Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Autism & Asperger's Syndrome (Expert Forum)
Preschool behaviour
Answered by
Myrna Libby, Ph.D., BCBA - Developmental Disabi, autism
The New England Center for Children
Southborough - MA
Questions in the Autism & Asperger's Syndrome forum are answered by researchers at the New England Center for Children. Topics covered include Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Antisocial Personality Disorder, Asperger Syndrome, Autism, blindness, bullying, clinical depression, deafness, dyslexia, mental retardation, and social alienation.
Preschool behaviour
by kiwiparents, Nov 25, 2007 03:46AM
Our son is almost 4 and his preschool teacher has suggested we find somebody who "understands his behaviour".
1. As he is bilingual his teacher is concerned that he is not picking up English quick enough. He makes full sentences in Spanish and choses not to use English even when we have a conversation with him in English.
2. A behaviour recognised by us as a quirk and his teacher as "unusual" is when he gets excited he jumps up and down making grunting noises while bringing his hands simultaneously down with the jump. Hard to describe but we have it on video. Other kids don't do that and have found other ways to express their excitement or anxiety.
3. We have also noticed a fear of noises that make him run away. Specialist hearing tests show that his hears normally and does not show an oversensitivity to sounds. We have recently discovered that it is not the sound that he fears it is the anticipation of the sound that scares him. eg The sound of a starter pistol worries him at the athletics track to the point that he doesn't want to compete with other tiny tots. Even when it is explained that the starter pistol is used with older kids, he still refuses.
He plays at home with us and his younger brother without problems, however in the social context of a preschool he switches off. If these things are in the relm of your expertise we would appreciate strategies we can try that will help him to better express himself in school and better deal with anxiety.
Thanks
1. As he is bilingual his teacher is concerned that he is not picking up English quick enough. He makes full sentences in Spanish and choses not to use English even when we have a conversation with him in English.
2. A behaviour recognised by us as a quirk and his teacher as "unusual" is when he gets excited he jumps up and down making grunting noises while bringing his hands simultaneously down with the jump. Hard to describe but we have it on video. Other kids don't do that and have found other ways to express their excitement or anxiety.
3. We have also noticed a fear of noises that make him run away. Specialist hearing tests show that his hears normally and does not show an oversensitivity to sounds. We have recently discovered that it is not the sound that he fears it is the anticipation of the sound that scares him. eg The sound of a starter pistol worries him at the athletics track to the point that he doesn't want to compete with other tiny tots. Even when it is explained that the starter pistol is used with older kids, he still refuses.
He plays at home with us and his younger brother without problems, however in the social context of a preschool he switches off. If these things are in the relm of your expertise we would appreciate strategies we can try that will help him to better express himself in school and better deal with anxiety.
Thanks
Doctor's Answer
by Myrna Libby, Ph.D., BCBA, Dec 18, 2007 10:06AM
, Dec 18, 2007 10:06AM
To: kiwiparents
I would follow-up the teacher's concern by talking first with my pediatrician. What I really think you should be seeking is a team evaluation of your son to rule out any developmental issues.The I would seek the services of a speech/language pathologist to help with the language issues and a professional certified in Applied Behavior Analysis to evaluate the issues associated with excitement and noise. I am basing these recommendations on the apparent fact that you have other children and notice signficiant differences in this child's manner of expressing himself and interacting. You can find certified behavior analysts in your area by going to www.bcba.com or googling BCBA.
