Three Good Things: Puppets, Learning, and Autism

Three Good Things That Are Really Happening In 2021

In late August of 2021 there may be many comments shared by many people about how much people have hated the year 2021. Is this the time to point to three amazing happenings so far in the research surrounding the autism spectrum in 2021? Let us name the three good phrases that spread great hope. Examine the three good phrases: “looking good,” “almost magical” and “puppets.”

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  Genetics On February 1, 2021, researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) announced that The Autism Spectrum Disorders may be caused by defects in the mitochondria of brain cells (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 2021). The research continues into what is looking good very good.

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  Spectrums In the year 2021 awareness that autism is a spectrum disorder is growing. While the DSM-IV released in 1994 was the first edition to categorize autism as a spectrum (Zeldovich, 2018), more and more people are now changing their vocabularies to use “autism spectrum disorder” in daily conversations. The people who choose to say “on the spectrum” do so because it is respectful and inclusive. The phrase “on the spectrum” shows people, their families and their medical team’s kindness and dignity. It gives a name to what may not have a name at this time. It looks at what the person can do with expectation and hope in everyone’s future. Many people say “on the Spectrum” without trying to explain everything. There can be progress and understanding without total perfection at this time.

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  Puppets A Study at Yale University Child Study Center is discovering everyone likes to see puppets, but children on the spectrum spent the most time in this new study looking at the puppets. The Jim Henson Institute and Yale University Child Study Institute are partners in considering what eyes see (Disability Insider, 2021). They have invited many experts from many fields of study together to discover what happens when spectrum, neurotypical children and adults look at puppets. What are they looking at? The study showed that children with autism are less likely to attend to or engage emotionally with their social partner, which in term may limit their exposure to learning opportunities.

This research is helping us gain insight into autism. With layers of information, we can understand at a foundational level that autism is a spectrum disorder, and that autism is genetic. But research being generated in 2021 goes beyond explaining autism into understanding and even considering how to create learning environments that support children with autism in learning course content and social skills. The following chapter will focus on the later, specifically examining the research behind using puppets in teaching children on the spectrum and tips and strategies for using puppets to enrich the learning environment of children on the spectrum.

Literature: Puppets, Autism And Learning

October 21, 2015, a Wednesday to be exact, Sesame Street introduced Julia. Julia has autism and is part of Sesame Street’s “See Amazing” (Phillips, 2015). This program is showing kids that having autism is not easy and seeks to help two to give year old children approach children who have autism with a respective and kind manner. The introduction of Julia not only brings awareness about autism, but Julia on Sesame Street also helped fuel new research examining puppets and autism.