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This article provides information on accommodations a student may receive when testing.

source:  https://www.ada.gov

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5 important classroom accommodations for autistic children.

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Since autism spectrum disorder cause a wide range of learning disabilities that are unique to each child, classrooms must remain equipped to help every student work around those difficulties. Each individual's executive function level and sensory processing difficulties play a role in the resulting learning disability types and severity. With 1 in 68 kids diagnosed on the autism spectrum, with many high functioning individuals, teachers at all grade levels must remain prepared to provide accommodations designed to mitigate those learning difficulties. With the right classroom accommodations, it is possible to overcome barriers to learning and help children with autism tackle schoolwork with confidence.

Daily Outlines

Difficulties with transitions between tasks and activities is common through the full range of the autism spectrum. Therefore, a daily class schedule detailing the broad activity categories for the day is a must. A detailed daily schedule will greatly assist with the transitions related to moving between the classroom, lunchroom, schoolyard and other destinations throughout the day.

It does not, however, have the power to assist with lesson micromanagement. Students with autism perform best when they know how to break up their time between each tasks required to complete the exercise or project in front of them. Teachers can provide an outline for each assignment to help students transition between the required tasks.

Alternate Media

Kids on the autism spectrum often have difficulties with visual or auditory learning styles. Teachers should provide multiple media options to suit each child's specific learning style. For visual learners, a combination of literature, videos, pictures and charts relays the lesson information best. Auditory learners, on the other hand, often require an audio tape or recording of the written information for the lesson.

For children exhibiting difficulties with both visual or auditory learning styles, it is possible to provide tactile tools to convey the information provided with each lesson. Tactile tools may include flashcards, board games, pads for notetaking, computer games and craft projects. Although it can be beneficial for the students to try the other types of media from time to time, the best progress will be made with the child's preferred learning style. It's important to remember that not all autistic children are the same. Whilst one may experience trouble hearing, another may not. That's why it's important to be able to facilitate both. Those children who do experience trouble hearing may need some earphones, similar to tv ears, to better understand and participate in learning. If the class is watching a video, these earphones can be connected to the computer or TV to allow autistic children to hear too. There are a number of different devices out there to help people with autism, be sure to find out what each child struggles with.

Sensory Tools

Up to 95% of autistic children have difficulties regulating their sensory system, which is often referred to as sensory processing disorder. Therefore, sensory tools, or fidgets, can help relieve the resulting stress and improve focus for autistic children as they attempt to learn in a busy classroom environment. The fidgets allow these kids to self-regulate their emotions and keep themselves on task when distractions compete for their attention. Many kids who are prone to repetitive behavior can keep their typical motions under control with a fidget in hand or under foot.

There are many different types of sensory tools suitable for classrooms, including stress balls, pencil toppers, tangle puzzles, clay, wiggle cushions, weighted lap pads, chair bands and foot rollers. Since fidgets are fun, yet low key, they are a nice tool to have available to all of the students to avoid having anyone feeling singled out or left out.

Quiet Corner

Classrooms are full of distractions that students with autism frequently find difficult to drown out. The screech of chairs moving across the floor, other students walking around, intercom announcements, flickering lights and school bells are all bothersome distractions that are near impossible for children with autism to ignore. Even strong smells can overpower the senses and dominate the mind of students sensitive to that type of stimuli. These distractions often become incredibly overwhelming to the sensory system, especially as the day goes on, which can lead to a meltdown.

To prevent sensory overload, teachers can provide their students with a place to escape the constant barrage of noise and visual stimulus by creating a quiet corner in a low traffic area of the classroom. The corner should have somewhere for the students to comfortably rest and allow their sensory system to calm down. Noise canceling headphones or ear plugs, sleep masks and weighted blankets can all help the student overcome sensory overload and prepare to begin the learning process anew. Plus, nowadays they are all easily purchasable online, from weighted blanket uk vendors on Amazon to more specialized stores.

Extra Breaks

Teachers can help the school day go much smoother by building breaks into the schedule. A single five minute break every hour provides much needed time to transition between tasks and recover from the demands of the classroom environment.

Breaks should also be available on an as-needed basis to allow students with autism to learn how to respond to internal cues and take the actions required to regulate their being. Without an adequate number of breaks each day, students may be prone to meltdowns from sensory overload and fatigue from constantly attempting to regulate themselves.

Kids with autism tend to return from the break reorganized and ready to focus on the task at hand. Teachers may want to suggest extra breaks at first to help kids become mindful of their feelings. Guided breaks also give kids a chance to see which break time activities provide the biggest benefits. Kids who seek stimulus may prefer to listen to music, while overwhelmed students may benefit from quietly working on a puzzle.

Playing It By Ear

There are always going to be opportunities for teachers to further customize the classroom in an effort to mitigate the challenges autistic children face in school. Each child with autism provides a chance to observe the classroom accommodations that provide the biggest benefits and identify discrepancies in the learning environment. As teachers navigate the process of providing support for all students, it is important to utilize all of the available resources to create a learning environment friendly to all.

Additional Resources
Accommodating Children With Autism Within An Inclusive Setting
https://www.superduperinc.com/handouts/pdf/134_AutismintheClassroom.pdf
Technology Tools For Students With Autism
http://archive.brookespublishing.com/documents/boser-technology-tools.pdf
Autism Preparation Kit For Teachers
https://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Special-Education-Services/Documents/Eligibility%20Areas/Autism/autismpreparationkitforteacherspdf.pdf
Autism Speaks Family Services School Community Tool Kit
https://www.autismspeaks.org/sites/default/files/school_community_tool_kit.pdf
A Comprehensive Guide To Finding The Right Toy For Your Child With Special Needs
http://www.redwoodnky.org/assets/redwood/files/$cms$/100/1434.pdf

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5 Important Classroom Accommodations For Children With Autism

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Since autism spectrum disorder cause a wide range of learning disabilities that are unique to each child, classrooms must remain equipped to help every student work around those difficulties. Each individual's executive function level and sensory processing difficulties play a role in the resulting learning disability types and severity.

