http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-39380539

LEGO®-Based Therapy and children with Autism

Three summers recesses ago I researched LEGO -based therapy as a possible additional therapy to introduce into the school. I decided against it. I decided that staff members would not be able to stop themselves from helping children with the build. Non-directive play therapy is a non-intrusive method in which children are encouraged to work toward their own solutions to problems through play. I reported my decision back to staff.

A year later I was attending church when the minister got out a load of LEGO for us all to ‘play’ with. He felt it would help us plan the future of the church.  The LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® methodology is an innovative process designed to enhance innovation and business performance. Based on research which shows that this kind of hands-on, minds-on learning produces a deeper, more meaningful understanding of the world and its possibilities, the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® methodology deepens the reflection process and supports an effective dialogue – for everyone in the organization.

As soon as the church meeting was over I went straight to a Toy shop and bought several boxes of LEGO. The following day was a training day in school and although the training had been planned months in advance my introduction to the training day had not been finalised.

I introduced the training day with LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY®, gave staff a brief introduction to  LEGO®-Based Therapy  and each group departing for their training venue in the school was given a  box of LEGO with visual instructions. They could complete it as and when they had time but only if they chose to.

"You can learn more about a person in an hour of play than you can from a lifetime of conversation" – Plato 

It has been the most successful training day that we have had as a school. It is hard to find a more satisfying payoff than a completed LEGO set. I could go on and on about the benefits of that payoff.

At the end of the training day I apologised to staff for presuming to decide for them 12months previously. We introduced LEGO -based therapy into the school that term.It has been an astounding success.

The central tenet of Seymour Papert’s constructionist theory of learning is that people learn most effectively when they are actively engaged in constructing things. He became the first LEGO professor of learning research in 1989.

LEGO club rules are introduced to children  participating for the first time. Most children seem naturally drawn to LEGO.They develop LEGO brick building skills, including collaborative building as a team. Rules and instructions are visual.

Ergo the group meets on a regular basis (preferably weekly)  and during that time engages in collaborative LEGO brick building activities and other projects, tailored to their skill levels. They engage the group so naturally that other challenges faced during playtime are more likely to be overcome. LEGO -based therapy is so engaging that the  focus on  fine motor skills doesn’t seem as much of an issue for children with autism as gripping a pencil does.

Group members have different responsibilities  (typically these roles a”director”, ‘engineer’; ‘supplier’; and ‘builder’). These roles support their development in creativity, imaginative play and socialization.

Once together they assemble the project with and an emphasis on verbal and non-verbal communication, joint attention and task focus. The need to focus seems to prevent repetitive actions which often plague and frustrate children with autism. With problem solving and step-by-step directions at the heart of project building, many children who have autism find themselves in their comfort zones right from the start.

Collaborative LEGO® based therapy involves children working together to build LEGO® models in pairs and in teams of three or more. It is argued that as a result, participants experience a greater motivation to initiate social contact and engage in sustained interactions with others. (LeGoff, 2004) Collaborative problem-solving, sharing and turn-taking (switching roles during the task) is an aspect of the therapy.

Legoff created LEGO- based therapy. During his weekly LEGO®-Based Therapy with children, LeGoff allocated specific joint and interactive jobs within the LEGO® building and made the children take turns to carry out each role. He also provided a structured set of rules, giving the children responsibility for problem-solving, using the rules as guidance.

Understandably  the resulting interaction promoted the development of key skills which were previously challenging for children with Autism Spectrum Conditions to gain. These key skills include, joint attention, sharing, collaboration, verbal and non- verbal communication and conflict resolution.

But the supervising adult does not take part in the build . The supervisor takes on  the role of facilitator, highlighting the presence of any problems and encouraging pupils to come up with solutions. These experiences resulted in the children with Autism Spectrum Conditions gaining a greater understanding of each others points of view.

