Raising Reading Comprehension in Asperger's & Average Kids



Asperger's kids need extra help to succeed.

Improving the Reading Comprehension of Asperger's Students' While Perfecting the Study Habits of Average Kids

Evelyn E. Smith

Ph. D in English from Texas Christian University (1995)

M.S. in Library Science, University of North Texas (2012)

Children and adults coping with Asperger's Syndrome* never completely outgrow this genetically-based learning disorder. However, direct instruction, learning how to break the parts of a reading assignment or a test into smaller, more easily-understandable parts, and taking the effort to visually map a narrative can increase their reading comprehension skills. Conversely, since autistic characteristics exist on a continuum, average students learning how to study or wishing to add details to their essays can benefit from learning some of the study tips that help Asperger's Syndrome students integrate details into a coherent whole. Even so, individuals who struggle with Asperger's symptoms will always have problems grasping the emotional content of narratives because they will never stop having problems reading social cues.

*Writers spell Asperger's with and without the apostrophe.

First some definitions are in order:

Diagnostic Criteria for 229.80 Asperger's Disorder. (2002). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Association. Retrieved from http://www.autreat.com/dsm4-aspergers.html

In 2013, the American Psychiatric Association classified Asperger's as a subcategory of autism, although educators and parents still use the terms like Asperger's Disorder, and Asperger's or Asperger Syndrome. 

Autism Spectrum Disorder. (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders(DSM-5). American Psychiatric Association: Washington, D. C. Retrieved from http://www.dsm5.org/Documents/Autism%20Spectrum%20Disorder%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf

Because Asperger's Syndrome children and adults have displayed similar behavioral traits to those with High Functioning Autism (HFA), some educational psychologists group them under a single label.

___________

A Short Bibliography of Research on Asperger's & Reading Comprehension  

Most Asperger's students do better in written

work if they can use a computer.

Researchers confirm the long-held belief that children and adults diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. can easily sound out words. However, they have trouble comprehending what they have read because they focus too much on the details, failing to understand the text's main idea. AS readers also have problems predicting what will happen next, nor can they easily relate to the emotions that the characters in a fictional narrative might display. Because they interpret text literally, they often can't grasp figurative language and fail to detect sarcasm. Analyzing the parts of a text—for example, understanding how pronouns refer back to their antecedents, and mapping concepts like setting, characters, motivations, and main ideas-helps these readers synthesize a complete narrative.

Ball-Erickson, Melissa. (2012, October 12). Effective Reading Comprehension Strategies for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders in the Elementary General Education Classroom. Master's in Education. Northern Michigan University. Retrieved from http://www.nmu.edu/education/sites/DrupalEducation/files/UserFiles/Ball-Erickson_Melissa_MP.pdf

Ball-Erickson reviews the effectiveness of seven strategies for teaching reading comprehension to Autism Spectrum Disorders students in small-group settings: Her thesis emphasizes 1) using direct instruction, chunking information into easily-understandable parts, 2) accessing assistive technology and Computer Assisted Instruction, 3) grouping students in pairs, thus providing Class Wide Peer Tutoring (CWPT), 4) activating prior knowledge, 5) modeling instruction while thinking aloud, 6) asking students to retell a story or page in a text, and 7) allowing students to use as many of their senses as possible by using multi-sensorary graphics (2012, October 12, p. 4).

Educators group ASD readers into three categories, according to their strengths and weaknesses in understanding a text:

1. Text Bound ASD readers* pay too much attention to small details, but they can't interpret the text's overall message.
2. Strategic ASD readers can easily answer explicit and implicit details, but they have difficulty predicting what will happen next and can't relate emotionally to a narrative.
3. Imaginative ASD readers rely primarily on visual cues to understand concepts and have problems understanding syntax, semantics, and the sue of prepositions.

           (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. 9)

*Ball-Erickson uses the term “comprehenders”.

ASD readers struggle with internalizing these meta-cognitive strategies necessary for reading comprehension:

• Monitoring what they have read for meaning;
• Using and creating schema (for building a framework for learning);
• Asking questions (about the text as they read);
• Determining importance (grasping main ideas);
• Making inferences (applying ideas about specific instances to general categories);
• Understanding sensory and emotional imagery (discerning figures of speech and sarcasm);
• Synthesizing material (summarizing and combining different concepts.

(Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. 11)

Main-streamed ASD students can successfully comprehend text when instruction employs a variety of strategies:

• Direct Instruction: A fluent adult reader briefly analyzes the concept being taught, then he or she breaks it down into a series of small steps (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. 17).
  
  
• Assistive Technology and Computer Assisted Instruction: Computer software programs prove particularly effective in providing visual cues for making inferences, distinguishing relevant information, and determining cause and effect (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p 19).
  
  
• Class Wide Peer Tutoring (CWPT): Pairing good readers with students who need help increases correct reading responses (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. 22).

Activating Prior Knowledge: Telling stories based on personal experience or connect a reading passage with a well-known TV show or movie establishes connections that help readers make inferences. Thus, reading instruction relies on the KWL model of instruction:

• What the Students Knows
• What the Student Wants to Know
• What the Student Has Already Learned

(Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, para. 22-23)

• Thinking Aloud: As an accomplished adult reader voices his or her thoughts, he or she models meta cognitive comprehension strategies for the students (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. p. 23-24).
  
  
• Retelling: ASD students apparently responded better when asked to retell a story rather than when they are asked specific questions about the story (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. p. 23-24).
  
  
• Multi-sensory graphics: Manipulative teacher aids help ASD students understand complex concepts (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. 24).

Results and Analysis Relative to the Problem: No single strategy works all the time for all problem readers (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. 27).

Gately, Susan E. (2006). Facilitating reading comprehension for students on the autism spectrum. Instruction and Student Outcomes. Teaching Exceptional Children, 40(3) 40-45. Retrieved from http://www.curriculumconnection4sped.com/uploads/1/2/6/4/12648571/susan_gately_reading_comp_article.pdf

Researchers investigating the reading comprehension of children with Asperger's and other high-functioning autism spectrum disorders have found that they have poorer silent reading skills than oral reading abilities. Moreover, HFA students display “significant differences between factual and higher order, inferential comprehension (Gately, 2006, p. 40). In other words, these readers can't infer what will happen next or understand the emotions that the narrative's characters feel. This is because AS and HFA readers have trouble integrating language social understanding, and emotional intent perhaps because they focus on the details instead of grasping a passage's main idea (Gately, 2006, p. 40). These learning disabled readers have trouble determining what others think and thus have difficulty detecting deception and understanding metaphors, sarcasm, jokes, and irony (Gately, 2006, p. 41). Accordingly,, this inability to grasp spoken language in context leads to poor reading comprehension skills when trying to recognize the emotions the characters are feelings and determine their motivations (Gately, 2006, p. 41).

Strategies for Higher Order Reading Comprehension Skills

Strategies for improving higher order reading comprehension skills include priming background knowledge (building on what the readers already knows), taking picture walks, using visual maps, listening to and participating think aloud sessions, pairing off to do some reciprocal thinking, understanding the narrative's text structure, using goal-structure mapping, emotional thermometers, and reading or watching social stories to discover the characters' emotions in the short story or novel then are reading (Gately, 2006, p. 41).

