Autism Therapy: functional skills

definition of functional skills: not yet defined.

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Psychiatric Disorders and Treatments: A Primer for Teachers
Teaching Exceptional Children, by Forness, SR, Walker HM, and Kavale KA, published in 2003, summarized Feb 2, 2007

Treatment of autism may help a child do better in school.

Children with social and emotional problems, for example, autism, need understanding and support from teachers and family members. Treatment for children with autism often focuses on teaching basic language and social skills. Academics are taught based upon the child's intellectual level. Parents often turn to community agencies and regional centers to learn about behavioral therapy that can be used to teach social and functional skills at home. Some children with autism may be at risk for other psychiatric problems and may be given drugs to treat these other problems.


Lights, Camera, Action! Using Engaging Computer-Cued Activity Schedules
TEACHING Exceptional Children, by Kimball, JW, Kinney EM, Taylor BA, and Stromer R., published in 2003, summarized Sep 14, 2006

This article describes in detail how the PowerPoint (TM) program can be used to create visual schedules on the computer.

Visual schedules are tools to help students learn self-management. The authors describe how visual schedules can help students achieve functional skills that are seldom achieved through regular teaching approaches. Traditionally, visual schedules use photographs, symbols, and/or words on notebooks or note cards. The authors express their desire that computer technology be harnessed to meet students’ learning needs in their educational plans, specifically through computer-based visual schedules. They describe several children who were able to reduce loud vocalizations and play independently while on a computer-generated visual schedule.


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7 Star Horse & Family Center Rates 5 Stars

Apr 8, 2008

The 7 Star Horse and Family Center, located in the Panhandle of Texas, provides equine facilitated learning (EFL) to children with autism. EFL is about teaching children to ride (therapeutic riding) and about increasing their functional skills (hippotherapy). Hippotherapy creates a bond between horse and child that increases speech, trust, motor skills, and improves behavior.

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