What structured teaching does for people like this is highlight relevant details, and beginnings and endings. It establishes a routine way to approach tasks and materials and understand sequences.
People with autism who have different learning styles, typically they are strong visual learners but have more difficulty of languages. All structured teaching does for these individuals is make their learning environments incredibly visual.
The people with autism whose sensory processing difficulties are sensitive to sensory input and have difficulty modulating stimulation. Structured teaching modifies the environment to reduce sensory stimulation. For example, a child's desk is moved away from a window that distracts him.
People with autism who suffer because they have difficulties with social relationships generally struggle with the complexities of social interactions. Structured teaching provides predictability and concrete ways for communicating with other people.
Typically people with autism have trouble with changes and transitions. They are, often compulsive. They are so focused on detail that it is difficult for them to generalized to do the same task in different settings. In structured teaching, people learn a routine for transitions, to compulsively check and follow a flexible schedule and to rely on visual instructions. .
There are five distinct elements of structured teaching, or five different types of structure.
The first is physical structure. The physical layout of the environment is clearly so the individual with autism better understands the location and purpose of each functional area. Boundaries made with furniture, tape on the floor, or other visual means help the person understand where each area begins and ends. The boundaries help establish context; they help answer the question "where is it and what happens there?" Visual and auditory distractions are limited to help the person focus on the concept rather than the details.