It’s often useful to keep in mind the kinds of skills we should be helping our special kids master as they grow and develop. The following steps are general guidelines you can use as you direct your child through floor time play at home, special education in the classroom, and social interactions with friends and family. As you read the following list, try to determine which steps your child has mastered and which ones need additional focus. Often times the child has a mixture of abilities and challenges on every rung of the ladder. And remember that in order for a child to advance to a higher step, he’ll initially keep one foot on the lower step.
- Attention and Engagement: The first skill your child needs to master is the ability to notice and observe the things happening around him, to acknowledge other human beings through eye gaze and expression, and to participate in basic forms of communication such as pointing to indicate wants, using single words or sounds, grunts, etc. The child should engage in simple interactions such as stopping to observe an adult perform an action and either protesting or showing delight.
- Intentional Actions: Next, the child should be guided toward intentional actions rather than self-stimulatory behaviors which have no other purpose. Behaviors such as hand-flapping, jumping, twisting strings, and hand-wringing should be adapted into more meaningful actions like jumping on a trampoline, learning to tie knots, pretending to make a toy airplane fly, and washing hands. Eventually the child should learn to connect several purposeful actions together in more complex activities such as dressing herself.
- Problem Solving: Even prior to becoming verbal, the child will need to learn to solve simple problems. For example, figuring out that a cup needs to be turned right side up to hold liquid, or that a ball that rolls into a hole hasn’t disappeared.
- Imitation: Imitation is important, because a child who can copy the actions of others can be taught all kinds of life skills. He or she can learn to eat with silverware properly, use a comb or toothbrush, mimick facial expressions, pronounce words and phrases, and learn how to act appropriately in social situations. All kinds of games and activities can be used to teach children imitation skills.
- Imagination: Imagination requires abstract thinking, which can be a difficult thing for children with cognitive delays to master. Parents can initiate pretend play during the daily routine, or specifically during floor time, to help their children improve this skill. “Look, my spoon is an airplane….Wooooooooooshhh…” Abstract thinking is required in many important aspects of life from preparing for future events, predicting outcomes, making decisions, and having dreams and aspirations, so this is a very important step on the ladder.
- Building a meaningful vocabulary of words and ideas: The final step. This one requires years of practice and study to master, just like it does for neuro-typical kids. The more a child is able to use language effectively, the better off she’ll be. A meaningful vocabulary is more than just labeling objects with words, but it’s putting words together into effective sentences which convey the child’s wants, needs, and eventually his thoughts and opinions. Building reading comprehension skills is an important part of the process. This step opens the door to more meaningful relationships with others, the opportunity to live independently, work, and be a contributing member of society.
Kristyn Crow is the author of this blog. Visit her website by clicking here.