Kindergarten Activities for Autistic Children

Kindergarten activities for autistic children offer good ways to teach many important academic and social skills. Activities are available to improve social and communication skills as well as build a foundation for reading and math. There are activities for kindergarten-age children appropriate for both inclusion and special education classrooms. Learn about the many educational activities available to help you plan your child's education.

Kindergarten activities can teach important skills.

Children with autism can benefit from kindergarten activities that build a foundation for elementary education and improve common developmental concerns.

Kindergarten activities for autistic children include the following types of activities:

• Literacy activities
• Math activities
• Art activities
• Social skill activities
• Sensory processing activities

Social skills activities help improve social interaction and communication problems. Examples of social skills activities include:

• Social stories: Social stories communicate appropriate responses and behavior to social situations in the form of a story.
• Circle time: Circle time is a used for interactive games, singing and listening to nursery rhymes and poems. Many autistic children enjoy the singsong pattern of songs, nursery rhymes and poems. Songs, poems and rhymes are a good way to teach educational ideas.
• Duck, Duck Goose with Cards: Since some children with autism might object to the pat on the head in Duck, Duck Goose, you can modify the game with the use of duck cards. Each child receives a duck card and the person who is the goose carries a goose card and touches each duck card as he names each duck and then selects the new goose. The new goose gets to exchange his duck card for a goose card.
• Interactive songs: Interactive songs such as Heads, Shoulder, Knees and Toes or The Farmer in the Dell also encourage social skills and the ability to listen and follow verbal instruction.
• Simon Says: The game "Simon Says" builds listening skills and improves a child's ability to follow directions. A leader provides short, simple instructions that each child must follow. If someone fails to follow the directions, he is eliminated from the game. Examples of instructions are "touch your ear", "clap your hands" or "close your eyes".

Here are examples of literacy activities that build early reading, listening comprehension and vocabulary skills:

• Story Cards: Create a simple story in a series of picture cards. Have the child select each card as you tell the story. The activity helps with listening comprehension skills.
• Animal Match: Play an animal sound and have the child select the animal card that matches the sound. The activity builds listening and general comprehension skills.
• Color Match: Pictures of easily recognizable objects and color cards are mixed together. The child must match the object with the right color. For example, a card with a picture of a yellow sun is matched with a yellow card.
• Letters in a Box: Cards with upper and lower case versions of letters are hidden throughout the room. Children must find each letter card and place it in a box labeled with the correct version of each letter. The first child to get six letters in the correct box wins.

Math activities can build early math skills. Many activities involve counting. Here are some examples of kindergarten math activities:

• Stones in a Bucket: The child rolls a dice to pick a number. She then throws the corresponding number of stones in a bucket.
• Counting Blocks: The teacher calls out a number and the child must count out that number of blocks.
• Counting Shapes: Create simple shapes out of cardboard or cardstock paper in matching groups. Mix the shapes together. The child counts out how many shapes match.
• Color by Number: Use a color chart of four colors that are assigned numbers. Hand the child a picture with numbered sections. The child colors each section based on the assigned color.

Children with autism can improve sensory integration problems with sensory integration therapy administered by a specialist. There are also some kindergarten activities that can help improve sensory processing including:

• Swinging: Some children with sensory processing issues enjoy playing in a swing. The activity of swinging is soothing. There are swings designed specifically for sensory processing therapy in both indoor and outdoor designs. However, many children can learn to swing safely in an average outdoor swing.
• Sensory room play time: Sensory rooms are developed specifically for improving sensory response in a child. The rooms include many different textures, sounds and activities to engage the child's senses. Parents can build sensory rooms in their homes designed for their child's specific needs with the help from a licensed therapist.

Many children with autism learn better with visual supports such as picture cards. Using visual supports can help you communicate with a child who is not comfortable following verbal instruction or does not speak. Adding visual supports can assist most kindergarten activities. An excellent visual support communication system is the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). PECS is a series of picture cards that can be used as a substitute for spoken language.

The following online resources have helpful information and supplies for kindergarten activities for children with autism:

• ZAC Browser: Educational games for autistic children
• Kinder art: Art activities
• Positively Autism: Kindergarten lessons
• Do2Learn: Educational resources
• The Learning Channel: Helpful activity list
• Internet4classrooms: Online kindergarten activities

It is a good idea to learn about kindergarten activities for autistic children even when your child is still in preschool. You can do many of the activities with your child to prepare her for kindergarten. It will also help you figure how your child responds to different activities and learning situations.

• Preschool Activities for Autistic Children
• Possible Causes of Autism
• Tips for Raising Kids with Autism
• What Is Your Autism Empathy Rating?

• Lesson Plans for Autistic Children
• Adult Autism Symptoms
• Social Skills Activities for Kids with Autism
• Speech Therapy Ideas for Autistic Children
• Famous Autistic People