Help for a child with PDD/ADD

Wonderful, Mrs. Owt! Keep up the good work!

- Bert in Springdale, Arkansas

 

a few more tips....

First of all, Mrs. Owt...Thank you. What you are doing is a wonderful and giving thing. It gives me hope for the resst of humanity. (melodramatic I suppose, but true).

I wanted to weigh in with a few more hints and tips on ensuring greater success wiht this individual.

I am a martial artist who works as a clinician with mentally retarded and behaviorally challenged children, teens and adults. I've been in the MR field for 11 years and odne everything from direct care work to my current work as a psychologist. Furthermore, I have a biol;ogical son who has ADHD and is involved in TKD and a foster son diagnosed with PDD.

Others in this thread have given some really good advice on things like sensory issues and structure. I won't reoeat them. You're doing all the right things networking with the family, teachers and therapists. Rule #1 for working with this population is "know your clients."

The best thing I can add to what has been said is to really work on bonding with this child. Develop on building a strong, therapeutic teacher-student relationship will do more for ensuring the success of this endeavor than anything else (this also goes for ANY teacher-student relaitonsip...mayeb moreso for working with students with special needs though.) Make sure your boundaries and expectations are crystal clear. Give lots and lots of noncontiongent praise (it's free, abundant, effective...and it becomes more effective the more you use it :Angel: ). When you do make corrections, be clear wehat you are correcting them for....tell the student what you want him or her to do ratehr waht you don't want him or her to do. For example, "top punching to the face" is not as effective as saying "Punch to the chest."

Also, don't be afraid to adjust the curriculum/technique to the client ratehr than the traditional way of gettign the student to adjsut to the curriculum. Kids with PDD typically aren't as flexible (mentally) as other folks and you may have to start where they are at in order to achieve succes. In fact, the more you can garauntee success, the better.

For teaching things liek forms...I'd use some basic behavioral techniques such as teaching from a Task Analyses. I imagine you can find out more about that on the web. Otehwise, PM me and I'll be happy to discuss what that is and how to use it. You might find it is an effective technique ion teaching all the Little Dragon students.

Anyway, thank you again for what you are doing. Too often, folks with special needs are not given the chance to do what everyone else is allowed to do because people thnk they "aren't ready" or "won't understand." It's good to know that someone is getting outside that.

Peace,
Erik Young, M.Ed.

 

, Thank you very much! It isn't just me, the whole club is working for this kids success though.

My concern is that I have heard, and have previous experience with people on the autism spectrum, that they are very black and white. I know I formed a bond with one person, I thought it was very strong, but when I didn't agree with them they turned on me. They went from adoring to hating over very minor issues. I am a little worried that if I do correct him he will start to see me as someone who doesn't like him and then he will be unco-operative. So far, he seems to not have this problem - but as I have experienced rather violent, explosive reactions in the past it is something I am dreading.

This is a BRILLIANT point. Thank you very much, hadn't even thought of that.

This again addresses my concern of black/white. In my previous experience I have found once they want or 'need' to do something in a certain way it is very hard to convince them otherwise.

Thank you for this bit of info. I will research it myself but may need some assistance in figuring out practical application, hint, hint .

Erik, thank you for your very insightful and knowledgeable comments. They will really assist me in working with the kids and generally understanding how they learn. Thanks again- I have to return the compliment, you too reaffirm my faith in people.

 

more stuff

I can understand your concerns here. My experience tells me that sooner or later something isd going to happen that may touch on this child's sensitivities. However, that doesn't mean it has to be hte end of your successful student-teacher relationship. For me, when I have a client that gets "recalcitrant" or is just having a bad day...I tend to back off, maybe try some totally different activity. This is great in the short term...it's of no use to get in to a head to head confrontation with any student...particulalry one with PDD. HOwever, make sure that the behavior doens;t become a means to avoid doing disliked tasks.

I find just being loving and patient goes a long way to get past the bumps in the road as it were.

As far as using task analyses to tach...here's the quicka nd dirty reader's digest version. Basically, a task analyses is breaking down a task into it's component steps. Much of martial arts are already taught this way to an extent. Especially forms.

What is done is you list all the basic steps on a form. Then You rprompt the student to do the task and wait 3 seconds (gives them time to process the request). If the student does the task, you praise and give other reinforcers. If not you give a prompt. Wait 3 sec and if not correct repsonse, give another prompt.

The prompts go in a hierarchy from least to most. Starting with a gestural prompt, then a verbal + getsural prompt, then a verbal + model prompt (you show the student then let them try to copy you), and finaly az verbal plus physical assisstance prompt (you physially guide the student through the motion).

When you use the prompts, you start with the least promtp, and then move up to the hierarchy until the student does the step. Once the student doees the step you reinforce the behavior with praise and other stuff (stickers are good for this). The beauty is that by the time you get to thre physical assistance stage you've garaunteed that the student will do the behavior.

You basically follow this cue-behavior-prompt if necccessary-reinforce pattern with each step of the task. If the student does make an error, you quickly stop them and then go to the nexty prompt level of the hierarchy.

The beauty of this system is that it really reduces the cahnce of the student learning wrong, puts in lots of positive reinforcement. Promotes consistency becaue the task is taugh tin the same way each time. Also allows for natural fading of pronmtps as the student masters the skill.

I've used this to teach some profoundly disabled individuals some very difficult skills and am confident of how well it can work.

Anyway, good luck with this. Kudos to you and your whole school for being willing to walk this road.

Peace,
Erik