Frequently Needed Answers

ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) is a pervasive developmental disorder that affects how the individual processes information, thinks, acts and reacts. Autism Spectrum Disorder is normally diagnosed in early childhood.

After a diagnosis of ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) many parents are left confused and anxious, wondering how the diagnosis of ASD will affect their child and family life.

No two people on the spectrum will ever be the same, and so the symptoms of autism will vary between individuals. However generally kids with autism will display social awkwardness lack imagination skills and communication difficulties, this can cause issues with maintaining friendships and so on.

Kids with autism generally find it hard to make any sense of their environment.

Studies show that in some kids with autism symptoms may not present themselves until the child is between 1 -2 years of age.

What is autism? Here is a list of some of the possible symptoms of autism you may have noticed in your ASD child:

• An ASD child may lack the ability to direct an-other  person’s  attention to what they want or need. Unlike a normally developing child, who will point or gesture towards the object in question.
• Kids with autism rarely adjust their gaze to look at objects, and lack the inclination to look at something they are being directed towards.
• An ASD child may have communication difficulties and find sustaining or beginning conversations difficult.
• Sometimes kids with autism will be slow developing speech and sometimes speech may never actually begin.
• They may engage in repetitive behaviours…for example repeating a TV commercial or rhyme etc.
• They may confuse simple language terms like wait a minute, or hold on a second and take this as literal. The ASD child may also  use language in the wrong context, for example they may refer to themselves by name in a conversation or sentence, not by saying “I”; i.e. rather than saying “can I have a biscuit”, they may say “Ben wants a biscuit” and so on…
• On occasions an autistic child may prefer to communicate by gesture rather than using speech.

Many autistic children struggle with social situations and may therefore prefer solitary play. The ASD child may have difficulties  maintaining and starting friendships with peers difficult. Autistic children and autistic people in general have difficulties in making eye contact which can make encounters difficult!

Generally an autistic child will struggle with interactive games and pretend play, failing to see what the point of the activity or game is.

Autism what is it? Understanding your ASD child and forming appropriate ASD strategies is very important and will make the difference in helping your autistic child reach his or her full potential

There are many ASD strategies to help kids with autism understand the world they live in…

One very effective way of accomplishing this is by the introduction of visual support tools such as autism social stories

Autism Spectrum Disorder is being diagnosed far more these days. Research into pervasive developmental disorder has suggested that using visual support tools such as autism social stories has impacted on the lives and families of those diagnosed with a pervasive developmental disorder such as ASD
(Autism Spectrum Disorder)

ASD strategies such as autism social stories are used for all situations and activities the ASD child may be confused by or struggling with, for example: Going to the dentist, the death of a loved one, a new car, brushing their hair.

Social stories answe the “wh” questions - who, where, why, when and what as well as How and give an insight into the thoughts and feelings of others which is an area of marked wakness in kids with autism. Autism Social Stories act like a role model or visual support plan detailing the skill or situation in a manner the autisti child will understand and will give appropriate direction to help the ASD child cope with and dela with the situation or skill.

For immediate download of autism social stories visit: www.autismsocialstories.com

Or alternatively visit any of the following sites for more information and social stories.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a pervasive developmental disorder which affects the individual’s brain. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is generally diagnosed before the child reaches three years of age..

A diagnosis of ASD is not the end of the world. The characteristics of autism will undoubtedly vary between individuals, no two kids with autism are ever the same. However common characteristics of autism are: social skills deficits, communication difficulties, imagination deficits and difficulties forming friendships with other people.

Typically kids with autism find social situations confusing and can become distressed with changes to routines.

What is autism? Here is a list of some of the possible autism characteristics you may have noticed in your ASD child.

Common autism characteristics:

• An ASD child may lack of the ability to direct others attention to what they want or need. Unlike a normally developing child, who will point or gesture towards the object in question.
• Generally kids with autism avoid eye contact and will rarely adjust their gaze to look at objects. Most kids with autism also lack the inclination to look at something they are being directed towards.
• Typically an ASD child will display communication difficulties, spoken and non-verbal, including the ability to sustain or begin a conversation.
• Common to many kids with autism is slow development of speech in some instances speech may never actually develop.
• Many children with autism display repetitive behaviours…for example repeating a TV commercial or rhyme etc.
• Sometimes children with autism confuse simple language terms, and use language in the wrong context, for example they may refer to themselves by name in a conversation or sentence, not by saying “I”; i.e. rather than saying “can I have a biscuit”, they may say “Ben wants a biscuit” and so on…
• On occasions an autistic child may prefer to communicate by gesture rather than using speech.

Typically, autistic children will prefer to be alone mainly because they find social situations difficult and confusing. A child with ASD will find making and maintaining friendships with peers difficult.

A child with ASD will undoubtedly have difficulties with imagination skills and may find interactive games and pretend play confusing and difficult to understand.

