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5 Tips for Teaching Flexible Thinking in Unpredictable Times
| Teaching Flexible Thinking |
Children with autism are often frustrated with changes in their daily schedule, let alone when there are so many confusing and scary things happening in the world. Parents might find themselves responding to the behavioral outcome of the stress and anxiety involved with this “inflexible thinking”, rather than teaching flexible thinking in a systematic way. If you can think about this as a cognitive issue, rather than a “behavioral” issue, you might be able to teach some valuable coping strategies during this difficult time.
The first step in teaching this skill is to realize that your child might not understand why the world works the way it does; why people make the decisions they do; or why routines have been so drastically disrupted. Your child might depend on some sense of predictability in order to be relaxed, and unexpected change might cause him significant stress. An immediate goal would be to add visual and systematic order to your days of quarantine.
The first step in teaching this skill is to realize that your child might not understand why the world works the way it does; why people make the decisions they do; or why routines have been so drastically disrupted. Your child might depend on some sense of predictability in order to be relaxed, and unexpected change might cause him significant stress. An immediate goal would be to add visual and systematic order to your days of quarantine.
Rethinking Your Thinks
| Rethinking Your Thinks |
When you are at home and your child just doesn’t seem to listen to a word you say or actually seems to do the opposite of what you want, resist thinking about this situation as “oppositional”.
A Quick Tip for Perseverative Questioning
| A Quick Tip For Perseverative Questioning |
In times of crisis, the big worries can get even bigger. The unknowns can become almost unbearable, let alone for a child who is still trying to figure out the basics of why people do what they do, or why they make the decisions they make. Most of you will agree that we are living in a very surreal and scary time. Assume this is going to weigh heavy on your child.