Onto the Floor
If anything is on her desk or table at school, a teen with autism sweeps them onto the floor with her arm. She does the same when sitting at a table at home or in a restaurant. Needless to say, her knocking items to the floor causes major problems. Let’s look at a plan for decreasing this disruptive, potentially destructive habit.
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First, we took a close look at the situation and pinpointed the problem. By following the step-by-step process outlined in our Pinpoint Problems Toolkit, we were able to recognize these facts:
1. The teen swept any and all items on the desk or table in front of her onto the floor, even items she enjoyed such as a snack, a favorite book, or a picture of her grandmother.
2. Although they worked for other challenging issues, consequences such as losing points being saved for a privilege or a treat did not decrease the sweeping behavior.
3. Although the strategies worked in other situations, consequences such as being removed from the group or receiving stern warnings from adults did not result in a decrease in her sweeping items onto the floor. In fact, she responded to warnings and reprimands by shaking her head, biting her hand, and hitting out at anyone sitting in arm’s reach.
4. It was determined that, in this case, the “sweeping onto the floor” issue was probably a case of overstimulation. The excitable youngster was simply not able to tolerate the presence of various items in her immediate reach.
Once the specific problem was identified, we changed the changeable. Again, by following the specific guidelines in the Change the Changeable Toolkit, teachers, parents, and therapists learned that prevention was the most effective strategy in this case. Removing opportunity by keeping her desk and tables clean, with no objects within her reach, was the first step in decreasing breakage and decreasing the number of objects landing on the floor.
The next step was to change the goal. Rather than focusing on decreasing her sweeping behavior, the objective was changed to increasing the time she tolerated items on her desk. She was taught to “wait and watch” with her hands grasped in her lap or on her knees. The young lady gradually began waiting longer and longer before impulsively sweeping her desk clean, improving from 3 seconds to a 15-minute wait during the 9-month school year.
The teachers brought a box or bag by her desk before the “sweeping” began, giving the youngster a cue to put items away rather than knocking them on the floor. Eventually she allowed items to stay on her desk for fifteen minutes or longer. And she learned to put items away if she could not tolerate the items in reach and resist the temptation to sweep them onto the floor.
TIP FOR THE DAY: The strategies would change, of course, under different circumstances, but the same process of pinpointing the problem, changing changeable factors, and teaching new skills works nearly every time.
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NOTE TO READERS AND LISTENERS: I am Cathy Knoll, a board certified music therapist and long-time friend of many folks with autism. At FAQautism.com we are committed to providing free, practical, everyday tips for making life better for people with autism. Feel free to send me a confidential email at talk@FAQautism.com with your thoughts or challenging situations or innovative solution. And don’t forget to check out our website for a wealth of ideas and a glimpse into the world of autism. http://FAQautism.com
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