 LEGO® Club at Ysgol pen Coch

 There are three different levels of LEGO®-Based Therapy, Individual LEGO® Club, Collaboration LEGO® Club Pairs/Two Peers and Group LEGO® Club. Each level follows a similar session format below,

1. Introduction 5 minutes (greet and rules or set goals)

2. LEGO® set building 15 minutes (small LEGO® kits with visual building plans provided – taking it in turns to perform set roles) Role A. Designer –tells everyone what to build Role B. Sorter –finds the right Lego pieces Role C. Builder –puts the Lego pieces together

3. LEGO® freestyle building 15 minutes (pupils agree on a LEGO® project and build collaboratively, taking it in turns to perform set roles but without visual instruction sheets)

4. Tidy up 5 minutes

5. Circle time 5 minutes (showing Lego creations and certificates/prizes)

LEGO® Club Certificates: The children have the opportunity to be awarded certificates for achieving LEGO® Club skills over the course of the LEGO®-Based Therapy, these skills include, LEGO® Helpers, LEGO® Builders, LEGO® Creators, LEGO® Masters and LEGO® Genius.

 LEGO® Club Rules: The children follow of the LEGO® Club rules during the session and are awarded points for remembering them.

The children adore attending LEGO club .

Having a Meltdown

                   

                Having a Meltdown

I recall receiving an email from a new member of staff who had come from mainstream with no previous training in working with pupils with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Staff had been concerned with how she had reacted to a ‘meltdown’. Her email suggested it was a word she found distasteful. A word that she felt shouldn’t be used. The pupil just needed to be told how to behave.

A meltdown actually is a very important word and our staff using that word showed complete understanding of our pupils and their needs.

A meltdown is when a pupil with ASD experiences sensory overload or adverse reactions to sensory input more frequently than ordinary mainstream pupils.

  As a result, pupils with ASD have a greater tendency to move from a calm and alert state (PNS) to a fight or flight state(SNS) in the presence of certain sensory stimuli. This is known as ‘having a meltdown’.

Our pupils may perceive sensory input that seems normal to mainstream pupils as overwhelming or even painful. This explains why they often experience a fight or flight in the presence of these sensory stimuli.

Each pupil with autism is unique and so is very different in terms of the type or amount of sensory input that causes this reaction. They can have a hard time with self-regulation and actually need assistance to calm.

 It is important to find what triggered the reaction. 

When they are experiencing fight or flight they may attempt to escape the situation or hide, they may become aggressive, or they may cry/scream inconsolably or may even shut down or fall asleep. Every human being reacts differently to situations -that’s what makes us individuals.

We need to remember that responding from a behavioural point of view is ineffective in these cases. As adults, we need to remove the excessive or adverse stimuli, and we may need to take the pupil to a calm, quiet place.

·       Some pupils may need to be held

·       Some may need to exercise to get excess energy out and decompress

·       Others may prefer to sit alone with a comfort blanket that feels weighty (proprioceptive input also known as deep pressure input) so that they feel grounded.

·       Some may like the visual stimuli of low lighting

·        Others may prefer auditory stimuli of music

·       The smell of essential oils work for some

·       Water play works for others

·        While others may prefer to sit with something to twiddle as a tactile stimuli.

·        Certain types of vestibular sensory input (sometimes referred to as movement input) can also help: Some of our pupils who are in the midst of a sensory meltdown respond positively to swinging on a swing or rocking in a chair, while other children prefer to jump on our outdoor trampoline in times of stress.

It is important to have a basic understanding of sensory input that can calm individual pupils (as each child has an individual response to sensory input).

 Individuals with autism have meltdowns for various reasons. Autism, after all, is a spectrum disorder. Attempting to reason with a pupil during a meltdown (sensory overload) is ineffective.

But how do you know when it’s a meltdown or when a pupil is simply having a temper tantrum?

Well, for all intents and purposes, a meltdown does look very similar to a tantrum. Often, it’s difficult to tell the difference- especially to the untrained eye or for someone who might not be familiar with autism.

With a tantrum, a pupil is looking for a reaction whereas with a meltdown, the pupil does not care if you are reacting or watching. They have simply reached a point when they are out of control and they are very frightened.

Have patience and recognise that if a staff member uses the word ‘meltdown’ he or she probably knows what to do next. And instead of complaining -offer them support.

