As educators of autistic students, there tend to be more challenges that need to be overcome every day. Some examples of these challenges include remaining socially interactive with other students, being hypersensitive to sounds or changes from their routine, and repetitive motions that can get in the way of schooling. The tools that other teachers use may not be the best ones for your students. If you are looking for more tools and resources to help you better serve your students, be sure to check out these top 10 autism teaching resources.
1. Autism Society
The Autism Society is one of the largest organizations that works to help people whose lives are impacted by autism1. They work to increase public awareness through offerings like their AutismSource Database that you can use to better understand how your students cope with various obstacles.
2. Autism Research Institute
The Autism Research Institute focuses completely on researching and developing a method of care for those impacted by autism2. You can use this resource to see what the most recent research and findings are in the autism arena and better understand current events. You can also share this information with the parents of your students and use it as a way to shape your curriculum.
3. Educatorstechnology.com
This is a great resource for providing you with new tools to help autistic students, learn better and in the best way they know how to retain information. This website offers tools for mobile learning and can help with students that pick things up better in this manner.
4. Do2Learn
Autistic children often struggle with expressive language abilities. Therefore, a visual education system is imperative in a special needs class. Finding visual learning tools can often be challenging, and that is where Do2Learn comes in handy. Do2Learn offers a variety of games and apps, including an online program that lets teachers and parents create customized teaching aids for visual learners.
5. Autism Classroom Resources
Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or have just received your autism certification, there is always room to learn more. Autism Classroom focuses on empowering teachers in the classroom with on-site training and books. With this resource, you will find topics ranging from how to set up your classroom to developing functional vocabulary.
6. National Autism Resources
If you are looking for some resources that you can use in your classroom, this is one of the best places to find products geared towards the autistic learner. There are all kinds of offerings, such as fidget spinners and stress balls, and these items can help students remain engaged and reduce anxiety levels.
One of the most difficult things that you have to deal with as a teacher of autistic students is developing a student teaching plan that works for all students. Autism Educators excels at providing an abundance of learning resources so you can customize a program that caters to the child’s style of learning.
9. National Association of Special Education Teachers
This is a great organization to join if you would like to be around like-minded teachers in the special education field. The NASET also houses one of the largest databases in the country for disability information and resources for special educators.
10. Children With Autism: A Visual Schedule
This is an app that you can find in the Apple App Store. This app helps students who have autism so they can visually see their schedule for the day, which provides more structure and safety to the classroom environment.