Autism what is it? Understanding your ASD child and forming appropriate ASD strategies is very important and will make the difference in helping your child with ASD reach his or her full potential

There are many ASD strategies to help kids with autism combat social skills deficits, communication difficulties and deficits with imagination skills.

One very effective way of accomplishing this is by the introduction of visual support tools such as autism social stories.

Research indicates an increase in the number of children diagnosed autistic. With research into pervasive developmental disorders showing that the use of visual support tools such as autism social stories has made a vast impact on the lives of children with autism and their families.

ASD strategies such as autism social stories are used for all situations and activities the ASD child may be confused by or struggling with, for example: Going to the dentist, a new car, brushing their hair.

For immediate download of autism social stories which will help combat social skills deficits, communication difficulties and imagination skills deficits visit: www.autismsocialstories.com

Or alternatively visit any of the following sites for more information and social stories.

www.autismsocialstories.com/social_skills

www.autismsocialstories.com/school

There are various intervention strategies for children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder).

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a pervasive developmental disorder that affects how the individual; processes information, thinks, socially interacts, communicates and behaves.

The symptoms of autism vary between individuals, however all kids with autism will have social skills deficits: Deficits in social skills affects the child’s social interaction skills, will cause communication difficulties, and difficulties with imagination as well as sensory processing issues.

It is often noted that kids with autism live in a very literal world often referred to as “Autism Own World”.

Intervention strategies are used to help overcome social skills deficits and pave the way to positive behaviours.

Intervention strategies like social skills stories are used to help with situations and skills like: transitions, changes to routines, learning new skills, hygiene issues, communication difficulties, social interaction deficits and HELP pave the way to positive behaviours.

Autistic children tend to prefer structure and routines and dislike changes. Many children with ASD struggle to find and maintain friendships with their peers.

Understanding your autistic child is difficult, ASD intervention strategies ARE designed to HELP you teach and re-enforce social and communication skills and behaviours. ASD intervention strategies can make the difference in helping your autistic child reach his or her full potential

ASD intervention strategies help the ASD child understand the world they live in, probably them most popular strategy is social skills stories.

Social skills stories are short descriptive pieces of text normally written in first person text and from the autistic child’s own point of view.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is being diagnosed far more these days. Research into pervasive developmental disorder has suggested that using visual support tools such as autism social stories has impacted on the lives and families of those diagnosed with a pervasive developmental disorder such as ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder)

Research suggests the vast majority of children with autism are visual thinkers and learners meaning they think in pictures, making autism social stories the ideal intervention strategy to use.

Social stories answer the ever important “wh” questions – who, where, why, when and what as well as “HOW” and give an insight into the thoughts, feelings and emotions of others which is an area of marked weakness in children with autism.

ASD intervention strategies such as autism social stories are used for all situations and activities the ASD child may be confused by or struggling with, for example: Going to the dentist, making friends, play, a new car, brushing their hair and so on.

For immediate download of autism social stories for children with ASD visit: www.autismsocialstories.com

Or alternatively visit any of the following sites for more information and social stories.

http://www.autismsocialstories.com/school

ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) is a pervasive developmental disorder which affects approximately 1 in every 1000 children born; the condition is almost always detected before the age of three.

The characteristics of autism will vary between individuals, as no two individuals are ever going to be the same. However some common characteristics of autism that all those with this pervasive developmental disorder will display are that of social skills deficits.

All kids with autism will have social skills deficits in three main areas of developmental, social interactions, communication and imagination skills as well as difficulties with ritualistic or repetitive behaviours.

One of the major issues faced by kids with autism is reading facial and body language, as well as understanding verbal and nonverbal communications and gestures.

The characteristics of autism you may have noticed in your ASD child could be:

• An ASD child may lack of the ability to direct others attention to what they want or need. Unlike a normally developing child, who will point or gesture towards the object in question.
• Kids with autism rarely adjust their gaze to look at objects, and lack the inclination to look at something they are being directed towards.
• An ASD child may have communication difficulties and find sustaining or beginning conversations difficult.
• Sometimes kids with autism will be slow developing speech and sometimes speech may never actually begin.
• They may engage in repetitive behaviours - for example repeating a TV commercial or rhyme etc.
• They may confuse simple language terms, and use language in the wrong context, for example they may refer to themselves by name in a conversation or sentence, not by saying I ; i.e. rather than saying I can I have a biscuit, they may say Ben wants a biscuit and so on.
• On occasions an autistic child may prefer to communicate by gesture rather than using speech.

Autistic children have difficulties in making eye contact which can make social encounters difficult therefore making friends can be an issue for many autistic children.

An autistic child will struggle with interactive games and pretend play, failing to see what the point of the activity or game is.

Understanding your ASD child and forming appropriate strategies for teaching a child with ASD is very important.

There are various strategies for teaching a child with ASD. One very effective strategy is the use of visual support tools such as autism social stories.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is far more common these days, and research into the treatments of this pervasive developmental disorder suggests using visual support tools such as autism social stories has impacted on the lives and families of those diagnosed ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder).

