Category: Solution

The entire fruit is already present in the seed

Since springtime is almost upon us, many people are thinking about their yards and gardens, and may even be starting seeds for flowers and vegetables. Seeds are amazing things. From these very tiny particles, large plants and trees will grow.

Our kids with autism don’t follow the typical growth process. With their communication, learning and sensory issues, they often display challenging, dysfunctional and disruptive behaviors. In fact, so many difficult behaviors may be going on at the same time that it may seem impossible to make headway on any front.

But, in the midst of the behavioral chaos, a child with autism will, at some point, perform a behavior (physical movement) that can be the basis of more functional behaviors. These fleeting movements are “seeds” that can eventually grow into functional behaviors, provided they are nurtured and receive lots of positive reinforcement.

How can we increase the number of times our kids with autism perform such rare, but desired, physical movements? TAGteach!

TAGteach is a teaching and communication method that combines an audible marker, a “tag” (click) made by a small plastic device called a “tagger” with positive reinforcement. With a tagger you “mark” a desired physical movement performed by your child and then give her a treat (the reinforcer). Because the tag is so quick and immediate, you can pinpoint even the most fleeting movements for your child.

Read More

By Martha Gabler

Freedom. We all want it. We want to have choice in our lives; it gives us opportunities, independence and a sense of control.

Now consider a child with autism. A child with autism may have a limited range of behavioral choices: he can only do what is in his repertoire. When my son Douglas was little his repertoire consisted of just four behaviors: running around, shrieking “Deeeeee, deeeee, deeeee,” spinning, and hitting himself or others. He was a nightmarish child to care for. If we talked to him, his response was to plug his fingers in his ears and run away.

I know now that he was only doing this as a self-defensive reaction to the confusing and overwhelming stimuli that bombarded him. These behaviors must have been self-reinforcing, or they would not have continued. Creating his own noise, engaging in repetitive movements, destructive behavior and even self-injury must have been reinforcing to him, since we know from the findings of behavioral science that behavior that is repeated is behavior that has been reinforced. It is very sad to think that a child finds his environment so overwhelming that it is necessary to engage in these types of behaviors as a way to cope.

My Son Was Not Happy While Overwhelmed

I didn’t believe that my son was happy while engaging in these self-stimulatory and destructive behaviors. I believe that these behaviors stopped him from being able to learn and interfered with basic functional skills. These behaviors sucked him into a downward spiral which he was unable to control or get out of, and they caused pain, anger, frustration and despair in the rest of the family. How could that be good for him or for us?

Read More