Harrisburg plans autism social skills class
HARRISBURG, Pa. – The Harrisburg office of the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School is looking for six of its teenage students with autism or Asperger’s syndrome to participate in a hands-on social skills and photography class. An equal number of typically developing teen volunteers will take the photo class with them so they can practice meeting and working with others their own age.
“This is an opportunity for our students on the autism spectrum to sharpen their social skills, and for them and some of their peers to learn basic photography as well. It’s part of a research study, so the knowledge gained will be shared to help others with autism,” said Kelly Ruzzi, a PA Cyber instructional supervisor who is coordinating the school’s participation.
Ruzzi said PA Cyber’s Harrisburg Support Center has been gathering information and resources to help the families of students with autism, and this class furthers that goal. The class is designed as part of a study being conducted by the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center under an Autism Service, Education, Research and Training Grant from the Pennsylvania Bureau of Autism Services in the Department of Public Welfare.
One of four groups in the study, the PA Cyber students will meet once a week for 12 weeks beginning in late summer or early fall.
Ruzzi is coordinating the school’s efforts with the project’s research coordinator, Laura Smith, and director, Michael Murray, M.D. For details and eligibility information, Ruzzi may be contacted at 724.643.1180, ext. 1734, or at kelly.ruzzi@pacyber.org. Smith may be contacted at 717.531.7458.
Ruzzi is looking for six PA Cyber students, aged 13-17, with a primary diagnosis of high-functioning autism or Asperger’s syndrome who reside in the counties served by the school’s Harrisburg Support Center: Cumberland, Perry, Dauphin, Lebanon, York, and Lancaster. Also needed is an equal number of typically developing PA Cyber students in the same age group.
The students with autism will meet for two and a half hours, one day a week for 12 weeks. The first hour of each session will consist of coaching, education and discussion on social skills. After a break, they will be paired with the other student volunteers in a class to learn the basics of photography.
Smith said when young people with autism are taught social skills by adults, they learn how to use those skills with adults. The idea behind this study is to teach those skills and put them into practice with their peers.
The social skills class will cover topics including how to tell if someone is a friend; dating and other interactions with the opposite sex; how to meet a person for the first time; how to start conversations and what conversational topics are appropriate. Videos will illustrate social skills in action, showing both good and poor examples of how to interact with people.
“Students with autism have difficulty learning social skills by observation,” Ruzzi said. “This group will provide a place for direct instruction of social skills, followed by peer generalization to foster independent social functioning.”
In the photography course, students will learn about cameras, composition, lighting and image manipulation in a hands-on class with digital cameras and computer imaging software. Each student’s best photo will be framed and mounted for a show at the end of the 12-week class.
Smith said all students who volunteer for the study will receive from Dr. Murray letters of recommendation which could be helpful on college applications or count for community service.
Some parents choose online learning, said Ruzzi, because “cyber school provides an educational alternative for students with autism to avoid bullying and the anxiety that can come from being bombarded with social cues and interactions that they have difficulty understanding . My primary goal is to help our students, and this program will do that. I’m also happy that our school can help with research that will improve how students with autism learn and grow.”
The social skills class is one part of the program for students with autism at PA Cyber. Once a month, Ruzzi leads a Strategies for Social Skills group for parents. She makes herself available between sessions for parents to use her as a resource in implementing strategies taught in the group.
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