Many autistic students have strong special interests. These can be a great avenue for increasing engagement in the classroom during classroom activities and work times. They can even help students with emotional regulation! Today's Around Town Round Up will highlight some of the best ways we have seen special interests incorporated in classrooms across the region to increase student engagement.
Positive Environment
Creating a positive, supportive environment is essential to educating all students. You want them to feel comfortable, safe, and ready to learn within the classroom and school settings. Incorporating special interests can be a great way to build positive associations with the classroom and work times.
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| The Rock Bulletin Board Northmoor Elementary, Northmont |
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| Frozen Structured Work Strip Cynthia Resch LC-West, MCESC |
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| Schedule with Paw Patrol Stickers Lauren Bridgens Driscoll Elementary, Centerville |
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| Encanto Rule Reminder Bruce Elementary, Eaton |
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| Special Interest Classroom Table Labels Genevieve Harvey West Carrollton ECC, West Carrollton |
Additionally, research has shown that for some individuals, having access to their special interest items at all times is essential to their well-being. We have seen some great staff flexibility when it comes to allowing students to have their special interests at their desk or in a nearby location so that they don't become too anxious without them.
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| Pepsi Cup Water Bottle Maria Wilder Hayward Middle School, Springfield |
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| Superwhy Desk Buddy Jessica Hartman Northmoor Elementary, Northmont |
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| Alphabet Magnets in Student Home Base Jennifer Jackson Northridge Elementary, Northridge |
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| Student in Wonka Costume Nicole Bellard Fairview Elementary, Dayton |
Reinforcement
One of the most traditional uses of special interests is for reinforcement. Many teams allow students to work for special time to engage in special interests.
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| Space Special Interest Activities Michelle Heigel Miami East Junior High, Miami East |
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| Wednesday Coloring Paper Maria Wilder Hayward Middle School, Springfield |
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| Animation Cell Cassandra Hebauf Northmoor Elementary, Northmoor |
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| Captain Underpants Book and Tablet Activity Sheyanne Olson East Elementary, Eaton |
If you have a student who needs free access to a special interest item, you can still use this for reinforcement by allowing additional earned free time with that item or finding special ways to enhance their special interests such as new Lego kits or special scented playdoh that is only used during reinforcement breaks.
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| Scented Playdoh Lindsey Woods Fairborn Primary, Fairborn |
Incorporating special interests into a student's work completion reinforcement systems such as a token board or visual contract is another way to build a positive association with work times.
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| Special Interest Token Boards Rylie Jarrett Stevenson Elementary, Mad River |
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| Disney Princess Visual Contract Emily Collura & Arah Maggard Primary Village North, Centerville |
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| Special Interest Token Boards Heather Clark Saville Elementary, Mad River |
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| Dinosaur Visual Contract |
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| Queen Token Board Claire Jamito Fairborn Primary, Fairborn |
Classroom Tasks
If you have a student who is especially resistant to completing adult-directed tasks, start with a preferred activity to pair your time with them with this reinforcing activity. Activities like art projects, Mr. Potato Head, or Lego building can be great options because they can be broken up into separate steps to introduce a structured work system or visual contract to build positive momentum and work stamina.
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| Lego Task Michelle Barnhart Bell Creek Intermediate, Bellbrook |
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| Special Interest Prewriting Worksheets Michelle Wade Northridge Elementary, Northridge |
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| Disney Following Directions Scene Hannah Reckman West Carrollton ECC, West Carrollton |
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| Art Project with Teacher MacKynzie Lowery LC-West, MCESC |
Special Interests can also be used to increase engagement with independent tasks because students will be more willing to engage with these items. This can entail creating an entire task with that special interest or just making a small tweak like the the example below of a calendar time book using a superhero marker icon rather than a standard token or arrow.
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| Superhero Icon on Calendar Book Rylie Jarrett Stevenson Elementary, Mad River |
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| Sesame Street Put-In Task Heidi Horner Nevin Coppock Elementary, Miami County ESC |
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| Toy Story Put-In Task Debi Gnau Mad River ECC, Mad River |
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| McDonald's Fry CountingTaskbox |
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| Dinosaur Figurine Packaging Taskbox |
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| Lego Matching Taskbox Katie Mlod Mad River ECC, Mad River |
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| Lego Man Taskbox |
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| Car Counting Stacker Taylor Ruef Stevenson Elementary, Mad River |
Additionally, look for ways to incorporate interests into whole group activities. We love the examples below of using video games and animals for group work times!
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| Video Game Article and Writing Activity Tim Cundiff Greenville High School, Greenville |
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| Zoo Area Group Activity Shelby Ashbrook Bruce Elementary, Eaton |
Sensory Activities
At times, students can be resistant to much-needed sensory supports and sensory break times. Decrease resistance and increase engagement through incorporating interests.
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| Butterfly Matching Purposeful Walk Taylor Ruef Stevenson Elementary, Mad River |
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| Sonic the Hedgehog Brain Break Hannah Walters Kenwood Elementary, Springfield |
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| Superhero Break Time Sign Rylie Jarrett Stevenson Elementary, Mad River |
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| Special Interest Figurines on Weighted Ball Sensory Room Activity Jackie Vollmer Driscoll Elementary, Centerville |
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| Animal Headphones Granville Bastin Twin Valley South Middle School, Preble County ESC |
Emotional Regulation
Another area where we see many students struggle is with applying emotional regulation strategies. This can cause them to feel threats to self-image or difficulty with generalization. Using special interests can increase the student's motivation so they are more willing to learn and apply these strategies.
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| Superhero Incredible 5-Point Scale Megan Logano Clark County ESC |
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| Special Interest Break Cards Haley Urschel Perrin Woods, Springfield |
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| Space Station Calm Down Space Denise Campbell Stevenson Elementary, Mad River |
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| Pixar Emotions Signs MacKynzie Lowery LC-West, MCESC |
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| Pigeon Bathroom Cue Kleptz ELC, Northmont |
For more examples of Incorporating Interests in action, check out our previous posts:
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