AUTISM SOLUTIONS
At first, you will have to prompt, asking where you should
go next, or you may need to redirect. That is okay. This game
requires some focus. This kind of focus is built; you will notice
more as you play. Their focus will last longer as well. It will not
be perfect at first. A lot of hand overhand may be needed at
first, and that is okay. You will work up to independence.
We have to remember our children need to be freed
a little to become their own people, to let their intel-
ligence shine, and to not grow into people we robot-
ically want them to be. We are all guilty of it, parents
and educators alike. When an educator can tell you
everything on your child’s IEP but cannot tell you five
things your child likes or five things he/she is good
at, we have let the diagnosis take over. How do we
steer away from being like those who become blind
to the sunrise and sunset? We take a step back and
teach to the child, not a piece of paper.
Below is a fun lesson plan to work on with your child,
one that allows for creativity and critical thinking
that can be tailored to current needs of the child and
hones in on fine gross motor skills. Modified versions
for advancement will also be explained below.
The Spider Web Lesson
Step one: Draw a large spider web with tape on the
ground. If your child struggles with fine and gross
motor skills, draw the lines of the spider web thicker,
and as he/she conquers the skills, make the lines of
the spider web thinner.
Step two: Place random bean bags all over the spi-
der web where horizontal and vertical lines meet
perpendicularly.
Here are the rules of the game: You and the child will
stand at the bottom of the spider web, choosing a
vertical line as your starting point. You will point to a
bean bag the child has to obtain. Here is where cre-
ativity and critical thinking takes place. It is a maze.
There are many ways to get to that bean bag, but
the child gets to choose what route he/she wants
to take. THERE IS NO ONE-WAY ANSWER. This allows
42 | Autism Parenting Magazine | Issue 72
the child freedom to think. To get to the bean bag,
the child must walk one foot in front of the other, or
try to. This will help with balance and fine and gross
motor skills. At first, you will have to prompt, asking
where you should go next, or you may need to re-
direct. That is okay. This game requires some focus.
This kind of focus is built; you will notice more as you
play. Their focus will last longer as well. It will not be
perfect at first. A lot of hand overhand may be need-
ed at first, and that is okay. You will work up to inde-
pendence. When the child gets to the bean bag, he/
she must pick it up and throw it to the center of the
spider web, again catering to the fine and gross mo-
tor skills. Then the child will get on a route to get the
next bean bag. When all bean bags are in the middle,
REWARD!
Reward, reward, reward. What is a sufficient reward?
Although this game doesn’t seem like work, it is. In
the world of autism, this is work. In any other les-
son, when they achieve something they may get a
timed opportunity to do something they want. That
reward is sufficient when achieving the concept of
this game.
Advancements
Room to build and grow is the best kind of lesson
plan. This game allows lots of room for creativity for
the parent/teacher as well as for the child. If the child
is learning letters, put letters on the bean bags. At
the start of the game, instead of obtaining all the
bean bags, prompt the child what letter to obtain a
certain letter. You can do the same with numbers.
Spelling Advancements: When working on vo-
cabulary, put letters on the bean bags. Verbalize