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How do you identify autistic children?
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It isn't necessarily easy to identify autistic children. It's not something that you're likely to do on your own either.
If you're a teacher or assist families in any way, then you may wish you had a quick checklist that you could provide parents for those times that you suspect that you have a student with autism.
Georgina Rayner, a local advocate for special need kids, has provided a
list of red flags for teachers to identify autistic children
, but the circumstances at home are a little different. Here are some red flags for parents that Georgina Rayner developed to help parents identify autistic children.
Red Flags to help parents identify autistic symptoms
As a parent, you usually know when things are not going well for your child. There are many little signals you should pay attention to that become more evident if teaching autistic kids. Many of the above symptoms for teaching autistic kids in school may be things that you recognize at home too. In addition to those symptoms thought, here is a list of some of the other behaviors that identify autistic children, and impact your child's success.- Reluctance to go to school
- Bed wetting reoccurs after a long period of dry beds
- Suggestions from the school that you need to visit your doctor and have your child medicated because he is hyperactive or doesn't pay attention
- Take forever to brush their teeth as they are distracted by other things in the bathroom
- Incredibly sensitive to sound, for instance, you needed to creep out of the baby’s room after putting them to bed.
- It seems your child never sleeps
- Has huge volumes of homework as he couldn't complete any work at school
- Child tends to eat ‘white’ food (pasta, pizza, chicken breast, bread)
- Dislikes textures in food (picky eater)
- Prefers to wear the same clothes all the time
- Dislikes tight clothing, elastic in socks, certain types of underwear
- Will be very affectionate but recoil when touched by others
- School asks you if you are having any problems in your home
One of the most important things you can do as soon as someone identifies an autistic child is to start taking notes of key behavior and the surrounding circumstances at the time. This will be a key tool in identifying effective strategies for both parents and teachers. It also will provide a guide as to what works and what doesn't. We recommend that you start a good documentation process as soon as you identify autistic children. Our parent teacher communication book will also serve as important documentation when it comes to assessments and transition times. It can virtually eliminate the common complaint that new education professionals or therapists can underestimate a child's capability, simply because the child didn't express the positive behavior during a particular short visit. Few of us can perform on command, and kids are no exception. Having an ongoing record of achievements can help ensure that the child is given the best assessment possible. | |
Interested in knowing other steps to take when you identify autistic children? Georgina Rayner has identified a number of first steps that should be taken.
Click here for more information.
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