The Six Centers of Excellence

MELS has delegated six Centres of Excellence that operate with a mandate to serve as a resource and provide support to the English School Boards in the province of Québec, all of whom are committed to facilitating the inclusion of students with an exceptionality. These include:

Autism Spectrum Disorders Network Newsletter

We have an in-house newsletter for our Autism Spectrum Disorders Network. It is published three times a year and over 900 copies are distributed to all of our schools and offices, as well as to all of our teachers and support staff who work with students identified with an ASD. Our newsletter features information about best practices, teacher tips, behavioural strategies as well as articles written by our own occupational and speech & language therapist. The newsletter also features local conferences and reviews of new books for individuals working with students with an ASD. It is available for viewing here, as well as distributed at SNNAP, SNAC, LERN, PD workshops and Ministry meetings. To view a copy of our newsletter, please click on the individual links at the bottom of the page.

Here is the feature article from the January 2013 edition of our newsletter: 

  Hierarchy of Prompts

This article explores the use of prompting as a strategy to support a student’s readiness for learning and to facilitate individual student success. Prompting is a powerful tool that can be used to increase achievement, independence and motivation. Prompts assist students to initiate and complete tasks or activities accurately and then move on to the next item. Each type of prompt can range from minimal to very directive. The level and intensity of prompting required is unique to each student and may vary depending on the skill being addressed and the learning environment. Our primary objective is to reduce or remove prompts as soon as possible so that students learn to achieve the same success  independently.

There are many different types of prompts. Visual prompts are observable tools which provide information to the learner and can include schedules, cue cards, reinforcement charts and mini schedules.   Verbal prompts are direct or indirect instructions about what the student is to do. An indirect verbal prompt provides a cue that something is expected of the student, but very little information is given, such as look at what the class is doing. A direct verbal prompt is specific and tells the student what is expected, e.g., time to line up. A verbal model can be partial or full. For example, when teaching a student to ask to go to the bathroom, you can model bathroom, need bathroom , or I need the bathroom. A physical prompt can be partial such as a touch or tap on the elbow or can include total assistance such as handover-hand modelling. When using a physical prompt to teach a skill, it is important to remember not to also provide verbal instruction to the student as verbal prompts can become embedded in activities and can inhibit their ability to achieve independence.

Each type of prompting provides a different level of support which can range from least to most intrusive.  This is known as a hierarchy of prompts. The overall goal of understanding and using a hierarchy of prompts is to teach students to initiate and complete tasks or activities and then move on to the next item without relying on adults to provide assistance. There are two ways of using the hierarchy of prompts, least-to-most or most-to-least. The type of hierarchy we decide to use is dependent on the individual student and the task being taught to the child. 

The least-to-most hierarchy of prompting encourages educators to teach a new skill by beginning with the least intrusive type of prompt and moving down the hierarchy to more direct prompting if required to support successful achievement of the skill. Each trial begins by providing the student an opportunity to respond with the least amount of assistance possible. This approach ensures that a student does not become dependent on a more intrusive prompt and also allows the instructor to gauge the type of support the student requires to achieve success. When using a least-to-most style of prompting, all errors should be interrupted as soon as they occur with the next level of prompt. For instance, if the teacher realizes the student is beginning to respond incorrectly to a prompt, he/she should interrupt the error with the next level of support in the sequence without waiting the specified time interval. Errorless learning is an important component in teaching a new skill to students because errors, once repeated, can be difficult to eliminate. 

An alternative strategy using a hierarchy of most-to-least intrusive prompts is often used for teaching students to use work systems or activity schedules. For example, when teaching a student to use a work system, we may initially use hand-over-hand (from behind) to guide them on how to use the system correctly. However, over time we can begin to use less intrusive prompts such as a simple touch, a gesture, a verbal prompt or a visual cue to encourage them to begin using the work system

Please click below to view current and past ASD newsletters:

January 2013

September 2012

April 2012

January 2012

September 2011

April 2011

October 2010

April 2010

January 2010

September 2009

April 2009

January 2009

September 2008

May 2008

January 2008

October 2007

March 2007

October 2006

April 2006

September 2005

April 2005

January 2005

October 2004

January 2004

October 2003

April 2003

January 2003

October 2002

What is Autism?

Autism is a neuro-developmental disorder that impacts significantly on an individual's ability to learn and manage the routine demands of school. In order for educators to understand how these students experience the world and how best to teach them, it can be helpful to consider the model of a triad of impairments. It applies to the entire spectrum of disability, from Autism to Asperger Syndrome, and affects all individuals diagnosed with an ASD in terms of their learning and their perceptions.

Triad of Impairments:

Difficulties in language and communication, social interaction, and inflexibility of thinking & behaviour are readily observed in students with an intellectual delay or significant behavioural differences. However it is easy to forget how dramatically they impact on more able individuals who have been diagnosed with an ASD. Students with precocious vocabulary and great knowledge of facts may have virtually no understanding of figurative language, sarcasm, or humor. Students who are talkative and seemingly outgoing may also operate with a kind of social blindness, which significantly limits their understanding of emotions or the perspective of others. Students who seem bright and academically capable may also become distressed by changes in routine or surprises, or fixate on one topic or way of doing things. This can result in non-compliant behaviour if accommodation strategies, such as breaks or visual schedules, are not put into place.

