How To Keep Structure On The Weekend

You (the parent) do so well during the week keeping structure and schedules going so that your child with Autism knows what activity is next. You know that when you do this it makes life a lot simpler and that this structure actually builds in flexibility. We talked about this in the A Schedule? She's Two? blog. Oh, but here comes the weekend and there goes all the structure. You have things to do, places to go, and sometimes you need to shift gears pretty quick. How can you help your child with Autism make those transitions along with you and avoid the meltdowns?

Elizabeth Byers, a TEACCH Therapist, has offered her expert advice to us with an on-the-go Activity Folder.  She also offers complete instructions on how to make and use the folders.  I found this to be a great weekend folder that could travel on errands and outings to make those transitions go smoothly. I recommend practicing using this folder during smaller, less stressful trips and then build up to the weekends.

You may also find other uses for the Activity Folder as well, so don't limit it to just the use that has been suggested here.  Happy transitioning!

Vacation with Autism

We are heading out for a week long vacation tomorrow. Yay us! Lots of vacation memories have flooded my mind this week as I have prepared for this vacation. Packing for vacation is a breeze, now. Hubby packs his and I pack mine, give Kaitlin her list and then I double check her packing. Pretty simple, NOW, but you know when you toss in a young child with Autism and go on vacation, the game changes!

Is a family vacation even possible when you have a young child with Autism? Sometimes that answer is just a flat out NO for some families. When faced with that situation where the whole family can not go on vacation together, there are lots of options. One really great option is to find an appropriate respite or camp situation for your child with Autism for a week and the rest of the family can go and enjoy a week of fun too. When Kaitlin was really young she could not tolerate traveling for long periods of time in a car nor the sound of the ocean. She really LOVED camp though! It was a win-win time for us and we learned to not feel guilty about those separate vacations when she enjoyed a week at camp and we took her older sister to the beach.

So maybe family vacations are possible, but you know there are going to be bumps on the way. How do you make it smoother? Take your structure with you! Prepare for the vacation by using a social story ahead of time. The social story can highlight some of the events that are expected to happen during the vacation. I suggest that you add visuals into the story that will make the story interesting to your child. You can read this before the trip, on the trip and after the trip to remember the vacation by. I would also take along any picture schedules and other portable forms of structure you have or could make. Use a daily check off form to write in activities and have your child check off the activities as they are completed. Add just one or two activities at a time, in case there are changes. 

Pack familiar items from home that bring comfort. Be ready for lots of down time! Being in a different place, with lots of different sensory input can make for lots of overload for our kids with Autism, so build in that downtime. I promise you that it will be needed. Do2Learn has lots of games that can be played with just a deck of cards (if your child is older) and/or a few other items you can bring along. So while you are planning checkout these "Homemade Games" and note the skills that your child will learn while having fun!

Lastly, breathe, it's vacation. You are there to relax and have fun. No battles on vacation...remember you may have to be the one that is the most flexible. If you find you spend your days doing nothing but watching the waves when the plans were originally to visit amusement park after amusement park, remember it's vacation and you are going to be rested! 

A Schedule? She's Two?

That was my reaction when one of the many professionals we were seeing at the time told me my daughter needed a schedule. I was the one who needed the schedule! I was the one taking my non-verbal, two year old to this doctor visit, that therapy visit, and to see yada-yada professional each week. She needed a schedule? So I took a deep breath and went there. I asked exactly what kind of schedule my daughter needed at the age of two and exactly how was this going to work? WOW! Did I ever get an education that changed her life and ours.

Here is what that professional began to explain to me. The schedule would be a way for my daughter and I to communicate with one another. I was skeptical to say the least, but I knew I would give it a try. The more I listened, the more this schedule began to sound a little like my “to-do” list that got me through my days. Basically the schedule would outline for my daughter what activities were going to happen and in what order. Autism 101- our kids are visual learners and mine was certainly not verbal. So visual it was going to be.

BUT you have to learn to crawl before you can walk. So we started with an object schedule. This is a schedule using an object related to the activity that is about to happen. I would only show 2 or 3 objects at a time related to the activities we were doing and then I had a shoebox that had the word “finished” written on it, where she would place the object when we were done with the activity. This way she would know it was over.

1. A bowl to indicate breakfast
2. a toothbrush to indicate brushing teeth
3. sock to indicate getting dressed

I would walk with her and the bowl to the kitchen to let her know that we were having breakfast. After breakfast the bowl would go into the “finished” box. Then we would go back to the schedule and get the toothbrush and head to the bathroom for brushing teeth with a different toothbrush and then walk the object toothbrush to the “finished” box and so on. We continued on with this schedule until I thought she was able to follow a picture schedule. The picture schedule would work the same way. We have since transitioned to an all word schedule. The picture below is a great example of how the transition takes place over time for someone who has Autism and is able to go to a complete word schedule. In fact, using a combination of pictures and words together during times of stress is a great way to relieve anxiety in a student learning a new skill or making a big transition.

http://www.do2learn.com/organizationtools/setup/activitychoiceboard.htm

Here is a sample of a morning picture schedule.

