Learning while Teaching

Book Review: Asperger Syndrome: The Oasis Guide

Title: Asperger Syndrome: The Oasis Guide

Author: Patricia Romanowski Bashe

Publisher: Harmony Books

Date: 2014 (3rd rev ed)

Pages: 564

[Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of this book in exchange for my fair and unbiased review. I was in no way compensated or asked to write a favorable review. There you go.]

This book has been around long enough and been through enough iterations that I don't need to spend a great deal of time writing about it's overall contents and objectives. The subtitle says enough: "Advice, inspiration, insight, and hope from early intervention to adulthood." Straight up: this is a book about Autism Spectrum Disorders with a special emphasis on Asperger Syndrome.

The book is thorough and comprehensive and what began as an internet project eventually morphed into this present (3rd edition) volume--a veritable encyclopedia of information, resources, and insight into the world of ASDs and AS. The importance of the volume is expressed early on:

Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) state that 1 in 68 children have ASD. Autism spectrum disorder is more common than childhood cancer, Down syndrome, muscular distrophy, or cerebral palsy. Authorities who focus on AS estimate that perhaps 1 in 250 present with that profile. (15)

These are staggering and important numbers. On the one hand, it means that more and more parents need to be provided with resources and information for early intervention, treatment options, transition services, and long term stability of their children. On the other hand, it means that the public education sector needs to continue preparing educators, therapists, and intervention specialists to service the needs of this growing and demanding population of children. We need to know about evidence based practices, service providers, and available resources for our students who present with an ASD in general or AS in particular.

There is no shortage of 'experts' in the field of ASD and wading through the plethora of information, discerning between this expert and that expert, is no easy task--especially for those parents whose children are being identified earlier and earlier. As an educator, I will say this: wading through the muddled mess that is special education is a mind-job in and of itself. Having a resource at your fingertips that can provide you with a clear path and information on reliable sources is a must when first encountering a director of special education, an intervention specialist, and the handful of therapists who will work with the child.

This book will be a reliable resource for such parents. In the book you will find:

• Information about what AS looks like; although, the saying, 'If you have met one person with an ASD you have met one person with an ASD.' No two people with AS are alike. There is a lot professionals know; there is a lot they do not know.
• Discussion of various interventions including one of the most popular, Applied Behavior Analysis. Parents are cautioned to keep their children first and to ask questions--a lot of questions before undergoing any sort of treatment regimen. I found the section on OT (Occupational Therapy) especially helpful.
• There's an important chapter about medications. As always, it is important to ask a lot of questions of experts before undergoing any sort of treatment involving medication
• A significant chapter covering aspects of the child's life at school. Here, I speak as a professional. The child's life at school can be one of the most complex, draining, demanding, and beautiful experiences if the professionals working with the student are 'all on the same page' and work together. Consistency across the board and respect for the student's disorder is vital.
• Discussions about various laws and how they affect the families of children with an ASD both as young people and as the child grows into adulthood.

There is much, much more too. The book is written in a nice, conversational style and technical jargon is carefully explained making the book accessible to lay-folks--for whom it is written!--but also stimulating for the professional. I don't think this is the sort of book a person will read for pleasure, but I do think this is the sort of book that will need to be kept close. I expect the new parent will want to keep a pen handy for highlighting and underlining and perhaps also some sticky-notes for noting important websites and other resources they want to pursue.

The general education teacher will also find this a helpful volume too since many students with AS are fully integrated into the general population of students at school. This book will be a handy resource when learning about characteristics and qualities that make students with AS so unique and valuable in the classroom. The teacher will also have a helpful resource to share with colleagues and parents who have questions.

Finally, the intervention specialist will want a copy of this book too. There is a helpful index where subjects can be accessed easily and quickly and also scattered throughout the book are various resources--both online and in print--that the teacher may want to add to their library. The section between page 356 and 374 dealing with tantrums, rages, and meltdowns is essential reading for parents and professionals alike. It is this section, among others, that I will be sharing with the paraprofessionals in my own classroom.

I highly recommend this book. Even if the prevalence of ASD levels off, there will still be a large portion of the population in need of care and intervention. There will always be families and educators who need helpful and thoughtful resources in order to meet these needs. This book is as timely as ever and should be in every parent's hands. It is comprehensive and thorough yet highly accessible.

