Students with Autism have a hard time expressing themselves. Remember, in the last post I talked about expressive communication. The student needs a way to to easily and appropriately let their instructor know when they need to step away from an activity. That's where break cards come into play.
A break card is a visual support that a non-verbal or verbal student can use to say that they need a break from an activity, environment, task or person. This usually happens when they are frustrated, bored or anxious.(Erinoakkids.ca, 2013) It is up to the teacher how long the breaks will be and how many are given.
References
Erinoakkids.ca (2013). Requesting a Break. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.erinoakkids.ca/getattachment/Resources/Autism/Visual-Supports/Requesting-a-Break.pdf.aspx [Accessed: 4 Nov 2013].
I remember watching the video in class the other week that showed a special ed teacher and student using a break card. This was prior to me reading about break cards. (I have never seen break cards prior to then) I wonder if break cards will ever see their way into the regular ed classroom or if they'll be relegated to students with learning disabilities only.
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