THE MAGIC OF ASSESSING & TARGETING SOCIAL-COMMUNICATION SKILLS. Amanda J. Wiener, MS, CCC-SLP Speech/Language Pathologist

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1 THE MAGIC OF ASSESSING & TARGETING SOCIAL-COMMUNICATION SKILLS Amanda J. Wiener, MS, CCC-SLP Speech/Language Pathologist

2 ABOUT ME Well, that s enough about me. Let s talk about you. What do you think about me? (Mental Assessment #1)

3 WHY AM I HERE? This guy!

4 COMMUNICATION BASICS Communication occurs long before babies talk listening to the sound of a human s voice looking at faces back and forth babbling responding to social routines

5 VIDEO EXAMPLE Maizie- age 3 months responding to voice looking at faces social smile

6 MAIZIE

7 VIDEO EXAMPLE Milan- age 8 months turn-taking anticipation of social routine eye gaze social smile shared enjoyment in activity

8 MILAN

9 COMMUNICATION BASICS Around 1 year, infants imitate actions and single words. They start to use first words on their own. Then, they start putting short sentences together. They understand basic directions, respond to their name, start basic symbolic play and point.

10 VIDEO EXAMPLE Maizie- age 14 months following basic directions demonstrating symbolic play & turn taking cognitive reframing- reenacting interactions understanding concepts, vocabulary development social-emotional skills- nurturing, comforting, recognizing emotions

11 MAIZIE

12 HOW AUTISM AFFECTS COMMUNICATION Communication development occurs differently and more slowly sensory challenges (i.e. fans, vacuum, etc.) no imitation echolalia extensive vocabulary non-verbal cues: body language, facial expression, eye gaze, tone of voice understanding another person s viewpoint

13 SOCIAL-COMMUNICATION SKILLS A child might have difficulty connecting to other people, For instance, it may be hard to: share a common focus ( joint attention ) play with others understand feelings make and keep friends use gestures to communicate follow directions use words to communicate (help, ask/answer)

14 SOCIAL-COMMUNICATION SKILLS All kids with ASD have lagging socialcommunication skills. Social Interaction Communication Social Understanding

15 ALRIGHT, LET S DO THIS! Pre-referral stage: Parent report Classroom teacher concerns Assessment tools include gathering information and questionnaires i.e. Early Signs, A Checklist, A Questionnaire

16 REFERRAL STAGE We need to address the area of communication in initial ASD evals. How that is addressed is left up to the IEP team (with communication aspects being under the direction of the SLP). Some ways to address communication include: observations, informal assessments, communication samples, formal assessments, etc. Vision and hearing screenings, in addition to a review of school records is necessary.

17 OBSERVATION TOOLS Observation of same-aged peers Social Interaction Observation Form/Asperger s Syndrome (Kari Dunn) Provides a nice way to observe more closely at some particular social interaction skills (i.e. how the child participates, how the child communicates with peers, etc.)

18 OBSERVATION TOOLS

19 OBSERVATION TOOLS Checklist of Communicative Functions and Means (Wetherby) looks at the ways non-verbal and children with limited verbal abilities express themselves and the number of functions in these expressions

20 OBSERVATION TOOLS

FORMAL ASSESSMENTS Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2 (ADOS-2) ages 12 months+

inferences, solving problems, interpreting language, understanding idioms, sarcasm, etc.

21 FORMAL ASSESSMENTS Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2 (ADOS-2) ages 12 months+ (semi-structured assessment of communication, social interaction & play), Social Language Development Test- ages & looks at competency for social understanding through perspective taking, making inferences, solving problems, interpreting language, understanding idioms, sarcasm, etc. The WORD-3 Elementary- ages 6-11 measures skills that correlate with word mastery, reading comprehension and overall academic success (i.e. semantic absurdities, antonyms, synonyms, homonyms, definitions, etc.)

FORMAL ASSESSMENTS Test of Auditory Reasoning and Processing Skills (TARPS) ages 5-14 - measures

Test of Problem Solving 3 (TOPS 3 Elementary)- ages 6-12 focuses on a child s ability to use

22 FORMAL ASSESSMENTS Test of Auditory Reasoning and Processing Skills (TARPS) ages measures the child s ability to draw conclusions, make inferences and apply judgment. Test of Problem Solving 3 (TOPS 3 Elementary)- ages 6-12 focuses on a child s ability to use language to think, solve problems, sequence, understand directions, etc. These skills are necessary to develop social competency.

23 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS Dyssemia Rating Scale (DRS) - looks at non-verbal language across settings (region10projects.org) - based on the work of Nowicki and Duke Student Name Date Rater The Dyssemia Rating Scale (DRS) School Screening Dyssemia is a term used to refer to a nonverbal social communication deficit (Nowicki and Duke, 1992). *This rating scale has been adapted, with the author s permission, from The Dyssemia Rating Scale published in the text Will I Ever Fit In? by Stephen Nowicki and Marshall Duke (2002). Directions: Please circle the frequency of each of the following behaviors according to the 4-point scale below: 0 = not observed 1 = rarely (once in 2 weeks) 2 = sometimes (several times each week) 3 = often (daily or more) Section A: Gaze and Eye Contact Fails to look at people when conversing Fails to look at others when speaking in a group Avoids eye contact when walking by people Fails to look up when addressed Hangs head when listening to people Stares at the floor when talking with people Watches people out of corner of his/her eye Stares excessively at people A Score: (Max = 24)

24 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS Test of Social Perception (activity) (Living with Asperger Syndrome by Margaret Dewey, Autism and Asperger Syndrome, edited by Uta Frith 1991) The Charlie Test

25 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS The Charlie Test

26 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS Orion s Pragmatic Language Skills Questionnaire (Region10projects.org) helps parents and professionals understand the complexity of language skills used daily helps pinpoint areas of need as a re-evaluation tool, can be used to show improvement Includes Nonverbal Communication, Expressive Skills, Topic Maintenance, Turn Taking, Peer Skills, etc.

