What is ASD?

• Autism is a developmental disorder that affects how an individual perceives the world.

• It is associated with profound problems of speech, behaviour and social relationships.

• High-functioning autism (HFA) and Asperger’s Syndrome (AS)

HFA ? or AS ?Social skills Severely delayed Severely delayed

Restricted interests Thing-based (trains) Fact-based (train schedules)

Language Delayed speech; few words; regression; echolalia

Advanced vocab; speak early; odd speech; literal; poor pragmatics

IQ scores (>70) Nonverbal skills > verbal skills

Verbal skills > nonverbal skills

Motor abilities Often typical in early life Clumsy; poor coordination

Gender ratio 4 males to 1 female 10-15 males to 1 female

Genetics Highly heritable Even highly heritable

Prognosis Better than in children with both autism & Intellectual disability

Educational outcomes better than those with HFA

Characteristics

• Stereotyped behaviours– Obsessed about a certain topic or

object– Repetitive actions or movements– Fixate on parts of an object

• Communication deficits– No speech– Delayed speech– Echoalia

• Social interaction deficits– Little or no eye contact– Unemotional facial expressions– No interactive dialogue

Strengths

• Good attention to detail• Deep narrow interests• Islets of ability

– Splinter skills (often memorize and have obsessive pre-occupations with trivia and obscure information)

– Talented skills (more highly developed and specialized skill such as working out difficult calculations mentally)

– Prodigious skills (rarest and remarkable – e.g. capability to play an entire concerto on the piano after listening it only once)

Some Useful Tips…

• Keeping predictability/ orderliness/ sameness

• Seating arrangement (e.g. front middle seat)

• Incorporate visual learning modes