Autism Training Academy

A student participates in class, follows directions, completes assignments, and appears to interact comfortably with classmates. From an educator’s perspective, the student may seem to be doing well. Then the student gets home and is exhausted. They withdraw, become overwhelmed, or need significant time to recover from the school day. For some autistic students, the […]

Anxiety does not always look like anxiety. In the classroom, a student experiencing anxiety may not say, “I’m worried” or appear visibly nervous. Instead, an educator might see a student refusing to begin an assignment, repeatedly asking the same question, becoming upset when plans change, withdrawing from classmates, or struggling to enter the classroom. For […]

Walk into almost any classroom and there is a lot happening before instruction even begins. Fluorescent lights illuminate the room. Student work and colorful posters cover the walls. Chairs scrape across the floor. The air conditioner hums. Students talk with one another while backpacks are opened, materials are organized, and announcements interrupt the morning routine. […]

For many years, public understanding of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) was shaped by a fairly narrow picture of what autism “looks like.” Educators were often taught to recognize students who displayed obvious social communication differences, repetitive behaviors, or significant support needs. While these characteristics certainly describe many autistic students, they do not represent everyone’s experience. […]

Educators become familiar with their students’ personalities, learning styles, and routines over the course of a school year. When a student who is typically engaged suddenly becomes withdrawn, struggles to complete familiar tasks, or appears emotionally exhausted, it is natural to wonder what has changed. While these behaviors may sometimes be attributed to a lack […]

One of the most important goals of education is preparing students for life beyond the classroom. Academic knowledge is certainly part of that journey, but so are confidence, communication, and self-awareness. For students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), one of the most valuable lifelong skills they can develop is self-advocacy. Self-advocacy is the ability to […]

Most educators have experienced it. A schedule changes unexpectedly. A substitute teacher arrives. An assembly interrupts the day. While many students adjust with minimal difficulty, others may become anxious, withdrawn, or emotionally overwhelmed. For students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), predictability is often more than a preference. It is a support system. Predictable environments help […]

A student forgets to turn in homework even though it is completed. Another struggles to begin assignments without repeated prompts. A third becomes overwhelmed when asked to manage a multi-step project. These situations are often misunderstood as laziness, lack of motivation, or poor behavior. In reality, they may be connected to executive functioning challenges. Executive […]

Discipline has long been a central part of classroom management. Rules, consequences, and expectations help create structure. But when it comes to students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), traditional discipline approaches often fall short. What looks like defiance, disruption, or noncompliance is often something else entirely. It is communication. Students with autism may struggle to […]

Discipline has long been a central part of classroom management. Rules, consequences, and expectations help create structure. But when it comes to students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), traditional discipline approaches often fall short. What looks like defiance, disruption, or noncompliance is often something else entirely. It is communication. Students with autism may struggle to […]