Tag Archives: sensory

Signs of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Children with Down Syndrome

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Signs and symptoms of Down syndrome is fairly easy to detect especially since there are specific physical characteristics of the disorder. But what if there is also a diagnosis of autism?

Studies show that 5 to 39% of children with Down syndrome are also on the autism spectrum. There are overlaps in some of the symptoms which delays the signs and symptoms of autism. This observation is slowly growing and informing parents and educators  to observe for specific signs and symptoms.

It is possible that educators and therapist may be the first to notice that children with Down syndrome also display characteristics that are similar to autism.

Why is it important?

According to authors Margaret Froehlke and Robin Zaborek from the book, When Down Syndrome and Autism Intersect, The education approach in both Down syndrome and autism will be different than for children with a single diagnosis of Down syndrome including accommodations and writing the IEP. Teaching strategies will also differ. Teaching a student with Down syndrome who require tactile demonstrations, simple directions, and immediate feedback will now require concrete language, social stories, the use of few choices and the use of concrete language.

The importance of getting the diagnosis
Most often children with Down syndrome are treated for the characteristics of having Down syndrome which overlooks giving children the appropriate treatment for Autism such as social skills and sensory issues. A child or young adult with both diagnoses will likely experience aggressive behaviors, meltdowns, and show signs of regression during their early development. The following are signs and symptoms to look for in your child, or student:
  • Hand flapping
  • Picky eater
  • Echolalia
  • Fascination with lights
  • Staring at ceiling fans
  • History of regression
  • Head banging
  • Strange vocalization
  • Anxiety
  • Seizure Disorder

Signs of overlap include:

  1. Receptive motor behavior
  2. receptive language challenges
  3. picky eater
  4. increase anxiety
  5. self-injurious
  6. sensory sensitivities

 

As the student gets older, there may be ongoing issues with sensory disorders and transitions leading to meltdowns

Reference

When Down Syndrome and Autism Intersect: A Guide to DS-ASD for
Parents and Professionals
By Margaret Froehlke, R. N. & Robin Zaborek, Woodbine House, 218 pp.

Updated on 7/17/24

Sensory Eating is not Picky Eating

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Published by: Speaking of Autism

I want you to imagine that you are a kid once again, maybe ten or eleven years old. You are sitting down in the evening with your family for dinner. The table is set, and your parents bring out what will be tonight’s entree: a cut of cold, raw chicken breast. It’s slimy pink mass slides onto the plate in front of you, and soon after your whole family is chowing down on the raw cuts of meat. You can’t stand to even watch anyone else eat the raw chicken, let alone fathom yourself choking it down. Yet, despite the very real disgust and aversion you feel towards the raw chicken breast, somehow it’s you who are strange for not wanting to eat it. Maybe you’re called “picky” or told that you simply need to and just learn to enjoy raw chicken like everyone else. Maybe you go hungry every night at dinner because the only thing being served are items as aversive as the cuts of raw chicken. Click here to read the rest of the story.

Election Lesson Plan and Activities for Day Hab

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Since President Trump’s, election, there has been a vigorous interest in politics not only in the United States but also in other countries as well. The upcoming mid-term elections provides an opportunity for adults with developmental disabilities to participate through a lesson plan created not only on the upcoming election, but also ways to get individuals more involved on topics and platforms that impact their lives.

Sadly, I have heard very little from politicians on issues concerning people with disabilities and the impact it will have on people with disabilities and their families. This affords an opportunity to have real discussion with people on issues that are important to them through a series of multisensory activities.

  1. Who doesn’t like a game of bingo? Download the bingo template, make as many copies as you wish and set up an activity playing Bingo. Once you call out a name. use it as an opportunity to have discussion i.e. How would you describe a conservative? When is the election held? Below, click on the template


Bingo.download

2. The second activity includes a week-long lesson plan on election and representative in office using a multisensory approach.  The first day is set up for making an apple smoothie and a trip preparation activities allowing individuals to work on their social and money management skills. I left the lesson plan editable so that you can move activities around as you wish.


election.dayhab

Materials Needed for the lesson plan activities

Mock Voter Registration

mock voter registration

Apple Smoothie Recipe

Apple Smoothie Recipe

Caramel Apple Smoothie

Patriotic Printable Paper Chain

Free patriotic printable chain

Patriotic paper chain with needed supplies

Oh, this is also a great activity to use a home or school for students at the high school level.