Priming Primary Knowledge

The more readers know about a topic the more easily they can connect with the text, although possessing accurate knowledge about a subject is crucial (Gately, 2006, p. 41).

Picture Walks

Younger readers survey illustrations accompanying a story before reading the text, making predictions about what will happen (Gately, 2006, p. 41).

Visual Maps

Using visual maps or diagrams helps readers summarize a short story or novel, determine its setting and characters as well as the order of the action, and the problems the hero encounters (Gately, 2006, p. 42).

Think Aloud and Reciprocal Reading

Listening to a proficient reader read aloud while he or she occasionally pauses to reflect on the passage, asking questions on the text, models predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing techniques (Gately, 2006, p. 42).

In reciprocal teaching, or paired reading, pairs of students share their thoughts about the text as they read it aloud while looking for specific information about what they have read For example, they might summarizing a story, look for examples of foreshadowing in the text, or determine a passage's main idea. This reading strategy builds a scalfold on which the students can hand their understanding of the text. Along the way, they can color code, or highlight, particular aspects of the text (Gately, 2006, p. 42).

Understanding Narrative Text Structure

Readers begin by identifying the main characters of a story as subjects of a sentence and then attaching an action verb and a predicate to describe what they did. The students put the two separate parts of the story on different story strips, for example. Harry Potter (Subject) / received (Verb) a letter (Direct Object). Subsequently, readers can sequence the narrative and insert transition words between the sentence strips, thus determining how one character's actions influenced another character's actions (Gately, 2006, p. 43).

Emotional Thermometers

Color coding the text with highlighting that stands for different emotions helps AS readers understand and describe the characters' feelings and emotions; for instance, green might stand for good ideas and happy feelings and red might symbolize bad ideas and angry feelings (Gately, 2006, p. 43).

Social Stories

Social Stories found in popular books,TV shows, and motion pictures as well as those that come from teachers and parents personal experiences help AS readers relate to the stories they are reading in class (Gately, 2006, p. 44). For instance, hearing about Mom's adventures at Girl Scout camp or watching Parent Trap might help the AS reader who has never gone to camp relate to Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series.

Nation, Kate,Clarke,Paula, & Wright, Barry, et al. (2006, August 6). Patterns of reading ability in children with autism spectrum. Journal of Autism Development Disorders, 36, 911-919. doi: 10.1007/s10803-006-0130-1. Retrieved from researchgate.net [PDF]

Researchers assessed word recognition skills, non-word decoding, text reading accuracy, and reading comprehension in 32 children out of a sample size of 41 Autism Spectrum Disorder children, thus confirming the stereotype that ASD readers suffer from impaired reading comprehension while their word recognition skills fell within the normal range (Nation, 2006, August 6, Abstract, p. 911). Existing literature had already stereotyped ASD students as at risk readers because of their poor reading comprehension, although numerous examples existed of ASD children with “exceptional” reading skills (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 911). Two processes are necessary to comprehend reading: 1) the ability to identify words and 2) the ability to assembly words into messages. However, these two processes can develop out-of-step with each other (Nation, 2006,August 6, p. 911).

Reading Accuracy and Autism

Previous studies have shown that High-functioning Autistic readers are as proficient at sounding-out words as their normal-developing peers, who read at a “reasonably advanced level”, However, reading comprehension was significantly lower in children with autism than their controls matched for I.Q. level (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 912). Indeed, in some instances, autistic children had “well-developed” word recognition skills, but very impaired levels of reading comprehension—a condition known as hyperlexia (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 912). Educational psychologists theorizes that this condition may result because autistic individuals tend to be interested in a text's details rather than its overall meaning (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 912).

Researchers in this study wanted to determine the reading levels of a relatively large population of ASD children as well as to determine their separate word accuracy and reading comprehension level. At this point, they theorized that children with poor reading comprehension levels would have trouble understanding the intricacies of oral language. They also wanted to examine the difference between accurately decoding words and understanding completely what they read. Additionally, they wanted to know whether the children would be able to sound out nonsense words (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 913).

Method/Methods and Procedure

Recruiting from patients at the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Clinic in New York City, the researchers measured the reading skills of 41 autistic children between the ages of 6 and 15 with “measurable language skills, testing them in a quiet school classroom or in their home, using three tests to determine their reading accuracy and one test to determine their reading comprehension levels, These assessments took one and a half hours (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 913).

Reading Accuracy

Researchers tested the children for decoding skills, word recognition, and their ability to read interconnected text. Some questions asked for a literal understanding of a passage, but others required the children to make inferences (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 914).

Oral Language Skills

Oral language tests required the children to understand spoken language without looking at any pictures and to use their knowledge of the world to determine the meaning of the words (Nation, 2006, August 6, p 914).

Nonverbal Ability

A test that required the children to sound-out nonsense words assessed their non-verbal abilities (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 914).

Results

Since 9 of the 41 children recruited for the research were completely unable to read, they were excluded from further analysis. However, of the 32 remaining children, all tests dealing with reading accuracy—word reading, text reading, and non-word reading—all fell within the normal range, but reading comprehension scores fell below population norms (Nation, 2006, August 6, 914).

Component Reading Skills

Testing showed that reading skills are interconnected at “a statistically significant level” but the correlations were “fairly modest” in size (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 914).

Deficits in Reading Comprehension

Of the 32 children with measurable reading skills, 65 percent of the sample, 65 percent scored at least one statistical deviation below population norms while 38 percent scored two standard deviations below population norms. However, 20 percent of this sample achieved word reading levels in the normal range, and ten of the these had reading reading comprehension levels in the normal range or above (Nation, 2006, August 6, p. 915).

O'Connor, Irene & Klein, Perry D. (2004, April). Exploration of strategies for facilitating the reading comprehension of high-functioning students with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Development Disorders, 34(2) 115-127. Retrieved from http://w.aspires-relationships.com/exploration_of_strategies_for_facilitating_the_reading_comprehension_of_hf_students_with_asd.pdf

Educators have finally grasped the necessity that it's important for students diagnosed with high-functioning-autism to read well. However, successfully teaching this clientele requires instructors to employ reading interventions since while these readers easily recognize individual words, they don't necessarily comprehend what they read (O'Connor, 2004, April, p. 115). As for decoding skills, HFA readers display abilities that are adequate, but can be equal to or above average their chronological age norms (O'Connor, 2004, April, p. 116).

Most HFA readers understand varying degrees of syntax, but their grammatical ability is delayed when compared to other students since without additional help, they have trouble referring back pronouns to their antecedents. They also find it difficult to use prior knowledge to support their reading comprehension (O'Connor, 2004, April, p. 117). Thus, O' Connor and Klein hypothesize that relying on prior knowledge to understand a narrative and integrating a text that extends beyond the level of a clause might be related (O'Connor, 2004, April, p. 117).

When O'Connor and Klein tested 24 males and one female diagnosed as high-functioning autistic readers who displayed who were excellent decoded, but had low reading comprehension skills, they found that anaphoric cuing, or teaching students how pronouns refer back to certain antecedents, improved their reading comprehension scores more than the use of pre-reading questions and cloze questions did.

