Autism Therapy: visual

One of the most important things to remember is that our words disappear, visuals (pictures) do not..  We all use visuals in one form or another, calendars, post it notes, grocery lists, etc.  We all look to visuals for information for instance on the highway for a hospital, gas stations, places to eat and restrooms, divided highway ahead, merge to the right, speed limit 35 and Stop. Visual strategies though, are created with an intended focus of giving particular person information that they are not picking up naturally. If one mentions an abstract word to a group of people, they all may have a different vision of what that word means or looks like.  A picture of the correct definition puts everyone on the same page with regards to comprehending the intended meaning of the word for that purpose. For instance your child may associate “eating” with their favorite cookie so when you say “we are going to eat” they are envisioning getting their favorite cookie, when in fact you are talking about giving them an egg for breakfast.  There is confusion and probably a meltdown because they have a different view of what “eat” means.  Visuals can help take away that confusion for them as well as their expectation of getting the cookie, especially if they are looking at a picture of a plate of eggs, then they are prepared as well for eggs for breakfast, or for what “we are going to eat.”

Visuals can be used to teach so much more than just schedules. I am the mother of a daughter with autism, who is now 16.  I began using visual strategies with her when she was 3.  They were affordable, I could do this myself and I did not need expensive equipment to find success.  My daughter did have speech and occupational therapy and she did have a supportive team at school.  I used visuals to teach routines, behaviors, social and academic rules, academics and the list goes on and on.  I used them mainly to teach comprehension of our very abstract language and to also teach preparation for change.  I created transition tools for moving from one environment to the next.  She had bookmarks for the rules of the library, she had another bookmark with the class rules for doing seatwork as well as a foam cutout of a lunchbox with what to do when the lunchroom gets too noisy rule.  I found the visuals were the bridge or the key to her understanding.  They need to be used consistently, and you must have patience and you cannot give up.  When my daughter looked confused, I would ask myself what it was about the situation she did not understand and then I created a visual to show her. 

My daughter is now 16, a junior in high school, and is taking honors classes and two AP college level classes.  She is fully included and was on the yearbook and school newspaper for two years.  She has a great interest in sports and so her articles involved interviewing coaches and players for the articles.  I believe the early intervention; with the use of visuals throughout the years is a major part of her success. 

I co-authored a book with Linda Hodgdon, who is well known internationally in the use of visual strategies for individuals with autism.  Linda has written two great books “Visual Strategies for Improving Communication” and “Solving Behavior Problems in Autism”.  These were my constant companions and you may find them helpful as well.   As a result of using all these visuals with my daughter over the years, I co-authored an e-book with Linda called “Practical Communication Tools for Autism-Visual Strategies for Lifelong Success”.  It is about the journey with visuals and how they worked as well as pictures of many of them with my daughter.  These can be found at www.usevisualstrategies.com

No matter what resource you use, the bottom line is to get started, be patient, consistent and to not give up trying.  You don’t need to be trained in using a “system”, use your gut instinct. I tore apart magazines for pictures and used cereal box tops for cereal choices. This was before the age of the digital camera and film was expensive, but I did take a lot of pictures as well.  I had to teach my daughter how to point and until she could.  I read her facial expressions when I placed her hand on a picture.  We did a lot of detective work and we worked through many obstacles until we got it right, but it was so worth it. Visuals have no side effects and are easy to use and affordable…best of luck