Sunday, February 12, 2012

Labeling

One thing I am learning is the importance in labeling things in various ways. It helps so many different areas in which a child may struggle. I want to share a few labeling tips that have helped me or others that might be things you can do to help your child.

One thing I have learned with an ASD child is that sometimes it's hard to accept 'no' from a parent but if you change it to someone else saying the 'no' the child accepts it more willingly... sometimes. I have that labels give me the ability to tell my child 'no' without it being me that is saying 'no'. When we look around there are plenty of labels that give warnings, ratings, cautions, and so forth. I have found that with some products it is very important to share with my son the warning or caution statements on them. This warns him of the harm that can happen if he happens to get into it or on it. Sometimes they give directions on how to use it and it allows him to know he's using whatever he has inappropriately and it's not allowed. Other times it allows him to know he's not mature enough such as a movie rating. Now, not all warnings, cautions, or ratings are going to 'fix' the problem but it's one less thing that a child may see as you saying 'no' to and understand that it has a different purpose than whatever their intentions were for it.

Another thing labels are good for is learning new words or spelling. This helps kids in a lot of ways regardless if they've got special needs or not. They can catagories, organize, learn to spell, identify letters, find the right spots for things, read and learn to write by copying just to name a few. I got a book a while back for homeschooling and it has a picture with tabs you can cut out in the shape of bandaid to put on a bear. Each band-aid has a word that states where the band-aid goes. This is very good for reluctant readers which we will be trying with my son who can read but doesn't want to.

Labels also show many times a symbol for those who can't read. It is very good even if your child can't read to learn certain symbols so that he or she can be made aware of things that are around them. I know Mr. Yuck stickers are hard to find now but they've helped my kids know the different between various bottles of things that are okay and what isn't.

Sometimes letters, words, or symbols won't mean anything to your child because they have a hard time identifying them. You might try colored dots or animals or whatever works with your child. Be creative and think outside the box!

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