AUTISM BEGINNERS STARTER KIT

Contents
1. FUNNY STORY BY CHARLES JARVIS 2. SIMPLE, BEHAVIORAL MANAGEMENT INSIGHTS 3. MINI AUTISM QUIZ 4. THE 4 CS OF CATASTROPHIC COPING 5. DEVELOPING EMPATHY SKILLS 6. NUTRITION COUNTS 7. WHERE TO GO NEXT

FUNNY STORY BY CHARLES JARVIS How can you fix something if you dont know whats wrong? Heres a funny story demonstrating this point: A man who goes into the pet store to buy a pet bird. He sees dozens of caged birds with tiny price tags dangling from their little legs. He scans each price tag one by one: $5, $5, $5, ....$50! "Hummm," he wonders. "This $50 bird looks like all of the others. What could be so special about this one?" He asks the store clerk. The clerk replies that this one is very special because it can talk. The shopper is impressed enough that he buys this special talking bird and takes it home. The very next day he returns, disappointed. "The bird didn't talk." The clerk asks, "Did he look in his little mirror?" "Little mirror? I didn't buy a mirror. Does he need a mirror?" "Of course, replies the clerk. He looks in his little mirror and sees another bird in there. He thinks he's not alone and starts to sing. Starts to talk. Got to have a mirror. This sounds reasonable, so the customer buys a mirror and leaves. The next day he is back again, disgruntled. The bird looked in his little mirror, he says but he still didn't talk." "Well, ponders the clerk, "Did he run up and down his little ladder?" "Ladder? Does he need a ladder?" "Of course, replies the clerk. "Don't you feel better after you exercise? When your little bird runs up and down his little ladder, those endorphins start pumping in his little brain. Makes him want to sing. Makes him want to talk. Got to have a ladder." "How much as a ladder?" It's $12.95." Give me a ladder" And off goes the customer. The next day he is back with a scowl on his face. The bird walked up and down his little ladder. He looked in his little mirror. But he still didn't talk. The clerk listens to the angry customer and than asks "Did he swing on his little
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swing? You see when the bird swings it makes him think he's back in nature Makes him want to sing. Makes him want to talk "How much is a swing?" It's $7.95. The customer grudgingly buys the swing and leaves. But the very next day he is back again, angrier than ever. "The bird swung on his little swing. He ran up and down his little ladder. He looked in his little mirror. Burt he still didn't sing and he still didn't talk. Hmmmmmmm, thinks the clerk. "Did he tinkle his little bell?" The customer doesn't even wait for an explanation. Determined to see this out to its conclusion, he grabs a little bell, throws some money on the counter and storms off. You guessed it---the very next day he is back again, "The bird's dead!" he exclaims! Dead! Yup dead! His little feet sticking up in the air. He got up this morning healthy as could be. He looked in his little mirror. He tinkled his little bell. He ran up and down his little ladder. He swung on his little swing. And then, just before he keeled over and died, he looked over at me, a little tear forming in his little eye, and he finally spoke to me. He said, "Didn't they sell birdseed?" Author: Charles Jarvis, a great American humorist The point of this story is to demonstrate the importance of discovering WHY someone is behaving they way they are.

