Catching the Ball

I learned this group activity at a social thinking workshop sponsored by my school district. It is simple and profound.  It requires a group of children arranged in a circle, and a medium-sized soft ball that can be thrown and caught easily. The people in the circle look at the person holding the ball. The person holding the ball makes eye contact with someone in the circle, and says “I see (person’s name) is looking at me!” and tosses the ball to them. When the ball is caught, the communication loop is complete. A social interaction has occurred between the person who threw the ball and the person who caught the ball. Here are some of the skills that are taught: asking for someone’s attention, giving your attention, waiting until you have someone’s attention, turn taking. It teaches how the eyes initiate and power a social connection.  For little ones on the autism spectrum, this activity is a powerful way to experience the give and take of conversation and social reciprocity. Parents, you can do this as a family activity, or with a play group.

Photo: Creatista/Veer

Decreasing Disruptive Behavior with Social Stories

Now that I'm working in the school system, I've got increasing numbers of kids on my caseload who are on the autism spectrum. One issue we deal with frequently is behavior management. If the child can't sit in his or her seat and focus on a task, or work collaboratively with others, he or she isn't going to be successful in school.

Social Stories are an evidence-based intervention used frequently with children on the spectrum to reduce anxiety and teach social routines. They can also be used to manage disruptive behavior. In fact one meta-analysis shows that they could be more effective with managing disruptive behavior than with teaching pro-social behavior. For you research geeks, here is a multiple-baseline design study by Scattone, Wilczynski, Edwards, and Ryan that shows a decrease in disruptive behavior in three children with autism following the use of Social Stories in the classroom. One comment in this study that totally struck me was the one below -- children with autism typically love rules and routines, and Social Stories teach rules and routines. As a therapist I love the jujitsu of using strengths to help overcome weaknesses:

"social  stories are convenient, are unobtrusive, and may draw on a strength many children with autism demonstrate (i.e., adherence to rules/routines)."

Social Story to Reduce Hitting

I work with a student who has a tendency to hit people who come into the classroom, particularly new or unfamiliar people. Our hypothesis is that the hitting is a result of the unpredictability of someone walking into a room, and also, a means of communicating anxiety. This Social Story teaches replacement behaviors, and gives a verbal script to help turn this anxious student into a welcoming host/ess. I'll collaborate with the special ed teacher and the para-educator to implement this sweet little intervention in the classroom/speech room.