See these Online tutorials:

14.2 Pronouns: Identifying pronouns and Antecedents. (n. d.). Grade Seven/Bronze Online exercise bank. Pearson: Prentice Hall Writing & Grammar Online Exercise Bank. Retrieved from http://www.phschool.com/atschool/writing_grammar_08/grade7/exercise_bank/chapter14/wag7_act_14-2a.cfm

Noun/pronoun antecedent agreement—exercise 1 & 2. (n. d.). OWL Learning Center at D'Youville College. Retrieved from http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/agreement_pa_ex1.htm

Simmons, Robin L. (2015). Pronoun Agreement Exercise. Retrieved from http://chompchomp.com/hotpotatoes/proagree01.htm

 ___________

These videos also might help explain pronoun-antecedent agreement:

Antecedent Video Song official--(Mrs. Dales Grammar Jingles). (2011, March 3). Florence City Schools. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKmGblTbgu4

Ensure pronoun-antecedent agreement—Lesson 3 of 4 (Common Core Standard L. 3 1F). (2012, October 23). Learn Zillow. Retrieved from https://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=A0LEVxSO5aFUZeEAIc5XNyoA?ei=UTF-8&type=B001US400D20140827&fr=mcsaoffblock&rs=0&p=pronouns+and+antecedents+exercises+for+kids&rs=0&fr2=rs-bottom

Pronouns and Antecedents 3CNC. (2012, November 7). Retrieved from https://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=mcafee&type=B011US400D20140827&p=pronouns+and+antecedent+videos

Similarly, AS students might also benefit from sentence combining exercises:

Combining sentences through subordination. (n. d.). Owlet.letu.edu. Retrieved from http://owlet.letu.edu/grammarlinks/sentence/sentence3d3.html

Sentence structure: Combining and subordinating. (n. d.). St. Lawrence University: The Word Studio.

____________

 

Graphic novels interest poor readers in reading!

Popular Tips for Teaching Reading Comprehension to Asperger Students

Popular tips for teaching reading comprehension to Asperger students echo the findings of researchers, who caution that only a small percentage of Asperger's students reading comprehension levels match the scores of their peers. These strategies, however, help Asperger's students compete in mainstream classrooms just as they might polish the study habits, test-taking, and essay-writing skills of average students.

Benson, Shawna. (2010, March 8). How to teach reading to individuals with Asperger Syndrome. Education.com. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/teach-reading-individual-asperger-ASD/

The Dignostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4^th edition, notes that Asperger Syndrome individuals have problems dealing with social interaction—interacting with peers, interpreting non-verbal social cues, sharing different points-of-view, reciprocity give and take, understanding how parts of a narrative, process, or report fits into the whole, and managing executive functioning. Hence, they often rely on routines and rituals that often clash with contemporary instructional strategies (Benson, 2010, March 8, para. 3). Learners with AS behavioral patterns might appear to absorb automatically certain skills and information, but they need formal instruction on how to decode reading patterns, thus often necessitating remedial phonics instruction (Benson, 2010, March 8, para. 4).

Benson also furnished a chart that substitutes learning strategies specifically geared to help AS students:

• Organizing a readers' theater, encouraging AS and High Functioning Autism students as well as their classmates to act out a novel, short story, or play's dialogue. 

• Role-playing a situation or narrative;

• Formally teaching facial expressions to Asperger's students;

• Assigning partners and roles to group members before assigning group work;

• Providing a syllabus of topics to be studied to high school, middle school, and elementary school students, so students (and their parents) can plan ahead;

• Furnishing written time frames for tasks to be accomplished each class period;

• Allowing AS students extra time to accomplish certain tasks (perhaps outside of class);

• Using visual and audio reminders to signal that the class is changing activities;

• Providing AS students with folders in which to place unfinished work;

• Warning AS students ahead of time that they might be called upon;

• Placing parts of a narrative or report in a visual structure that represents the whole assignment;

• Breaking assignments into incremental, easily understood steps;

• Giving directions in writing and highlighting text on handouts;

• Using paired reading and writing partners to offer each other immediate feedback;

• Providing graphic organizer handouts like Freytag's Pyramid, which serves as a flow chart to help readers understand narratives: http://www.ereadingworksheets.com/readingworksheets/story-pyramid-graphic-organizer.html

        (Benson, 2010, March 8, para.  5)

Recommendations and Conclusion: A balance between the various types of instruction helps ASD students improve their reading comprehension skills (Ball-Erickson, 2012, October 12, p. 28).

Dominica, Sharon. (2014, October 28). Does your student with Asperger's understand what he reads. Bright Hub Education. Retrieved from http://www.brighthubeducation.com/parents-and-special-ed/96806-reading-to-children-with-aspergers/

The following techniques may increase the reading comprehension of the Asperger's student:

Teaching Words with Pictures

Try to associate words with pictures (Dominica, 2014, October 28, para. 3).

Practical Experiences Not Fantasy

Because Asperger's students have trouble grasping fantasy, they best understand practical and non-fiction topics (Dominica, 2014, October 28, para. 4). In other words, a parent or teacher needs to be on hand to ask probing questions to ensure that they have understood what they have read when confronted with some types of fiction.

Sentences & Stories with Pictures

When using pictures, make sure that they aren't too abstract (Dominica, 2014, October 28, para. 5).

Use of Social Stories & Comic Strip Conversions

Stories with realistic illustrations as well as those told with comic strip illustrations help Asperger's readers connect with the text (Dominica, 2014, October 28, para. 6). Hint: Try interesting upper elementary and middle school Asperger's readers in graphic novels.

To Teach Where, When, Why & What

Furnish short explanatory questions and answer paragraphs to help explain the text (Dominica, 2014, October 28, para. 7).  Note: Verbally, briefly quiz the Asperger's reader to determine if he or she understand the main idea or else make use of bullet outlines to summarize what he or she needs to remember.

Limit Text Per Page

Limit the amount of text the Asperger's reader sees on a single page (Dominica, 2014, October 28, para. 8). If possible, allow the student to read the text Online or cover part of the text, allowing him or her to limit the amount of text he or she sees at a time.

Hutten, Mark. (n. d.). Asperger's students and poor reading comprehension. My Aspergers Child. Retrieved from http://www.myaspergerschild.com/2010/12/aspergers-students-and-poor-reading.html

Since children diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome are visual thinkers, they struggle with some of the aspects of reading comprehension, finding it difficult to understand figurative language (Hutten, n. d., para. 2). Consequently, parents and teachers need to take the following affirmative action:

1. Focus on helping AS students understand the story's abstract words and concepts.
2. When possible, limit sentences on a page (possibly enlarging the text Online or else copying the Online text to a separate page.
3. Select stories that illustrate everyday activities.
4. When possible, use stories with illustrations (or else search Online for applicable illustrations or ask AS readers to illustrate what they have read).

(Hutten, n. d., para. 3-8)

Kluth, Paula. (2010). Tell me about the story: Comprehension strategies for students with autism. Reading Rockets. Retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org/article/tell-me-about-story-comprehension-strategies-students-autism

Many students with autism lack the communication skills “to tell about the story”. These readers may understand what they have read, but since they can't express what they know, they struggle to answer questions (Kluth, 2010, para. 2-3).