We now offer online training to all of our staff. They are released from class for half a day a week and follow certificated programmes of study.

Visit http://ysgolpencoch.org/ and choose from a range of online training programmes  aimed to support teachers, teaching assistants & trainee teachers to increase their knowledge and skills in working with children & young people with a range of special educational needs (sen)

The Padagogy Wheel and Special Schools

https://designingoutcomes.com/english-speaking-world-v5-0/

Allan Carrington’s Padagogy Wheel Model.

The link above will take you to the version 5 of the Padagogy Wheel. The wheel is constantly updated .

Teachers now have an at-hand reference that ties apps to specific learning outcomes directly connected to modern pedagogies and theories. All around the world universities are using it as an integral part of initial teacher training to encourage  research and methodology in e-learning, distance education and the use of technologies in education. It is completely child-centred with the aim of helping to maximise learning outcomes from these new devices.

Once qualified, teachers can easily sit with the wheel during lesson planning time to find tools that will best aid their pupils. Or use it during class time to extend or deepen learning towards a specific 21st century skill or content area.

The underlying principle of the Padagogy Wheel is that it is the pedagogy that should determine our educational use of apps and how that app might contribute to our set of educational aims . Pedagogy should drive the technology and not the other way around. 

The Padagogy wheel was based on Blooms taxonomy ,thought by many to be the backbone of modern teaching.

Andrew Churches produces some amazing work in relation to Blooms taxonomy.

I like his infographic that links Blooms Digital Taxonomy to the communication spectrum.

Alan Carrington has connected Apps to the taxonomy.

Alan Carrington  version 1 in 2012 was 62 iPad apps categorised according to Blooms cognitive domain and was useful to lots of teachers. It evolved to version 2 with additions and so on until we are now at version 5. Many people all over the world have become involved. At this time of writing it has been translated into 19 different languages.

The core of the padagogy wheel is all about what an excellent graduate looks like , all about graduate attributes and employable capabilities and how we get the best out of the technology (SAMR). Graduate attributes are the key to managing transformative learning. Below is a Youtube link on how to use a version of the wheel.

Have Special schools been left out? No. Already versions have been adapted at universities for a padagogy wheel to meet all kinds of needs. Edinburgh universities in particular ! Please follow link below for a more detailed version of the picture introducing this post : An App wheel describing apps useful to those with autistic spectrum disorders

http://www.autismspeaks.org/sites/default/files/pedagogy_wheel.pdf

iPad apps to support Creativity can be downloaded from: www.callscotland.org.uk/downloads/posters-and-leaflets/ In the electronic version, App images are ‘clickable’ links, taking you to information about the individual App on the iTunes site for the UK

iPad Apps for Complex Communication support can be downloaded from http://bit.ly/CALL-AAC-App-Wheel In the electronic version, App names are ‘clickable’ links, taking you to information about the individual App on the iTunes site for the UK.

iPad Apps for Dyslexia support can be downloaded from http://www.callscotland.org.uk/downloads/posters-and-leaflets

I feel sure many more will follow.

Autism-evolution or a new species or just diversity ?

If you watched the David Attenborough series Planet Earth 2 you will have perhaps marvelled, like me, at the story of the long-tubed passionflower and the sword- billed hummingbird.

  The most striking observation is the close relationship that exists between the shape and length of the hummingbird beak and the morphology of the flowers from which they feed. This evolutionary adaptation is a good example of mutualism. Scientists from the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich found that the evolution toward longer nectar-tubes had happened very rapidly and more than once, too, ensuring their survival.

This forces us to think of evolution as a more complex negotiation between animals, plants and their changing surroundings. Mutation and genetic drift are both important forces of evolution.

There are many substances in our industrialized world that change a fundamental evolutionary parameter, the mutation rate. This can have grave consequences on the long term. Some techniques that are used to grow crops that the world relies on for food have problematic evolutionary side-effects. We need to understand these issues better to fully grasp what our mutagenic life-styles really do to the world that ALL our children live in. 

