Helping Autistic Children Recall the Plot of a Story

Kids with autism often lack the communication skills needed to answer some questions, they don't know how to express the information they do have or they don't understand enough of the story to respond, according to Reading Rockets, a national literary initiative aimed at fostering reading skills among young readers. Help your child with autism better remember what he's read with some reading strategies.

  1. Background Knowledge Building

    • Building background knowledge is an essential component of reading comprehension. Children with autism especially need to do this because they're often not present during activities that help create this backdrop of information, including socializing with peers. Before reading a novel or story, show your child a movie connected in some way to the text, tell him a story related to the theme, or help him to create connections between his own experiences and the text, recommends Reading Rockets. You might also come up with ideas together on chart paper, or write down questions about the title, cover art, or jacket blurb.

    Think Aloud

    • Try modeling a "think aloud" attitude for your child, which can help him monitor his own understanding of a story, suggests Reading Rockets. As you read out loud, model your own comprehension strategies: asking questions, making inferences, making connections to your personal background, and highlighting the importance of certain characters, setting details, or events. This will help your child internalize the habits of good readers, and make him more proficient when it comes time to answer questions, discuss or write about the plot.

    Drama

    • Because your child with autism might have difficulty understanding character motivations and identifying their particular emotions, acting out a chapter or key scene can be helpful, notes Reading Rockets. Try doing this exercise with typical peers or siblings, so your child is able to see dialogue paired with appropriate facial expressions and tone of voice. Getting a grasp on who the characters are will provide a huge boost to his overall comprehension.

    Comic Strip Summary

    • Because children with autism tend to be visual and "think in pictures," creating a comic strip summary of a scene or chapter can be an effective summarizing activity. First, have your child write down everything he remembers from the story. Help him to pick out the most important events from the beginning, middle, and end and discuss how best to represent these in the given number of blank comic squares. For younger children, three squares might be best; older children might be able to handle another up to six. Check out the websites HaveFunTeaching.com or PrintablePaper.net for a selection of blank comic templates.

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