The Autism Nest Model: 
An Inclusive Education Framework for Autistic Children

Edited by Shirley Cohen & Allison Graham Brown, MA

Published by Future Horizons, Inc. 

The Autism Nest Model is a successful and much-praised program adopted by the New York City public school system as well as the top-ranked Danish school system. It has engaged and educated autistic children and their neurotypical peers for more than 20 years. The book's change in title from The ASD Nest Model to The Autism Nest Model is indicative of the evolution not only of language but also the understanding and practice that the new edition reflects.

The Nest Model helps schools create settings in which all children engage comfortably and successfully. Its comprehensive approach is lauded by families, students, teachers, therapists and school leaders alike. By laying out the process of developing the model, its philosophy, strategies, and practical examples, The Autism Nest Model is now available to a wide audience.

Everyday Classroom Strategies and Practices for Supporting Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

By Jamie D. Bleiweiss, Lauren Hough & Shirley Cohen

Published by AAPC

Start creating an Inclusive Classroom Environment Following these 3 Practical Steps

Are you wondering how to create an inclusive classroom? Check out this article with  3 practical  steps to cultivating a truly inclusive classroom.

Author: Allison Graham Brown

Inclusion is a big buzzword in education. Inclusion classrooms are where disabled and non-disabled students learn together. It is simple enough to place disabled and non-disabled students together in a classroom, but the challenge is creating a truly inclusive environment in which everyone believes that all students belong and that the diversity of learners makes the classroom community stronger. We can achieve true inclusion by engaging in an ongoing process, dedicating time and effort into cultivating an inclusive community through the environment, lessons, activities, routines, and language. When a space is truly inclusive, student engagement increases for all learners, there are better classroom dynamics, and learning is enhanced.

 Here are three ways to start creating an inclusive classroom:

1.   Represent your students in the classroom.

One of the most important things you can do to create an inclusive classroom is to make sure that your students see themselves in their classroom environment. It’s like that expression “if they can see it they can be it”. You want to make sure that your bulletin boards, walls, book collections, lesson plans and even anchor charts reflect your students’ lives, cultures, languages, religions, genders and sexual orientations, abilities and family types. You want your classroom to show all different people as joyful members of community and world so students see the potential in themselves and their classmates.

• Fill your library with books celebrating different identities such as, Sparkle Boy, A Day With No Words, The Only Way to Make Bread, Your Name Is A Song, Platanos Are Love.
• Do projects where students can share their identities like their names, or cultural foods, stories, songs. Have an important grown-up or loved one do a visit either in person or virtually to share something that is important like a story that has been passed down, or a family recipe.
• Hang up posters of Black, Latinx, Asian and LGBTQNI and Disabled famous people with different careers and backgrounds in the classroom such as astronaut Jessica Watkins, artist Frida Kahlo, or actor George Takei.  

2. Celebrate your students’ uniqueness and strengths.

You set the tone for your classroom. When you shout out the individual strengths of your students they will feel empowered and their peers will notice that all students, disabled and non-disabled, no matter their background or heritage, are valued members of the classroom community.

• Include your students’ interest in your lessons, slides, and bulletin boards. Write word problems about Manga, use the Mets to teach a historical concept, allow students to include their favorite characters when they draw or write examples of new vocabulary words, create a bulletin board that students can post lyrics of their favorite song.
• Be specific when you praise your students’ strengths. “Your attention to detail   helped your writing partner edit their work.” “Your commitment and focus helped your group finish the project.” “Your knowledge of facts helped us identify an error”
• Shout out the different ways students engage in learning .“Natasha used humor in the essay to prove her point while Jamar used logical reasoning statements.”, “Kendra wrote detailed notes and Lyle drew  a chart about the theme of the text.”

Encourage connection between your students.

Remember to make time for students to connect around shared interests, similar experiences, or similar strengths. Feeling connected to each other fosters a sense of belonging. 

• Teach the hand sign for “same” in sign-language and have students use it when they agree with each other, had a similar thought, or used the same approach. 
• Set up “get to know you” activities and make sure those activities are inclusive of students who may have different abilities when it comes to speaking or writing in English or reading levels by adding pictures, translation, and various ways to record responses. Play a “Getting to Know You” scavenger hunt where students find a classmate who… has a brother, is a cousin, speaks another language, lives with a grandparent, walks to school, has a pet, etc. You can use the results to make math graphs or create a bulletin board. Or play “Shared Truths”. Have students share what they think is true about most people in their group and something they think is only true about themselves. Take turns sharing responses and noticing both similarities and uniqueness.
• Work together as a class on a math problem, creating a story, drawing a model, or writing a response. Have students take turns adding parts to bring the whole classroom community together and show that everyone’s ideas matter.

We can create classrooms in which all students feel like they belong. Taking time to make your classroom reflective of your students, celebrating their strengths, and encouraging connections helps create truly inclusive classrooms. When we set up our classrooms in this way our students feel seen, valued, supported, and truly welcome. In this type of classroom all students not only learn but they thrive, and that is the goal of inclusion classrooms.