The term ‘mutation’ applies both to heritable genetic changes that may be manifested at the phenotypic level and to the underlying DNA modifications when known. Research continues into exonic somatic mutations thought by some to contribute to those born with autism spectrum.(1)

Possible approaches to primary prevention of the ‘disorder’ have been suggested such as addressing widespread vitamin D deficiency and exposure to known mutagens. The paternal de novo mutation caused by mercury exposure has been researched by Mark Blaxill and Dan Olmsted(2)

Some people believe that for each individual susceptible to developing autism a trigger can be found. These include being born prematurely, or being exposed in the womb to alcohol or to certain medication, or being given a vaccine. James Schlarmann claims that “ anti-vaxxers are not “anti-vaccine” they are “pro-plague” because that, to them, is preferable to the idea of their kid “catching” autism.”(3).

Some researchers believe that certain genes a child inherits from their parents could make them more vulnerable to developing ASD. In support of this theory ASD has been known to run in families. In our school alone we have younger siblings of children with ASD also with the condition, and we have had sets of identical twins with ASD. However, no specific genes linked to autism have been identified.

The term autism was first used by a psychiatrist called Bleuler in 1911 to try and describe a type of what was then called ‘childhood schizophrenia’.

 I n the 1940’s two psychiatrists called Kanner, and working separately Asperger, found that with the groups of children they were working with a set of distinct symptoms were being identified that were markedly different from schizophrenia as it was conceived of at the time.

Kanner’s work laid the foundation for early accounts of autism, whilst the work of Asperger was left largely undiscovered until the 1970s. Does this just mean that autism has always been with us? Or, as Dr Rajalakshmi Kandaswamy would have it, ‘autistic beings are a new species on this planet’(4).

The characteristics of autism can present themselves in a wide variety of combinations. Two people with the same diagnosis can have a very different profile of needs and skills.

There is a growing movement among activist adults who are on the autism spectrum who don't think in terms of 'curing' a disorder but instead of celebrating diversity. 

Downs syndrome is named after the British doctor, John Langdon Down, who fully described the syndrome in 1866. Two people with the syndrome can have a very different profile of needs and skills. Has anyone ever claimed that children with Downs syndrome are a new species on the planet?

Would we dare to say that those who are transgender could be a new species on the planet?

 Or is this merely a time of better understanding? A time when modern society has evolved in its understanding of humankind in all its diversity.

Educational leaders today are echoing Piaget’s call in the 1970s to change the way we teach all of our children. At long last many countries today are attempting to change the way we educate our children. Changes to the education system takes a long time.

Perhaps those diagnosed with autism are demonstrating the fact that those changes are long overdue.

Working with pupils with autism it has become obvious that they have a talent for technology. Does this mean that those born with autism have evolved, like the humming bird, to take advantage of the way that society has evolved with technology? Could this be termed human mutualism?

Technology can be empowering. It allows everyone with an ability in technology to be active and constructive. It allows voices to be heard, and serves as a mechanism for the consideration of anyone’s ideas and insights.  In a world enabled by technology, pupils are not limited by their diagnosis; they can recreate themselves.

The assumption of alternate online persona can serve as an outlet for feelings that the person with autism cannot express with real people around him or her. But technology is not the only answer.

 A complete revision of the way student teachers learn to teach seems to be underway around forward-thinking countries in the world today. In those countries a teacher’s role has shifted from content instructor to learning facilitator.

In those countries it will seem laughable in the near future, that teachers in the past, expected their pupils to be passive recipients of information. Information that teachers had to research before churning it out at the front of the class.

 Because teachers in the near future will be there to ensure that each pupil has the optimum learning experience. They will help pupils to identify and cultivate their strengths, interests and values. For all pupils this can’t come soon enough.

References

1 http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2016/10/26/083428

 2 The Age of Autism: Mercury, Medicine, and a Man-Made Epidemic: Mark Blaxill and Dan Olmsted

3 http://modernliberals.com/fear-anti-vaxxers-al-qaeda-isis-combined

4 http://authenticautismsolutions.com/2017-welcoming-a-new-species-of-humans-on-earth-the-autistic-beings/

5. To Understand is to invent: The future of Education : Jean Piaget 1973