SIMPLE, BEHAVIORAL MANAGEMENT INSIGHTS A simple way to begin to apply some behavioral techniques at home. First, chart what happened before and after the behavior, look for the meaning behind the behavior, offer an alternate better behavior, then reinforce and teach this alternate behavior. This is invaluable, especially when dealing with behavior in the heat of the moment. Ask your self how the child communicates the following: Requests Saying no Comments Comments about feelings When meanings are difficult to interpret: Behaviors are not always directed towards teachers or other children Some behaviors are self-reinforcing. These behaviors can be habitual, calming or self-entertaining Some stereo-typical behaviors do convey meaning (ex: Im tired, bored, need a break, avoidance) Strategies to reduce stereo-typical behaviors Redirection Reinforcement of other behavior Provide a play activity that incorporates the same type of behavior Aerobic physical exercise Fast pace Providing the child with words, gestures or signs to communicate meaning Strategies for Managing Behaviors Active listening Ask child to use their words Waiting Ignoring Reinforce positive behavior Reminder (ex: What is the rule)
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 Choices (ex: You can do A or B) Encouragement (ex: I know this is difficult but I think you can do it) Offering assistance (ex: Remember if you need help, just let me know by) Consequences (ex: Remind child of positive consequences of completing task) Distraction (ex: Introduce something attractive to distract and engage child, but focus attention on others behaving appropriately) Redirection (ex: Sing instructions or prompting to redirect individual to other activities) Interruption (ex: Preventing a behavior from occurring) Catch them being good Make a low-demand request first Social script stories Videos Role playing Being a Detective Managing Behavior Chart Identify the behavior When and where does the behavior occur? Make your best guess about what your child is trying to tell you. Alternate behavior How would you reinforce or teach the alternate behavior?

MINI AUTISM QUIZ If you suspect a pre-school aged child may have autism, ask yourself these questions: AUTISM MINI QUIZ 1. Do they spin objects around and around? 2. Is their speech repetitive, like an echo? 3. Are they attracted to shows like Wheel of Fortune or Jeopardy? 4. Do they like to watch the same movie over and over again? 5. Are they fascinated with numbers and letters? 6. Do they seem unafraid of things that they should be afraid of? 7. Is it hard for them to make eye contact or they simply don't? 8. Do they shun away from being touched or arch their back when held? 9. Do they like to line objects up in rows? 10. Do they lack the ability to play "with" other children interactively? 11. Do they walk up or down stairs always leading with the same foot? If you have said YES to three or more of questions, dont assume they have autism as this is only a guide. Have them checked out by a professional recommended by your local autism society or the Community Autism Centre.

THE 4 CS OF CATASTROPHE COPING When in a situation of stress it is harder to think. When the kids were young, I remember going through the checklist of why they were crying or upset and used a tool to help me focus as it is very distracting while in the moment and hard to think. The acronym HALT stands for: Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired? So I mentally went thru this checklist until solved the problem. I decided to devise another tool for coping with catastrophe based on my gemology background of the 4 Cs of diamond grading which are (color, clarity, cut and carat weight). The 4 Cs of Catastrophe coping are: 1. Cease what you are doing that isnt working 2. Control existing feelings of anger/frustration 3. Choose to have new feelings consciously 4. Commence later after you re-group and have calmed down

DEVELOPING EMPATHY SKILLS Another way of working with my kids that has been quite successful is using my Empathy Skills. What I mean by this is to tune into what my kids may be feeling or thinking by pretending I am them and how would I feel in a similar situation. Though its not easy to do, I try not to take their social ways of being personally, though it can be hard not to do. I also empower them to do things on their own. I believe that if you expect and believe they are capable, they wont let you down. Of course, Im human too and have a subconscious mind like everyone else, which sometimes takes over by overprotecting them from the outside world. Since our special needs kids arent as good at expressing their true needs, I am constantly challenged to pull them out of themselves so they can express their true nature as beings of love and light to the world. In time they will hopefully be able to do this on their own. We are also creating another empathy building tool called Heartwarming Autism Stories and are looking for unique, humorous and emotional stories about children with autism through our autismtoday.com website. Our intent is to publish a book of stories with a portion of the proceeds will go back to Autism societies that sign up through www.autismtoday.com