5/5 Stars

PS-I am not, necessarily, an advocate for any of the particular 'treatment' or 'therapy' options in the book. I think the book is a helpful resource for someone who is searching for direction in a maze of opinion and experts. As a special educator, I try to keep an open mind about therapies when it comes to students with an ASD or AS. Given that every child is different, I extrapolate from this that every child will respond to treatment differently. I am advocate of whatever works. And every parent needs to follow their own heart, their own medical professional's expert advice, and be patient with their child. There is beauty in the uniqueness of every child with AS and it is my hope that every parent will see this beauty and choose what is best for their child and their family. The book is a guide and it should be taken as that.

Book Review: Autism Breakthrough

Title: Autism Breakthrough

Author: Raun K Kaufman

Publisher: St Martin's Press

Year: 204

Pages: 341 (e-book)

Autism Treatment Center of America

Autism Breakthrough: Additional Content

Autism Treatment Center of America: Facebook

The Son-Rise Program: Blog

[I am required by FCC law to inform you that I received a free e-copy of this book in exchange for my fair and unbiased review. I hope you feel better now.]

 According to the Facts about Autism page at Autism Speaks, autism affects nearly 1 in 68 children on earth. Here are some additional stats:

• Autism now affects 1 in 68 children and 1 in 42 boys
• Autism prevalence figures are growing
• Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.
• Autism costs a family $60,000 a year on average
• Boys are nearly five times more likely than girls to have autism
• There is no medical detection or cure for autism

These are startling statistics and should awaken anyone who reads them to the fact that Autism is a serious medical condition that desperately needs to be addressed from the highest levels of authority to the lowest, in churches, synagogues and mosques, and in nuclear and extended families. To put a fine point on this: as someone who works with students who have an autism spectrum disorder, I welcome research, interventions, and ideas from any place I can get them.

These statistics are even more startling when the field is narrowed to the 1 in 42 boys and boys are 5 times more likely than girls to have autism. It seems as though every day there is a new statistic appearing in the news about autism. So I'm not sure, honestly, what to do with some of the information that I, as a trained professional, read on a daily basis. In the statistics above, Autism Speaks states fairly confidently that 'there is no medical detection or cure for autism.' Yet on page two of Autism Breakthrough Kaufman states unequivocally: "Children on the autism spectrum are capable of great change including recovery" (2).

So what is one to do with such disparate points of view? Is it a matter of merely splitting the hair of difference between the words 'recovery' and 'cure'? Is it merely a matter of having super-human parents who love their children into some sort of neurotypical wholeness? Is it merely a matter of having enough faith to distrust what medical science has told us, what scholars (in the sense of peer-reviewed writing) have written to us, and what most advocacy groups teach us about autism spectrum disorders and going off in direct and absolute contravention of these specialists to do our own thing--a sort of 'damn the torpedoes' kind of approach?

These are some of the thoughts that were swirling around in my head by the time I finished reading Autism Breakthrough. Another significant collection of thoughts I had was this: Suppose I am a parent whose child has just been diagnosed with an ASD. Suppose I have no idea what to do, where to go, or what steps to take? Suppose I have two sets of information in my hands. One set of information says that my child can recover, the other states it is a lifelong condition. One set of information is from the collected works of established medical science, the other set is from an outlier. One set gives me hope and so does the other. What on earth am I supposed to do?

Here, I think, is the crux of the issue with Autism Breakthrough: I think there is a huge difference between selling a set of interventions and selling a cure (or recovery). At the end of the day, I have no problem accepting that what is written in this book might very well be a set of outstanding interventions for children (or adults) on the Autism Spectrum Disorder. As I noted above: I work with students on the ASD every single day and I happily welcome any and all interventions that might help my students and/or their families. Nevertheless, I think it is somewhat irresponsible to suggest that what is contained within the book could lead to a 'recovery' or a 'cure.' I think it's even worse when said 'recovery' is set over and against accepted, evidence based practices such as applied behavior analysis. There are many, many interventions that may prove helpful to families facing an autism diagnosis and I think each family will have to explore these options and decide, along with their doctor, which interventions are appropriate for their situation.

Now, on to a couple of finer points of criticism and praise.

First, there is undoubtedly a level of enthusiasm in this book that stands in stark contrast with what one normally reads concerning autism. If points could be awarded based on enthusiasm alone, I would rate this book very highly. The last chapter of the book deals with attitude and I happen to agree that attitude is extremely important when dealing with any disability. The author of the book works very hard to make certain that people are given hope and encouragement in the face of what might otherwise be devastating news from a doctor. I tell my parents this all the time: have hope! We will work through this difficulty together.

Second, at the end of every chapter there are links to additional online resources. There are additional papers, charts, and resources that will provide extremely helpful to the family needing to track behaviors or 'stims' or other issues their child may be experiencing. Collecting data is a significant factor when determining interventions for children and I found the extra resources helpful and appropriate.

