The Autism Society Event and Education Recordings Archive

This session will introduce the different stages of reading that many children with autism progress through. Reading stages will be identified and clear cut strategies to foster your child’s emergence through those stages will be discussed. Ideas for positive story interactions at circle time will also be addressed. Finally, learn tips to increase your child’s story comprehension skills and foster a love of literacy! Literacy is defined as the ability to read, write, communicate, and comprehend. According to the 1998 Position Statement by the International Reading Association and the National Association for the Education of Young Children, “failing to give children literacy experiences until they are school-age can severely limit the reading and writing levels they ultimately attain.” The importance of literacy instruction in early intervention settings is clear. During their educational training, teachers can gain insight in how to provide a literacy rich environment for preschoolers. Children increase sentence length and create more complex sentence structures as well as understand a wider vocabulary when they are in literature intensive environments.

A literacy rich environment for preschoolers with autism has been found to increase children's understanding and use of print materials and tools (Koppenhaver & Erickson, 2003). The American Speech Language & Hearing Association's position statement (2006) on autism spectrum disorders states that a Speech Language Pathologist should enhance a child's “access to literacy and academic instruction”. It is important then that therapists, teachers, paraprofessionals and parents have the tools they need to help children create a love of literacy!

Creating a literacy rich preschool environment for children with autism involves choosing the right materials, including the right books! Books in a preschool environment will receive lots of use and need to be long lasting. Fabric books and board books are a great place to start. The trick, however, is to find long lasting books in interactive formats. Interactive books include things like hide-n-seek flaps, pull tabs, and push buttons. Interactive books typically have very simplistic stories but the key is for a child to learn to enjoy books. Books that include actual photographs of people and objects are also very inviting. In fact, taking photos of favorite things, people and places and creating a personalized book can be very motivating. Another important component is choosing books that have a lot of repetition. Repetitive language provides familiarity and taps into an area of strength for many children with autism.

Now that the environment has some motivating materials it's time to help children progress thought different stages of reading. The initial reading phase many children with autism start at is the Mine! phase. During the MINE! stage children tend to look at the covers of a book or flip through one or two pages of a book at lightening speed. After parents and professionals implement strategies that allow the child more control of the book and create very interactive reading arrangements a child will move into the Quick Flip stage. During this stage children tend to look at a book in it's entirety but the whole book may only take seconds to flip through. Again interactive strategies that are fun and motivating will help guide children to the next phase, Label & Comments. During this phase, children have an opportunity to start labeling things in books themselves while also requesting for adults to label and comments on pictures in the book. Finally children progress to the Read to Me! phase. Children in this phase enjoy books for greater lengths of time and actually begin to enjoy and request story time!

Circle time is an important time to promote a love of literacy. One of the keys is to remember that circle time does not have to be lengthy to be successful. Success can instead be measured by the amount of interaction that occurs! One trick to keeping circle time interactive is to provide objects that are in line with the story. If the weekly theme is animals then incorporate a zoo story where each child participates with their own plastic animal during circle time. There are many animal songs that include movements where children can sing and move their bodies. Intersperse movement time with sitting activities and circle time success increases. Create flannel board pieces so that each child can take a turn putting the flannel story together. Flannel pieces also provide visual input to make the stories more concrete and aid in increasing comprehension. Active involvement allows for active learning during circle time!

Whether you are reading at home or reading in a classroom there are some universal tips for success. Follow your child's lead. If they love Elmo, find books that include Elmo. If they love music, find a book that plays music. Determine what they love and bring the element of reading along! Try to be face to face whenever possible. It is important to know what a child is looking at to aid in their reading progression. Their eye gaze is critical in telling you what they find motivating about the book! When in doubt bring in outside supports as you read - puppets, figurines, stuffed animals – whatever works! Again motivation is key! Finally, remember it is not about who controls the book but who creates the interaction. If your child wants to hold the book and flip the pages, success is still possible. The interaction is what will get your child learning and loving literacy!

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