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JUNE 2007

Review of School Success For Kids With Asperger’s Syndrome

School Success For Kids With Asperger’s Syndrome
by Stephan M. Silverman, Ph.D., and Rich Weinfeld
Prufrock Press, Inc. Waco, Texas: 2007. 219 pp.

By Merri Rosenberg

While each special needs child has individual challenges and issues that parents and teachers have to address, there are some commonalities that can provide useful guideposts. At the very least, knowing what’s worked with other children—and what to look for—can be comforting and reassuring.

One of the particular challenges with Asperger’s is that these children often have relatively high intelligence, yet their cluelessness regarding social context and cues can frustrate those around them. Parents may not understand that what appears to them as stubbornness is simply a child’s inappropriate focus on something else. Teachers who are impressed by a student’s knowledge of an arcane subject matter  may be baffled by his inability to complete tasks and projects on time or keep an organized binder. And peers, confused by a child’s inability to participate easily in a group, may shun their shy or withdrawn classmate.

According to recent research released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (p.3), about one in 150 children has autism or a similar disorder. Asperger’s syndrome is classified as part of the spectrum of pervasive developmental disorders. The authors strongly recommend that an appropriate diagnosis be made by an expert in the field, so that the child receives the right treatment and services.

With many Asperger’s children mainstreamed into regular classrooms, understanding how to teach to their strengths and help them manage the sometimes overwhelming social and emotional demands of most public schools is of critical importance, not only for the child with Asperger’s, but for his peers as well.

These children sometimes are fearful of loud noises, or become anxious when there’s a change in their routine. Middle school poses particular problems, when these students are no longer in a relatively protected elementary school self-contained classroom and are expected to move from classroom to classroom with large groups. Sensitivity to their needs, and strategies to help them make these transitions more smoothly and comfortably, make their academic success more likely.

This book is a useful and eminently practical handbook to helping children with Asperger’s navigate school. Written by Silverman, a child/adolescent psychological diagnostician , and Weinfeld, an educational advocate who had experience coordinating a gifted and learning –disabled program in Maryland, the book offers specific information that will be invaluable to parents and teachers alike.

For example, the authors recommend that teachers –and parents—provide as much of a routine and predictable schedule as possible. If there are changes, children with Asperger’s need preparation and rehearsal to cope more successfully. Teachers need to be aware that these children may be mocked by their peers, and be willing to act as their protectors. Since these children may readily absorb facts and data, but not emotional context, one of a teacher’s major tasks is to help them decode non-verbal cues and psychological insights. These students often need help understanding what’s called the “hidden curriculum”—teachers’ expectations, responses to a student’s behavior, classroom rules, even how to ask questions in class. The authors urge that  parents , despite the frustrations that these children may present, should try to be as patient and forgiving as possible, to provide their children with as stable and conflict-free environment as possible.

The appendices at the back of the book are particularly valuable. They  offer a wealth of resources, from national organizations around the country and  web sites to  detailed checklists teachers can use as quick assessment tools in the classroom, specific intervention plans for students with Asperger’s, and even strategies parents and teachers can use to help a child be successful. And that, after all, is the ultimate goal.

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