Stop and Look Both Ways
“My child does not understand about cars at all and once ran right into the street and almost got hit—-”: I’ve heard many parents of autistic children say this; in his book The Only Boy in the World: A Father Explores the Mysteries of Autism , Michael Blastland describes, in harrowing detail, his son Joe being hit by a car (and—to everyone’s relief—-walking away unhurt). How does one teach a child the dangers of traffic and cars?
My own son has trouble moving objects and even when told “look both ways,” it’s not clear what he is looking at, as it takes him some time to focus. He has been practicing how to cross the street (in the circular driveway in front of his school)—-researchers in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of Haifa have found that some autistic children have had some success learning to road safety skills after instruction with a special virtual reality system.
Six autistic children, ages 7-12, spent one month learning how to cross virtual streets, to wait for the virtual light at the crosswalk to change and to look left and right for virtual cars using a simulation programmed by Yuval Naveh. The children in the study showed substantial improvement throughout the learning process: at the beginning of the study, the average child was able to use the 2nd level of the software while by the end they mastered the 9th level, which is characterized by more vehicles traveling at a higher speed.
However, the research team was not looking to teach a virtual skill; they wanted to see if the children were able to transfer the skills they had mastered in a virtual environment to the real world. A local practice area with a street and crosswalk, complete with traffic signals, was used for this purpose. The children’s ability to cross the street safely was tested in this area evaluating, for example, whether they stopped to wait on the sidewalk or waited for a green light before crossing. The children were brought to the practice area before and after their virtual learning. Here too, the children exhibited an improvement in their skills, following the training on the virtual street, with three of the children showing considerable improvement.
One of the study participants, 16 years old, had participated in the past in a road safety program in the school, but he was not able to learn how to cross the street safely. Following learning the skill in a virtual environment, he learned how to stop on the sidewalk before stepping into the street, to look at the color of the traffic light, to cross only when the light was green and to cross without waiting too long.
It’s a small study but about a huge skill for my son, at least, to learn: When he can cross the street safely by himself, that will be one huge stride forward.
Photo courtesy of karl151k via Flickr
Tags: asd, asperger, autism, autism spectrum disorder, children, Family, haifa, pdd-nos, Psychology, Safety, street, traffic
14 opinions for Stop and Look Both Ways
MomtoJBG
Jan 28, 2008 at 7:54 pm
That sounds fantastic. One of my biggest worries about my sons is that they’ll get out of the house, or break free of my hand, and end up in the road.
If this program catches on, maybe they could do more, to teach kitchen safety or other safety skills.
Kristina Chew, PhD
Jan 28, 2008 at 10:37 pm
We have an electric stove and Charlie is always curious about cooking and feeling whether things are cold or hot—-on the other hand, we used to have a gas stove and that was potentially nerve-wracking too. So far, he has not been interested in the controls—-he’s happy using the microwave.
B
Jan 29, 2008 at 12:14 am
I wonder if they throw balls in the road during the sessions (with the point being you must ignore them). Even when the walk sign is on so many times it is unsafe to cross! How to teach that!
Kathy
Jan 29, 2008 at 5:18 am
Good stuff.
I am always worried about Mark. He has no “road “sense at all.
He loves to be chased and has on occasion ran towards the road.
About a 2 years ago he actually made it onto the road.. I was in hot pursuit, but tripped and fell flat on my face.
I can tell ya though, I was up like a shot out of a gun( even with the grazed elbows and knees) Thankfully there was no traffic.
He had a huge grin on his dear little face.. Oblivious to the possible danger.
Emily
Jan 29, 2008 at 12:34 pm
TH has zero road sense. Even when he hear’s our reminder to stop and look both ways, sometimes he’ll look behind and in front, rather than laterally. He *never* remembers on his own. It’s very worrisome, but at least we live near the end of a pretty quiet cul-de-sac. He gets daily practice because he and his brother have to cross the street to get to the bus stop in the morning.
Emily
Jan 29, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Good Lord. Did I really type “hear’s”? I’ve truly gone over the deep end. Or is that “end’s”?
Kristina Chew, PhD
Jan 29, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Charlie has learned “stop” and does do so when I call this and he’s on the street—I do my best just to use the word sparingly and to make sure that he is likely to “stop” when I request it. But you can be sure I have a hand on his coat at busy intersections!
Daisy
Jan 29, 2008 at 9:09 pm
My son has an added challenge — he can’t see the cars. He’s learned to cross streets in the methods of blind people; his autism is secondary here.
Getting to School on Your Own Two Feet
Mar 30, 2008 at 2:00 pm
[…] do not walk home for reasons that are most of all about safety: Parents routinely note stories of children darting into intersections filled with heavy traffic and describe their child as having “no sense of danger.” […]
Getting to School on Your Own Two Feet
Mar 30, 2008 at 2:00 pm
[…] do not walk home for reasons that are most of all about safety: Parents routinely note stories of children darting into intersections filled with heavy traffic and describe their child as having “no sense of danger.” […]
Second Life is the New Prozac?
Mar 31, 2008 at 7:56 pm
[…] technology has helped them or an autistic child learn about real-life situations (from emotions to street traffic). CNN recently reported about Naughty Auties, a “virtual resource center for those with […]
Deborah Packard
May 12, 2008 at 9:49 am
Where can I Purchase simulation programmed by Yuval Naveh for autistic children?
Bonnie Sayers
May 12, 2008 at 12:46 pm
I just did a google search trying to find this simulation program and only found articles about it. I hope to learn more as well.
Palmer
Aug 31, 2008 at 10:24 am
When I used to teach at a school for kids with autism we would sometimes take the students to the park or for walks in the neighborhood. Telling them to look both ways before crossing the street did absolutely no good. They’d look and then start to cross even if a car was coming. Some of them would look up in the sky and then start to cross right in front of a car, all the time laughing and talking to themselves.
My aides and I got very good at grabbing them out of harm’s way.
I don’t think they had any conception that cars could hit them, even though they would sometimes talk about getting run over and bleeding and having to go to the hospital.
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