and frustrated
accurately ● Use statements, not questions
● Have limited working ● Monitor mixed messages
memory affecting response ● Slow down your rate of speech, chunk
to oral directions and directions, pause between each
instructions instructional point, write on whiteboard
● Write directions on post-it note at student’s
desk
Resources
Resource Description
Ontario Teachers’ Federation: Teacher’s A website that details teaching strategies that can be
Gateway to Special Education: implemented for any student who needs them, regardless of
https://www.teachspeced.ca/node/1 formal identification. This site serves as a collection of
resources for teachers to easily access and implement with
their students.
Autistic Self Advocacy Network The autistic self advocacy network seeks to advance the
https://autisticadvocacy.org principles of the disability rights movement with regard to
autism. ASAN believes that the goal of autism advocacy
should be a world in which autistic people enjoy equal
access, rights, and opportunities. They work to empower
autistic people across the world to take control of their own
lives and the future of their communities.
Grasp: Global and Regional Asperger A non-profit organization providing support, education, and
Syndrome Partnership programs for individuals with autism spectrum disorders
and their families.