Activities For Children With Autism
Activities for children with autism can be very helpful in improving the symptoms of this disorder, since it cannot be cured. Children with autism spectrum disorder have difficulty communicating and have little interaction with others. It is very important to work with these little ones to improve their evolution.
The sooner we realize that this problem exists and we solve it, the better the future prognosis will be. It is advisable to carry out activities, educational games, exercises, etc., aimed at improving their abilities, skills and improving their communication skills, especially with parents.
In this article we are going to see some activities for children with autism that will help us improve the symptoms of this disorder. Keep reading!
What should we keep in mind when carrying out activities for children with autism
The first thing is to know very well the tastes of our son and, in addition, to know what type of activities he can do due to his development rate and age. It is very important that the activities are appropriate for our child, according to their characteristics, so you can adapt any of them according to your needs and those of your little one.
When modifying the activities for our child, we must take into account two things:
- The timing : we will establish the time that the activity lasts and, in addition, we will do it in such a way that the child sees that it has a beginning and an end, for example, using an hourglass. Thus, we will know when we have started and how long it will take to finish.
- The choice : we must give you the opportunity to choose from a wide range of possibilities and we will prevent you from always choosing the same activity. We will show him, visually, how we can do the activities: with pictograms, photos, drawings…, so that he can choose what he wants to do.
Activities for children with autism
Activities with music
Music therapy is widely used in the treatment of children with autism. Let’s see some examples of activity:
- Dance and move to the rhythm of the music.
- Learn simple songs together and sing them. Thus, we will work on understanding the lyrics of the song. To help us, we will use some visual images for certain words in the song, as this will help you understand them.
- Make our own music. We can use instruments or any object that can make noise and thus the child can experiment with the different sounds of the objects.
Story activities
We must adapt this activity and take into account if the child likes stories, their ability to understand, their interests and that the drawings are attractive to them. We can use:
- Books with different materials : fabric, relief, different textures, cardboard, etc., so that you can interact with it.
- Book with many illustrations : This is highly recommended to teach them to name objects. We can also use food or furniture magazine, for example, and we point them out and tell them the names.
- The interactive books can greatly attract the attention of the child, as their actions will have an effect and this will encourage your interest.
Manipulative activities
These activities include all those that have to do with manipulation and interaction with objects. We can make crafts with plasticine, toilet paper rolls, cardboard, wool, plastic cans, magazines, etc. Here we can include anything that comes to mind and that we know our child will like.
Games for children with autism
Imitation game
We can use the clapping game for the little one to imitate us. We do a sequence and the child has to repeat it. We can also play to imitate animals and for the little one to discover what animal it is.
Visuospatial game
These types of games include puzzles, assembling cubes, blocks … Here the little one will need our help to guide him in how to put the pieces together. It is very important that we always reinforce him with praise, regardless of whether he has done it well or badly.
Sensory play
This would include games in which the materials give them pleasant sensations, such as play dough, sand, painting with watercolors or waxes, fabrics of different textures … Anything that comes to mind and that we know our child will love.
Cause-effect game
This type of games helps us to work with our child with autism tolerance for frustration. These games include those that, by pressing a button, the toy performs a certain action: walk, a light comes on, a sound, or the game of fitting pieces.
About activities for children with autism
You already have some examples of activities for children with autism to put into practice. You are sure to have a great time and, at the same time, you will help improve your child’s development and increase many of their skills. Activities with children don’t have to be boring. Go ahead and try them!
