Advice needed from parents of special needs preschoolers.?

Question

I have a son, who is PDD. I tried the school's special ed. program, and then decided I should be the one teaching him. He has a limited vocabulary, but it is improving daily. He shows little interest in the curriculum I have bought him. Any suggestions on teaching things such as: opposites; top, middle, bottom; inside, outside.

I have flash cards with pictures demonstrating them, but it is too boring to keep his attention. I need active examples, and various examples for the same topic. I would like to be working with him everywhere we go, like the grocery store or the bank, etc. Thanks for any help.

Answer 1

What does he like?   Is he into cars?  If he is, then play with his cars for hours.  

The blue car is IN FRONT of the red car

The red car landed ON TOP OF the yellow car

The purple car drove INSIDE the garage.  

You need to use whatever he likes.    To be honest for a preschooler (special needs or not) I wouldn't worry about curriculum.   Read to him, play with him, talk about the fish INSIDE of the tank, the door that leads OUT of the grocery store and so on.  

The easiest way to teach is by just talking about things around you and things he likes.  

My son has Aspergers and we've used his interests to teach just about everything.  One year it was K'Nex, another year it was Lord of the Rings.   We just take it and run with it.

Good luck!

Answer 2

I would suggest working with lapbooks with him - they're interactive, fun, and great for a child to be able to work one-on-one with.

They can be found many places, but http://www.handsofachild.com/shop/Defaul... has several packs that are designed specifically for early elementary and special needs.  Just go to the link along the left side that says "Shop Lapbook Project Packs by Age Range" and look for Early Elementary or PreK-1st/2nd/3rd.  

I have several friends that are using these with their special needs kids (preschool through jr. high) and having fabulous results.  I have a 2E (gifted/dyslexic) son, and these have been incredible for him.  They're very skills based, and many of the younger packs are based on things like stories, songs, seasons, and holidays.  They are set up in a way that he makes his own book/graphic organizer (a little each day) and then has a fun project that he can play and review with as much as he wants.

Hope that helps :-)

Answer 3

Try to make it more of an feild experiment (kinda like what you are doing) but more intense this will keep him focused because he will not even know you are teaching him and that he is learning and it will be fun for him!

I hope this has helped!!!!

alexia's mommy

Answer 4

You probably need a lot more visual and hands-on type of work.  My DD has ASD and learns *very* well on the computer.  Most of what she knows (she's 8 now) she's learned on a Leap Frog Leapster.

Flash cards are boring.  :-)

Do you use any PECS-type cards?  I would label everything in your house with them.  You can get expensive programs, or you can make your own.  Here is a site with some:

http://www.do2learn.com/picturecards/pri...

You can also use photos of favorite toys, or him doing an activity, etc.

Make giant "flash cards" on a shower curtain liner w/ a permanet marker.  You can put shapes, colors, letters, numbers, etc. on it.  Then have your DS jump to/step on the correct answer.

Do writing in sand or shaving cream. Let him write with dry erase markers on mirrors or sliding glass doors.  Quiz him while he's swinging on a swing, or bouncing on an exercise ball.  Just think outside the box.

I assume your son has sensory issues from the PDD?  If so, then these books are *great* help:

http://www.sensorysmarts.com/

http://www.out-of-sync-child.com/

Do you plan to homeschool him when he's Kdg age?  If not, then you might want to keep the door open for his IFSP w/ the school district.  He should be able to still get any needed PT, OT, and speech (the most important) from the school.  If not, consider a private therapist for OT (sensory/ASD trained) and a SLP.