Enhancing Comprehension of Informational Text by Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders

Abstract

144 YOUNG EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN Vol. 26, No. 3, September 2023 https://doi.org/10.1177/10962506211056026 DOI: 10.1177/10962506211056026 journals.sagepub.com/home/yec Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions © 2021 Division for Early Childhood Ms. Charlotte’s inclusive kindergarten classroom is bright and inviting. She uses evidence-based and developmentally appropriate practices to create a well-rounded and effective educational experience. She understands the importance of children learning from informational text (IT). With the assistance of her paraprofessional, Ms. Tam, Ms. Charlotte uses a variety of instructional approaches to enhance her students’ abilities to understand IT. However, one of her students, Mark, who has autism spectrum disorders and uses an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) system on an iPad, has been struggling to understand IT. Ms. Charlotte has decided to modify her instructional strategies to better support Mark’s learning from IT. Informational text (IT) is a type of nonfiction designed to convey information about the natural or social world. Reading IT with young children increases knowledge of content area vocabulary and concepts and helps children build the background knowledge for success with future reading (Pentimonti et al., 2010). However, similar to Mark, children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may struggle to understand IT (Marsh, 2015). Therefore, the purpose of this article is to discuss how young children with ASD can be supported to comprehend IT. Instructional 1056026 YECXXX10.1177/10962506211056026YOUNG EXCEPTIONAL CHILDRENComprehension of Informational Text / Jackson et al. research-article2021