Third, there is an extensive resource list at the end of the book that I also found helpful--especially if, like me, one wants to do additional research or quantify the author's points. Additionally, there is a rather long 'academic' paper at the end if parents or professionals wish to verify the validity of the author's assertions by examining peer-reviewed research. I appreciated the resource list and the paper, but I found it disappointing that there were no footnotes or end notes contained within the book itself. Anecdotes are fine, but it seems to me that having one's work verified, having anecdotes verified, is extremely important when dealing with people's lives. (I get that it is a popular work and that bulking it up with footnotes or end notes might not be the easiest thing to do, but this is offered to us as a serious work, about a serious condition, and is purporting that certain interventions might possibly lead to a recovery. In my opinion, references to validate such assertions, even the anecdotal assertions, should be provided.)

Now for a couple of minor criticisms--aside from what I have already mentioned in the above sections.

First, as noted above, autism spectrum disorders affect boys nearly five times more than girls, yet throughout this book the author persisted in using feminine pronouns (she, her) when talking about children. It's a small thing, but it was extremely annoying for precisely that point: autism affects more boys than girls. Yes, we live in a world where we need to be sensitive to everyone's concerns, but I just wonder who the author was writing to? In this respect, it's not a small thing. If the majority of children on the AS are males, then stick with using pronouns that are appropriate to the population being addressed.

Second, throughout the book the author continually referred to autism as a 'social-relational disorder' (33: "What is incredible is not that we would use this model, but that it is still controversial to use it with children whose main challenge is creating relationships!" 108, etc). Defining autism as merely an inability to socialize or relate seems to me a disservice to those who are actually on the autism spectrum. I could not find autism defined as a social-relational disorder anywhere except this book. I am no way denying that social-relational issues are part of the peculiarity of autism, but I am saying that it is not the defining characteristic of autism. Defining an autism spectrum disorder as merely a social-relational disorder seems to deny the other salient points that medical research has brought to our attention concerning ASD (I would gladly stand corrected if someone directs me to such a definition in a recognized medical, behavioral, psychological peer-reviewed journal.) If autism is merely a problem creating relationships then I am certain the interventions will be helpful in solving some of those difficulties, but I am skeptical that it will help with all the other issues that science, and experience, has told us are neurological and/or biological. (The Autism Speaks website notes: "ASD can be associated with intellectual disability, difficulties in motor coordination and attention and physical health issues such as sleep and gastrointestinal disturbances. Some persons with ASD excel in visual skills, music, math and art." Clearly we are dealing with more that mere social-relational issues.)

As far as an intervention is concerned, I am sure the Son-Rise Program (the catalyst behind the writing of this book) is effective for some children and/or adults. There are a lot of positive and encouraging words and anecdotes contained in the book which makes the book not only an easy read, but also an uplifting book. Personally, I think some of the interventions are wonderfully conceived--I especially like the idea of 'joining' and plan to implement it, to the extent that I can, in my classroom. I  absolutely agree with the idea that we have to persist in our efforts, believe in our children, love our children deeply, a 'nonjudgmental and welcoming attitude' (249), provide them with everything they need (including, if a doctor deems it healthy and necessary, dietary restrictions), and a generally positive and safe environment where they can grow, be themselves without fear, and develop. I also agree that how we do things matters to: "We remain married to the idea that, in the therapeutic and educational setting, the only thing that matters is what we do, rather than how we do it" (254). Amen. Attitude matters--at home and in the classroom; bank on it.

I'm sure there is more to say--positively and negatively--about the book itself. I am also sure that someone is going to say it, somewhere, and at some point. My overall impression of the book is very simply this: If you have met one person on the autism spectrum, you have done just that: you have met one person. I suppose we could say that for as many people that there are on the Spectrum there might be developed an intervention. My point is that these interventions might work very well for some, they might not work for all. As with all interventions--and I think it is unfair to disregard ABA interventions out of hand as if they have never worked--Son-Rise Program needs to be investigated by each family that wishes to consider it for use. In coordination and consultation with a licensed physician, it is important that all due diligence is done in advance before any intervention is put in place. I hope the author of Autism Breakthrough would say as much himself.

As another tool in the tool belt of interventions, I think this is a worthy volume.

4/5 stars

Raising Awareness for People with an ASD

I saw these links in my Twitter feed today and thought they were important enough to repost links here.

The first deals with suicide and isolation among people with Asperger's.

