M ODULE 4: E NHANCING S OCIAL D EVELOPING FOR S TUDENTS WITH ASD IN G ENERAL E DUCATION C LASSROOMS Lesson 3: Regulating Emotions.

MODULE 4: ENHANCING SOCIAL

DEVELOPING FOR STUDENTS WITH ASD

IN GENERAL EDUCATION

CLASSROOMSLesson 3: Regulating Emotions

OUTLINE

Defining Emotional Regulation

Students with ASD and Emotional Regulation

Strategies for Enhancing the Emotional Regulation of Students with ASD

DEFINING EMOTIONAL REGULATION

Emotional Regulation is: A process in which emotional arousal

(positive or negative) is redirected, controlled, modulated, and modified to enable a person to function adaptively (Cicchetti, Ganiban, & Barnett, 1991)

Essential for optimal social and communication development (Prizant & Meyer, 1993)

STUDENTS WITH ASD AND EMOTIONAL REGULATION

Students with ASD often have difficulties regulating their emotions

This can be due to a variety of factors including: Difficulty with language and communication Difficulty with social interaction Difficulties in emotional expression Motor difficulties Challenges in the development of cognitive

and metacognitive skills Neurophysiological factors that result in

hyper-reactivity (over-arousal) or hypo-reactivity (under-arousal)

(Prizant, Wetherby, Rubin, Laurent, & Rydell, 2006)

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO REGULATE EMOTIONS?

Extreme negative emotions or positive emotions can detrimentally affect attention, communication skills, and problem solving (Prizant et al., 2006)

Students with ASD may display Behaviors such as stereotypic body

movements and/or verbalizations get over-excited when something makes them happy and

Tantrums or other negative behaviors if they get over anxious, upset, scared, or angry

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING THE EMOTIONAL REGULATION OF

STUDENTS WITH ASD

GENERAL STRATEGIES

Provide a predictable, structured routine Provide visual supports Offer choices (verbally and nonverbally) Respond appropriately to the student’s

attempts at regulation Recognize signs of dysregulation and

offer support by providing information (ex. “You only have two more problems.”) or assistance (ex. offer help with an academic task)

GENERAL STRATEGIES

Follow the child’s lead Use time-delay to encourage initiations Allow the student to work at own pace Ensure expectations are developmentally

appropriate Model appropriate nonverbal and verbal

communication and request imitation Define clear beginning, middle, and end to activities Provide repeated learning opportunities throughout

the day for targeted skills Use augmentative communication supports

THE INCREDIBLE 5-POINT SCALE(BURON & CURTIS, 2003)

One strategy that may help students with ASD to regulate their emotions is to provide them with a visual scale so they can rate how they are feeling at any given time.

For example, a student may use the following rating to describe his emotional state:

1. I am happy and calm

2. I am a little upset

3. I am definitely upset

4. I am feeling like I am getting to the point when I cannot control my behavior

5. I am unable to control my behavior

ACTING LESSONS (MYLES & SOUTHWICK, 2005)

Acting lessons my help students with ASD develop self-awareness, self-calming, and self-management Students learn to express their emotions in

specific situations both verbally and nonverbally

Students learn to interpret others’ emotions, feelings, and voices

Students receive direct and immediate feedback from an instructor and peers regarding their performance

THE EMOTIONAL TOOLBOX (ATTWOOD, 2004)

In the book entitled, Exploring Feelings: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy to Manage ANXIETY, Tony Attwood discusses the emotional toolbox program to help students identify tools that can help “fix” certain feelings.

These tools include: Physical tools Relaxation tools Social tools Thinking tools Special interest tools

PHYSICAL TOOLS (ATTWOOD, 2004)

The student selects physical activities that can help release emotional energy

These activities may include: Going for a walk/run Bouncing on a trampoline/balance ball Going on a swing Playing a sport Dancing Riding a bike Swimming Playing an instrument

RELAXATION TOOLS(ATTWOOD, 2004)

Relaxation tools help to calm the student down and lower the heart rate. This may include: Drawing Reading Listening to music Retreating to a quiet place Rocking/engaging in repetitive behavior Massage Playing with a stress ball Leaving the class to deliver a message Doing a chore in the classroom (ex. Cleaning up the

book shelf)

SOCIAL TOOLS(ATTWOOD, 2004)

Social tools entail finding a person to be with who can help change the mood of the student. This may entail:

Visiting with the school counselor or other staff member outside of the classroom

Helping a classmate who has difficulties in an area of the student’s interests or expertise

Working alongside a favorite peer

THINKING TOOLS (ATTWOOD, 2004)

Using thinking tools means students use their intellectual strengths to control feelings. This can be done by:

Using self-talk (ex. “I can stay calm even though I am frustrated”)

Create a personal antidote that can encourage positive thoughts (ex. “I can ask for help to fix a problem.”) The antidote can be written on a card to be used as a cue or reminder.

Help put the event in perspective for the student by doing a reality check. You can ask questions that require the use of logic and facts to help calm the student (ex. Is there another time in the day that you can finish your drawing?”

Have the student engage in an academic task in which he/she excels to help calm down

Have the student keep an object in their pocket or desk that symbolizes relaxation for that student. The student can touch or look at that item for a few minutes to assist in calming down

TENSION RELEASE AND BREATHING(BELLINI, 2008)

Students can be taught how to use tension release and breathing strategies when they encounter stressful situations

Tension release: Make a tight fist for 5 seconds. Release. Do this five times.

Breathing exercises: Take slow, deep breaths, inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth

Bellini recommends introducing these techniques using a Social Story so the child can learn when, where, and how to use the relaxation techniques

MODULE 4 LESSON 3 ACTIVITY

Select a student who has difficulties regulation emotions (best if it is a student with ASD)

Choose strategies from this presentation to develop an intervention plan to enhance the emotional regulation of the student

Submit an overview of the student’s difficulties with emotional regulation and a description of your intervention plan

REFERENCES

Attwood, T. (2004). Exploring feelings: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy to Manage Anxiety. Bellini, S. (2008). Building social relationships: A systematic approach to teaching social interaction skills to children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders and other social difficulties. Shawnee Mission, KS: Autism Asperger Publishing.

Buron, K. D., & Curtis, M. (2003). The incredible 5-point scale: Assisting students with autism spectrum disorders in understanding social interactions and controlling their emotional responses. Shawnee Mission, KS: Autism Asperger Publishing.

Cicchetti, D., Ganiban, J., & Barnett, D. (1991). Contributions from the study of high-risk populations to understanding the development of emotion regulation. In J. Garber & K. Dodge (Eds.), The development of emotion regulation and dysregulation (pp. 15-48). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

Prizant, B.M., & Meyer, E. C. (1993). Socioemotional aspects of communication disorders in young children and their families. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 2, 56-71.

Prizant, B. M., Wetherby, A. M., Rubin, E., Laurent, A. C., & Rydell, P. J. (2006). The SCERTS model: A comprehensive educational approach for children with autism spectrum disorders. Baltimore, MD: Brookes.