Skillstreaming Children and Youth with High-Functioning Autism Student Workbook: Group Leader's Guide and 10 Student Workbooks

The new Skillstreaming Children and Youth with High Functioning Autism: Student Workbook Group Leader’s Guide and Student Workbook accompany the successful manual, Skillstreaming Children and Youth with High Functioning Autism: A Guide to Teaching Prosocial Skills that teachers, counsellors, clinicians, and other professionals use for teaching social skills to students with autism.

Research clearly suggests that teaching social skills to students with autism can help them get along with peers, make and keep friends, understand and solve conflict, and achieve personal and professional goals in their schools and communities as well as later on as adults. Social skills instruction can also help students learn to understand their emotions, control their behaviour, and experience a greater sense of well-being.

A Skillstreaming leader will prepare and deliver lessons on these and other social skills by using the following four learning activities:

• Modelling (showing the child what to say or do)
• Role-play (the child will try out the skill just modelled within the group setting that will be needed in real-life situations)
• Feedback (explaining to students what they did well and what they can do differently the next time)
• Generalisation (completing homework assignments to practice the skill in other situations and settings). Skillstreaming is organised to help students generalise social skills, or use the skills in real-life situations when and where they are needed.

The Student Workbooks and Leader’s Guide give educators, clinicians, and school counsellors a step-by-step procedure for introducing and proceeding with the Skillstreaming program. The numerous activities provided in the Student Workbook assist students in not only learning the Skillstreaming process, but key social nuances that will help them be more successful in their skill use.

Group Leader’s Guide

The purpose of the leader’s guide is to provide clear guidance to practitioners who implement the Skillstreaming learning procedures, thus providing an easily imitated model for instruction. Activities for group leaders to use to enhance students’ skill performance are additionally provided throughout.

Student Workbooks

The student workbook is intended to orient students with autism to the Skillstreaming process. Students will be asked to share this workbook with you when sections of the book have been completed within the Skillstreaming group.

Table of Contents

Introduction for Parents 1

Section 1: Understanding Skillstreaming 5

• People Problems 6
• What Are Social Skills? 7
• Skill Groups 8
• Group I: Relationship Skills 8
• Group II: Social Comprehension 8
• Group III: Self-Regulation 9
• Group IV: Problem Solving 9
• Group V: Understanding Emotions 10
• Group VI: School-Related Social Skills 10
• Why Is It Important to Learn These Skills? 11
• Consequence Maps 11 Activity 1.3—Thomas’ Consequence Map 12
• Build a Consequence Map for Thomas 13
• Blank Consequence Map 14
• Parts of Skillstreaming 15
• Activity 1.4—Learning Examples 17
• Skill: Seeking Attention 18
• Steps 18
• Modeling 19
• Think Aloud Example 1 19
• Skill 55: Seeking Attention 20
• Discussion 21
• Think Aloud Example 2 21
• Skill 22: Accepting Another’s Opinion 21
• Activity 1.5—Watch and Listen 23
• Role-Play 24
• Activity 1.6—Role-Play Planning 25
• Role Responsibilities 26
• Main Actor 26
• Co-Actor 26
• Observers 27
• Guiding the Role-Play 27
• Feedback 27
• Activity 1.7—Types of Verbal Feedback 29
• Activity 1.8—Types of Nonverbal Feedback 30
• Discussion 31
• Activity 1.9—What Was My Role? 32
• Are You Done Yet? 33
• Homework and Practice 33
• Next Steps 33
• Skillstreaming Example 2 34
• The Skill 34
• Listening Without Interrupting 34
• Skill Steps 34
• Modeling 34
• Discussion 35
• Need for the Skill 35
• Summary 35

Section 2: Supports for Learning 37

• Activity 2.1—Your Consequence Map 38
• Video Breakdown 39
• Activity 2.2—Video Breakdown 41
• Social Skill Rubrics 42
• Activity 2.3—Jackson in PE 43
• Vignette 2: Complimenting Jackson during PE 44
• Scenario Analysis 44
• Activity 2.4—Julian Birthday Party 45
• Vignette #3 Julian’s Birthday Party 45
• Scenario Analysis Form 46
• Instructional Skits 46
• Activity 2.5—Encouraging Oscar 47
• Vignette #4 Encouraging Oscar 47
• Skit Preparation Guide 48
• Random Problem Solving 51
• Activity 2.6—Problem Focus 52
• Activity 2.7—Video Feedback Rubric 53
• Video Feedback Rubric Form 54
• Peer Evaluation 55
• Activity 2.8—Peer Evaluation Form 56
• Self-Evaluation 57
• Activity 2.9—Rating My Skill Use 58

Section 3: Generalization 59

• Self-Evaluation 59
• Homework Report 1 60
• Homework Report 2 61
• Homework Report 3 62
• Appendix A: Skillstreaming Tools 63
• Parts to Skillstreaming Poster 63
• Skill Poster: Listening Without Interrupting 64
• Skill Poster: Accepting Another’s Opinion 65
• Skill Poster: Seeking Attention 66
• The Role I Played 67

Skill List 68

About the Authors 70