When I googled the terms "suicide" and "asperger's", I was surprised at how frequently the subject seemed to be treated with confusion - why would a person with Asperger's feel driven to suicide? To me, the answer to this is obvious. The need to bond with others is a basic human need. The very definition of Asperger's is to have trouble fulfilling that need. So why is it surprising that someone with these difficulties might fall into despair?

As educators, it is important that we take time to note when our students might appear a little or a lot out of sorts. It is not always easy to help our student through difficult times, but paying attention and being aware of changes in their routine or demeanor might mean the difference between life and death. 

The second article, 15 Workplace Behaviors that Exclude, also help us see that we do need to be sensitive to people who have an ASD. Certain behaviors that we might think are innocuous might create a hostile workplace environment. The bottom  line to this article, is that we should simply be courteous. Frankly, it really doesn't matter if the person has an ASD or not, most of the behaviors the author speaks of are just plain rude. 

The third article, What Does it Mean to Have Asperger's Syndrome?, is a brief introduction of sorts to Asperger's Syndrome:

In general, people with Asperger’s generally have trouble with social interaction, communication, as well as regulation of the motor skills and sensory systems.They also can develop obsessive and compulsive tendencies, which manifest themselves in various ways.

We can look around and see that perhaps we have been just a bit unfair or unkind to people who might be on the spectrum. So as educators we need to continually raise awareness of Asperger's and Autism in order that people will be a lot kinder and slower to judge. Knowing can lead to understanding and understanding can lead to more compassionate responses towards those who are on the spectrum. 

This is one of my main 'job's as a special educator. I mean this sincerely when I say I am sometimes left flabbergasted at the ignorance of the general education teachers. I think a large part of our work is to help keep the general education teachers informed (or at bay) when it comes to our students who are on the spectrum. This in and of itself is a monumental task--one would never imagine that people so educated could be among the worst offenders when it comes to students in special education. 

Hopefully you will find something interesting in these three short posts. Again, it is important that we, as educators, continue to raise awareness and advocate for our young friends (students) who happen to be on the autism spectrum or who happen to be differently-abled. I believe it starts with us--eradicating ignorance and snuffing out the flames of discrimination. Our goal is, as always, to help out students move about in the real world as fluently, frequently, and freely as possible.  

Learning to Read Faces: A Sorting Task

Everyday, typically developing students and adults absorb and interpret thousands of pieces of data. Students in special education classes absorb these data too, but oftentimes have a great deal of difficulty interpreting their meaning. This, in turn, makes daily communication a chore for most students. Furthermore, not knowing how to interpret the data received often leads to awkward and/or embarassing social moments.

Students in my resource room, perhaps especially noticeable in students with and ASD, have deficits in communication, play, social skills and relating to others (Rao & Gagie, 2006 membership to Council for Exceptional Children may be required to access full text). A significant portion of my time is spent in developing ways to help these children communicate their needs, their feelings, their wants, their frustrations, and, in some cases, just to say something as fundamental as the ABCs or 123s. 

In response to the need to generalize an understanding of facial expressions among my students, I developed this sorting task. Originally, this task had four categories the student would sort, but in this latest iteration I chose to excise the 'shy' category given that it was too obscure. Then we went with only three categories: sad, happy, and angry as shown below. 

These three categories are at the top of the board and a line separates them. Down the columns, as you can see, are pieces of Velcro. The students attach pictures of faces to these. In the next picture, you see the faces. These faces have been cut from old magazines, shaped, and laminated in order to preserve them for many uses (we also have a bunch of extras we keep separate).

In the original design of this task, the faces were all cut to the same shape. What I found is that this was just a bit confusing at times and offered little in the way of self-correcting strategies. In this revised version of the task, we cut the faces into one of three shapes: triangle, circle, or square. These three shapes then correspond to one of the three emotional categories: sad, happy, angry. 

    

This is a very simple sorting task and costs virtually nothing to create. Any piece of cardboard will do; any face from a magazine or google search will do; and you can decide which categories you wish to use. Sometimes it is difficult to find more categories and the pictures can oftentimes be rather difficult for the students to interpret--due to their subtle nature. I work with elementary students so these three categories are easiest to find and the easiest with which to work. 

When the student is finished working with the task, simply fold it up and put it away! I use this task to help students learn the subtleties of facial expression and the varieties of ways people show happiness or anger or sadness. But I also hope that the students will learn to generalize these categories--so I'm kind of working backwards in a sense. 

It also seems important that the pictures we use are in a rotation too. So I have another bag of faces and we are always in the process of looking through magazines for more. Again, ask your librarian for magazines that are about to become garbage. It keeps them out of the landfill and they are useful for creating wonderful games. 

