Online shopping has become more popular in the years. Some people do all of their shopping online. For autistic children, however, it is challenging to translate lessons learned from traditional shopping to online shopping. In some cases, you can enroll your child in a school or course to train him, but, if you have a good relationship with your child, it will typically go over better if you train him. Since April is Autism Awareness Month, learning how to teach your child in essential life skills is receiving a lot of attention in the news.
Getting Started
Some parents feel overwhelmed at the thought of teaching their autistic child things like online shopping. While the exchange system and tokens work well for teaching the basic shopping principles, shopping online requires a more abstract understanding. Since you don’t handle money before you make a purchase in shopping online, you will need to find a way to demonstrate abstract shopping principles.
Adapt the Exchange and Token Method
If you have already taught your autistic child how to shop in a regular store, then set up the play store again. Except this time, make sure that there are only pictures of the things to purchase. Let the child still have actual money for purchases. If she is confused, explain to her that sometimes when you go shopping, you are not able to see the actual object. Show her how to evaluate the picture to see if it is what she needs.
At first, this is likely to take some getting used to. The child is probably going to resist the idea and assume that she is going to be getting a picture. This is not the time to start showing her how to get good deals or make great savings. Instead, focusing on conveying the understanding of purchasing something from only a picture.
Switch Out the Money Next
After she is used to this, you can then tell her just how much money she has and have her go through the same exercise again. This will likely be met with a great deal of resistance as well because she will be used to having the money in her hand. Instead, show her how much she has total. Then have her make her purchases.
This is a great way to work on basic math skills as well. Provide your child with a writing board if necessary. Or if she knows how to use a calculator or you want to show her, bring one in. Expect this stage to be challenging. She may get frustrated at this, so you will need to provide plenty of encouragement.
Take a Shopping Excursion Online
After she masters the basic principles, reward her with a shopping trip online. During April, a number of stores are hosting online specials for families with autistic children as well as for awareness opportunities. You can go to know of these if you like, or you can go to one of your child’s favorite stores. Let her pick something out and walk through the process.
guest post by bryan peterson