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Deaf and Hard of Hearing Accommodations and Modifications

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Deaf and Hard of Hearing Accommodations and Modifications

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This article provided an IEP/504 checklist of accommodations and modifications for students who are deaf and/or hard of hearing.

source: https://www.handsandvoices.org

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This article provides examples of accommodations and modifications for students with 504 plans.

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Be ready for your student with this accommodations and modifications checklist.

source: www.sd5.k12.mt.us

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Guide to Accommodations and Modifications

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Guide to Accommodations and Modifications

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This guide goes into detail on what modifications to apply for each part of the students day.

source: www.shaker.org

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Wonder what accommodations and modifications in a classroom look like? Watch the video below!

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Accommodations and Modifications for Students with Disabilities

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"Accommodations change how a student learns. Modification changes what a student is taught or expected to learn". Click on the link below to learn more about the differences between accommodations vs modifications.

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This website does not only include 100+ ideas for modifying classroom strategies but it also includes examples on what not to do.

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Good modifications are a wonderful way to support your students with disabilities so they can experience everything the general curriculum has to offer. But bad modifications-at best, they don't help, and at worst, they can do more harm than good.
So how do you know the difference?
Before we get to that, here's a quick refresher on the difference between modifications and accommodations, in case you'd like a clearer definition. Our friend Nicole Eredics at came up with this elegant little chart that summarizes the differences really well; with her permission, I'm including it here:

To summarize the difference, here's a quote from "Accommodations change Understood.org: how a student learns the material. A modification changes what a student is taught or expected to learn." Both happen within the general education classroom, but an IEP team might choose modifications to make the curriculum accessible and appropriate for a student with more significant learning needs.

When modifications are chosen over accommodations, sometimes there's confusion about what types of alterations should be made to best help the student succeed. Let's look at some examples. In The Speech-Language Pathologist's Handbook for Inclusive School Practices, Julie Causton and Chelsea Tracy-Bronson list the top 10 worst types of classroom modifications for students with disabilities. (They count them down from 10 to 1 like Letterman used to, but this top 10 is definitely the opposite of funny.)

Here's their list of examples:

10. The seventh grade class is doing math, but one student is using Sesame Street blocks to work on counting.

9. The class is watching a video, but one student who is blind is sent out of the room because she can't see.

8. The classroom is arranged with desks in groups of five, but one student is seated in a group with only two desks, one for him and one for his assistant.

7. While the rest of the high school class is doing reports on nutrition, one student is given a tub of dry beans and rice to "explore."

6. Fourth-grade students are adding adjectives to sentences, but because the SLP has not yet put adjectives on one student's communication board, the student does not participate in this lesson.

5. During silent reading, the SLP takes one student to the back of the classroom to work on articulation.

4. Because one student has dressing goals on her individualized education program, she puts on and takes off her shoes two times when she gets ready for gym class.

3. Because one student does not yet read, she listens to a music tape while the teacher reads aloud to the class.

2. A student who types to communicate is provided with a device only during language arts class.

1. A 12-year-old student goes with the second-grade class to physical education because his gross motor skills are "at that level."

You can see what's going on in these examples. Age-inappropriate materials that may embarrass a student and affect the way her peers perceive her. Classroom arrangements and schedules that physically divide a student from his same-age peers. "Modifications" that don't have much to do with the lesson and don't presume a student's competence.

So how do we choose good modifications?

You'll know a modification is good when it helps your student participate meaningfully and productively in class. Good modifications focus on a student's individual strengths and needs, use age-appropriate materials, are relevant to the content everyone else is learning, and reflect a culture of high expectations. Causton and Tracy-Bronson share some solid modification ideas in their book -maybe you've tried some of these already in your own classroom.

( Please note that this list doesn't provide direct, 1:1 alternatives to the "worst modifications" above-these are just a few options for helping students access the curriculum, and they won't work for every learner. Your students will have a broad range of skills and abilities, and the modifications you choose should always be personalized to their specific strengths and needs.)

Reword test items using simplified language.

Reduce the number of problems or questions on a test.

Provide a topic bag filled with a variety of interesting objects that directly relate to the content.

Modify a worksheet with easier-to-read numbers and allow use of a calculator.

Present picture communication symbol choices on tests.

Allow spelling support from a spell-check program.

Have a student create an outline instead of an essay.

Provide a word bank of choices on a test.

Have a peer summarize a reading assignment for a student who needs support (be careful not to call on the same peer to help every time-mix it up, and you'll benefit everyone).

Want more ideas to add to your toolbox? In today's download, you'll get 100+ quick tips for modifications, adaptations, and accommodations. You'll find a list of content-specific ideas for different subjects-math, reading, science, art, and more-and a list of supports for everyday activities, including test-taking, giving oral presentations, and getting organized. Print it and keep it handy (and share with your favorite teacher, too)!

Download 100+ bright ideas for modifying content and activities!

New to the Brookes Inclusion Lab? Keep reading-check out our archive of Inclusion 411 posts , packed with practical tips and free downloads!

Read more posts and get more infographics inspired by Julie Causton's books:

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10 Worst Modifications for Students with Disabilities (and 100+ Good Ones!)

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Good modifications are a wonderful way to support your students with disabilities so they can experience everything the general curriculum has to offer. But bad modifications-at best, they don't help, and at worst, they can do more harm than good. So how do you know the difference?

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This article provides different modification methods to use in a classroom to help students with learning disabilities.

source: www.pacer.org