This is a very simple task to create, you get to recycle, and it is flexible enough that the categories can be altered or adjusted for age appropriateness.  Let me know what you think or what sort of alterations you make to improve this idea. Thanks. 

Edit: I came across an article at Psychology Today written by Lynne Soraya called Empathy, Mindblindedness, and Theogy of Mind that I found very helpful and pertinent to this blog post. From her conclusion:

In her article "Who cares? Or: The Truth about Empathy in Individuals of the Autism Spectrum," researcher Isabel Dziobek outlines her study on the subject of empathy.  Through the course of the study, more than 50 subjects on the spectrum were evaluated against neurotypical control subjects.  The results? To quote Ms. Dziobek - "More generally speaking, our data shows that people with Asperger syndrome have a reduced ability to read other peoples' social cues (such as facial expressions orbody language) but once aware of another's circumstances or feelings, they will have the same degree of compassion as anyone else."

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Recycling Play-Doh Canisters: Ordering Sizes, Matching Colors, & Sequencing Tasks

Not many of the tasks I post about here happen due to careful, calculated efforts on my part. Sometimes I am simply riffing from another idea I see. Sometimes it is out of sheer necessity. Sometimes it is pure luck. Such is the case with this task: it was pure luck that I happened to have in my classroom, stuck in the closet, three different sizes of Play-Doh canisters awaiting purpose. And a game is born. 

The canisters happened to be empty because, as it is in life, Play-Doh when played with enough is eventually left out or falls on the floor or is eaten by hungry students and thus an empty container is born. Luckily for my students, I never throw anything away that has a lid. Everything is useful. (Seriously, the smallest containers have been in my classroom since January 2012. I'm not even sure we used the fake-doh that was in the canister because my paraprofessional would not permit it. She said, "It's fake!")

So gather the Play-Doh containers, grab an empty shoe box, and sort through your box of random or leftover manipulatives and, Voila!, a sorting, ordering, sequencing task is born. 

For the most part the lid colors are the same. Only the smallest green lid differs from the two larger green canisters. There was no intent here; just what was available. I will probably rectify this at some point in the future--and if you want to use this task, you should probably just build it correctly to begin with--but for now, it is sufficient. 

You can see that the three canisters in each column are of three distinct sizes. There are also four distinct colors. You can use any colors you like, but I chose simple colors for the purpose of this task for a specific reason: there are objects inside the canisters that match the canister lids. 

Notice also that the sizes of the objects are also relative: small, medium, and large. These objects fit inside the small, medium, and large Play-Doh canisters according to color. Really, this task is about as simple as it gets. 

Below is the jumbled mess. You can start the task here by asking the students to sort the objects by size, by matching the manipulatives to the correct canister size, or matching by color. Frankly, you can have students work this task any way you like. That's what is fun about it. (I start with all the lids off the containers too just to make the mess in the box look even worse.) Differentiate the task by including less objects and/or less containers. Some students may need only one size; some may need only one color; others may need only one set of objects. Really, it's up to you. 

At the end, all the pieces fit nicely into an empty shoe box for safe and convenient storage. You may want more uniformity in your choice of objects that go inside the Play-Doh canisters. That's fine. Honestly, I should probably be more concerned about it, but again, for now, it works just the same. 

This task came together in a matter of about 10 minutes or so. It was easy to build and it will be a nice addition to our classroom curriculum. And not only that, but we have saved space in our local landfill by keeping 12 empty Play-Doh cans and a shoebox out of it. 

I would categorize this as a math task; however, we are also working with fine motor skills too. It is a chore for the students to remove and put the lids on the Play-Doh containers so they will have to work at it. I also use tasks like this for measuring what I call 'time on task.' That is, it's a long task that I want the student to work at for more than 5 minutes. 

So enjoy the task. Let me know about your use and variations on the task. I'm always happy to hear from readers. 

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Learning Addition or Multiplication Playing Games

I confess that I am not much of a math student, but that doesn't mean I do not try to be the best math teacher I can. In my multiple-disabilities, self-contained classroom, I am the students' sole source of match instruction. I take every opportunity I can to learn about math, math techniques, and ways to teach math that eschews worksheets. I work very hard for my students because they deserve my very best efforts. And math should not be boring.  

By that I mean I am always looking for new, creative, and interesting ways to teach math concepts. I recently attended a two-session math seminar hosted by our local State Support Team and featuring math professor Ky Leigh Davis from Muskingum University and learned about some fantastic tools that I can add to my toolbox. Ideas shared during that seminar inspired me to come up with my own ideas. This post is about one such idea. 

