Fact-checked by Vincenza De Falco, Autism & Learning Disabilities Specialist Coach<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this post, we'll cover:<\/p>\n
Autism is a spectrum disorder<\/a> that affects a child’s attention span, fine motor control, social input, language skills, and sensory input. Traditional schools are not equipped to teach children of different abilities the basics of writing because of how writing is usually taught. Typically, children are taught how to hold a pencil, form words, and form sentences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most children with Autism are visual learners and think in pictures rather than words. If you try to teach a child using words, they might miss the lesson completely. Pictures that teach words and sentence structure can be more effective, complete with direct instruction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Place pictures of everyday objects on the walls or tables, so children can point to things they want to make a sentence about. Also, create sentence helpers like connecting words on picture cards to help the child learn sentence structure. You can find these in many educational stores or websites.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Children cannot sit still for very long, usually, but for children on the Autism spectrum, it\u2019s even more challenging to sit still long. For any writing instruction<\/a> to be successful, you must schedule several more breaks during the instruction time. Breaks don\u2019t need to be very long–just long enough for the child to stand up, walk around, or do whatever helps them to be able to focus again.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you have any experience with Autism, you know that people with this diagnosis often repeat things–actions, words, or sentences–as a calming mechanism. When you teach an Autistic child how to write sentences, you want to use this natural repetition as a teaching method to work with the child, not against them.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the best ways to use repetition while teaching the child how to write sentences is to write a sentence, then have the child write the same sentence you wrote. Or you could say one word at a time and have her repeat the word. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sensory overload is one of the main things that make learning more difficult for Autistic children. If there is too much going on in the classroom, the child can break down, throw a tantrum, and stop learning processes. The room where you teach an Autistic child how to write<\/a> sentences needs to be calm, uncluttered, with the lights lower than usual. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Books, papers, toys, and other items that most children can ignore are overwhelming to an Autistic child. If you are a teacher and are responsible for a child with Autism, you may want to create a space in your classroom that is sectioned off from the rest of the room where the child can work. Take all the extra books, toys, and papers away from the area. Only have those things that are conducive to learning.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some children with Autism cannot handle bright flickering lights<\/a>, which might cause mood disorders or behavioral issues. Or it can even confuse them. Blue or mellow yellow lights can have the opposite effect and create a better learning environment.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If your child has not mastered the necessary pre-writing skills, teaching them how to write sentences will not go well. Your child needs to know how to hold the pencil or pen correctly, but because not every child with Autism doesn\u2019t have sufficient fine motor skills<\/a>, they will not know how to write sentences. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s worked for many parents and teachers is to give the child a stress ball to strengthen their hands and fingers to hold a pen or pencil later. Pencil grips<\/a> will also help them place their fingers in the right positions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because Autistic children think in pictures rather than words, buying some art supplies<\/a> might help them learn how to write sentences. Construction paper, crayons or markers, or fingerpaints can encourage them to create pictures of what they want to write about. Choose materials the child will enjoy the texture of, as she may not respond well to some textures.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Word cards are cards with one word on each card<\/a> that teachers use to help their students put together proper sentences. Children with Autism can also benefit from these cards, as they can arrange and rearrange the cards to create fun and strange sentences. The exercise helps them learn what makes a sentence work and doesn\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019re teaching your students how to write stories, but your Autistic student is having difficulty coming up with story ideas or putting their ideas into words, have them draw a picture<\/a> of their stories\u2019 ideas and events. Once they finish their pictures, you can ask them what happens in each sequence.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sentence fill-ins are unfinished sentences written on strips of paper<\/a>. These allow the student to figure out which word will work for which sentence and shows the student how to create sentences. When they see how the sentences are written on the paper and choose their own words, they will be excited to create their sentences later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s face it–writing sentences can be very dull, especially if a child has other things to do or think about. For a child with Autism, writing sentences can be even more boring or difficult.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because of this, you may want to try getting some fun and colorful pens or pencils<\/a> and colored paper for them to use. If they find the pencil interesting, they may be more willing to write sentences. Or if she has colored paper to write on, it might be easier to teach her to learn sentence structure and proper grammar.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Autistic children can sometimes have poor muscle control, especially if they do not receive appropriate therapy. A vertical dry erase board<\/a> can help the child develop the right muscles they need to hold a pen or pencil properly and provide practice space for her to write sentences. If she messes up, it\u2019s quickly erased, and she can start over. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dry-erase boards are convenient because if your child needs to break between sentences or gets too confused because too many sentences are on the board, they can be erased quickly.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Like non-autistic children, Autistic children need movement breaks between lessons, as their young bodies are still growing and changing, and their muscles need movement and challenges. Many Autistic children are in a constant state of movement because it seems to calm them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
When teaching a child with Autism how to write sentences, remember that they need to move more often, or they will not be as attentive as you wish.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Try this: <\/strong>have the child write one sentence correctly, then let them get up, stretch, and walk around wherever they want to go within a limited area. Give them a set number of minutes, then have them come back to their seat to try another sentence. Doing this can also help them focus more on learning as they have an incentive to concentrate longer.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Direct questions such as \u201cWhy is the bear brown?\u201d can encourage proper sentence structure, such as \u201cThe bear is brown because\u2026\u201d Questions like these force a child with Autism to think in sentence terms rather than pictures. You can take this exercise further by asking the child to ask you questions, with you responding in complete sentences to show her what you expect. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
You could make a game of this by seeing how many questions and answers each can ask or answer while still keeping the proper format. The \u201cprize\u201d can be as simple as a sticker on a chart or an encouraging word on a post-it note.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Based on how an Autistic child learns, picture cards<\/a> can be useful for her to create sentences. Teachers use picture cards to teach children how to read. The pictures are of everyday objects, with the names of each item printed on the back. These cards can be useful when teaching Autistic children how to write sentences because they can arrange the cards into coherent sentences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before a child ever learns how to write, they must know how to speak in proper sentences. The best model a child has for learning a language is their parents. As a parent, you have a natural need to talk with your children, even if they can not respond. You must speak in complete sentences with your child as much as possible from birth, even if you don\u2019t think they understand you.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Children pick up on their native language very quickly, so a child whose parents talk with them in complete sentences will be more likely to pick up writing sentences a bit easier. When you\u2019re working with your child to write sentences, have a conversation with them, as it will reinforce your teaching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, if you\u2019re a teacher or another person with a vested interest in the child learning to write sentences and struggling with basic conversation structure, begin with simple conversations. As you\u2019re having a conversation with the child, write down what you say. Then write down what the child says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This exercise shows the child that sentences are as comfortable as talking with another person. When they see that written sentences are similar to, or the same as, spoken sentences, they will be able to write sentences better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Graphic organizers<\/a> are used for different disciplines, such as math, science, and writing. Writing organizers help a child map out a story on a picture. There is a space for the main topic, then areas for supporting details. While these are typically used for story writing, they can also be used for sentence creation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n