27 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS

28 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS Conversation Skills Checklist (Patricia Cretella, 2002) Looks at a various areas of pragmatic and social conversational skills to determine present levels and/or identify emerging skills. Uses a rating scale of: O (often), S (sometimes), R (rarely), N (never)

29 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS

30 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS School Assessment Rating Scale for Asperger s Syndrome (region10projects.org) Based on the Australian Scale for Asperger s Syndrome Because standard rating scales often don t properly identify the unique educational and social needs of students with Asperger s Syndrome, this was developed to identify students who are at risk. Each item has a rating scale with 0 being expected of a typical student of that age.

31 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS

32 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS Social Skills Assessment Codes behavior frequency and intensity of problems Organized in developmental stages 1-5 to identify skills within a developmental hierarchy.

33 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS

34 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS Steps to Independence: Building Life Skills for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (Metro SPLISE West Metro Autism Network, 2001) Organizes the following skills according to age: Social Skills, Communication Skills, Classroom Skills and Self-help Skills It s a nice tool to help identify current skills and plan for future needs of students

35 INFORMAL ASSESSMENTS

36 THE ROLE OF THE SLP Qualification is well defined for expressive and/ or receptive language delays, articulation delays, voice disorders, fluency disorders. Collaboration with a multi-disciplinary approach is best practice when communication skills lie solely in social-cognition. Service delivery models may include: direct therapy, indirect services, consultation, small group, co-teaching social skills groups, play groups, implementing communication systems (i.e. PECS, AAC devices, etc.)

37 TA RG E T I N G COMMUNICATION SKILLS Joint attention Turn taking (Visuals- i.e. card on a stick) Play skills Answer wh-questions (Wh-question Blast Off! (Super Duper, Inc.) Topic maintenance (Ping Pong example) Asking questions in a group (Tally grid) Figurative language, Word Relationship Skills Divergent Thinking Skills, Defining & Describing Skills (Semantically Speaking)

38 SEMANTICALLY SPEAKING Figurative Language: Similes Level 2 Name: Semantically Speaking What s Included? 1. Figurative Language Skills Similes Metaphors Idioms Mix & Match Game: Treasure Hunt 2. Word Relationship Skills Naming Categories Antonyms Synonyms Analogies Mix & Match Game: Points Pig 3. Divergent Thinking Skills Multiple Meanings Differences Similarities Naming Items in Categories Mix & Match Game: Stop, Thief! 4. Defining & Describing Skills Beginning Categories Advanced Categories People Nouns Mix & Match Game: Dumpster Diver! *BONUS Mix & Match Game: Bobbi s Birthday Party! Teri Harrington & Amanda J. Wiener, Speech/Language Pathologists Directions: Have the child finish these sentences. The items in this level may have vocabulary that is unfamiliar to the student. Explain and support as necessary. Accuracy: Similes: Answer: O O O 1. Straight as an Arrow O O O 2. Solid as a Rock O O O 3. Smooth as Silk O O O 4. Gentle as a Lamb O O O 5. Red as a Beet, Cherry O O O 6. Skinny as a Toothpick O O O 7. Strong as an Ox O O O 8. Mad as a Hornet O O O 9. Stiff as a Board O O O 10. Cool as a Cucumber O O O 11. Tall as a Tree O O O 12. Blind as a Bat O O O 13. Fresh as a Daisy O O O 14. Happy as a Lark, Clam O O O 15. Plain as Day O O O 16. Old as the Hills O O O 17. Neat as a Pin O O O 18. Smart as a Whip O O O 19. Warm as Toast O O O 20. Hungry as a Bear Created by Speech/Language Pathologists: Teri Harrington & Amanda J. Wiener

39 TA RG E T I N G SOCIAL SKILLS Accepting winning/losing Asking someone to play with you How to ask for help when confused Sharing ideas in a group without dominating Giving compliments Body Language (Playdough + Tally Grid) Emotions (Emotion book, 5-Point Scale) Relaxation Techniques (Coke Bottle Experiment, Calm Down Kit)

40 TA RG E T I N G SOCIAL SKILLS

41 TA RG E T I N G SOCIAL SKILLS Hound Volume adapted from Dunn Buron + Curtis, 2003

42 MY CALM DOWN KIT Adapted from

43 AND THERE YOU HAVE IT... MAGIC!

44 AND THERE YOU HAVE IT... MAGIC!

Teaching Students with Special Needs in Inclusive Settings: Exceptional Learners Chapter 9: Autism Spectrum Disorders

Teaching Students with Special Needs in Inclusive Settings: Exceptional Learners Chapter 9: Autism Spectrum Disorders Background Autistic is a broad term coined in the twentieth century by Bleuler that