 

Classroom Accommodations for Autistic Students

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A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to speak to a parent who voiced her frustration with her daughter’s school. Although her daughter is diagnosed with autism, she falls on the mild range of the spectrum meaning her deficits are ignored. This becomes challenging for a teacher who may not recognize the signs and symptoms of an autistic child.

Girls, in particular, often develop the ability to disappear in a large group. Imagine the amount of energy it takes to pretend you hold the same characteristics of others.  This leads to both depression and anxiety in children with autism. There are also sensory challenges a student with autism may face including auditory, visual and tactile.

Reading non-verbal cues forces a child and even some autistic adults to work harder everyday which causes exhaustion and can possibly lead to anxiety.

There are a number of ways to accommodate  a student with autism. If you are a teacher, read as much information as you can on autism. each child is different so it will help to get feedback from parents who can help provide the right accommodations.

The following articles provide great information on both modifications and accommodations  which can be put into the child’s IEP:

10 tips for making middle-school work for kids with autism

14 possible IEP accommodations for children with autism/ADHD

20 classroom modifications for students with autism

23 classroom accommodation suggestions for kids with autism and Asperger’s syndrome

Accommodations and supports for school-age students with autism

Asperger syndrome/HFA and the classroom

Common modifications and accommodations

IEP considerations for students with autism spectrum disorder

Recommendations for students with high-functioning autism

Supporting learning in the student with autism

Decoding The Overlap Between Autism and ADHD

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Written by: Ricki Rusting

Published By: Spectrum

Every morning, Avigael Wodinsky sets a timer to keep her 12-year-old son, Naftali, on track while he gets dressed for school. “Otherwise,” she says, “he’ll find 57 other things to do on the way to the bathroom.”
Wodinsky says she knew something was different about Naftali from the time he was born, long before his autism diagnosis at 15 months. He lagged behind his twin sister in hitting developmental milestones, and he seemed distant. “When he was an infant and he was feeding, he wouldn’t cry if you took the bottle away from him,” she says. He often sat facing the corner, turning the pages of a picture book over and over again. Although he has above-average intelligence, he did not speak much until he was 4, and even then his speech was often ‘scripted:’ He would repeat phrases and sentences he had heard on television. Read the rest of the story here

Autism and Sensory Overload

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Even more challenging, it can be difficult for people with autism to “just ignore” sensory information as it comes in.So, unlike people with typical sensory systems, people on the spectrum may not be able to, for example, notice a car alarm going off and then decide not to listen to it. Some of the environmental challenges that can negatively impact people with autism include Click here to read the rest of the story

Autism Sensory Difficulties and How to Address Them

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Autism Sensory Difficulties and How to Address Them

 

 

 

 

 

Source: Durham Region Autism Services

People with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) typically have difficulty processing sensory information such as sounds, sights, and smells. This is usually referred to as having issues with “sensory integration”, or having sensory sensitivity, and is caused by differences in how the brain of a person with ASD understands and prioritizes the sensory information picked up by the body’s many sensory receptors. When this breakdown in communication becomes too intense, the person with ASD may become overwhelmed, anxious, or even feel physical pain. When this occurs, some with ASD may act out. Click here to read the rest of the story.

Lesson Plan: Sensory Activities for Children and Adults

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Image result for orange

Orange is a color that is associated with the fall months of October and November. It can also be used as a training activity for people with developmental disabilities.

Click here to download a printed version

Facts about the color orange:

  • Orange is the color between red and yellow
  • It is associated with amusement, extroverts, warmth, fire ,energy, danger taste, aroma and autumn
  • It is the national color of Netherlands
  • It is the symbolic color of Buddhism and Hinduism.

