Many children with autism have sensory differences, especially one or more of which are extremely sensitive. It is a good idea to be aware of the sensory environment and how it may affect your child.
In caring for a child with autism, the main goal is to build communication and understanding.
Voice
Background sounds that most people do not notice may be too loud for your child. Background music, car noises, traffic, wind, and whispers may catch your child's attention. At such times, your child may have reduced eye contact. , Be less focused or less interactive. As much as possible, find ways to minimize background noise, especially when you want to get his attention. Turn off the TV and ambient music, turn on the dishwasher when your child is asleep, and use things that reduce ambient noise when you want your child to concentrate.
Some children are very sensitive to certain sounds, and when they hear them, they become agitated, moody, crying, or turn a deaf ear. If this is the case with your child, it is important to know if he or she is making sounds. Specifically, is the degree of sound or its subsurface sensitive !? You do not need to remove all of these sounds from the environment, especially if the sensitivity includes some people.
When your child is comfortable and entertained, try to introduce them to these sounds as part of their play. Give the child control over the sound by relating the sound to one of his tasks. Ryan, for example, likes to be tickled. He is also sensitive to his father's laughter when he laughs out loud, so his father tried to never laugh out loud. He would receive the tickle with a laugh, then his father would stop and wait for Ryan to say the tickle again. When he said the word again, he again received both the tickle and the laughter, both of which were accompanied by fun and control. Ryan continued to demand the tickle, and his sensitivity to sound and laughter diminished.
Excessive visual stimulation
Excessive visual stimulation should also be considered. In many classrooms in the United States and the United Kingdom, classroom walls are covered with words, letters, objects, colors, posters, and more. The general belief is that in these situations, even if children do not pay attention to the teacher, they learn things secretly by looking at the walls. This thinking can be the opposite for autism! Eye contact is reduced in such a crowded environment. The environment rises to compete with people to draw the child's attention. Be sure to lower the items on the wall where your child wants to be noticed.
lighting
Lighting can also be important. Moonlight is irritating except for high-speed transformers. Many children in rooms with moonlight get tired quickly, reduce their eye contact, and pay less attention in these situations. These children are more comfortable with incandescent light bulbs. There are currently high-speed transformers for incandescent bulbs that reduce the effect of vibration (unpleasant sound), but their effect is not yet clear. In general, it is better to try other lamps to see how they feel about them and how your child responds to them.
Color
In addition, colors can be effective. You should pay attention to which colors the child pays more attention to and try to use those colors in a calculated way. For example, suppose your child pays more attention to light primary colors, so since he or she may pay more attention to the walls or clothes instead of people, it is best to remove items that have these colors from the walls and remove them from the wardrobe. Remove the child. But when you want your child to pay attention to you, try wearing a hat or shirt in the same colors, or painting your face, or doing new things using your child's favorite colors.
Game room
Try to create a playroom in your home or at least have a space where you can encourage your child to focus on yourself or whatever you show them. A playroom can be a bedroom at night and a playroom during the day. If your home is large enough, set aside a room to work with your child (playroom). This room is useful for you to be able to concentrate and Comfort with your child and to help him in developing communication and interaction spend time in this playroom, there should be no image that distracts the child or distracts you from him, there should be nothing in this room To force you to say "no".
Here is a list of suggestions for the game room:
1. For most children, a room of three meters by three meters is sufficient. This is an optional size. If your child is small and the room is really large, it can distort the main goal, which is to try to create a focused environment. If your baby is big, you both need more space to move.
۲. Minimize distractions that cause distractions. Place shelves high enough to keep toys and other items out.
From your child's point of view, he / she will need you to reach them and this will provide more opportunities for communication. Do not use patterned wallpaper. Paint the walls with bright, neutral and pleasant colors.
3. Place a desk in the room as a desk and a chair. Our recommendation is to use a standard height table and a "trip trap" chair (for children) that you can adjust its height as your child grows.
4. For windows, consider a cover that allows light to pass through, but eliminates the view from the outside, while also reducing your child's interest in looking out the window. Frosted glass (Plexiglas) is suitable for this purpose.
5. If possible, use the room next to or close to the bathroom so that it does not take long to reach the bathroom and does not cause distraction.
6. Use soothing light.
7. The soft floor of the room is safer for special games. This is also easier for you who have to sit on the floor for a long time or be on your knees. Of course, we suggest laying linoleum on the soft floor of the room because something may fall on the floor and thus You will no longer have to worry about the carpets getting wet.
8. Make sure that the items you need, such as food, drinks, toys, books, and educational items, are in the room from the beginning so that if your child wants something without leaving the room and disrupting the training session, it will be off the shelf. Remove.
9. If you mostly use the game room to run a program for a few hours a day, consider tools such as one-way mirrors or CCTV cameras, or both, for more monitoring, or you can, for example, switch to the game room output. Install the child in a new door and install a window with a one-way mirror in it, but make sure that it is heated glass or any other safe glass. Eavesdropping devices can also be installed - even a child monitor can be installed. If you are using a CCTV camera, you can connect it to the home TV with a wire. This way, what happens inside the playroom can be seen from any other room or place. You can also videotape the meeting.
The bottom line is that the environment you provide for your child should be comfortable for you. None of these suggestions are legal. They are basic guidelines that you can adopt for your child, yourself, your family, and your cultural background
