Meaningful learning (Ausubel): the aim is to establish relationships between the student's previous knowledge and experiences and the new content. It is programmed according to their needs, possibilities, learning pace and individual characteristics. Thus, before tackling new content, it will be necessary to check what knowledge the pupil has and to what extent he/she has it.

A student with autism is learning about farm animals in a science class.

Step 1: Activate prior knowledge
The teacher starts by asking questions that relate the topic to something the student already knows:

Asks, ‘Remember when we looked at pictures of animals the other day, what animals do you know that live on the farm?’
The learner responds with animals they already know, such as cows or chickens, activating their prior knowledge.
Step 2: Introduce new related information
The teacher introduces new information connected to what the learner already knows:

Explanation: ‘Today we are going to learn more about these animals. For example, cows live in barns and give us milk.’
The teacher shows pictures and videos of the animals on the farm, linking what is new (the farm environment) to what the learner already knows (the animals).
Step 3: Visual and concrete reinforcement
To make learning more meaningful, the teacher uses visual aids and concrete materials, which is especially beneficial for a student with autism:

Activity: The learner uses pictures of farm animals and objects to classify which ones belong to a farm (cows, horses) and which ones do not (lions, fish). In this way, he/she connects new knowledge with something familiar in a visual and practical way.