From the author: Last week i had a unique opportunity to hold a workshop for special kids and it was nothing less than being touched by God sent aura. I got to learn so much form these special kids and their beautiful smile stole my heart. So i am up with this article,whatever i could think of and reading this article might help with a bit of information for the special kids, their parents with always " never say die attitude", i would be very happy.
Autism is a complex neuro behavioural disorder that
includes impairments in social interaction and developmental language and
communication skills combined with rigid, repetitive behaviours. Children with
autism have trouble communicating. They have trouble understanding what other
people think and feel. This makes it very hard for them to express themselves
either with words or through gestures, facial expressions, and touch.A child
with autism who is very sensitive may be greatly troubled -- sometimes even
pained -- by sounds, touches, smells, or sights that seem normal to others.Children
who are autistic may have repetitive, stereotyped body movements such as
rocking, pacing, or hand flapping. They may have unusual responses to people,
attachments to objects, resistance to change in their routines, or aggressive
or self-injurious behaviour. At times they may seem not to notice people,
objects, or activities in their surroundings.
Research and evidence suggest that some
alternative therapeutic choices that include sports, exercise, and other
physical activities can be a useful adjunct to traditional behavioural interventions, leading to improvement in symptoms, behaviours, and quality of life for individuals with autism.
Besides improving fitness, motor function, and behavior
in individuals with autism, among the most important advantages of physical
activity are the social implications of participating in sports and exercise.
Physical activity can promote self-esteem, increase general levels of
happiness, and can lead to positive social outcomes, all highly beneficial
outcomes for individuals with autism. For those with autism who are able to
participate in team sports, this presents an opportunity to develop social relationships
among teammates and learn how to recognize the social cues required for
successful performance on the field or court.
TRAINING METHODS:
Reward program:
This simple idea of rewarding a good behaviour allows the
participant to complete a difficult exercise, and then be rewarded with more
exercise, a win-win that will also make exercise a reward that is sought after.
EG; the child loves bean bag tosses, but doesn't like squats. Reward 10 well
done squats with a few minutes of bean bag tosses, explaining that the bean bag
toss is a reward for the well done behaviour of squats. Teaching new skills to
children by breaking them down into smaller, organized tasks and then rewarding
them for successful achievement is a core component of proven interventions
such as ABA(APPLIED BEHAVIORAL ANALYSIS) and TEACCH(TREATMENT ANS EDUCATION OF
AUTISTIC). This technique can be readily implemented in teaching physical
education to children with autism.
Encourage do it yourself:
Its found that when we give our kids the option to
pick some of their workouts themselves, these tend to be the exercises that
they are the most motivated to accomplish well. You are there to assure your
child is performing correctly and safely, but they will feel independent and
intrinsically motivated by doing exercises they enjoy and choose themselves.
Familiar surroundings first:
The gym or other standard exercise areas such as a
playground or park can often be overwhelming with a plethora of equipment,
noise, and other people. However, basic exercises can easily be taught and practised first in your child’s room, your home, or your backyard. When ready,
transfer the familiar exercise to a new setting or add other variables.
FITNESS/EXERCISE FOR GROSS MOTOR SKILLS DEVELOPMENT:
- Providing children with ample opportunity to work on physical coordination and balance through supervised use of playground equipment, such as climbing up steps and ladders, walking on balance beams and navigating jungle gyms.
- Increasing arm and leg coordination with activities such as swimming and moving to music.
- Developing hand-eye coordination by practising athletic skills such as catching, throwing, or kicking balls.
- Working on crab walks, hopping like a frog, and wheelbarrow walking with the child.
- Having the child jump over a rope stretched out with several curves (like a snake). Instruct the child not to touch the rope or loose balance while jumping.
- Balancing can be very challenging for kids on the autism spectrum and many gross motor tasks demand a good sense of balance. Test to see if your child can stand motionless with her eyes closed without losing balance to gauge how much work is necessary to develop balancing skills.Begin with having your child walk on a line followed by walking on balance beams. Balancing toys like a rocking see saw can improve skills.
- Marching is a simple gross motor activity that can develop a number of different skills. The task takes walking one step further as children have to imitate the steps. Encourage the child to begin with the leg movements in place, followed by stepping and arm movements.
Specific activities that support gross motor development
include running at different speeds, jumping rope, playing hopscotch, tossing
and catching balls of different sizes, pitching bean bags, climbing in many
different directions, pedalling riding toys, pulling wagons or toys, pushing toy
strollers or brooms, and filling and emptying buckets and other containers.
Remember that gross motor development happens inside as well as outside. A
crawling tunnel, ride-on car, or pull toy can help children practice large
movements of their arms and legs.
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