autism education – Autism Connection of Pennsylvania

Goodwill Hose Company Ambulance parked on a sunny day

Disability is Not a Crime Training in Lock Haven Pennsylvania

We were thrilled to visit and teach new friends from the first responder community in and around Lock Haven, PA this past week. We listened to our audience’s experiences and training goals, learned how tremendously professional and caring they are in their work, then launched into delivering “Disability is Not a Crime” content.

Everyone in the room had autism or an autistic relative, and one learner manages two autistic employees, so engagement was high. The conversation was so fantastic we stayed well past the end time of 9:00pm, thinking of creative ways to support autistic people in emergency situations.

Blending an autistic presenter (who is an EMT) and a non-autistic trainer seems to help people feel comfortable asking questions no matter their personal experience. We left feeling a little sad that we don’t live closer to experience their beautiful area and work together more to support folks with disabilities in the region.

Huge thanks to Goodwill Hose Company Ambulance Association for hosting us! And thank you to the attendees for sharing stories of finding missing persons who wander (some multiple times), supporting autistic people in car accident responses, and for telling us a few rattlesnake stories we don’t often get to hear!

Since we were at an EMS base for the training, we had the opportunity to take some photos of equipment. We will be using the images to help people understand what to expect in emergency situations in an ambulance. People may be safer if they know a little more about what to expect when they are sick or injured. Believe it or not, it is not uncommon for people to be arrested and charged for fear-based behaviors they may have during emergency situations, when they are injured or sick on the scene, or in an emergency room.

This project is funded by the Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council.

children using an iPad for assistive technology in a classroom

Guest Blog Post: Autism and Assistive Technology

When my son was 4 years old and had no verbal words, I knew we needed to find a communication method that worked for him. Getting over the barriers to access AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) didn’t come fast or easy, but because we were unrelenting in the belief that he had the right to communicate, we are here.

So where are we? Well, he – and we – are on the second day of the new adventure of middle school. Yes, middle school. A lot has certainly changed since the acronym AT (assistive technology) became part of our vocabulary. My son has matured and grown almost as fast as the technology has.

Helpful Assistive Technology Resources

Proloquo2go has been my son’s go-to communication app for years It’s fully customizable. He has a dedicated iPad for his communication app and his communication app only. There are several app options, but this one fit his needs and has grown with him.
Snap Type Pro 2 App – to assist with independent work.
Clicker App – to promote independent writing.
Anti-Glare screen protector to help improve focus.

Text leveling apps modify the text to be simpler to fit a student’s reading/comprehension skills while allowing them to access the same content as other students:

Intermediate Units and Training and Consultation Teams

The information above is courtesy of a report shared with us after a new AT Consult was done with a consultant from our IU (Intermediate Unit) who is a part of the TaC (training and consultation) Team.

You can find your Intermediate Unit by visiting the PA Intermediate Unit (PAIU) website.

AT Your Service: The Crucial Role of Assistive Technology (AT) Specialists

Please remember, these are examples that were identified for my son to trial. AT and AAC should be person-centered to meet the needs of each student, and that includes having time to trial options, not just forcing options. Conversations about this should be ongoing, as students and technology change, it’s important to review and revise. Students should also be a part of these conversations.

Technology is so helpful to all of us, I hope this piqued your interest in exploring what is out there.

Melissa Skiffen, Disability and Family Support Advocate

Achieva

Measurable IEP Goals that Address Executive Functioning: Enhancing Student Success

In the realm of special education, Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) play a crucial role in supporting students with diverse learning needs. When it comes to addressing executive functioning skills, creating measurable goals within the IEP is essential. Executive functioning refers to a set of cognitive processes that enable people to plan, organize, manage time, pay attention, regulate emotions, and demonstrate self-control. By incorporating measurable IEP goals that target executive functioning, educators can provide effective interventions and support students in achieving their fullest potential.

Understanding Executive Functioning

Executive functioning encompasses various skills that facilitate goal-directed behavior and cognitive flexibility. These skills are important for academic success, social interactions, and independence. The core components of executive functioning include:

Working memory: The ability to hold and manipulate information in mind while performing tasks.
Cognitive flexibility: The capacity to adapt to new situations, shift perspectives, and switch between tasks.
Inhibition: The skill to inhibit impulsive actions, control attention, and stay focused.
Planning and organization: The ability to develop a plan, set priorities, and manage time effectively.
Self-monitoring: The capacity to evaluate one’s own performance, regulate behavior, and make adjustments as needed.

