In honor of National Autism Awareness Day on April 2nd, this month’s post highlights resources to support the success and acceptance of unique learners in your classroom. We hope you will use these resources throughout the year!
Person First Language
A disability does not define an individual! Identify the individual first rather than the disability. Explore the resources below to learn more about person first language and be sure to adopt this practice in your classroom and your everyday life.
- What is person first language? Click here to read about Person First Language.
- Watch this awesome video about Person First Language. This short documentary was created by a young filmmaker with autism. It explains the impact of labelling and the limits it creates.
Social Stories
Social stories are a great way to explain simple concepts or experiences with visuals. This is a great tool to use BEFORE a student experiences something. If a teacher knows a fire drill is taking place soon, she can review a fire drill social story to prepare the students.
Visual Tools & Symbols
Visual tools are a great way to promote functional communication. The resources below offer options to use for visual schedules, social stories, behavior charts, etc. Both resources offer functional graphics that are simple to interpret.
- Check out the Symbolstix resource from n2y. This service offers quick access to communication tools and a library of over 60,000 symbols visuals to use for $129 per year. There are more free resources for IEP’s to explore from n2y here.
- If you are just getting started with visual communication tools, explore the free picture card resources from do2learn. Click here to explore do2learn’s visual tools!
Puzzle Piece Project Tool Kit
It is important for all students to understand and accept people with autism! Autism Speaks created the Puzzle Piece Project to increase the understanding and acceptance of students with autism in all grade levels.
- Check out this free toolkit from Autism Speaks that includes resources for teachers of K-12 students.