VOA教育报道2024--Playground Provides Learning, Safety for Kids with Autism

Playground Provides Learning, Safety for Kids with Autism

　　At first look, the playground at the Children's Guild-Transformation¹ Academy in Baltimore, Maryland, looks like any other. It has swings, slides, and places for children to climb and crawl.

　　But the playground is not just a place for fun. It is also a place where students can learn, grow and gain independence. Everything — from the kind of surface it sits on, to the color of its sitting areas, to the placement of the surrounding fence — is specifically designed for kids with autism.

　　Mark Rapaport is the managing director of autism services at the Transformation Academy. He told VOA Learning English the school accepts students aged² 5 to 21 with autism spectrum³ disorder⁴ (ASD) and are lower-functioning.

　　"None of our kids will ever drive," Rapaport said. "None of our kids will ever live fully⁵ independently ... None of our kids graduate high school."

　　Rapaport said the goal of Transformation Academy is to make the students as independent as possible in an effort to help them prepare for adult life. The school aims to provide help with developing communication and social skills, as well as practical abilities like cleaning or cooking.

　　"And learning through play is a big deal," Rapaport said. "The classroom is great. But it's [things like play] that's at the heart of the mission, which is building independence and getting them to be able to go into the adult world."

　　The playground, designed by Maryland company Sparks@Play, using structures manufactured by Landscape Structures, Inc., took months to develop, said Dan Hack⁶. He works for Sparks@Play and helped lead the playground's design. Hack said he and others spent weeks getting to know the students and understanding their needs before any building was started. The design process involved physical therapists, occupational therapists, and other specialists. The $500,000 project was funded with support from the state of Maryland and the nonprofit Orokawa Foundation.

　　Parts of the playground that seem small are very important for children with autism and other disabilities. The surrounding fence extends into a wooded area to make it seem more open. And the ground under the play areas is made of soft, but solid materials to support students using wheelchairs or crutches⁸.

　　Instead of just one slide, there are two sitting side-by-side. That way, parents or teachers with older, larger students can go down the slide together with the kids. A spinning structure called the We-Go-Round has a place for kids with wheelchairs so they can also have fun.

　　The playground's designers say a number of sensory⁹ elements are also included to help the students. Children with autism often have Sensory Processing Disorder, which makes them very sensitive to certain sounds or textures¹¹.

　　The benches on the outside of the playground look simple from far away, but are "one of our most inclusive sensory" elements, Hack said. They have many different colors that bring about feelings of calm and curiosity. They are also made with smooth material that can be felt and moved. The academy's Rapaport said if a child starts to feel uneasy, they can sit down and feel the bench, which can help them relax.

　　There are also musical bells and large xylophones that produce calming sounds. An enclosed structure provides a place of peace and quiet if a student needs a break from play.

　　One of the most important designs, says Rapaport, is a tower that can spray water on multiple children. This can be an important way for older children with autism to get over their fears of water, which for them can be overstimulating.

　　"Imagine you have a child that won't take a shower," Rapaport said. "Now we can have kids go outside and they're standing⁷ under a sprayer and they're loving it. Why? Because they're watching other kids do it."

　　Like the shower, much of the equipment is designed to persuade students to interact with each other, even though they might usually like playing alone. A swing set is designed to permit two kids to swing at the same time, for example.

　　Celia Galion's daughter Deborah is a 14-year-old who attends Transformation Academy. Deborah has a condition called tuberous sclerosis, which causes seizures¹², and which brought on her autism at a young age.

　　"Deborah is a very sweet child," Galion said. "She likes playing. She loves hugs. She's very affectionate and she likes to be loud. And so being outside is great."

　　Galion said it has been four or five years since she has taken her daughter to a playground. She had resisted taking Deborah because other kids could be mean and she felt like many playgrounds were not safe.

　　But Galion said the new playground at Transformation Academy permits "children to feel like they have a little bit of freedom." They can play "without having to necessarily have somebody standing right over them to make sure that they're safe...it's really, really great for them."

　　Rapaport said the school plans to open up the playground for everyone in the autism community, even if they do not attend Transformation Academy.

　　Sparks@Play's Hack said he thinks the playground can help autistic children of all ages develop their independence as they move into adulthood¹³.

　　"Being able to learn how to collaborate¹⁴ and work with other people and use your imagination and try things that you wouldn't have tried otherwise ... shapes you into a much more confident and well-abled adult," Hack said.

　　Words in This Story

　　spectrum — n. a complete range of different opinions, people, etc.

　　practical — adj. skilled at manual tasks

　　therapist — n. a person trained in methods of treating illnesses especially without the use of drugs or surgery

　　occupational therapy — n. treatment that helps people who have physical or mental problems learn to do the activities of daily life

　　crutches — n. a long stick with a padded piece at the top that fits under a person's arm

　　texture¹⁰ — n. the way that something feels when you touch it

　　relax — v. to stop feeling nervous or worried

　　xylophone — n. a musical instrument that has a set of wooden bars of different lengths that are hit with hammers

　　affectionate — adj. feeling or showing love and affection

　　collaborate — v. to work with another person or group in order to achieve or do something

　　confident — adj. having a feeling or belief that you can do something well or succeed at something

1 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。

2 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

3 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

4 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 hack   

n.劈，砍，出租马车；v.劈，砍，干咳

参考例句：

• He made a hack at the log.他朝圆木上砍了一下。
• Early settlers had to hack out a clearing in the forest where they could grow crops.早期移民不得不在森林里劈出空地种庄稼。

7 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

8 crutches   

n.拐杖, 支柱 v.支撑

参考例句：

• After the accident I spent six months on crutches . 事故后我用了六个月的腋杖。
• When he broke his leg he had to walk on crutches. 他腿摔断了以后，不得不靠拐杖走路。

9 sensory   

adj.知觉的，感觉的，知觉器官的

参考例句：

• Human powers of sensory discrimination are limited.人类感官分辨能力有限。
• The sensory system may undergo long-term adaptation in alien environments.感觉系统对陌生的环境可能经过长时期才能适应。

10 texture   

n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理

参考例句：

• We could feel the smooth texture of silk.我们能感觉出丝绸的光滑质地。
• Her skin has a fine texture.她的皮肤细腻。

11 textures   

n.手感( texture的名词复数 )；质感；口感；（音乐或文学的）谐和统一感

参考例句：

• I'm crazy about fabrics textures and colors and designs. 我喜欢各式各样的纺织物--对它的质地，色彩到花纹图案--简直是入了迷。 来自辞典例句
• Let me clear up the point about the textures. 让我明确了一点有关的纹理。 来自互联网

12 seizures   

n.起获( seizure的名词复数 )；没收；充公；起获的赃物

参考例句：

• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year. 今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Other causes of unconsciousness predisposing to aspiration lung abscess are convulsive seizures. 造成吸入性肺脓肿昏迷的其他原因，有惊厥发作。 来自辞典例句

13 adulthood   

n.成年，成人期

参考例句：

• Some infantile actions survive into adulthood.某些婴儿期的行为一直保持到成年期。
• Few people nowadays are able to maintain friendships into adulthood.如今很少有人能将友谊维持到成年。

14 collaborate   

vi.协作，合作；协调

参考例句：

• The work gets done more quickly when we collaborate.我们一旦合作，工作做起来就更快了。
• I would ask you to collaborate with us in this work.我们愿意请你们在这项工作中和我们合作。