Autism - Description & Background

What is Autism? ››

What Causes Autism? ››

The History of Autism ››

The Triad of Impairments ››

The Continuum ››

Sensory Issues ››

Approaches

Approaches
TEACCH
Introduction
Developed in the early 1970's by Eric Schopler, the TEACCH approach includes a focus on the person with autism and the development of a program around this person's skills, interests, and needs. The major priorities include:

• Centering on the individual
• Understanding autism
• Adopting appropriate adaptations
• A broadly-based intervention strategy building on existing skills and interests.

By focusing on the individual it means that the person is the priority, rather than any philosophical notion like inclusion, discrete trial training, facilitated communication, etc. Emphasise is on individualised assessment to understand the individual better and also "the culture of autism," suggesting that people with autism are part of a distinctive group with common characteristics that are different, but not necessarily inferior, to the rest of us.

Emphasising assessment and the culture of autism requires us to understand people with autism as they are and to build our programmes around where each person is functioning. This does not suggest lower or higher expectations; it simply requires starting where people are and helping them to develop as far as they can go. This is different from adopting a model of "normal" behaviour for everyone and requiring people with autism to fit into that mold, whether that is comfortable for them or not.

Deficits of Autism that make structured support necessary

• Receptive language difficulty
• Poor sequential memory
• Lack of organisational skills
• Social deficit / Unrewarded by praise
• Easily distracted
• Poor imitation skills
• Understanding start and finish
• Obsessions
• Routines

Additional Difficulties

• Strong impulses
• Excessive anxiety
• Sensory/perceptual abnormalities 

Why use structure?

• It helps the person with autism to understand
• It helps people with autism to be calm
• It helps people with autism to learn better
• Structure is the prosthetic device that will help the individual with autism to achieve independence
• Structure is our form of behaviour management  

Five elements of structure in the home
You can structure in the home to help people on the autism by using these five elements:

1. Routines – Positive routines that can be generalised
2. Physical Structure – Organising the environment in a way that makes sense to the individual with   autism
3. Daily Schedules –  An individualised timetable depicting daily events
4. Work Systems Strategies – To help independent work
5. Visual Structure – Helps individuals capitalise on their strengths

Three elements to visual structure

1. Visual Instructions – Visually gives the sequence to help complete the task
2. Visual Organisation – Organising materials and space
3. Visual Clarity – Visually highlighting the important information.

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