If a teacher doesn't know whether autism students have understood a passage, he or she can employ numerous strategies to allow them to demonstrate their knowledge:

• Autism [and Asperger's] students need plenty of wait time to respond;
• A teacher might ask the question verbally while also putting it in written form;
• He or she might allow AS students to write out their answers, or circle the correct multiple-choice answer.
• Some students respond best if the teacher asks the question in a different accent or uses a prop in the lesson.

(Kluth, 2010, para. 4)

If autism students are completely unable to answer questions, teachers might ask them to draw pictures, point to the correct answers, sign or pantomime an answer, make a diorama, or create a collage or painting to illustrate their knowledge of a narrative (Kluth, 2010, para. 5). However, even if these options are unable to elicit a recognizable response to a reading passage, teachers might determine whether students exhibit a response by a change in behavior (Kluth, 2010, para. 6).

Most autism students, however, need direct instructional support in making predictions, visualizing events, identifying the author's purpose, and separating a text's main ideas from the details (Kluth, 2010, para. 7). Thus, the following comprehension strategies may improve the comprehension skills of autism students:

Build Background Knowledge

• Help AS students create [emotional and personal] connections with what they have read:
• Brainstorm, writing down ideas that summarize the text;
• Share personal experiences helping AS readers connect with a topic
• Ask questions about the topic: Make connections between the topic and the students' own experiences, using movies and books related to the text.
• Mainstreaming Aspergers' and High-Functioning Autism students builds background knowledge.

(Kluth, 2010, para. 13-14)

Think Aloud

Teachers in a whole class format might think aloud while reading a text to a class, thus modeling reading comprehension strategies, asking questions, explaining inferences, determining the importance of different parts of the text, and connecting the text with all the students' background knowledge. Meanwhile students follow along while the teacher reads the text, Teachers can also write down their thoughts as they verbalize them (Kluth, 2010, para. 15-17). Of course, these thinking aloud strategies also work with individual students in tutorial sessions.

Drama

Teachers can also have students act out parts of a narrative. While elementary teachers are most likely to use this reading comprehension strategy, middle school and high school teachers have also used it effectively. Different types of drama, such as dramatic readings or full-story performances, work best for different genres (Kluth, 2010, para. 18-20). Note: AS students might also benefit from attending live performances or participating in Little Theater productions.

Reciprocal Teaching

Students help each other understand what they have read as pairs of students summarize, ask each other questions, clarify the passage and predict what will happen as they take turns assuming the teacher's role (Kluth, 2010, para. 21). Once students with autism are comfortable performing the teacher's role, the teacher shifts from directly instructing the class to monitoring everyone's progress and giving feedback. Students with [high-functioning] autism, however, may need this teaching strategy modeled more than once (Kluth, 2010, para. 22-23).

Retelling

Since some students are uncomfortable responding to question/answer formats, they may best evidence their reading comprehension by retelling a story in their own words after they have read it silently or listened and followed along while a teacher read it aloud. While the students are doing this, they might also draw pictures or take notes that will help them retell the story aloud. The teacher first models this strategy or else has students model retelling a text. The teacher might also ask students to look for main ideas and specific details when retelling the story. Students can draw while retelling a text, use photos or clip art to illustrate the retelling, or else use a graphic map or organizer to aid in the retelling. Students may also work in pairs or small groups (Kluth, 2010, para. 24-25).

Mitchell, Sharon. (n. d.). Weak reading comprehension. Reading Comprehension. Autism Help Home. Retrieved from http://www.autismsite.ca/html/reading_comprehension.html

Mitchell furnishes some great ideas on helping learning-disabled readers become master readers even if many of the links she has furnished no longer work. Thus, this Web page has substituted similar links:

While teachers and parents need to build on AS students' current strengths, they must also ensure that struggling readers understands what they have read, for students who stumble over decoding a passage, often loose its meaning (Mitchell, n. d., para. 2-3). Tutorials, for example, might have AS students read aloud while an instructor points out the meaning of commas, periods, and questions (Mitchell, n. d., para. 4).

Teachers and parents also need to determine whether or not struggling readers can pick out patterns in a story or report, analyze, synthesize, and predict complex ideas. In other words, what learning skills in Bloom's Taxonomy has he or she mastered? (Mitchell, n. d., para. 5). Of course, it's crucial for all students to master the lower levels skills before moving on to the higher ones.

See:

Garland, Stacia. (2011, May 3). Bloom's Taxonomy: Critical thinking skills for kids. Exquisite Minds. Retrieved from http://www.exquisite-minds.com/idea-of-the-week/blooms-taxonomy-critical-thinking-skills/

It's also important to determine how each struggling reader deals with figurative language, rhyme, and meter (Mitchell, n. d., para. 6). Videos play out in the minds of most “good readers” while they are reading a work of fiction or listening to a figurative poem, but those students diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders do best when the text also furnishes outside visual cues.

See:

• VISUALIZING & VERBALIZING for Language Comprehension & Thinking. (n. d.). Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes. Retrieved from http://www.lindamoodbell.com/programs/visualizing-verbalizing.html
  This subscription program uses graphics and retelling techniques to emphasize important reading comprehension concepts (Mitchell, n. d., para. 6)

Even Asperger's students who appear “highly verbal” often have weak language processing skills so regularly incorporating drawing assignments and concept maps in their lesson plans helps them grasp otherwise difficult concepts (Mitchell, n. d., para. 7). Visual reminders also help students write detailed, on topic essays.

See:

• Bartlett, Krista. (n. d.). Five paragraph essay template. Ms B's Radical Website. Retrieved from http://kristabartlett.weebly.com/uploads/3/9/0/8/3908568/essaytemplate.pdf
  This is similar to the box outlin that this writer used as a middle school Writing Across the Curriculum teacher 25 years ago as well as when she taught remedial rhetoric and composition at the college level during the 1990s.
• Bubbl.us. (2014). LKCollab, LLC. Retrieved from https://bubbl.us/
  Try out this Website with five free trials. After that, a subscription might prove helpful for older students.
• Concept maps. (2014). Reading Rockets. WETA Public Broadcasting. Retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/concept_maps
  Reading Rockets offers some easily understandable concept maps.

Using a story grammar approach, the Asperger's students might group the aspects of a story by setting, characters, problem (or main idea), and what will happen next (or foreshadowing) (Mitchell, n. d., para. 10).

A quick survey of Mitchell's concept mapping software programs found two free-trial software programs that also allow users to organize ideas visually and look like they are comparably easy to use:

• Kidspiration. (2014). Inspiration Software, Inc. Retrieved from http://www.inspiration.com/Kidspiration
• By far the easiest concept mapping tool to use, Kidspiration claims to strengthen reading and writing skills and to build understanding of math concepts.
• Smart Draw. (2014). SmartDraw, LLC. Retrieved from http://www.smartdraw.com/specials/ppc/smartdraw.htm?id=104867
• High school and college students might appreciate using this visual tool.

