LSA job any advice please

[mumeeee]

I have an interview on tues for a LSA job. If I get the job I will be an LSA to a 7 yesr old who has ASD. I do have experience with special needs children and have worked with a 4 year old with aspergers syndrome. I know several of you have children with ASD, so any advice you can give me will be very welcome. I have always had good advice from MNers before.

advice......listen to the parent IMHO they know more than the senco, but dont say that at the interview, good luck

remember teh child is ultimately teh most important you are there to facilitate their learning and social development so you may have to challenge parents and teachers

If there are any specific problems happening with the child at school then it's always best to inform the parents sooner rather than later. That way not only do they know that there's a problem but they may have ideas on causes and solutions. If the parents and school work in partnership then so much more can be achieved IMHO. It's awful when parents think everything is fine, only to turn up to an IEP meeting or parents evening and discover that there are big problems which have been going on for weeks.

The child may not necessarily want you to be with them constantly (although this will obviously depend upon the child and their specific needs). One of the reasons that ds1 doesn't have a statement is because he would absolutely hate to have someone in close proximity all the time.

If the child doesn't respond to your instructions then think about rephrasing it in as simple a way as you can.

You probably already know this from past experience but remember that a child with ASD is highly likely to take everything literally!

If it seems appropriate, they might ask you for ideas of how to work with the child. A couple of things you could suggest is Makaton of PECs training and a simple home/school book (essential in my view).

Urgh, I mean Makaton OR PECs training.

I would really recommend any LSA of an ASD child to read the book Martian in the Playground by Claire Sainsbury.
Claire Sainbury has As and the book offers an excellent insight into life for an ASD child in school.
J's LSA found the book a great rescource to refer to and it helped make life a little easier for J.

Good Luck with the interview.

Thanks for your help everyone. I have used Makoton before with a child with DS and have heard of PECS but haven't used it.I know what you mean coppertop. My 12 year old DD is dyspraxic and we are having some problems with the school at the moment. I'll let everyone know how the interview went.

Best of luck for the interview tomorrow.

The interview seemed to go well, but I didn'Oh well get the job. Oh well I'll just have to keep trying.

Sorry about my typing.

Sorry to hear that, do keep trying.