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Taffy
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| Posted: July 13 2009 at 4:06pm | IP Logged
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Just a quick question wondering how those of you with autistic children handle read-alouds?
My oldest has PDD-NOS. When he was a toddler, he LOVED being read to. As he's gotten older, his love of books has waned. He still enjoys reading; sadly, most of what he likes to read is twaddle.
I do try to read aloud but I've really been disliking it lately. He's now 12 and every time we settle down to read a story he will start humming to himself. Or giggling. It's obvious that he's trying to drown out the sound of my voice.
Does anyone have any ideas for dealing with this? Read alouds get put on the back burner so much lately and, I must admit, this habit of his is a big reason why. He'll do it while I try to read during mealtimes, on the couch, at bedtime. I'm stumped.
Help?
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Susan
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mom3aut1not
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| Posted: July 13 2009 at 4:45pm | IP Logged
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Susan,
Perhaps it is the exact pitch of your voice? How does he do with other people? Or maybe it is a processing issue. I know that if you can't process what you hear, it's really frustrating to be forced to listen.
I disliked being read to when I was young -- and still don't care for it much. Hhmmmm. You say that most of what he reads is twaddle. Is he a truly fluent reader? Frankly, I used twaddly books (Nancy Drew and such like) to build fluency. My older ASD children did not read fluently until they were 11 and 12 respectively. Then they went on to non-twaddly books.
Another point to non-twaddly books is that you may need to explain some of the social cues and situations found in the books. Your son may not "get" some of the social interactions in non-twaddly books; they may confuse the heck out of him. (We did quite a bit of this social instruction using tv shows and dvds since we could do it together and discuss things rights away. It seems to have helped generally in understanding social aspects of stories.)
Just some thoughts.....
In Christ,
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Deborah
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mayappleridge
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| Posted: July 14 2009 at 6:09am | IP Logged
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My son on the spectrum only wants to read Star Wars books (and is begging to read James Bond!) or rather have me read them to him.
But, he is motivated to learn to read by the Star Wars paperbacks on his shelf. (I'll have to preread them, not looking forward to that.)
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Taffy
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| Posted: July 14 2009 at 9:36am | IP Logged
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I've wondered if it was my voice. I'm not sure it is because if I'm reading something he's interested in, his attention is pretty good. I'm guessing that he doesn't "get" what we are reading but I'm not sure how to proceed at this point. Yesterday, after posting this, I asked him to choose a book for us to read together. His choices? Llama Llama Misses Mama.  Remember, he's now 12.
He does enjoy some books with tougher language. Usually, they're graphic novels. He really liked the Little Lit series by Art Spiegelman for instance. But, he will also pick phrases from these books and stim. And I am not crazy about many graphic novel books.
Thank you for responding. I think I have a better idea of how to proceed. Lots and lots of read alouds more geared towards his level of understanding. Sigh - I so wish I were a better teacher.
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Susan
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hsmom
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| Posted: July 15 2009 at 5:31am | IP Logged
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Have you tried books on tape from the library? I like to get the audio and the book as well in case there are pictures. The car creates a captured audience,  and you are are also listening together. One of our recent ones was By the Great Horn Spoon, which was a great audio, but I knew my dd wouldn't read it. Now she loves that book.
HTH
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KC in TX
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| Posted: July 15 2009 at 11:02pm | IP Logged
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Susan,
I feel for you. That's how I feel on a daily basis with him--wishing I were a better teacher.
He just doesn't get it. He can't make a picture in his mind based on the words. We have to describe each chapter to him. It's slow going. We have finally captured his interest in a chapter book and he's reading it on his own while my husband reads it aloud to him. I'm hoping he finally gets what's going on while he reads the chapters a second time.
I often wonder if it's my voice too. I know I have at times been very impatient because he doesn't "listen". He also has processing difficulties (auditory and otherwise). I often forget to take that into account  .
Big hugs to you. It is a very hard thing.
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Taffy
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| Posted: July 16 2009 at 9:03am | IP Logged
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I've tried audio books on our many long drives. My son just tunes it out - no interest whatsoever or he will yell very loudly to turn it off, especially if there are "beeps" to tell the reader to turn the page.
I've been using Lindamood Bell's "Talkies" program with him. It hit me last night, and again this morning as I read your post KC, that we've probably been progressing too slowly through the program. He's probably ready to start creating a mental image from a word and describing that mental image to me. I will need to get back to work on this.
Thanks for reminding me that I'm not alone. It really helps to soothe the soul. 
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Susan
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tish tosh
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| Posted: Oct 27 2009 at 10:51pm | IP Logged
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What curriculum are you using for your kids on the spectrum? My daughter is 6 and is moderate.
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Taffy
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| Posted: Oct 29 2009 at 7:46am | IP Logged
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You'll find that you'll have to tailor whatever curriculum you use for your daughter's specific skills. I have yet to find a curriculum that I can use without making major modifications. I use a Charlotte Mason philosophy a lot. The emphasis on narration really targets communication skills which is always impaired with autism.
Here's a few that I've found very helpful...
And here's some curriculum sources specifically for autism and special needs...
If you're interested in seeing what we're doing this year, I just posted our curriculum plans on my blog. You're welcome to stop by and see if there's anything useful to you there.
Welcome to the board!
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Susan
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Susan's Soliloquy
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4Real Forums : Special Blessings
Topic: Autism and Read Alouds