(Mitchell, n. d., para. 11)

While thinking about thinking, or meta-cognition, comes naturally to many good readers, this reflection doesn't come all that easily for kids with Asperger's, ADHD, and other neurological disorders, so this checklist might help guide them through their reading assignments:

See also:

Thompson. (n. d.). Metacognitive Checklist. GDHS English. Retrieved from http://www.gdhsenglish.com/thompson/assets/pdfs/ENG3U1%20pdf%27s/Frankenstein/Metacognitive_Checklist.pdf

(Mitchell, n. d., para. 12)

Although college freshman composition students are the intended audience of this checklist, parents and teachers might simplify this list so that it fits the needs of elementary and middle school students, perhaps asking questions from one section of the list at a time.

____________

Asperger's individuals are visual thinkers.

Understanding Asperger's Kids' Thinking & Behavior: Some Problems & Some Solutions

Effectively teaching reading comprehension to Asperger's Syndrome students also requires teachers and parents to understand how Asperger's students think and why they behave the way they do. While high-functioning autistic students may in time became highly successful in fields that pay lots of attention to detail, they must always deal with a learning disability that hampers their ability to intuit social cues and fail to focus on the big picture.

  Addendum

January 3, 2015

Prigg, Mark. (2015, January 2). Are Pets the key to treating autism? Researchers say children with ets have far better social skills. Daily Mail. Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2895069/Are-PETS-key-treating-autism-Researchers-say-children-pets-far-better-social-skills.html

Researchers at the Research Center for Human Interaction at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Missouri have found that autistic children with better have better social skills than those that don't have them (Prigg, 2015, January 2, para. 2). Moreover, “When pets are present in the classroom, children talk and engage more with each other (Prigg, 2015, January 2, para 8). If this is true, wouldn't Asperger's and High Functioning Autism children benefit from regular classroom and library visits of therapy dogs?

Laube, Gloria. (2014, December 16). A dog in the library.  Library Dogs. Retrieved from http://www.librarydogs.com/

Therapy Dogs International. 2015). Retrieved from http://www.tdi-dog.org/OurPrograms.aspx?Page=Libraries

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Grandin, Temple. (2001, December). Genius may be an abnormality: Educating students with Asperger's Syndrome or High Functioning Autism. Indiana Resource Center for Autism. Retrieved from http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/index.php?pageId=598

Temple Grandlin, who has succeeded despite her Asperger's Syndrome diagnosis, argues that only intellectually satisfying work makes life meaningful” for individuals with Asperger's or HFA (2001, December, para. 2-4).

Continuum of Traits

A continuum of personality and intellectual traits ranging from normal to abnormal separate those individuals with AS or HFA behaviors from the general population (Grandlin, 2001, December, para. 5). AS and HFA have a strong genetic basis since researchers have discovered that two-thirds of all families with a HFA child have either a first or second degree relative who has exhibited AS behaviors (Grandlin, 2001, December, para. 7). 

Genius is an Abnormality

Children and adults who excel in one subject, like math, often have problems learning other subjects (Grandlin, 2001, December para. 9). Medical studies have also linked manic depression with creativity while the mathematical gifted are also often near-sightedness and have an increased susceptibility to allergies (Grandlin, 2001, December, para. 10). Many engineers and computer programmers also display a high incidence of AS or HFA traits (Grandlin, 2001, December, para. 11).

A Web page from the United Kingdom also cautions readers that Asperger's diagnosed individuals who make it to college must still cope with learning disabilities caused by this genetically-inherited condition.

Guidelines for teaching students with Asperger Syndrome in further education colleges. (n. d.). National Autistic Society [United Kingdom].

The National Autistic Society cautions that Asperger's and High Functioning Autism problems continue into adulthood:

Staff need to understand that a “triad of [autistic] impairments”--social communication difficulties, social interaction problems, and failure to use social imagination—as well as AS specific traits can influence AS young adults' behavior (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 1-4).

Characteristics Specific to Aserger Syndrome

AS college and university students may [still] exhibit language peculiarities, self-impose rigid rules and routines, have problems reading non-verbal cues, be clumsy, have problems making friends, and obsess over overwhelming interests (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 5).

Autistic spectrum disorders evidence rigid thinking and the inability to cope with change, so young adults with AS function better in highly-structured situations (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 6), so even a little change in a routine can cause stress, upsetting them. Thus, instructors need to remember that change needs to be gradual, thus keeping variations in a class routine to a minimum (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 7—8).

Everyday Considerations: Teacher as Positive Role-Model

Teachers dictate their class's style of communication, indicating accepted levels of behavior as well as the students' responses and attitudes, so if an instructor's sarcasm or ridicule indicates that poking fun at someone is okay, it becomes “open season”. Conversely, a professor's patient and understanding behavior can set the classroom norm (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 10-12).

Who should be told about the [AS or HFA] diagnosis?

This very personal decision should be left up to individual students to make after careful thought (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 13).

What problems may occur within the teaching setting?

Group Work

AS students may find group work stressful, for they have problems empathizing with others. Certain members of the group or a staff member may therefore need to step in and act as mediators to ensure that the AS student understands what others in a group expect of him or her (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 14).

Lack of Comprehension

Figurative language may confuse AS students, who simultaneously feel embarrassed and reluctant to admit that they don't understand a remark. AS individuals often use coping mechanisms, like humor, to cover up this problem. The instructor [or another student acting as a mentor] at this point can step in to interpret what another person has said (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 15).

Lack of Empathy

Educational psychologists refer to the AS individuals' inability to show empathy as a lack of “Theory of Mind” (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 16). When they show a disregard for others' feelings, an instructor or colleague therefore needs to quietly and sincerely tell them what effect their words or actions have had, or else they might not make this connection on their own (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 16). Also, because AS individuals have trouble interpreting nonverbal parts of a conversation as well as understanding the facial expressions that often accompany sarcasm, the difference between what they know and what they think their audience knows may also result in bruised feelings and misunderstandings (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 17—18).

Problem with Motivation

Most students apply themselves to learning a course's entire curriculum, including parts of it they don't like, but AS students may focus only on what they enjoy doing, sabotaging their own changes of success (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 10).

Distress Caused by Lack of Information

Detailed information reassures autism spectrum individuals (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 20).

Social Chameleons

AS individuals are good at blending in when they participate in familiar situations with predictable events; but when things go wrong, they reveal themselves as individuals coping with High-Functioning Autism (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 21). 

A Final Caveat

No two individuals with Asperger's or Autism act in the same manner (National Autistic Society, n. d., para. 22). 

See also:

Roome, Deborah. (2011). Asperger's occupations: Embarking on a successful career. Healthguideinfo.com. Retrieved from http://www.healthguideinfo.com/aspergers-syndrome/p110668/

Careers that are Asperger's friendly—like engineering, computer programming, accounting, and library cataloging--tend to concentrate on lots of details. 

