1. Helping the child with Autism
settle into regular classroom
The ComDEALL (Mumbai) Experience
Deepa Bhat Nair
Speech Therapist specializing in Autism

2. Purpose of the presentation
• This presentation aims to share lessons we
have learnt
• We will also touch upon challenges we face
• Our experience (at Com DEALL Mumbai) is at
the preschool level.

3. Preparing for school
• Familiarize the child with the physical
structure of the school and a typical day
• Establish rapport between teacher and child
• Help transfer basic communication skills to the
larger groups
• Language for the classroom
• General observations and current challenges

4. Familiarize the child with
the school routine
• Visit the school well before it reopens.
• Click relevant photographs of the school,
classroom, teachers, etc. An album is a good
talking point to explain to and prepare your child.
• Making a visual schedule of the day will put your
child at ease. You would need photographs of
various activities on Velcro boards. If the school is
not happy about photos, use pictures from the
Net or children’s books.

5. Visual to prepare for the school

6. Structure of the school day

7. Help the child to
participate in the classroom

8. More sample visuals

9. Visuals to develop rules of the
classroom

10. Develop language of the play
ground

11. Children who can speak may still need
support in new environments

12. Helping with peer interactions

13. Sample-visual schedule

14. Establish rapport between teachers and
your child
• It is crucial that your child likes his teachers.
• It would help if teachers can spend even a few
minutes every couple of days doing fun stuff—
activities like ‘peek a boo’ and ‘tickle’ that build a
bond.
• Engineer a bond. Try not to wait for occasions to
send a card to the teacher. A natural dialogue
would be initiated if your child could take some
artwork made specially for the teacher every few
days.

15. Motivate the teacher
• The biggest challenge for parents of children with
Autism is letting teachers know how much their
child understands.
• It helps if teachers can watch a video recording of
the child engaged with the parents. This could
include samples of strategies that work and the
child performing various academic tasks.
• The teacher’s perception of your child is
important. If she sees the child as someone who
is capable, even though he can’t demonstrate it
to her, she may well be motivated to try.

16. Teacher language
• If possible, request a teacher who is gentle in
her approach.
• A softer voice and more explanations will help
the child.
• Teachers may find it challenging to
communicate with a child with a
communication disorder. Let them know that
bombarding him with questions is not a good
idea.
• Sing-songs are great with transitions.

17. Help to transfer basic communication skills
to the classroom
• Ensure there are systems in place to satisfy
the child’s basic needs.
• It is incorrect to assume that a child who
indicates toilet needs at home and at DEALL
will do so in school too.
• The child will need help to transfer these skills
to a larger set-up.

18. Basic needs - Toileting
• The child may need a visual aid on the wall.
• If the school does not permit the visual,
encourage the teacher to send your child to
the toilet at regular intervals.
• The teacher must understand that the child’s
behaviour could dip otherwise.

19. Basic needs - Toileting
• Some children may be reluctant to use the school
toilet. The mother may need to accompany the maid
initially to settle the child in.
• Constipation can make children very restless and
uncomfortable. Be sure to work with your physician
and sort this out prior to school. If not, share the
information with the teacher.
• Some children verbalise their needs but are either too
soft or will just say it in the air (not direct the request
to a person). Give them repeated practice for the
same.

20. Basic needs - Break Times
• It is not uncommon to find that the child has not
drunk water the entire day. Difficulty with
communication could leave him thirsty through
the day.
• Some children take too long to eat. When they do
not finish with the others, they may have to put
the box in without filling their stomach. Work on
teaching your child to eat fast.
• Train your child to close his own box and put it in
the bag.

21. Basic needs - Sleep
• Ensure your child is well rested. It may be
prudent to skip school if he has not slept well.
• Prior to starting school, seek your physician
and OTist’s help to get sleep in schedule.
• Social stories can be useful too.

22. Social story for sleep issues

23. Sample social story

24. Sample social story

25. Sensory issues and rigidity
• If the child has sensitivities (does not like
dirtying hands, staying wet, etc), inform the
teacher. Equip her to handle these.
• Sometimes children get upset if they are asked
to leave an activity incomplete. This could
happen unknowingly, e.g. moving from
playtime to class time. This can throw your
child off the loop but is easily avoided.

26. Language to focus on
• Your child will benefit from a lot of practice
with the language of the classroom.
• We’ve used photos of teachers and classmates
on ice-cream sticks. The child is encouraged to
practice the generalization of language. E.g.
hello; help me; I want to go to toilet; I don’t
want; give me; etc.
• Use a model of the school with puppets to
practice the same.

27. Language to focus on
• Children need a lot of receptive and
expressive vocabulary related to feelings.
• While preparing your child for school, ensure
there is a lot of parallel talk around feelings.
• Focus on words like happy, sad, angry, excited,
nervous, tired and scared.
• Later, add bored and frustrated.

28. Visuals and parallel talk help with
emotions

29. Rules governing large group behaviour
• It is not uncommon to see the child running in
the direction opposite to the one in which the
entire class is running.
• The good news, though, is that we have seen
children settling into the correct routine. So wait
and watch.
• Assemblies and stages can be a challenge. Your
child may be standing with his back to the stage.
• Encouraging him to keep looking for the one
person who is always in front may help.
• Again, lots of photos and role play are helpful.

30. Moving to the next higher class
• Be prepared to meet the new set of teachers.
• Do not assume that the previous teacher will
educate the new ones.
• If there is a shuffling of children, request that
at least a few that your child is comfortable
with stay in the same class with your child.

31. Some general observations
• Typically children take at least a month to settle
into the school routine.
• When they are required to handle both school
and DEALL, the day is very long for the child.
• It may be prudent to go easy on the intensity of
intervention till the child settles into his new
routine.
• Often behaviour at DEALL dips. This could be
because of fatigue and the frustration of a new
environment. At this point, the child needs
support and encouragement.

32. Some general observations
• It is not uncommon to find a child (previously settled at
DEALL) getting restless, distracted and sometimes
uncooperative in DEALL. This child may be fine in
morning school.
• The parents and therapist must understand that this
will soon settle down if the child gets the necessary
support and encouragement.
• We have also noticed dips in behaviour when the class
is preparing for special occasions like annual/sports
day, teachers’ day, etc. Disruption of the regular
routine of the class can be unsettling for the child.

33. Some general observations
• Prepare your child for changes in routine. If it is
too overwhelming, try to avoid school for a few
days.
• Inform the teacher about what is happening.
• Play the same CD/practice at home so the child
can also participate.
• On days that children have physical education
class in school, they are likely to feel exhausted.
They may have more tantrums on such days.

34. Current challenges
• Our children have met circle time challenges
with mixed results. Some have settled in
quick; others have taken longer.
• It helps when the school is willing to share the
lesson/topic beforehand.
• This does not mean the parent has to teach
the child exactly the same things that the
teacher will talk about. Else, you run the risk
of boredom.

35. Current challenges
• However, talk around the topic so the child
can relate better.