Lavoie Article Assignment

Alon Golan

EDSP 301 - Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities

April 26, 2015

Lavoie Articles Assignment

Social Competence and the Child with Learning Differences

The Teacher’s Role in Developing Social Skills

Dos and Don’ts for Fostering Social Competence. 1. According to Richard LaVoie, what are the two schools of thought concerning the causes of social incompetence in children with LD?

According to Richard LaVoie, in his article Social Competence and the Child with Learning Disabilities, one school of thought holds that social skill deficits are the result of the same neurological dysfunctions that cause academic problems. The second school of thought that LaVoie outlines asserts that social disabilities are caused by a child's

3. What is a social autopsy? Why is it effective in helping students with LD cope with social skills deficits?

According to Richard LaVoie, in his article Social Competence and the Child with Learning Disabilities, a social autopsy is a strategy where an adult works with a socially challenged child to improve his or her social skills. The adult and child work together to analyze social errors that a child makes and decides on how the child could approach to the situation to achieve a more desired outcome with the students peers, teachers or other adults. Social autopsies are often characterized by the following:

practice scenarios, drills to master specific skills, giving feedback in the practice scenario immediately, and offering positive

I think this idea is effective because it demonstrates essential behavior and skills that students may otherwise not understand or know. The teacher can role play with the student so that they are better prepared and more comfortable in using the skills the teacher is attempting to model or reinforce. Another “do” for a teacher is to facilitate in making classroom transitions easier for the child. Students with social skill deficits often have difficulty moving from one activity to another, so providing a warning signal several minutes prior to the end of the activity can ease the transition. This idea is effective because it provides some predictability and frontloading so the child has time to prepare for the transition and thereby avoiding an emotional outburst in front of peers which may be contributing factor to peer