Touching

• 1). Place large print numbers in front of the student. It's important for the child to see exact points on the number that can be touched.
  
  
• 2). Instruct the child to touch the number with the pencil the same number of times as the number value. For the number one, the child will touch the number once. For the number two, the child will touch the number twice, and so forth.
  
  
• 3). Have the child touch the exact spot on the numbers each time. Repetition is key. You can create your own pattern or refer to professional resources.
  
  
• 4). Have the child touch certain spots twice on higher numbers, where there is not much available space. For example, have the student touch the top left of the number seven just once, the top right twice, the middle of the leg twice and the bottom of the leg twice for a total of seven times.
  
  
• 5). Repeat the process, this will ingrain it into the child's brain and allow them to "feel" how much each number is worth. It's similar to braille in that way. The child then only has to learn the meanings of each symbol for operations.
  
  

Relating

• 1). Provide the child with a word problem that includes pictures of something he or she likes. If a child likes baseball, use pictures of baseballs or bats. This approach can be used for all students, but autistic students, in particular, respond best to this method.
  
  
• 2). Create word problems for the student incorporating these pictures. Try using various images and situations that the child prefers or understands.
  
  
• 3). Revert back to numbers after you've used pictures, and show the child the relationship between the number three, for example (which he or she may perceive as a squiggly line), and baseball. Put into context what number three means in baseball terms.