Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) display a wide variety of cognitive, behavioral, physical/motor, and social abilities that often require some level of support in their education, including physical education (PE) and sport participation. Sport participation can afford students with ASD much needed opportunities for development of physical and social skills. This study examined PE teachers' sport recommendations for two hypothetical high school students with different functioning levels of ASD (high and low). An online survey was completed by general and adapted PE teachers across the U.S. A total of 277 (APE= 152, GPE = 125) responses were used for statistical analyses. Results revealed that PE teachers recommend individual over team sports for both high and low functioning students with ASD. There were no sport recommendation differences between adapted and general PE teachers. Also, there were no differences in sport recommendations between high and low functioning levels of ASD. It was most recommended that high and low functioning high school students with ASD participate in: cross country running, swimming, and track and field. Sports least recommended for high and low functioning students with ASD were football, lacrosse, and ice hockey.

Current estimates are that 1 out of 88 children will be diagnosed with some form of autism. Planning a curriculum that includes all students, including those with ASD, can be a challenging task but well worth the effort. This book identifies strategies that highlight students’ skills, interests, and abilities though collaborative practices, environmental design, and assistive technologies. Physical Education for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Comprehensive Approach • introduces the inclusion spectrum as a tool to help teachers analyze appropriate instruction for students, aligning abilities with curriculum and activity context; • provides information on tools such as scripts, video modeling, social stories, and choice boards to assist teachers in developing programs; • presents a variety of activities that teachers can choose from to help students with ASD develop social and motor skills; and • assimilates best practices from general and adapted PE as well as autism training and research that offer solutions for increased student engagement in physical education. Written by contributors with extensive experience in developing inclusive programming for students with ASD, Physical Education for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Comprehensive Approach is ideal for physical education and adapted physical education courses across the K-12 curriculum. Part I provides an understanding of students with ASD that offers insights from parents’ and teachers’ perspectives. From there, the authors examine the application of the inclusion spectrum that helps teachers plan for appropriate instruction. Readers will also find communication and social learning tools they can use to minimize the stress students may experience while optimizing learning experiences. Assessment protocols assist with the development of relevant IEP goals and objectives. Part II contains individualized and group games and activities that enhance lifelong learning for students with ASD. Physical Education for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Comprehensive Approach is a practical resource that helps teachers design optimal plans for including students with ASD in general and adapted physical education classes. The manual contains numerous strategies, tools, and resources that assist teachers with individualizing instruction in ways that foster positive peer relationships as well as development of social and motor skills. It’s a win-win situation for all—teachers, parents, and most of all the students.

This book is intended to provide guidance to parents, guardians, educators, and community recreation professionals regarding the importance of increased physical activity beyond the school day for children with disabilities. The book starts off by discussing early childhood development specific to children with disabilities and places emphasis on parents’ roles as their advocate in school and community sports, recreational, and leisure programs. The book highlights the legal rights of a parent, their child’s rights, and the equal rights that a child with a disability has when participating in interscholastic athletics and sports. Emphasis is placed on public laws that mandate educational opportunities for children with disabilities along with recent legislative updates regarding extracurricular school based activity. Finally, readers will learn how a child with a disability can be educated utilizing a variety of instructional strategies that can be helpful in the classroom and community setting. This book offers practical information on suggested activities, adaptations, and general considerations when teaching a child with a disability. The book’s appendices offers a wide variety of resources ranging from sports organizations and resources from around the country along with modifications and adaptations of a variety of sports a child with a disability can participate in.