Here is a sample of breaking down a actual activity into individual parts.  Kind of like a schedule/work system.  It helps to serve as a reminder to complete each part of the activity.

Wait! That is too much for me as a parent and I can't see how our family can live with such a strict scheduled out day like that! Is that what you are thinking? I was right there with you. I quickly realized that once my daughter had learned the routine of a schedule and she really liked knowing what was next, that I had built in flexibility! All I had to do was to let her know in advance. I just did not fill in her schedule too far in advance. Choices and flexibility can be built into schedules. Schedules can relieve anxiety and is a vital step to independence beyond the classroom and the home. Let me ask you this, what if all the data from your calendar got deleted or you lost your day-timer? I would be stressed if that happened to me, so go ahead and take that leap. Try out schedules!

Schedules are for everyone! Make-A-Schedule is the perfect program for parents setting up picture schedules at home.  

How have schedules made a difference for you?

TEACHERS-We want to hear from YOU!

Are you currently using our Make-A-Schedule tool in your classroom? If so, than you know it's an easy-to-use program that gives you access to thousands of picture cards. In minutes, you can create schedules, social stories, story strips, forms, and more.

What we really want to know is what other schedule/picture type programs or tools are you using in your classroom? What do those programs offer that Make-A-Schedule does not? Come on, be honest with us. We can take it. We need the truth and we need your suggestions. We want Do2Learn's MAS to be the main program that you use in the classroom. Feedback, feedback, feedback!  Lots of it!  That's what we want.

I am going to be expanding on this question in the upcoming weeks, but I want to get a dialog going with you, the teacher, the parents, the users of our products. You can leave your comments anonymously on the blog or with your information so we can contact you for more details. We love hearing from you. So let's start talking!

Using Schedules the Right Way

Schedules are important for all of us, and especially important for individuals with ASD! For an individual with ASD, a visual schedule:

1.Clarifies expectations of what is going to happen, and in what order
2.Informs the person of when preferred activities or breaks are occurring
3. Promotes flexibility
4. Informs the individual of when change occurs
5. Communicates all this information to the person in a way that is visual, concrete, and meaningful

Object Schedules

Schedules should be individualized and will look different based on the strengths, needs, and interests of the individual with ASD. A very young child may understand objects best, and his parent or teacher may give him his shoes to indicate it is time to go outside, or a diaper to indicate it is time to go to the bathroom. Objects are the most concrete form of communication, and often young children or teens or adults with more significant delays may understand and use objects to communicate quite independently.

Picture or Photo Schedules

Other children or adults may understand pictures or photos, which are more abstract than objects. Do2Learn offers several resources that provide various pictures for making schedules, picture lists, and story boards. Free printable picture cards are located here and include cards for self help, leisure, home, school, social skills, and other activities!

Make-a-Schedule is an easy-to-use program that gives you access to thousands of picture cards. In minutes, you can create schedules, story strips, and forms. Users subscribe to the Make-a-Schedule program for one year. Here is an example of picture cards that can be printed and made into a schedule for a trip on an airplane.

 

Written Schedules

Individuals with ASD who are able to read and comprehend fluently may excel using written schedules, reminders, and lists. The individual should be taught to interact with his schedule by checking or marking it off, and may eventually begin to create his own schedules. Some folks enjoy having their schedule on a portable device such as a small notepad or a  smart phone.

Tips to Using a Schedule the Right Way
1. Pick the appropriate cue: object, picture, or written word. The schedule is an organizational tool, not a time to work on building vocabulary. The schedule should make sense to the person with ASD on his or her worst day - when it is raining, their stomach hurts, and their favorite shirt is dirty!

2. Vary the schedule every day to promote flexibility. The person should not memorize the schedule and routine, but instead should refer back to the schedule each day to see what is happening in what order on that day.

3. The person should be prompted to check the schedule via non-verbal means. Telling someone "check your schedule" causes them to be dependent on you, their parent or teacher. But teaching them that every time they see a certain pen or a checkmark to check their schedule will promote independence!

4. Encourage and teach the person to interact with their schedule, not just look at it. Some folks with ASD have excellent memories and can look at their schedule in the morning and memorize it for the rest of the day. But if they are not interacting with it during the day by crossing off tasks as completed, they will not know if a change has occurred or may get upset if they forget a task and then are redirected. Interacting with the schedule promotes thoroughness and independence.

5. Consider the length of the schedule. Some individuals like to know what is going to happen the whole day. For other folks, that amount of information is overwhelming. Some individuals are on a "What's Next?" schedule and are simply given one object at a time. Others do best with a First - Then schedule, or a part day schedule.

6. Mix preferred and non-preferred activities. Just as we schedule coffee breaks or chat breaks during our work day (sometimes without even thinking about it!), folks with ASD need breaks as well.

7. Incorporate choice and, as much as possible, teach the person to begin creating their own schedules and lists.

Have you had success with using a schedule with a person with ASD?