When a child goes to school, several skills are called upon to be implemented to ensure a positive and enriching school experience. Social skills, the ability to regulate one’s emotions, time management, organization skills and academic skills are just a few examples of such skills. For a child with autism, navigating the demands put upon by the daily schedule of a school can become overwhelming.
Why a child with autism may struggle at school
- Sensory processing issues
Children with autism often have sensory processing issues that render them hypersensitive or under-sensitive to environmental stimuli such as light, sound and touch.
These issues can cause an autistic child to be distracted or perturbed by elements such as bright lights in the classroom or the presence of too much background noise.
- Emotional regulation difficulties
Children with autism tend to find it hard to regulate their emotions. This could cause them to experience exaggerated negative emotions in reaction to relatively minor incidents. It could also lead to a meltdown involving physical aggression and an emotional outburst.
- Deficits in the abilities to relate to and communicate with others
Children with autism may experience difficulties with relating and communicating with others as well as their peers. These abilities are developed in early childhood but the development of these abilities in autistic children may be delayed or thwarted.
Not being able to understand other people’s perspectives or communicate effectively tends to pose considerable challenges in the process of learning.
Integrating support at special education schools
Several special education schools in NYC for children with autism offer different forms of supports to autistic children to help them learn in an effective and enjoyable manner. These support elements may include:
Priming
In this form of support, the teacher interacts with the child in a one-on-one interaction before a lesson to let them know what to expect. Priming can involve presenting an outline of the lesson to the child and introducing them to the lesson and its important concepts beforehand.
Visual supports
It has been observed that children with autism tend to be good visual learners. Visual supports such as illustrations and maps may be used at special education schools to leverage this strength. Visual supports can also refer to putting labels on drawers to indicate their contents or putting up directions to the library or the playground.
Home base
A home base, at a special education school for autistic children, may refer to a separate room, a therapist’s office or a corner of the classroom that functions as a refuge for an autistic child who’s suffering from anxiety or is feeling overwhelmed.
A home base also functions as a learning support for an autistic child for when they feel like they are unable to cope with their immediate environment.
Certain special education schools in NYC, such as the acclaimed Rebecca School, are known for incorporating the needs, challenges and preferences of children with developmental disorders to help make learning a smooth and rewarding experience for them.
Special Needs School NYC 