Hutten, Mark. (2013, February). 70 tips and tricks for educating students with Aspergers/High Functioning Autism. My Aspergers Child. Retrieved from http://www.myaspergerschild.com/2013/02/70-tips-tricks-for-educating-students.html

 Psychologist and family therapist Mark Hatten identifies classroom characteristics that promote academic success in Asperger's and High Functioning Autism students: Individualized instruction, interesting lessons, positive reinforcement, predictability, short working periods, small teacher-student ratios, and lots of structure (2013, February, para. 1). Ideally, the teacher should be consistently firm, possess a sense of humor, understand and apply a host of behavior management strategies workable with autistic spectrum students, and be patience and warn while showing high academic expectations as he or she continuously monitors AS students' work (Hatten, 2013, February, para. 2). That's not to say that these quick tips won't work with other students as well.

Language comprehension/auditory processing difficulties. (n. d.). Special Ed.US.
Retrieved from http://www.specialed.us/autism/asper/asper12.html

Asperger's Syndrome individuals interpret auditory information literally and concretely, for they have trouble understanding figurative languages. Additionally, AS learners may need more wait time than other students to respond to questions before responding (Special Ed, n. d., para. 1).

Language Comprehension/Auditory Processing—Intervention Strategies

• Keep auditory prompting to a minimum,, providing visual cues;
• Give AS listeners enough time to respond to questions.
• Provide written [and perhaps illustrated rules], so AS students can comply with with rules and turn in assignments;
• Write auditory instructions on a dry erase board;
• Provide concrete explanations as necessary, explaining figurative language and idioms by furnishing visual cues.
  (Special Ed., n. d., para. 2)

Sensory Process Difficulties

Hypersensitive (over responses) and hypo-sensitive (under responses) to sensory stimuli limit AS individuals' ability to focus their attention over longer time spans (Special Ed., n. d., para. 3).

Sensory Processing—Intervention Strategies

• Allow AS students to wear head phones as necessary to block out distracting noise;
• Permit AS students to use headphones to listen to calming instrumental music [without words];
• Warn AS students ahead of time of any impending fire and tornado drills.
• Put in place a “daily sensory diet” of calming and kinesthetic activities:

• Deep pressure (pressure touch) activities: firm hugs, massage;
• Rhythmic vestibular stimulation: swinging, rocking in a rocking chair, bicycling, jumping, bouncing;
• Proprioceptive stimulation: sitting on a t-stool or therapy ball to increase focus and attention.

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 4 & 5)

See also:

Chiappi, Jacqueline. (2012, January 17). Take advantage of the theory of multiple intelligences. Bright Hub Education. Retrieved from http://www.brighthubeducation.com/teaching-elementary-school/5836-use-multiple-intelligences-activities-in-your-classroom/

Gris, Susan. (2013, March 20). The power of movement in teaching and learning. Education Week Teacher. Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2013/03/19/fp_griss.html

Wile, Elise. (2014). Kinesthetic learning games. Demand Media. Retrieved from http://www.ehow.com/info_8185695_kinesthetic-learning-games.htm

Although elementary education teachers take advantage of kinesthetic learning games and vary teaching activities to appeal to students with different learning strengths, secondary teachers can take advantage of these theories as well, breaking the class into segments by their use.

Difficulty Representing Language Internally

AS listeners often “blurt out” thoughts as factual information, thus appearing to be lacking in tact (Special Ed., n. d., para. 6).

Representing Language Internally—Intervention Strategies

• If necessary, encourage AS students to whisper their thoughts, but encourage a “think it, don't say it” strategy;
• Role play, use audio/visual taping, and social scripting to teach Asperger's children and teenagers how to identify which thoughts are best unspoken.
  (Special Ed., n. d., para. 7)

Insistence on Sameness

AS individuals become quite anxious when facing the unknown and unpredictable.

Characteristics:

 Consider the following personality traits of Asperger's individuals:

• AS individuals rely on rigid egocentric perceptions to give order to their existence;
• AS individuals habitually adhere to internalized rules based on previous experiences;
• They need to experience closure when finishing a particular activity before moving on to a new one.
  (Special Ed., n. d., para. 8)

Insistence on Sameness—Intervention Strategies

• Maintain a predictable classroom or home environment with minimal transitions;
• Use a visual schedule alerting AS children and teenagers about changes in their routines;
• Modify assignments to ensure that AS students compete them with the assigned period of time;
• Have AS student submit unfinished work to a “finish later” box or folder.

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 9)

Poor Concentration/Distractability/Disorganization

Characteristics: AS students often go off task, distracted by internal thoughts and external stimuli. Thus they have difficulty,

• Organizing their thoughts cohesively;
• Gathering together the materials necessary to complete tasks;
• Keeping track of their belongings;
• Organizing a desk, locker, closet, or room.
  (Special Ed., n. d., para. 10)

Concentration/Distractability/Disorganization—Intervention Strategies

• Provide AS learners with a very structured education environment;
• Use a timer to help learners with time management skills;
• Furnish a written checklist to keep AS students on task;
• Provide AS students a visual schedule or syllabus for each class;
• Post a visual calendar at home and in the AS students' lockers or desks at school;
• Give AS students written cues, using handouts or a dry erase board;
• Match subject notebooks with their companion textbooks by wrapping textbooks in the same colored book covers;
• Issue [and regularly review] an assignment notebook;
• On tests and worksheets, place fewer questions per page, using visual spaces to separate different questions.
• Have a go-to “assignments to be completed” as well as “completed assignments” folders for AS students.

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 11)

Emotional Vulnerability

Characteristics: Seeking perfection, AS learners often suffer from low self-esteem, are super self-critical, often are easily overwhelmed, stressed out and frustrated (Special Ed., n. d., para. 12).

Emotional Vulnerability—Intervention Strategies

• Capitalize on Asperger's students' strengths, assigning special projects where they can excel.
• Teach AS students relaxation techniques to decrease their anxiety.*

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 12)

*See also:

Moninger, Jeanette. (2014). 10 relaxation techniques that zap stress fast. Web M.D. Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/blissing-out-10-relaxation-techniques-reduce-stress-spot

Oak, Manali. (2012, March 12). Top ten relaxation techniques for children. Buzzle. Retrieved from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/top-ten-relaxation-techniques-for-children.html

Relaxing yoga poses for beginners. (2014). Education. Yoga Outlet. Retrieved from http://www.yogaoutlet.com/guides/relaxing-yoga-poses-for-beginners

Restricted Range of Interests

• AS individuals often display eccentric preoccupations and/or fixations:
• In conversation, AS individuals may lecture others on specific obscure topics;
• Overly anxious, they may have trouble letting go of obsessions;
• AS students may refuse to learn anything other than their favorite topics or interests.

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 13)

Restrictive Range of Interest—Intervention Strategies

• Outside of class, set aside specific times to discuss AS students' interests with them;
• Provide written answers to repetitive questions;
• Fit AS learners' interests into an individualized curriculum.

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 14)

Difficulty Taking the Perspective of Others

• AS individuals have trouble understanding that others' thoughts, desires, and beliefs differ from their own:
• During a lecture or lesson, AS learners think the teacher is speaking directly to them, thus calling out an answer or comments.
• AS students are extremely vulnerable when other students urge them to do or say things that will get them in trouble.
• AS individuals unintentionally often display a lack of empathy.
• They may have trouble understanding how and why they misbehave and how what they say can affect how others think and feel.
  (Special Ed., n. d., para. 15)

Cooperative Learning Groups Cause Problems for AS Learners

• An AS mindset often causes confusion or resentment in other group members:
• AS individuals don't necessarily know what their listeners already know;
• AS speakers may give not enough [or too much] informational background;
• They may also exclude relational information, or else they might relay too much detail.
• AS individuals also may lack the ability to deceive, and they may not even understand duplicity.