This quick math game I invented for my kids in order to learn either addition or multiplication. So depending upon which skill you want to teach, it serves both purposes. 

What you see is two separate number grids. Both grids contain the numbers 1 through 9. We intentionally mixed the colors. It is not necessary to do so, and one can use more than two colors if you like. You could use the different colors to differentiate (notice all our lower numbers are one color and the higher numbers are a different color) or simply to make the game more interesting. 

Another important aspect is to make certain the numbers are mixed up on the board. It is probably unhelpful to put the numbers in order; although, it might not matter at all. It just depends upon your preference. 

After you have assembled the two boards, laminate them. This will preserve the boards for many uses (especially since the game will be played on the floor). You can make the boards as big as you like. Ours are about 18 inches square. We also used pre-manufactured numbers as opposed to trying to write or draw them in freehand. I think it makes the game more uniform and appealing--plus, the numbers are big for those who may have visual impairments. 

After the boards are assembled, it is up to you how you will play. Again, it can be either addition or multiplication. (I suppose the game can also be used for division and subtraction, but the number boards will have to be adjusted accordingly.) Make a 'plus' (addition) sign and a multiplication sign to place in between the two boards in order to remind the students during the game what sort of math equations they will be working with. Or, as a way to vary the game: make a stack of cards that feature addition (+) and multiplication (x) signs. When a student comes up for their turn, they must choose a card. The sign on the card will determine if the student is to perform an addtion or a multiplication problem.

Now, originally, I thought about having the students throw darts at the boards in order to choose the two numbers they would add or multiply. Then I got to thinking...hmmm...Special Education...darts....nah; bad idea. So I opted for bean bags. The gist is this: the students toss the beanbags, the beanbags (or whatever you use) land on two numbers (one on each board) and the students either add them or multiply them together. (I actually got the idea from a game I played as a kid called 'Toss-Across'.)

Here's a fun variation: do both addition and multiplication. Let the student choose which calculation they wish to make and award points based on difficulty (if, in fact, you make it into a team based competition.)

This is a simple task that you can use as a group or even for individual work. The kids are learning addition facts and/or multiplication facts while playing a game. The kicker is, they are having fun and learning math at the same time. These foundational facts are so important to the students' future ability to master higher order mathematics that really this is not just as task for special education students. This is a game that anyone can use or play in any classroom, at just about any level. 

Have fun. Be sure to let me know how you use it so that I can add to my own toolbox. 

PS--this is also a great way to help the children exert some gross motor skills, practice mental math, and learn about social cooperation during game play. That's what I love about building games like this: so much can be accomplished during the course of one game. Good luck.

Cereal boxes, breakfast bars, etc: Reuse, Re-purpose, Recycle, pt 3

I love when I come across a new resource that really opens my eyes to new possibilities and my mind is stimulated to greater heights of creativity. Such was the case when I was sitting next to a stranger this past summer at a professional development seminar. She happened to be carrying around with her a copy of a book called Tasks Galore. This is a book I highly recommend not only to intervention specialists, but to teachers in general. The book is chock full of creative, hands-on, manipulative based ideas and modified curriculum tasks. Better, most of the taks and projects in the book involve re-purposing and recycling stuff that might otherwise be wasted.

For this post, I have simply expanded on an idea (found on page 51 of the book) the authors called "Seven-piece jigsaw of familiar item." The authors simply took the front of a cereal box, jig-saw cut it (rounded pieces, etc.) and made a puzzle. I like the idea, but I also thought it needed some expansion. (One of the great things about the book is that it shows a picture of a task and its use is left open to interpretation.)

I have kept the basic idea of cutting up the front of a box--in this case, cereal, breakfast bars, or even the lamination product I use--and building a puzzle. The only real difference is that I prefer to cut my boxes into geometic shapes--triangles, trapezoids, etc.--instead of jigsaw shapes. Here is an example:

Now, here is where I am going to build upon the general idea found in Tasks Galore. As important as seeing the parts of the whole and putting the whole back together is, I also want this project to be a little more useful for my older and more advanced students. So, I want them to be able to read and write about what they have just finished. Thus I developed a short paper for the students to work on after the puzzle has been completed. I have attached a file to this bog post that you can use or you can use it as a template for your own writing project. (You can find the link below.)

The puzzles can be as simple or as complex as you like them to be. When I'm using a smaller box, I tend to make the puzzle simpler. When I'm using a larger box-front I make the puzzle more complex.

