Using a Music Therapy Collaborative Consultative Approach - World ...

5. Experiment II: Increasing Independent Performance of a Child with Autism during
Multiple-Step Tasks
5.1 Introduction
The childcare day is not only filled with transitions, but also with many routines,
which are repeated on a daily time schedule. Some of these routines include everyday skills
such as hand-washing, toileting, and cleaning-up. These routines require children to follow a
sequence of steps. “A child with autism typically has significant difficulty organizing and
sequencing information and with attending to relevant information consistently” (Boswell &
Gray, 2003, p. 1). In order to function independently in daily life, children must learn to
understand, remember and perform the sequence of these tasks. Toward this end, strategies
similar to those for transitioning are used to support children with autism in managing
multiple-step tasks successfully. These strategies include: (1) the use of structure and
predictable routines (Bailey & Wolery, 1992; Boswell & Gray, 2003; Trillingsgaard, 1999),
(2) the use of visual cues (Boswell & Gray, 2003; Bryan & Gast, 2000; Fanjul & Ball, 1995;
Quill, 2000; Wheeler, 1998), and (3) songs (Gottscheweski, 2001; Williams, 1996).
Additional guidelines and methods, especially those used for toilet training, are described in
further detail below.
Research and clinical applications show that songs can transmit and be used to assist
children with memorization of a sequence of information (Aasgaard, 1999; Enoch, 2001;
Gervin, 1991; Gfeller, 1983; Jellison & Miller, 1982; McGuire, 2001; Wolfe & Horn, 1993),
and to teach them to manage self-help skills (Michel, 1976; Nordoff & Robbins, 1992).
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