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 16)

Mind Reading/Theory of Mind Deficit—Intervention Strategies

• Read Teaching Children with Autism to Mind Read : A Practical Resource:

Howlin, Patricia, Baron-Cohen, Simon, and Hadwin, Julie A. (1998). Teaching Children with Autism to Mind Read: A Practical Guide for Teachers and Parents. Chichester, England: John A. Wiley.

• Teach AS children [and teenagers] to recognize the effect of what they say and how they act;
• Use comic strips and simple line drawing to clarify social interactions;
• Turn to popular literature, videos, movies, and TV shows to help AS individuals to interpret the actions of others.

(Special Ed., n. d., para. 17)

Conclusion: AS students can be successfully mainstreamed into a traditional classroom setting if equipped with appropriate learning strategies, receiving specific instruction on how to behave, and learning through direct instruction and necessary accommodations to fit their learning styles, (Special Ed., n. d., para. 18). However, this takes a lot of parental effort outside the classroom!

May, Kelly. (2005, September). Teaching strategies for Asperger students. New Horizons for Learning. Johns Hopkins School of Education. Retrieved from http://education.jhu.edu/PD/newhorizons/Exceptional%20Learners/Autism/Articles/Teaching%20Strategies%20for%20Asperger%20Students/

Since the Individuals with Disabilities Act guarantees that learning-disabled students be placed in the least restrictive environment possible, Asperger's Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism students have become a challenge for all classroom teachers (May, 2005, September, para. 1-4),since they have to use a variety of strategies to connect with all their students. Most classroom teachers without Special Education training, therefore, feel hampered both by a lack of expertise as well as not having special education experts on hand (May, 2005, September, para. 5).

Review of Related Literature

Although AS students more readily acquire language and develop cognitive skills than other autism- labeled individuals, their behavior is similar since they often are unable to get along with their peers because they have trouble interpreting non-verbal facial cues; they display inflexibility when changes occur in their routines, and they often show obsessive preoccupations with their favorite topics of conversation (May, 2005, September, para. 6).

___________

Theories Associated with AS

Behaviorist Theory explains that “mal-adaptive behavior” in AS individuals results from 1) “a failure to learn necessary adaptive behaviors or competencies,” and from 2) learned “ineffective or mal-adaptive processes” (May, 2005, September, para. 8).

AS individuals often don''t detect social cues, and most AS individuals don't know how to read facial expressions. Thus, they repeat irritating behavior (May, 2005, September, para. 9).

Parents and teachers can apply positive reinforcements when dealing with AS students if they reinforce positive behavior with an activity an AS student would like to do (May, 2005, September, para. 10).

Applied Behavior Analysis and Discrete Trial Learning (ABA/DTL) also works well with AS students since these strategies break down learning into small steps that build on each other (May, 2005, September, para. 12). Applying ABA and DTL lets AS students focus on small bits of information without feeling overwhelmed (May, 2005, September, para. 12).

Teaching Strategies for Curriculum Education

Because average to above average IQ scores mask AS characteristics, teachers often misunderstand AS behaviors. AS students may also become over stimulated when participating in small group work or team projects (May, 2005, September, para. 13).

An Academic Physical and Interpersonal (API) Inclusion Plan should address the AS student's academic, physical, and interpersonal challenges (May, 2005, September, para. 14). Unfortunately, however, if one was to design an environment “geared to stress a person with AS, you would probably come up with something that looked like a school” (May, 2005, September, para. 15). Accordingly, teachers need to take into account all the noise, nonrestrictive time periods, and distractions that torment AS students (May, 2005, September, para. 16). For example, everyday sounds sometime produce the same reaction in AS students as nails scrapping across a chalkboard. Therefore, AS students may need to listen to soft music [without lyrics] with headsets or use earplugs to block out excessive, unwanted noise (May, 2005, September, para. 17).

Minimizing transitions and making the environment predicable alleviates stress for AS students as does warning them when there will be changes in their daily routines (May, 2005, September, para. 18). Because AS students beginning in the upper elementary grades often need to change classes, a transition planning meeting at the beginning of the semester will help both AS students and their teachers prevent unnecessary traumas (May, 2005, September, para. 19). A one-on-one teacher's aide can also shadow individual AS students, keeping them on task (May, 2005, September, para. 20). 

___________

Strategies for Social Education

Group projects cause problems for AS students because they involve social interaction (May, 2005, September, para. 20). The AS students “Hidden Curriculum” therefore must include the “basic how-to's of living” that other kids seem to know. AS students can be empowered by addressing “Scope and Sequence” issues, proving direct instruction through the reading of social stories, acting lessons [role-playing social situations], and self-esteem building (May, 2005, September, para. 21).

For instance, since changing classes stresses out AS students, they should be allowed to leave class five minutes before the bell rings (May, 2005, September, para.22).

Since AS students are often unable to generalize concepts, such as how to respectfully address an authority figure, they might not be able to apply already learned social skills to a new situation. In other words, just because an AS student might know how to talk to his or her teacher, he or she might not have transferred this skill and show the proper deference to a police officer without participating in Scope and Sequence rehearsals (May, 2005, September, para. 23). Similarly, teachers give instructions to a class might need to break them down into steps since AS students might not be able to infer all the desired behavior (May, 2005, September, para. 25).

A Unified Plan of Support (UPI) team of teachers meeting monthly can exchange ideas about how best to deal with AS and other learning disabled students (May, 2005, September, para. 26).

In conclusion, since the IDEA Act mandates that learning disabled students be placed in the least restrictive environment possible, this can only be achieved successfully if teachers constantly re-evaluate their teaching strategies (May, 2005, September, para. 27).

Safran, Joan S. (2001). Supporting students with Asperger's Syndrome in General Education. Council for Exceptional Children, 35(5), pp.60-66. Retrieved from http://sacramentoasis.com/docs/7-13-07/supporting_students_with_as.pdf

Asperger's is “a neurologically-based, autism spectrum disorder” that “significantly affects social perception, interactions, language and non verbal communication”, so those children and adults displaying the behavioral traits of Asperger's, or High-Functioning Autism, despite their average to superior intelligence, haven't intuited the social awareness needed to connect successfully with their peers (Safran, 2001, p. 60).

Ordinarily, these individuals don't experience any delays in language development or lack cognitive ability; however, their speech may be overly formal, monotone, or way too loud (Safran, 2001, p. 61). While most school districts mainstream these students, some school systems furnish full-time aides to act as mentors,but others attempt to function without any formal support (Safran, 2001, p. 61). While their academic performance ranges from adequate to exceptional, without adequate planning, they ordinarily don't do well in cooperative learning or group work situations (Safran, 2001, p. 61).

