Autism as a Condition that is Usually Diagnosed among Infants - Case Study Example

Background Autism is a condition that is usually diagnosed among infants in their early years of age. It is characterized by acute and persistent impairments in various essential areas of human development. It is essential to note that, it is almost impossible to diagnose this condition in an infant before eight months, this is due to the fact that, the behavioral symptoms used to elaborately determine the diagnosis have not really been visible developmentally during this time. Most young children who suffer from this condition often display a learning disability or rather mental retardation, and therefore, they can be considered to be slow learners. A good number of them also display symptoms of being epileptic with visual and hearing impairment (Bourgeron 231). The challenge for teachers, particularly those of mathematics, lies in the complex nature of the pupils’ understanding process. Teachers and other educational staff face the challenge of planning and implementing effective programs for all students. Of most concern are mathematics teachers, considering the complexities of teaching the subject. There are some important aspects of autism that teachers should take into consideration. For the teacher to successfully teacher autistic children mathematics is for the teacher to understand autism, its nature and diagnostic procedure. The teacher must understand characteristic of autism; this includes autism effects and general implications it has in education. The teacher must be able to plan to support students with autism; this includes roles of people involved in the planning process and proposed elements of individual education plans (IEPs). The teacher must be able to understand detailed suggestions in line with the instructional strategies as well as strategies on how to manage mathematic classrooms, development of communication, and social skills. The teacher must be able to develop skills to manage challenging behaviors. This includes taking into consideration development of behavioral plan and strategies for supporting behavior change. The teacher must also understand what teaching children with Asperger’s Syndrome, its implication on education and proposed teaching strategies, and finally Transition planning is also essential in ensuring the teacher is able to guide autistic children through one unit to another. Considering that autistic children are slow learners who may also suffer from visual and hearing disorder, it is essential to employ a teaching mechanism that would best suit their condition and enable them to learn at their own pace. The mechanism should involve skills breakdown into minor steps and dealing with each exhaustively until they is fully comprehended. A teacher handling this special group of children should be able to offer a number of repetitions while prompting the right response from these children to enhance better understanding. The following are lesson plans for grade three mathematics pupils. 1. Summary Students will study the concept of place value Main curriculum tie: First objective is to ensure that the pupils have the capacity to represent whole numbers and have a clear understanding of the place value concept. They also ought to be in a position to recognize the relationships shared between whole numbers using “base-ten models and symbolic notation” (Bourgeron 231). When the objective is put in check, the children are expected to learn normally just like any other child by acquiring ‘new form of behaviors’ or the child mastering figures he was unable to master before (Smith 87). Materials Markers Marker writing boards Number bibs Teacher’s background Pupils are to critically assess and evaluate the concept of place value and its relationship with regards to number sense. Pupils that exhibit high level number sense obviously can boast of having place value knowledge and can determine the value of a figure between 1 and 9 when they see it possibly in the 1000’s place. This group of pupils can also compare and contrast sizes of numbers with relative ease, arranging them in both descending and ascending order. The expected learning outcomes At the end of the entire lesson, the pupils should be in a position to communicate mathematically with minimal challenge. Teaching procedure A discrete trial approach is to be applied since it can assist the pupils develop various skills. The approach involves carrying out a breakdown of the skills into minor steps and tutoring each exhaustively until each is fully comprehended. The approach demands of the teacher to offer a number of repetitions while prompting the right response (Catania, Daniel and Brian 389). In the first case, a number is to be written on the white board using a marker and one pupil made to locate a fellow pupil who has a similar number. Other than giving the pupil the opportunity to master some numerical skills, the method also gives them a chance to adopt interactive learning skills. In the second case, two different numbers should be written on the white board and a pupil prompted to determine whether the set are both odd or even numbers, and the larger value between the two. This process guides the learner in identifying numerical numbers. Assessment procedure A pupil should be able to recognize and differentiate numbers by using symbols such as, (123>109 or 345 Read More