The Teacher's Introduction to Pathological Demand Avoidance
The Teacher's Introduction to Pathological Demand Avoidance
Essential Strategies for the Classroom
'Very useful. Lots of good advice...excellent book for teachers and parents trying to get into the mind of a PDAer' Reader Review, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Quick read with practical advice for many students!...found a lot of the tips to be usable for all students’ Reader Review, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
PDA is a profile of autism that makes demands feel impossible for PDAers to complete and general Autism approaches are rarely effective. So what can you do as a teacher to help?
This essential guide for teachers outlines everything you need to know about working with PDA pupils outlining how to adopt a child-centred approach to learning.
Beginning with an introduction to PDA and how it can affect the education experience, it is then followed by thoughtful, useful strategies school staff can implement to build a collaborative relationship with pupils and help them to thrive in the school environment. The activities presented aim to make children more comfortable and at ease, and therefore better able to learn. It covers key issues for children with PDA, such as sensory issues, preferred language and phrasing of demands, social skills, and recognising distressed behaviour. The chapter summaries and simple activities listed throughout make this a useful tool for busy teaching staff working with PDA pupils.
Clare’s book is a wonderful contribution to the literature on PDA for education professionals, a really practical and useful book. This will refill teachers’ tool boxes and provide a true compass to guide their teaching, helping this fascinating bunch of pupils achieve their educational potential.
What a clear, positive and creative book! Clare provides a great balance of understanding theory as well as practice with an honest approach to some of the everyday issues facing education practitioners. It offers practical ideas to support engagement and to maximise learning opportunities.
Clare Truman is an education consultant, author a special needs teacher for eleven years, specialising in Autism for eight. She is currently completing a PhD at the Centre for Research in Autism and Education at UCL London exploring the educational experiences of PDA children and young people. Clare also established Spectrum Space Community Interest Company, a social enterprise and alternative education provision specialising in supporting children with a PDA profile.
Acknowledgements; Preface; 1. PDA - What Do We Know So Far?; 2. Prioritising Demands; 3. Presenting Demands; 4. Designing and Implementing a Child-Led Curriculum; 5. Invitations to Learn; 6. Teaching Social Skills; 7. Adapting Traditional Autism Strategies; 8. Managing Distressed Behaviour; 9. Hidden Forms of Distressed Behaviour; 10. Managing the Needs of the PDA Student in a Class of Thirty; 11. Eating, Drinking, Washing; 12. Paperwork; 13. What I Learned From Spectrum Space; Afterword; Further Support and Further Reading
