What We Do

“Facing negative emotions bravely”

Zixuan had been reluctant to admit his negative emotions. He also could not admit he lost a game. He would cheat or change game rules to avoid losing. The therapists designed an individualised training programme for teaching Zixuan to cope with his negative emotions. We used rewards to encourage him to stay calm, be honest and consistently examine his performance. Zixuan has worked very hard to tolerate and grow from those emotions. He is now able to mention some unhappy memories, also follow rules and stay calm when losing a game.

“Accept changes”

Kwan is a boy who used to feel anxious easily. When our therapist had taken toys away or changed to another activity, Kwan felt very nervous and kept saying “Want to play, want to play…” The therapist therefore set several goals including improving Kwan’s compliance and self-control ability. After a month of training, Kwan has been able to stay calm. Even if the therapist suddenly took away his toys, he did not lose his temper. His self-control ability has greatly improved.

“Solving picky eating”

If children are picky eaters, parents are hard to prepare food for them and also worry about their health. Before the treatment, Chun Ho was very resistant to eat fruits and vegetables. The therapist first set the training goal as eating very small apple chunks. At the beginning, Chun Ho only tasted a little bit and then spat it out. The therapist guided him patiently and used toy trains as rewards, then gradually leveled up and let him try apple puree and slices. After practices, Chun Ho can eat a quarter of an apple. He is now also willing to try other fruits and vegetables!

“Learning with enthusiasm”

Adam often lost his temper. When our therapist asked Adam to return to his seat and do some practices, he would throw things on the floor and say, “I want to throw these!” The therapist decided to manage Adam’s behavioural problems first. We taught Adam class rules and how to stay calm, strengthening his learning skills. Adam’s compliance and self-control ability gradually improved. When the break was over, he was willing to return to his seat to follow the therapist to complete different exercises. The treatment process became more smooth.

“Hugging”

3-year-old Pak Yu likes hugging. When Pak Yu was receiving treatment, he always cried and hit himself. Sometimes he was too tired and fell asleep. The therapist described Pak Yu as a baby. When Pak Yu had finished a task, the therapist hugged him as a reward. During the treatment, the frequency of crying and hitting himself gradually reduced. He could also follow the therapist and stack blocks together.

“Boundaries between different people”

Some children with ASD cannot distinguish between good and bad behaviours. When the children imitate others’ behaviours or follow their sayings, they easily display inappropriate behaviours. Cheuk Nam could not distinguish social relationships and once listened to a child and hit himself. The therapist first taught Cheuk Nam to identify relationships with different people such as strangers, family members and friends through a relationship diagram, and then talked about the behavioural boundaries between them. Cheuk Nam is now able to understand that close family members are reliable, and he should follow what his parents say instead of strangers.

Zixuan, Kwan, Chun Ho, Adam, Pak Yu and Cheuk Nam were invited to present their experience in receiving ABA services with Autism Partnership Foundation (operating in Hong Kong) (APF, HK). Zixuan, Chun Ho, Pak Yu and Cheuk Nam are past beneficiaries of APF, HK, Kwan and Adam are current beneficiaries of APF, HK.