Learn more about executive functioning by following the link below:

Everything Executive Functioning Handbook

Creating Measurable IEP Goals

When developing measurable IEP goals that address executive functioning, it is important to follow the SMART criteria:

Specific: Goals should be specific and clearly define the desired skill or behavior. For example, “The student will improve working memory skills by being able to remember and follow multi-step directions in 80% of classroom tasks.”
Measurable: Goals should be measurable, allowing educators to track progress and determine if the goal has been achieved. For instance, “The student will demonstrate improved cognitive flexibility by successfully switching between academic tasks with minimal support in 90% of observed instances.”
Attainable: Goals should be realistic and attainable within a reasonable timeframe. It is important to consider the student’s current level of functioning and set goals that challenge but do not overwhelm them.
Relevant: Goals should be relevant to the student’s educational needs and directly address their executive functioning deficits. They should align with the student’s academic and functional requirements.
Time-bound: Goals should have a specific timeline or deadline for completion. This ensures that progress can be monitored regularly and interventions can be adjusted if necessary.

SMART IEP Goals

Sample Measurable IEP Goals

Goal: The student will improve working memory skills.
- Objective: The student will remember and follow multi-step directions in 80% of classroom tasks within six months.
Goal: The student will enhance cognitive flexibility.
- Objective: The student will successfully switch between academic tasks with minimal support in 90% of observed instances within three months.
Goal: The student will develop effective planning and organization skills.
- Objective: The student will independently create and utilize a daily planner to manage assignments and deadlines in 100% of subjects within four months.
Goal: The student will enhance self-monitoring skills.
- Objective: The student will evaluate their own performance, identify areas for improvement, and make appropriate adjustments in 80% of academic tasks within five months.

Implementing Measurable IEP Goals

To effectively implement measurable IEP goals targeting executive functioning, educators should:

Collaborate with relevant stakeholders, including special education teachers, general education teachers, parents, and the student, to ensure consistency across settings.
Provide explicit instruction and scaffolding to support the development of executive functioning skills.
Incorporate strategies such as visual aids, checklists, graphic organizers, and timers to facilitate planning, organization, and time management.
Regularly review and assess progress towards the goals, adjusting interventions and supports as needed.
Offer opportunities for practice and reinforcement of executive functioning skills across different subjects and contexts.
Provide feedback and praise to encourage and motivate the student’s progress.
Foster a supportive and inclusive learning environment that values and acknowledges the student’s efforts and growth.

40 IEP Goals for Executive Functioning Skills

Measurable IEP goals that target executive functioning skills are instrumental in supporting students with a wide range of learning needs. By incorporating these goals into individualized education plans, educators can provide targeted interventions that can support students in developing essential cognitive processes that promote academic success and independence. With clear, specific, and measurable goals, educators can effectively track progress, adapt strategies, and ensure that students have the necessary tools to overcome executive functioning challenges and thrive in their educational journey.

Classroom with children sitting on a circle mat eagerly raising hands

Opinion: Sorted Children Lead to Sorted Adults

I walk into school on my first day of kindergarten and an adult points me in the direction of my classroom. Whew. Made it! I’m in the “Trauma, Depression, Anxiety, OCD, Autism classroom”. It’s where people like me go to get the support they need. Next door is the “Hearing Impaired Wheelchair User classroom”. Okay, so yes, I’m being over the top. Realistically, when I was in kindergarten 30 years ago, we didn’t talk about mental health and anyone with autism was “taught” in another school or in the basement.

“It is absolutely absurd that we sort people with disabilities. We sort them in school. We sort them at work. We sort them in the community. We wouldn’t do this to people outside of the disability world. So why do we do this to people with disabilities?”

LRE is an initialism that came into my world when we were preparing for my son to begin his school career. LRE stands for Least Restrictive Environment, and it basically means that students with disabilities have the right to be educated with their typically developing peers in general education as much as possible for each student. “Each student” means that each student needs something different to be successful, not each student with an autism diagnosis needs an autism support classroom. I said it. Many students don’t need to be in classrooms with their diagnosis on the wall to be successful.

Let me share an example. My son attended a preschool and was in a classroom where all the students had a diagnosis of autism. He would come home from school twisted in knots from overstimulation. Why? Because much like my son had behaviors (not always negative but certainly loud and many), so did the other students in his room for five hours a day.

First, they were four years old and that’s what four-year-old children do. Second, his wants and needs didn’t always mesh with everyone else’s. My son needed a structure and routine that flew in the face of other students’ necessary structure and routine. With these conflicting needs, the students would implode or explode, and need to recover. It is hard to learn feelings and coping skills when the classroom (the world) is loud.

The knot twisting stopped when he went kindergarten and was in the least restrictive environment (LRE). He started in general education, and attended with 20 other students, with the support of a paraprofessional. Start with inclusion and adjust when a student communicates they need something to be changed.

Oftentimes, what is needed is not a segregated space where all the autistic kids go, it is person-centered support in inclusive, safe spaces where everyone can be themselves to learn, practice coping skills, and build healthy relationships with themselves and others. This applies to all students. They learn from each other, and they have the right to have access and explore learning opportunities within the general education curriculum, including health education. This doesn’t always happen in the segregated settings.

There is only one world we all live in. We should not be modeling for any student that it is a best practice to sort people by a diagnosis.

E.R. Heffel