In addition to this triad of developmental differences, there are two other factors which often affect these students: sensory issues and anxiety. Some students may have sensory processing difficulties of a magnitude which require therapeutic activities, recommended by an occupational therapist. Many others, even those who are academically capable, may be overwhelmed by the school environment because of heightened sensitivities to aspects such as noise, lighting, crowding and movement, visual stimulation, and/or smell. These sensory issues can cause distraction, distress, or even fear.

A propensity for anxiety also affects many students with an ASD, who may face new tasks or social demands with anxious resistance or avoidance behaviours. They are easily bewildered by social expectations and emotional contexts, and thus benefit from predictability, routines, and most importantly, visual rather than language-based cues to social and academic expectations.

Understanding these developmental differences and potential difficulties can help support better teaching practices for students with an ASD.

Top Ten Effective Classroom Strategies:

1. Use visual and non-verbal cues.
2. Provide structure with routine and schedules.
3. Support transitions and whenever possible, provide warnings about changes or unusual events.
4. Build in student choices and offer extrinsic incentives to complete tasks.
5. Give opportunities for breaks or access to alternative, quiet work space.
6. Help with activity level and alertness problems by building in walks or physical activities.
7. Facilitate communication opportunities with peers, as well as adults.
8. Teach to strengths, such as visual modality or memory for factual knowledge, and incorporate special interests.
9. Give options for expression, such as illustrations or charts.
10. Teach about autism: encourage self-awareness and use sensitization activities with peers.

 For more information about Autism Spectrum Disorders, please check out the Resources tab on this site.

Autism Spectrum Disorders Network Library 

Autism Spectrum Disorders Network Materials

Many of the following materials were created using the program Boardmaker. Boardmaker™ is a registered trademark of Mayer-Johnson LLC. In order to view the following files, you must have the Boardmaker disk in your computer. To purchase your own copy visit www.mayer-johnson.com or call 1-858-550-0084.

Visual Starter Kit

The Visual Kit includes all you need to implement the use of a visual schedule with a child in school. The kit includes instructions on how to use a visual schedule and cues, the importance of using visuals with an article by Margaret Brown, "30 Reasons to Use and Keep Using a Visual Schedule" and all the pictures needed for a regular elementary school day including the schedule strip.

Visual Schedules

Visual schedules are an extremely important tool to help structure a student's day. Using a visual schedule promotes independence, gives clear expectations, and supports a student's difficulty with sequential memory and organization of time. The schedule should be clear and at the student's level using either pictures and/or words. A schedule illustrating the entire day may be useful to some students while others might respond better to a half-day schedule. Below you will find many templates available for download. Once saved, the schedules can be modified and tailored to an individual student's needs.   

High School Schedule for Binder • High School Schedule Extra Pieces • Work system • Kindergarten Schedule • Class Schedule • Individual Schedule w/Done Pocket • Individual Schedule w/Wipe Off • Morning Routine Mini-Schedule 

Visual Supports

Visual supports can be used to help students understand class rules, give non-verbal reminders for behaviour, help with organization and make abstract concepts more concrete. Below you will find a variety of visual supports that,once saved, can be modified and tailored to a class or student's needs.  

Alert-O-Meter • Choice Board • Class Rules • Individual Size Class Rules • Handwashing Sequence • Help Sign • I am Working For Card • Break Card • Noise Meter • Work Reminder • French Circle Time Rules • French Class Rules • Rules Card • Calendar Flip Chart • Dressing Sequence 

Social Scripts

Social Scripts are a great tool to help teach social skills and life skills to students with an ASD. Using the form of narratives, these can be used to teach students how to wait in line, how to raise their hand in class or appropriate behaviour for many different social situations. Social Scripts should be presented to a student on a regular basis, not at the time of the social error. Here are a few that can be adapted to your individual child's needs:

Boardmaker files zipped for download
Asking Questions	Making Mistakes	That's Private
At The Store	My New School	That's Private- Female
Bathroom Routine	Nose Book	Using Nice Words
Compliments	Playing With Friends	Walking in The Hallway
Following The Rules	Private Parts	What I Can Do: My Hands
Getting Stuff on Hands	Sharing	When It's Time to Talk
Hugs are for Family	Spitting	When People are Talking
Indoor Recess	Staying Calm
Listening to The Teacher	Staying With Grandma

Communication Books

Communication books are used to help students pass on information about their day to parents. Using a communication book that corresponds with the students’ visual schedule is a great way to increase independence. This way the students do not need to rely on others to read or spell the words that describe their day. Below you will find a few sample communication books that can be used to help create a better dialog between the students’ home and school. Keep in mind that a communication book should not be used as a behaviour log. It should help the students pass on information about the day-to-day happenings in school and at home.

Curriculum Based Activites