ESSENTIAL CAREGIVER TIPS FOR THOSE WORKING WITH CHILDREN WITH AUTISM These are easy ways to elevate power struggles. 1. USE ROUTINES, NOT LIP SERVICE! This is about setting up structure with systems rather than words 2. CHANGE ENVIRONMENT RATHER THAN THE CHILD! Physical changes in the environment help with sensory issues. Let the environment dictate the rules and your child can enjoy their independence. 3. FOLLOW THROUGH WITH FOLLOW UPFOLLOW UPFOLLOW UP Use your routines and rules and then let natural consequences follow through. 4. GROUND YOURSELF, NOT THE KIDS WITH GROUND RULES! Stick-to-it-ive-ness is your key to long-term success. Grounding and timeouts are not the answer. 5. NEGOTIATON ISNT JUST FOR ADULTS Create rules with kids, not for them. Great for buy in. 6. BREAK TASKS INTO SMALL CHUNKS Dont overwhelm them, break down their tasks until they are manageable. This is good for self-esteem 7. GIVE KIDS THE HEAD OF THE TABLE Let them be responsible and reliable for their tasks though its easier to do it for them. Its good for buy in. 8. TEAMWORK. WORKS GREAT! Unite and conquer instead of dividing your kids, by showing favoritism or taking sides. Siblings should strive to solve their own problems.
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9. PUT OUT THE CONFLICT FIRE! Struggles can be avoided when kids arent guided to be defensive. Dont model defensiveness or argumentative nature. 10. ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS! Physical actions to show desired results are better than words like pointing finger etc. 11. BASED ON RESULTS! Connect consequences to behavior so child knows why they are having a certain result. This helps build resiliency. 12. CONSEQUENTLY SPEAKING! Help ground kids in the real game of through their natural consequences. 13. SMELL THE ROSES! Focus on the positive by recognizing the little wins 14. LISTEN WITH ALL YOUR HEART! Listen empathetically to your child. Whether they are verbal or non-verbal they still communicate. 15. PLAY UP GOOD PAST ACCOMPLISHMENTS Talk about past accomplishments by describing what they are successful with and remembering the past. 16. ITS THE LITTLE THINGS! Praise successes on an ongoing basis. This helps with building self-esteem

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NUTRITION COUNTS Since our kids are very picky eaters at the best of times, Proper nutrition is vital to their potential success. I dont think anyone wants to wait around for twenty years to find out what the results of the studies are regarding what the eating habits have on our kids with autism. They are growing up in a fast-foot world, along with everyone else, being marketed to by advertisers with unhealthy choices. Most kids dont get the nutrition they need as it is. Here is a quote taken from a site strictly on kids nutrition called: kidseatgreat.com READ: According to a Pediatrics study of 3300 children, only 1% met the recommendations for the Food Guide Pyramid, most not even meeting the minimum requirements being low in vitamin B6, iron, calcium, zinc and fiber. Nutritional supplementation is my extra insurance to protect my kids though I try not to use them as an excuse to feed "bad" foods to them. To me, it only makes good sense for ALL my kids to get the proper nutrition and exercise considering that 10 - 29% of our youth are overweight and sedentary as it is. Our first efforts as parents must be directed at changing the dietary habits of our children and our families. I have found some very successful nutritional solutions at the following websites you can explore for more information. They are: 1. Kidseatgreat.com 2. Optimalhealthtoday.com 3. Humannutrition.com 4. Autismndi.com

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WHERE TO GO NEXT Of course this is just the tip of the iceberg. Many more strategies and techniques are available such as in The Official Autism 101 Manual which includes 44 world leading autism experts to shed insight into autism spectrum disorders. Visit: www.autism101manual.com to learn more. Heres a recent story that shared with us by the Community Outreach Coordinator for Autism Speaks about the manual: We have something we call the Autism Tissue Ambassador Program that engages people in communities to be the local contact for the program. When someone signs on to be an Ambassador we send them a welcome packet filled with materials to hand out and the gift of your Autism 101 Manual. Everyone has been very pleased with it. I have a coworker who has a teenage son who was just diagnosed with Aspergers. She borrowed a copy of the book from me but we just had 9 people sign on to be ambassadors so I had to ask for it back and she said he was devastated. He is very curious about his diagnosis and she said he carries the book around constantly. Apparently she told him he couldnt leave the house with it because she didnt want it to get dirty and she recently caught him trying to sneak it out of the house. I may just tell them that I want it just so I can let my coworkers son have the copy.
Denise Soto, Community Outreach Coordinator

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