Autism: Teaching Turn-Taking Is Harder Than You Think 👦🏽⚽ | Pediatric PT (Autism Series #20)

👋🏽 Hi, I’m Amy Sturkey, a retired pediatric physical therapist with over 35 years of experience. I’m glad to share another session with my wonderful co-instructor, Eeshwar 👦🏽 — a 13½-year-old with autism. He is nonverbal and communicates primarily through movement (often pulling adults toward what he wants), with limited prompted use of a communication app. In this session, we focus on turn-taking during a gross motor activity using a simple and engaging setup: kicking over rolls of paper towels. --- 🧠 What This Session Targets This video focuses on: • turn-taking skills • impulse control • motor planning • participation in shared play Turn-taking with gross motor activities is often more challenging than with fine motor tasks because the movements are bigger, faster, and more exciting. --- ⚽ What You’ll See We begin with Eeshwar’s younger brother, Maadhav 👦🏾 (4½ years old), demonstrating the activity. The task is simple: • take turns kicking over paper towel rolls • wait while another person takes their turn • re-set the activity together Then we transition to Eeshwar, where the challenge increases: • waiting for his turn • resisting the urge to kick out of turn • understanding “my turn” vs. “your turn” You’ll see how difficult — and important — this skill is. --- 🪜 Teaching Strategies Used To support success, I use: • clear, consistent verbal cues (“my turn,” “your turn”) • simple, predictable structure • repetition to build understanding • immediate reinforcement (bubbles 🫧) We also use a clear sequence: 👉🏾 first work, then reward This helps with motivation and regulation, especially for children with autism. --- 👩🏽‍👦🏾 Family & Sibling Involvement Having Maadhav demonstrate first is incredibly helpful. Siblings can: ✨ increase engagement ✨ support attention ✨ make learning more meaningful and fun Children often learn best by watching someone close to them. Eeshwar’s mom, Sravani 💜, is also present and supportive throughout the session. --- 🎯 Why This Matters Turn-taking is essential for: • playing with peers • participating in group activities • developing social interaction skills Even a simple game like this builds the foundation for more complex social play. --- 🎥 Watch Eeshwar’s Full Video Series Follow his progress from the beginning: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAkJbMrHyKjNhgwqxI9_oTLYJgDFfMmIu --- 🌐 Stay Connected Website: www.pediatricPTexercises.com Facebook: Pediatric Physical Therapy Exercises Email: amysturkey@gmail.com (I cannot provide treatment recommendations for a child I have not personally evaluated.) --- 📚 Children’s Educational Books P is for Poop and Pee Accidents https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BLSRJ483 A is for Anxiety https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09LXQ3W6V A is for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QH9H5HR C is for Cerebral Palsy https://www.amazon.com/dp/B088TSJCYP D is for Down Syndrome https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079P8HH49 A is for Autism https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071F4FFTB --- 📘 Professional Books for Pediatric Therapists Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Hips https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998156736 Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Knees https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998156760 Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Ankles https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08TX2ZCFD --- 🌍 Captions To turn on captions: Click CC To translate captions: Settings → Subtitles/CC → Auto-translate