ASD strategies such as autism social stories are used for all situations and activities the ASD child may be confused by or struggling with, for example: Going to the dentist, the death of a loved one, a new car, brushing their hair.

For immediate download of autism social stories visit: www.autismsocialstories.com

www.autismsocialstories.com/social_skills

Or alternatively visit any of the following sites for more information and social stories.

http://www.autismsocialstories.com/school

http://www.autismsocialstories.com/school_resources

Autism Spectrum Disorder is one of the most common pervasive developmental disorders yet still it is misunderstood.

There is no cure for autism, for many parents raising a child with a pervasive developmental disorder such as Autism Spectrum Disorder is challenging emotionally and physically.

The symptoms of autism will vary between individuals. However all children with autism will display social skills deficits in social communication, imagination and interaction skills. Social skills deficits make interacting and understanding the world we live in difficult.

Although there is no cure for autism, there are various learning strategies for children with autism that can help address the child’s own individual social skills deficits.

Research has shown parents raising a child with a pervasive developmental disorder such as autism generally suffer more stress related illnesses than parents of children with any other learning disability.

Therefore finding the right learning strategies for children with autism is essential.

Many parents of children with autism struggle finding resources, but with the growth of the internet, this is now not the case.

Many sites offer parents of children with autism excellent learning strategies such as social stories which address their child’s social skills deficits.

Research into the various resources available to children with autism; suggests a significant improvement in social, communication, imagination and interaction skills and behaviors in autistic children that use autism social skills stories.

Autism social skills stories were first introduced twenty years ago as a means of communication for autistic children. Today they have grown into one of the most significant resources available to children with autism to help them address their social skills deficits.

Written by experts in autistic behaviors, autism social skills stories are normally visually rich, and use first person language, much like a comic strip conversation they are used like a visual framework to help the child learn and cope with social, communication, imagination and interaction skills or behaviors they struggle to master.

Studies show parents of children with autism using autism social skills stories better cope with their child’s autism symptoms. 

Therefore, using social stories is beneficial.

Sites offering social stories that can be printed, edited and downloaded immediately like http://www.autismsocialstories.com also offer support and information on Autism Spectrum Disorder, that many parents of children with autism find helpful.

To download autism social skills stories of learning strategies for children with autism visit

www.autismsocialstories.com

http://www.autismsocialstories.com/school_resources

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a pervasive developmental disorder, and as yet there is still no known cure for autism, however there are many treatments.

Some help manage the symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder, while others address the social, behavioural and communication difficulties associated with this pervasive developmental disorder. Of all the available autism treatments any claiming to be a cure for autism is simply not so.

There are many different theories surrounding the “cause of autism” and as yet no one theory has proven conclusive, research into the cause of autism and the symptoms of autism is still on-going.

There are many different types of therapies and autism treatments developed specifically to alleviate symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorders.

A diagnosis of autism is not the end of the world, with the available therapies and treatment for autism it is expected that children with autism have the opportunity to reach his or her full potential.

Probably one of the most significant treatment for autism is social stories, a social story will address communication difficulties help build social skills, interaction and imagination skills as well as encourage appropriate behaviours.

We all need a certain amount of social and communication skills to be able to function daily. With autism the ability to learn social and communication skills is missing, however using a treatment for autism like social stories this lack of naturally learnt skills and behaviours can be addressed successfully.

Typically developing children learn through the environment and their family and peers, the child with ASD wont, therefore direct teaching is necessary.  Using social stories as a strategy for improving and teaching social skills to your child with ASD is simple, no qualifications or formal training is needed, social stories are simple to use and very effective.

The symptoms of autism vary between individuals, however all autistic’s tend to be visual thinkers and learners. Therefore social stories were developed to be visual, much like a visual framework of the skill or behaviour being addressed.

For many parents probably the most significant difficulty they struggle with is their child’s communication difficulties, for most children with autism language is confusing and often they do not understand what is expected of them. Much like if you were dropped in a foreign country, chances are you would not understand what people were saying, however if they showed you a picture chances are you would catch on pretty fast. This is the same with autism visual images and pictures trigger understanding much quicker that the spoken or written word.

For example a parent struggling to make their child understand may talk more trying to explain, this is not going to work with a child with ASD, the answer is to talk less and use visual cues prompts. For example show them a picture of the toilet, dinner etc rather than speak they will understand a lot quicker and with less stress for the both of you.

Using social stories as a strategy uses this knowledge; a social story is a visual representation with minimal text, always in first person language that describes the skill or behaviour from the point of view of the autistic individual.

The social story breaks the situation down into small pieces and each piece of the skill for example going to recess is represented by an image and text describing the “wh” questions (who, where, when, why and what) as well as what the child with ASD may expect from others and what they will expect back from them. This will help the autistic individual feel more comfortable and in control which will reduce anxieties and stress.

To learn more about this treatment for autism and how using social stories as a strategy can help your child with ASD visit any of the following sites:

http://www.autismsocialstories.com