need help on special education student?

Question

it hasn't been identified what the disorder with this child is, but he has minor weak muscles and isn't very much aware of what surrounds him. he can't talk (but is not mute) and we've tried communicating with him by using representations. for example, if we ask him a yes or no question, we request that if the answer is yes, he claps once and twice for no. he seems so unaware of our requests and just looks around. he loves light beams, but gets tired very quickly. is there any creative way i can help this student?

Answer 1

My son loves laser pointers (the kind you buy at the office supply store that looks like a pen). He is speech delayed (but nowhere near the extent of your student). We used the laser pointer to make sure that he was developing receptive vocabulary. For instance, I would say point to the "table" . . . and he would use the laser to point and confirm that he knew what the table was. . .

Answer 2

As others have said, clapping probably isn't the best choice. If he is nonverbal, he probably doesn't understand what you're asking and probably can't differentiate between the numbers one and two. You definitely need to use symbols for the child. You can get products from IconTalk that will work wonderfully with him. (http://www.icontalk.com/index.html) I worked with the person who developed this system- she's amazing! For yes and no questions, the system has boxes for his answer. One red square with the word "NO" and one green square with the word "YES." Lay these on the table in front of him and ask simple questions: "Is your shirt blue?" and then guide his hand to the right answer. Try gathering many objects, most blue and some not, and repeat this process until he starts to answer correctly. Stick with one skill (the color blue) until you know for sure that he knows what "yes" and "no" mean- he may not know this right now, as simple as it seems.

You can also set up lessons that don't require him to talk. If you're teaching numbers, lay out one object and guide his hand to a written number one and say, "ONE" as you point to each. Replace the one bean with one piece of pasta, and repeat the process. Eventually, try asking, "How many?" and see if you can get him to point to the number one to tell you the answer. Slowly introduce the number two- first with all the answers being two and then mix one and two together- lay out either one or two objects, ask "How many?" and help him point to the correct written number. Every time he points, you need to say, "Yes! It's one! There is ONE bean!"

If he loves the lights, let him mess around with it for a few seconds each time he answers correctly or at least makes an attempt- this will help keep him motivated. If he tires easily, don't push it when he's burned out. Give him a timer and a "take a break" area- let him sit and rest for a few minutes, then bring him back into a lesson.

Please talk to speech/OT/PT people at your school or district and get their advice- they can give you much more specific information and he should be receiving these services anyway.

Answer 3

Actually generally it is less likely that a school district will easily qualify a child as a special needs child because the school district spends ($X) on each child for general education. Special education students often require 2-3 times as much money for the services they need. Therefore it is unlikely that a district would qualify students unnecessarily because that money has to come from somewhere and that don't have any excess to work with usually.

Answer 4

This is a difficult question to answer as there is not a diagnosis (which seems strange). Low muscle tone and non verbal are often found in autistic children. You also did not mention his intelligence level...

The child should be evaluated by a speech pathologist (in additional to an occupational therapist for the muscle tone, a pediatric developmental specialist for a diagnosis, and a neurologist). Perhaps the PECS (Picture Exchange System) could be of use. There are 3 levels and it can help a nonverbal child communicate through pictures.

Answer 5

Why hasn't the disorder been identified? You can't REALLY help until you know for sure what you are dealing with.An evaluation must be done.
That being said,having the child clap one or two times may be too much at this point.Maybe giving him cards with the words yes or no on them, that he can point to, would be more effective.If written word is beyond him,picture cards could be helpful.
My son is autistic,when he was young, he also looked like he was unaware of what was being asked of him but it just took him a long time to process things.That may be the case with this child.Be patient.Use what you know he loves as a motivator.But as I said,you need a diagnosis to really know how to help.

Answer 6

Your district will have a diagnostic examiner who is a speech pathologist as well as an augmentative communication specialist, again a speech pathologist. It makes no difference if he's non-verbal; he still needs an assessment to determine his receptive language functioning as well as a determination of which augmentative communication device is appropriate. Talk with your principal about this ASAP, and be sure to send home a permission form for the parents to authorize the eval.
I agree that clapping is not appropriate for a child who exhibits reduced muscle tone. Have him look up with his eyes for yes, and down for no.
He will also need to be evaluated by the school psychologist to determine his mental age. It doesn't do any good to try to teach 16 month-old skills to a child with a mental age of 6 months.

Answer 7

I wish I knew his age... As others have mentioned, I find a lack of a diagnosis strange, and also I would not ask for claps... Try a simple switch or other type of assistive technology - a search on that will bring a variety of ideas for you to try with him. I bet if he was able to use a switch to turn on a light to answer a question he might be more inclined to do it. Good luck; this sounds like a really tricky situation.

Answer 8

My suggested would be to put together a visual aide. Using pictures, his Mom and Dad, his teachers, friends, food, the bathroom, etc. Have them laminated and either put them on a velcro board or on a ring. If he has low muscle tone, the clapping might not be the most effective way to ask him for clarification.

Many children on the autism spectrum communicate effectively with visual aides.

Answer 9

Try anything that provides sensory experiences. Check with the occupational therapist for help. The physical therapist should also be able to provide support and recommendations for the porr muscle quality.

Answer 10

You can use technology like computers and other assistive devices designed to help the child and we have these electronic communication aids which appears to have a positively reinforcing value to the child and may encourage them to communicate more effectively.