Covering self-contained adapted physical education classes, general physical education programs, and youth sports and community recreation, this book presents a series of case studies of teaching individuals of varied ability and disability in physical activity settings. Outlining realistic scenarios, it encourages an interactive, problem-solving teaching and learning style and the development of critical thinking skills. Now in a fully revised and updated second edition, the book covers a wide range of different professional issues, themes, disabilities, and conditions, from assessment and behavior management processes to working with students with intellectual disabilities, motor difficulties, chronic illness, or obesity. Each case study includes questions that challenge the reader to reflect on the practical issues involved and how to build inclusive teaching strategies. This book is valuable reading for all physical education students, teacher candidates, and novice and experienced teachers looking to deepen their understanding of adapted physical education and to improve their professional practice. It is an essential companion to any adapted physical education or physical activity course.

This book is an essential guide for how to teach fun and engaging physical education classes tailored to include the needs of autistic children and children with learning disabilities. With this practical guidebook detailing tested methods and best practices, teachers will be well equipped to support all students, including disabled students and those with varying support needs. Through a narrative lens that details children’s real-life journeys, and with key definitions and ready-to-use activities included throughout, Teaching Physical Education to Children with Autism presents a teacher’s first-hand account of what it’s like to teach students with diverse learning needs. Its comprehensive scope addresses all the practical challenges that educators may face in working with this population, including difficult behavior and disengagement. Detailing a myriad of solutions to try, along with flexible frameworks that can be applied to a myriad of physical education goals, this book is essential reading for any physical education teacher, special education teacher, and anyone wishing to create more equitable learning environments for children with varying learning needs.

This top-selling text, now in its seventh edition, is the go-to text to prepare students to teach people with disabilities. Adapted Physical Education and Sport provides comprehensive and clear guidance for professionals working with people with unique physical education needs, differences, and abilities. New to This Edition No other adapted physical education text has sold more copies than this book—but the contributors are not resting on their laurels. The text is loaded with new and updated material: Enhanced coverage of universal design for learning, with strategies and applications presented throughout the text A new chapter devoted entirely to adventure sports and activities A chapter on adapted sport that has been further developed to reflect the progress in the field Enhanced coverage of sport-specific injuries and prevention Also new to this edition are related online learning aids delivered through HKPropel, including assignable learning and enrichment activities to help students apply the book’s foundational knowledge. The HKPropel resources also include an instructor guide with teaching tips and strategies, ideas for an introductory course in adapted physical education and sport, and a sample syllabus. Other tools include a test bank, video clips demonstrating 26 of the fitness tests from The Brockport Physical Fitness Test Manual, and forms, tables, and calculators related to the Brockport Physical Fitness Test. In addition, the team of 30 highly renowned contributors includes 12 new voices who add their perspectives to the content. More Features Adapted Physical Education and Sport offers readers much more: Chapter-opening scenarios that introduce one or more of the chapter’s concepts Application examples that explore real-life situations and show how to apply the text concepts to solve relevant issues Print, video, and online resources in the text and through HKPropel Appendixes that include definitions based on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), contact information for organizations associated with adapted physical education and sport, information related to the Brockport Physical Fitness Test, a scale to evaluate adapted physical education programs, and more The book’s contents are aligned with the IDEA legislation and will help current and future educators identify the unique needs of children with disabilities, adapt physical education to meet those needs, and develop effective individualized education programs (IEPs) for those students. Adapted Physical Education and Sport is the ideal book for those who want the foundational knowledge that leads to the practical development and implementation of top-quality physical education and sport programs for people with disabilities. Note: A code for accessing HKPropel is not included with this ebook but may be purchased separately.

Regular physical activity (PA) is vital for living a healthy life and reduced chance of disease for people of all ages. Despite the U.S. government guidelines, many adolescents do not regularly participate or get enough physical activity and research has shown physical activity occurring with much less frequency for youth with disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) when compared to youth without disabilities (Pan & Frey, 2006). Fewer social opportunities and higher levels of disruptive and interfering behavior may contribute to these discrepancies. The current study compared two types of physical activity, instructor-led and exergaming among 3 high school students with ASD in a classroom after school. Using an alternating treatment design, results report levels of participation and active physical engagement during each condition. Limitations are considered along with application to practice for increasing involvement in physical education activities.