I am grateful for Tasks Galore for the idea-- because it is a great idea and I will be using this as a writing task for my students. As you can tell, this also serves a vital functional task as the students are learning about products they may need one day in their life. (I included a question on the question sheet that requires the student to use the internet in order to discover the price of the product.)  I believe the only limit to this game is the amount of box-fronts you can collect, cut, and laminate. Yes, even though the box-front is typically cardboard, it is still likely to be destroyed quickly. I go ahead and laminate the pieces so that I can get more than one use out of the puzzle.

It is also serving the function of strengthening your student's fine motor skills--occupational therapy which many of our special education students participate in daily.

As you can see this is yet another way to re-purpose things that might otherwise just be discarded into a landfill. Cardboard is highly recyclable and when the laminate is added, it lasts even longer.

You can use this link Tasks Galore to access the Tasks Galore Task of the Month. You can download the question sheet here: Download Box fronts writing.

Feel free to share your ideas about the writing project that goes along with this task. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I Love Old Shoe-Boxes: Recyle, Reuse, pt 2

I am a special education teacher. It's a calling I heard late in life so I am only now, at the age of 43, learning the joys of creating curriculum and finding ways to recycle stuff that others think is junk. I love what I do: I get the educate those who have the most powerful and fragile minds all in the same body.

This means I have to be creative and energetic. I have to think as I have never thought before; quickly and while on the move. There is no time for the special education teacher to sit in his chair behind his desk. (Frankly, there's not much time for any teacher to do so, but that's another post entirely.) Worse, now that the so-called Affordable Health Care Act is beginning to affect even schools, teachers are going to be faced with less help from aids, paraprofessionals, and others in the school building. We are going to have to be creative and we are going to have to find ways to use, reuse, and recycle stuff.

So I had an old shoebox. And last year someone gave me a giant bag full of brand-new, empty, unlabeled prescription pill bottles. I knew I could use them for something, but what? Then it came to me about a week and a half ago. Below you will find several pictures of the new creation I have built for ordering numbers and also developing fine and gross motor skills for students with developmental disabilities.

My first incarnation of this game involved the use of a $6 fishing tackle box from the local Wal Mart. The box is about 1.5 to 2 inches deep and the dividers are easily moved to accomdate different configurations and/or amounts of pill containers.

I thought the number 24 would be a bit random, so I stopped at the number 20 (you can still use the other four spaces or simply remove the dividers to create a definitive stopping place). This easily fits into the domain: mathematics: operations and algebraic thinking; counting and cardinality (common core/extended standards) in the K-2 grade band.

The numbers I got at a yard sale a long time ago, the pill bottles were free, and the tackle box cost $6. But I was not entirely satisfied. This version of the task does require some fine-motor skills, believe me it is not as easy as it looks to get those bottles standing straight or putting in more bottles without knocking others over, but I was hopeful to do more with it. So I developed the next version of the task.

In this version, I have used an old shoe-box as a container for the pill bottles. The next picture gives a better idea:

Using my X-acto knife, I carefully cut 20 holes in the lid of the shoe-box--just a little smaller than the diameter of the pill bottles. This intentionally limits the task to twenty numbers. The difference here is that students will have to exert effort in order for the pill bottles to fit into the holes. Furthermore, the shoe-box was deep enough for the pill bottles to fit all the way to the bottom. You can see this in the picture below.

This is a simple task at some levels. And, to be sure, after a while the holes will have to be re-cut in another shoe-box or reinforced in some way or other. Furthermore, after a while the students may well memorize the order of the numbers--GOOD!--and the job/task may become a little dated. Still, we can always use this job for skip counting, filling in the missing number, or we can add new numbers for higher counting. The best part, though, might be that we have done a small part to keep usable resources out of the local landfills.

I have field-tested this task and it works well with students who have an ASD.

PS--one other alternative use for this task is that the lids could be removed and the student could be asked to put into the containers the amount of objects to match the number on top. One could use small objects like paper clips or even Skittles.

Traveling Circle Time

I am currently tutoring a student who has an Autism Spectrum Disorder. The student is a participant in the Autism Scholarship Program which means that he is educated at home by a professional. I work with the family to provide helpful tools they can use, I work with the student on academic and behavioral skills, write curriculum and also provide guidance on achieving IEP objectives. It is truly a worthwhile effort that I enjoy immensely.

There are times, however, when we encounter small problems. One such example is what some call 'circle time' and others call 'calendar time.' It's that time of the day when teachers engage the students in learning the days of the week, months of the year, and other such fun things. Well, when there is only one student, circle time can be rather boring; nevertheless, I did not want my student to miss out on this opportunity. So I had to develop a way to teach the various circle time elements in a one on one situation to a student with an ASD.