What Teachers Need to Know

School personnel [including substitute teachers] need to familiarize themselves with the behavioral characteristics of AS even if not all AS students exhibit every AS characteristic (Safran, 2001, p. 61). All too often, AS students' intelligence and vocabulary mask this disability, or else, their behavioral problems might lead to a misdiagnoses of Attention-Deficit Disorder (Safran, 2001, p. 61). Since most of these students don't have obvious physical disabilities, their absence leaves peers and adults without an explanation for their clumsy social interactions (Safran, 2001, p. 61).

See also:

Aspergers vs ADHD. (2006). ADHD News. Retrieved from http://www.adhdnews.com/testforum/test8218.htm

Autism’s commonalities with ADHD. ASD-Autism Spectrum Disorders. (1999, September 11). Retrieved from http://www.retrainthebrain.com/autism.html

Obviously, both ADHD and AS students can benefit from some of the same study helps and behavioral modification techniques as can their classmates.

Special Education teachers, counselors, and therapists need to directly teach social skills to AS students, but inclusion teachers also need to know how to be a part of this support team (Safran, 2001, p. 62).

Carefully Structure Seating Arrangements and Group Worksheets

Take care not to seat AS students next to bullies, but instead assign them seats next to peer buddies, who can take them aside and carefully explain certain social niceties or answer questions about the lesson. AS students also function well when seated near the teacher at the front of the classroom or in an open quiet area (Safran, 2001, p.62). Teachers of AS students should avoid self-selection in group work and ensure that all group members function as a team. Because AS students might not pick up on other students' reactions, non-verbal cues (like the teacher's pulling on his or her ear) will remind them that they need to budget their speaking time can keep them from embarrassing themselves (Safran, 2001, p. 62).

Provide a Safe Haven

AS students often stress out when confronted with loud assemblies, pep rallies, and unstructured recess time, so ear plugs and head phones can be used to block irritating noises while retreating to a quiet place like the school library at this time might be an alternative to attending these events (Safran, 2001, p. 63). Teachers also need to learn how to detect behaviors like pacing or singing to oneself that indicate an AS student's “approaching meltdown” (Safran, 2001, p. 63).

In social situations, AS individuals might see themselves as “on stage” or “on alert” when speaking in class, thus substituting intellectual analysis [or comically behavior] for natural empathy and insight (Safran, 2001, p. 63). Since AS individuals don't automatically internalize social rules, observers might find them “irritating, rude, and immature” (Safran, 2001, p. 54). They also might misunderstand metaphorical comments, friendly teasing, and sarcasm (Safran, 2001, p. 64), so teachers and peers need to be on alert to serve as “social translators” (Safran, 2001, p. 64).

Fixation on a particular topic in conversation and an unwillingness to save comments or questions for later during an instructor's lecture also characterize AS individuals, so posted class rules might never to include reminders like “Only five minutes is allowed for questions” (Safran, 2001, p. 64).

Prepare for Changes in Routine

Posting class schedules and time frames and clearly delineating classroom spaces for particular activities also reduces AS students' anxiety levels while they also find “to do” lists and assignment books “indispensable” Accordingly, AS students need to receive notices of changes in their routine in advance (Safran, 2001, p. 64).

Use Available Resources/Make Needed Accommodations

AS individuals respond well to visuals, graphics, modeling, and the use of technology. Since they often have impaired gross and find motor skills, they may need to use a personal computer for completing written assignments and exams (Safran, 2001, p. 64). Access to the Web also offers them “the communication they desire . . . [without] “the overwhelming sensory overload” (Safran, 2001, p. 65). Even so, limit the time AS students spend on the Web, so this doesn't turn into obsessive-compulsive behavior or a substitute for human contact (Safran, 2001, p. 65).

Contact with Significant Others

Regular meetings, phone calls, and e-mails from inclusion and special education teachers and counselors can provide the support that keeps parents of AS students from feeling isolated (Safran, 2001, p. 65). However, teachers also need to come up with creative ways to help AS students to connect with kind and empathetic peers as well as providing direct instruction in conversation skills. Here the instructor can use comic strip conversations and social story strategies to teach turn taking (Safran, 2001, p. 65).

Additionally, counselors can direct AS students towards participating in well-structured activities and clubs while steering them away from unstructured events (Safran, 2001, p. 65). Teachers and counselors might also create a peer-buddy system, pairing AS students with peers who might offer friendship and social interaction while respecting difference (Safran, 2001, p. 65).

Help Your Classroom Become a Caring Community

Safran also urges educators to maintain a classroom that is a “safe, supportive, and accepting community for everyone”, embracing diversity, for isolation brings about depression and suicide while a sense of belonging serves as a deterrent to self-destructive behavior (2001, p. 65). People with Asperger's have great creative potential, but as they age, depression interferes with their functioning (Safran, 2001, p. 66).

Webster, Jerry. (2014). Asperger's Syndrome in the general education classroom. About Education. About.com. Retrieved from http://specialed.about.com/od/autismandaspergers/a/Aspergers-Syndrome-In-The-General-Education-Classroom.htm

Teachers ordinary experience the following problems when working with Asperger Syndrome students:

• AS children display unusual sensory needs.
• They hyper-focus on their preferred subjects
• They tend to have poor executive function skills.
• They may break down emotionally when they become frustrated.

(Webster, 2014, para. 1)

Sensory Needs

Students who display some of the symptoms of Asperger Disorder might display a hypersensitivity to certain sensory stimuli, so paying attention to how they might react to distractions like loud noises, rough surfaces, or cold or heat can help manage their responses. Conversely, some sensory inputs like chewing gum or sitting on a Pilates ball can be calming if they don't over stimulate an AS student (Webster, 2014, para. 2-5).

Hypo-focus on a Preferred Subject

When AS students focus intensely on a single interest, use their intensity to serve as a scaffold, linking their passion to other topics. Also let them really excel in their area of expertise (Webster, 2014, para. 6-8).

Poor Executive Function

AS students often have trouble keeping up with their possessions and remembering the routine tasks they need to perform, so they can benefit from simple graphic organizers and work charts (Webster, 2014, para. 9-10).

Low Frustration Level

Because AS students often experience low frustration levels when confronted with what for them is a challenging task, a teacher should have some contingency plans on hand to calm them:

• Allow them to take a short, five-minute break;
• Send them on an errand if a melt-down is in progress.

The teacher might also tailor their assignments and tests by limiting the number of items per page as well as assigning shorter homework assignments than they assign to most of the class (Webster, 2014, para. 11-13).

Stay Flexible

Since AS students often have difficult accepting change, their teachers have to stay flexible when working with them (Webster, 2014, para. 14).

Since few students master the appropriate balance between specificity and the ability to summarize a passage's main idea, all students can benefit from using some of the learning techniques that might help Asperger's students. After all, everyone profits from thinking about thinking.

____________

Here's a new, free Online resource for kids: http://www.dkfindout.com/us/ (2015, January 29).

To register, the user needs to confirm that he or she is over 18 and give his or her age to have access to verifiable information on animals and nature, dinosaurs and prehistoric life, the Earth, English, history, the human body, math, science, and space. The dkfindout Website might serve as as an alternative resource to use instead of Wikipedia (a source that most teachers won't accept because it lacks true editorial oversight, although the user can certainly click on hyperlinks for documented sources).