There are obviously more then five skills we need to teach our children with special needs, but these lay the groundwork and begin to build advanced skills that will help our children throughout life. Many of these concepts are overlooked and subsequently fall to the wayside.
There are invisible abilities that must be mastered in order for our children to learn. This is why, when a child is diagnosed with autism, an initial and intense focus is put on teaching the child to make eye contact or sit at a table; without these abilities in place, it is difficult to move forward. The same applies to intangible concepts like cooperation and concentration.
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These concepts are arguably difficult to teach, as they are anything but concrete or physical. You canât give âcooperationâ or hold it in your hand, so teaching ideas like this requires a little planning and know-how. The good news is that it is possible to teach intangibles and the easiest way to do it is also the most effective way.
Yesterday I talked about the importance of teaching at home and concepts like these fit right into that discussion. To teach cooperation, you must work through situations that require it! While interacting, talk about cooperation; how you are doing it, what it would look like if you didnât cooperate, even a social story about the idea. Repetition and consistency will yield results. It may take some time, but I doubt you find that surprising!
Responsibility is a topic we are teaching my son Ian, who is twelve years old with autism. He has a social story that discusses what it is and gives examples of how he is already responsible. This dynamic is integral for all children and we teach it all the time (pick up your toys; be responsible for your belongingsâ¦).
Time management is another tricky one, as the concept of time is as intangible as you can get. By relying on concrete teaching tools, such as clocks, stopwatches and calendars, you can start teaching one step at a time. For simplicity, choose a common activity like lunch, and time how long it takes. Then start timing how long it takes to make lunch or clean up from it. Think fun and use a timer (as long as they like the timer) or other way to keep track of time. Simply talk about and try to gauge how well your child understands and move forward when theyâre ready. This skill helps at home, in school and the community, similar to the final skill I recommend teaching.
Social communication is quite possibly the most necessary skill. It would take countless pages to list the ways we use this ability, and you may know the majority of them already. To teach social communication, one key dynamic must be in place. This isnât my idea only; research in the US last year finally supported the idea that natural socialization opportunities are the only ones that teach; social skill programming was found to not be effective. So, knowing this, you only need to maximize the natural opportunities that present themselves throughout your day and life. Chances are you already do this, so focus on extending each interaction just a moment or two longer. Progress is progress and sometimes we simply move forward one step,Âor moment, at a time.
I regret choosing only five skills to talk about, because now I can think of 500. Iâll resist the urge to list them all and leave you to think about these ideas, so you can share your own.Â
What skills do you think should be prioritized when teaching? What do you struggle with when it comes to intangible concepts, if anything? If you have a great idea to help, share that too by posting below
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