Activity: What’s in the Box

Learning Objective: to identify various items using a multi-sensory approach

Activity Area:

  • Visual
  • Tactile
  • Olfactory
  • Kinesthetic

Materials needed:

  • shoe box
  • candy corn
  • carrot
  • orange
  • circus peanuts
  • crayon
  • cheeze-it
  • balloon
  • pumpkin
  • leaf

Instructions: Place all items into an empty container such as a shoe box. Once completed, have participants sit in a circle and pass around the box. Give each person an opportunity to touch the object and to guess the name of the object. For people with a severe cognitive level or multi-disabilities, provide hand over hand guidance.

Prompting:

Discuss with the group or class the various sizes, the aroma, etc.

Alternative Activity:

  1. You can also do a compare and contrast activity by adding items into the box of different colors and having the group choose the orange items.
  2. Have the group create a collage by cutting out items in a magazine that are orange. This will help with improving fine motor skills.

 

 

Book Review: The Out-Of-Sync Child Grows Up

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outof sync

The Out-of-Sync Child Grows Up: Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder in the
Adolescent and Young Adult Years
By: Carol Kranowitz
Forward by: Lucy Jane Miller
Published by: Peguin Random House
Pages: 320
Format: Paperback, Kindle

This book is the long-awaited follow-up to the best seller, The Out-Of-Sync Child. Presenting information and advice for tweens, teens, and young adults living with Sensory Processing Disorder, and their parents. The purpose of the book is to offer coping strategies for SPD, help readers living with SPD share their stories and to increase public awareness about SPD.

The book is broken into 4 parts. Ms. Kranowitz begins the first chapter with background history o how she started gathering information on SPD. Chapter 2 describes typical and atypical development. Part 2 describes coping with daily activities and part 3 explains coping with relationships while part 4 provides insight into living an “In-Sync” life.

The book also provides personal stories from people with SPD. Their stories move the book from one of practical tips to truly understanding the experiences of a child with SPD. The format of the book will help people with SPD realize they are not alone and help both parents and professionals understand the needs of a teen and young adult with SPD.

 

 

 

Book Review: I Am Aspien Woman

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I Am Aspien Woman: The Unique Characteristics, Traits and Gifts of Adult Females on the Autism Spectrum.
Tania Marshall.
July, 2015.
150 Pages.
The number of articles written on Asperger’s syndrome and people living on the autism spectrum has mushroomed over the last few years. Most articles and research studies focused on the typical characteristics of males, that is, until now. New evidence shows that women diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome are quite different than their male counterparts. Females for instance are more likely able to imitate social skills and are better at masking certain traits and characteristics. As a result, many been misdiagnosed thus leading to years of depression, anxiety and psychiatric visits.
One author hoping to shed more light on the subject is Tania Marshall, a psychologist and author with extensive training and experience in neuro-developmental conditions including Asperger’s syndrome, ADHD and sensory processing disorder. Based on her professional practice experience, anecdotal evidence, and current research, Ms Marshall weaves a story of validation, self-discovery and self-awareness through a visually stunning book.
The book is full of personal stories and quotes directly from Aspien Women with added commentary from parents, former teachers and therapist. The book is divided into 3 sections. Part one describes the various characteristics and traits. Part two introduces the reader to “real-life Aspien women superhero mentors” including Dr. Temple Gradin. Each mentor describes their strengths and top tips.
The author successfully accomplishes her goal in introducing through this book, the characteristics, traits and gifts of adult females on the spectrum. Ms. Marshall’s book is an excellent book for anyone wanting to learn more about Asperger’s from the perspective of women on the spectrum. While the book on the surface seems to be intended as a form of self-discovery, I equally recommend this book to parents, educators and employers. I do believe this book is only the start of a conversation that is long over-due.

To learn more about I am Aspien Woman and Ms. Marshall’s additional resources and information, I have included the following Resources:

Amazon
Facebook Page
Tania Marshall’s Website
Aspian Girl Blog
Tania Marshall on Twitter