A "5" Could Make Me Lose Control!: An Activity-based Method for Evaluating and Supporting Highly Anxious Students 1st Edition

I work at a center that treats kids and teens with autism spectrum disorders. We use the 5-point scale all the time. I like it because it's tangible, challenges all or nothing thinking (either I'm happy or upset, either I'm quiet or loud), and helps kids learn to find triggers to melt-downs before they happen. We teach the system in as a topic for one group session and also use visual cues that we point to all the time. In a group setting, we usually use the 5-point scale related to voice volume/noise (eg. Jacob what level do you think your voice is at right now? :point to chart: Our voices need to be at at 3. 4 is for outside) We save the emotional cues that go along with the chart for individual work or when we pull a child aside to talk to them about their emotional state so that we don't embarrass anyone.

Absolutely love this...gives a lot of insight into the struggles a child goes through on a daily basis which lets you anticipate when the child is likely to meltdown. Only downfall is that the pictures and wording on the folder versus the paper to write on, vary slightly. My daughter immediately picked up on this difference and said that changes like that make her feel anxious. She then refused to write down any more answers and wanted to be done with the whole thing. With encouragement and me writing down the rest, we did eventually finish it. I however did not even notice the pictures and labels were different. I wrote the publisher who was extremely responsive. He was going to talk to the author about these differences.

This resource has been amazing! I have used it with clients age 9-16 both with and without ASD traits. And to think I bought it on a whim. What I really like is that it can be used to open up conversations about what really bothers the child, things that may not occur to most people who are asking direct questions. The card sort includes items like, washing my hair, someone's breath, being bumped from behind, and the universal trigger -riding on the school bus! Thanks for creating this tool for clinicians, intervention specialists, counselors and parents alike.Lynette KCounselor Trainee

As a school psychologist working with children with all types of social skills concerns, this book is a must. The children do not have to put things into words as they just put the item in the pocket they feel it belongs. The items are very short and can be read to the children, as well. It is so visual and concrete that a child can express what bothers him without the stress of trying to put it in words is no longer there to bother him. Students seem to really like it. I have had a couple ask to play that control game again. This was definitely worth the money.

This is an exercise involving putting cards into colored pockets, not a book. My kids really enjoy doing it and it has helped us understand what triggers our 7 year old autistic son to lose control. The kit contains cards with pictures, as well as cards with just words and also blank cards so you can create your own. I definitely recommend this as a way to work with your kids so that everyone better understands what will trigger outbursts. Incidentally, this has been helpful with our developmentally "normal" son also!

it is helpful!

This simple sort is a fast and efficient way to ID worries and anxiety to problem solve replacement behaviors.

An excellent teaching tool for my Autistic students. I was a way to get non-verbal and students with limited language skills to express and understand what makes them lose control. I used it frequently in my classroom. I preceded this lesson by reading: When My Worries Get Too Big! by Kari Dunn Buron.

The product has met my expectations, it has been extremely useful with the students that I work with. The excellent design and the game like quality of the product stimulates my students and engages them in conversation.

I used it with my 10-yr-old child who has problems identifying and expressing emotions, hence huge difficulties telling adults about what bothers him and he shuts down often almost immediately when someone apprioaches him with queries and expectations to hear about his views and experiences.. He has axiety issues, too. This was an incredible tool to handle one extremely important aspect of his life, in particular, but alongside it he was able to let his parent have a peek into his world, how he feels about things. It really worked VERY well!! The best communication result about a particular issue for TWO YEARS!! And I can see it working with a lot of other stuff, too. I can highly recommend it, and for older children with anxiety coupled with limitd communication also.

This is a brilliant resource which we plan on using in school from September - it’s simple to use and you can add your own cards .Great for working out what anxieties students suffer from and to see how they are affected by anxiety

Best tool fir teaching children to recognize their own trggers and levels of emotion.

EXCELLENT resource for supporting students who are having significant behavioural issues at school. It provides a consistent framework for teachers and students.