Out of this was born the Traveling Circle Time. Here's a picture:

As you can see in this picture, there are many elements included in this miniature version of Circle Time. Some of the elements are traditional--for example, today is, yesterday was; the add-the-number-of-the-day calendar in the center; today's weather is; and so on. Other elements are specific to our environment. One on one, we can talk about nouns, verbs, synonyms, antonyms, specific numbers and letters. Also included is a student specific category for 'how I [the student] am feeling today.' Here's another view:

Most of the elements included on the Traveling Circle Time board were produced from Boardmaker(R). It is super easy to make them, and they can be designed any way you like. I used simple, clear shapes and provided plenty of space for my student to place the 'buttons.' The buttons are incredibly easy to make using the Boardmaker(R) software (which I swear by). The various elements are simply created, printed, and glued to the tri-fold board using Elmer's Craft Bond Rubber Cement. I did not laminate the elements because they wouldn't stick as well to the board. After gluing them down, simply apply your sticky-back Velcro(R) (or another hook and loop product) in the appropriate space.

After the board is prepared, make your butttons. I did laminate the buttons because they will get a lot of use and you don't want to have to remake them every other day. In a later post, I will show you the container I use to keep all of my prepared buttons in for easy access.

The cost on this item is a little higher than I would normally like, and did not involve any recycling at all, but in the end it is worth. Boardmaker(R) is provided by my district. I prefer Scotch brand thermal laminating sheets and my trusty Scotch desktop laminator. A couple of the items (days of the week; months of the year) were found on a couple of free websites (I regret I don't recall to give them props). And the tri-fold board is $2-$3 depending upon where you buy it.

This is an excellent tool you can use to provide individualize calendar time to your students. Maybe you can even find a way to work this into your classroom setting, but at least it is useful for one on one contact. I'm actually going to build another one for other tutoring sessions and students, but it will most certainly have other elements included.

Enjoy the Traveling Circle Time. Let me know if you have other ideas for improving this task.Good luck, and enjoy!

PS-The Traveling Circle Time probably looks very dull and un-colorful. That is intentional. The students I work with are easily distracted so I limit the amount of extra-curricular decorations which only aid and abet their distractability. I keep it to the point intentionally.

Building Curriculum: Recycle, Reuse

Building Tasks: Recycling Old Stuff

Without doubt, one of the best aspects of being a teacher is that we get to make tasks (or games, or jobs, or modified curriculum). I love making up ways for my students to learn how to tell time without them having to actually stare at a clock (for example). Modifying curriculum is a way for teachers to express creativity, differentiate learning strategies, and encourage students to become lifelong learners.

Some of my best friends are my small, portable laminator, Velcro, and file folders. And I go through a lot of it. In this first post I would like to share with you a fun project I built this past week that is designed to be both a recycled project and a hands-on (if not occupationally therapeutic) for the students in my class.

The supplies needed are few: at least 6 (six) empty Lays Stax cans; one shoebox; as many different colors of construction paper as you have Stax cans; tape (shipping tape works best because it is wider); and another large section of colorful paper or tacky paper to cover the shoe box. (*You can use Pringles cans if you like. I prefer the Stax cans because they are plastic and, thus, more durable. They are also easier to clean.) Below is a picture.

The steps to creation are even simpler.

    1. Cut as many holes in the shoe box as Stax cans you will use.

    2. Cover the shoe box with tacky paper or construction paper. It really doesn't matter if the entire box is covered or not.

    3. Cover the Stax cans (after cleaning them) on the outside with a variety of colors of construction paper. For my model, I have chosen six basic colors.

    4. After the Stax cans are covered, simply insert them into the holes in the shoe box.

Voila! The project is finished. It took me between 30 and 45 minutes from start to finish. The best part is the I was able to keep six Stax cans and a shoe box out of a local landfill. It does not sound like much, but it is a start.

What can you do with this contraption? Well, you can use it for sorting: sort colors for starters. Use small colored blocks or counting bears. You can cut shapes in the lids and have the students sort shapes. You can put numbers on the lids and have the students place that amount of objects in the cans. You could pre-fill the canisters with objects and have the students remove the lids and count the objects. On another day, you could remove the lids and have the students toss ping pong balls into the canisters and earn points which they will have to add together.

This is a simply task that has as many applications as you can imagine. I have purposely left my first iteration of this project open so as not to limit what I can do with it. Stax cans are simple wonderful. I have also created a game I call "Subtraction Bowling" using Stax cans. That is always a great day in class. Good luck.