May 2024 | Issue No. 79

Individualizing Instruction for Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

“Autism is a developmental disability that affects how we experience the world around us. Autistic people are an important part of the world. Autism is a normal part of life and makes us who we are. Autism affects how we think, how we communicate, and how we interact with the world. Autistic people are different than non-autistic people, and that’s okay.” — Autistic Self Advocacy Network

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often show differences in social and communication skills as well as restricted interests or repetitive behaviors. However, each child with autism — like every child — has unique learning and behavioral characteristics and needs for support. This makes planning for individualized instruction important. Each child’s strengths, interests, and learning style should be considered when selecting learning goals and planning for instruction.

While learning goals and styles will be unique for each child with ASD, there are some teaching strategies that may be helpful to support the participation and learning of all young children with ASD. These include:

• Using a variety of visual, auditory, or physical aids to clearly communicate routines and expectations in the learning environment. Using multiple aids reinforces expectations for all children including those with ASD to successfully participate in play, social routines, and other activities.
• Intentionally teaching and supporting the use of communication skills, so all children can express themselves and interact with those around them.
  • Recognize that there are many ways to communicate — some children may use eye gaze or gestures, some may use an augmentative or alternative communication (AAC) device, while other children may use verbal language.
  • Support children to learn and use a communication modality that best matches their learning and developmental needs.
• Helping children learn important skills by breaking them down into smaller parts and planning for clear and repeated instruction using research-based strategies throughout daily routines and activities.

Making individualized environmental modifications to support engagement and using systematic teaching practices to help children learn new skills are Division for Early Childhood (DEC) Recommended Practices (Practices E3, INS4-8). Building on a child’s individual interests and strengths, making adaptations to support participation, and using evidence-based teaching practices to promote learning are listed as key practices in the Early Care and Education Environment: Indicators and Elements of High-quality Inclusion (Indicator E1, E5, E6).

Read About It 

Identifying and Targeting Social-Communication and Play Skills for Preschoolers with Autism
This article describes the development of play and social communication skills, how to choose individualized learning goals, and how to identify opportunities to embed teaching into ongoing daily routines and activities. Partner with specialists to learn about and use these evidence-based practices to teach social-communication and play skills to young children with ASD.

About ASD
Use this website to discover facts about ASD, including signs, the diagnostic process, and services. Learn about how to support families if you think a child might be showing signs or characteristics of ASD.

Take a Look 

What’s It Like to Be a Person with Autism?
Learn about ASD from people with autism. This three-minute video features the thoughts, experiences, and feelings of individuals with autism.

Instructional Strategies Video Exemplars
These videos show evidence-based teaching practices in action. Use them to support education staff and families to learn about and use the practices in everyday routines and activities.

Try It Out

Visual Supports
This collection of visuals and supports can be printed and used immediately to support young children's development and learning. Each visual support includes a guide that explains what the support is, why it might be used, and how to increase the participation, engagement, and learning of children in your learning environment.

Social Stories
Find out how and when to use social stories to support participation in social routines for young children with ASD. Download and print social stories to use in a variety of situations.

Helping Children Transition Between Activities
Learn strategies to support transitions between activities, which can be difficult for some children with ASD. This resource is from the National Center on Pyramid Model Innovations (NCPMI) Resource Library, which has many other resources related to using visual supports.

Transitions Can Be Experienced Differently
Every child is an individual and will experience transitions in their own way. Read about ways to support some of the different kinds of transitions that go on in Early Head Start programs.

Improve Your Practice 

AFIRM Modules
Complete these modules to learn more about 30 different teaching practices that have been found to be effective to teach young children with ASD. Each module is designed to teach the step-by-step process for using the teaching strategy. Modules include handouts, planning forms, and checklists to support implementation of the practice. Be sure to check out the new AFIRM for Toddlers resources, specially created to highlight evidence-based practices for children under the age of 3.

Welcome to the Autistic Community
This online book was written by autistic individuals to help people with and without autism learn more, find answers to questions about autism, and promote autism acceptance.

Partner with Families

Information on ASD for Families
Share this resource with families to help them learn facts about ASD, including developmental milestones, information about screening and diagnosis, and treatment options.

Start Here: A Guide for Parents of Autistic Kids
This booklet for parents explains autism from the perspective of autistic individuals. It shares information about what autism is, what parents should do after their child’s diagnosis, what good services look like, and much more.

Practice Improvement Tools: Family
Support family members to achieve the goals they set for their child and themselves and to take an active role in decision-making related to services provided to their child. This collection of checklists, video illustrations, and guides for practitioners and families, from the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (ECTA), shares a variety of resources aligned with the DEC Recommended Practices.

Stay Connected!

Join MyPeers to connect with Head Start and early childhood colleagues around the country on this and other topics. Members of the Head Start Disabilities-Inclusion Network community are currently networking, sharing, and learning from each other. Find it under "All Communities" and select the blue "Join" button.

Please share this message with colleagues who may be interested in this topic.

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The Disabilities Services Newsletter is produced monthly by the National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning. Email ecdtl@ecetta.info to submit questions or suggestions for future newsletter topics.

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