Autism Behavior Checklist - The Tell-Tale Signs of Autism

Medical personnel often use evaluation tools to determine the types of symptoms in a patient and these symptoms' relationship with those that are prevalent among autistic individuals. Often, a good starting point is a checklist that can rule out the presence of symptoms of other conditions. One such checklist is provided below to help parents determine if their kids show the classical symptoms of autism. This autism behavior checklist is based on the triad of symptoms that is characteristic among patients - impaired social development, problems with communication, and repetitive behaviors.
Social Development
The first sign that a parent should look for if he suspects that his kid has autism is how the child responds to a social stimuli (examples: smile, touch, and hug). Failure to give proper responses could be a sign of a delay in social development or a brain development disorder like autism. Other signs include:
- Does not demonstrate eye contact;
- Does not begin or maintain conversation;
- Tendency to make very few friends;
- Inability to recognize faces or emotions; and,
- May display aggressive behaviors.
Communication
The first three years of a child's life are marked with accelerated developments in the brain which are critical to the development of speech. During this period, the brain is very absorbent to languages and the nuances of communication. Thus, a normal child will reach milestones in speech development during this time at a very fast rate. But, for children with autism, these developments are somewhat impossible to attain. While they may start babbling at the age of six months, most of them may be stuck at that until a few months later. The following communication impairments should raise a flag:
- Failure to babble or to produce repetitive syllables at the age of six months
- Development of unusual gestures
- Parroting of other people's vocalization or echolalia (Although echolalia is a typical milestone of speech development, normal children tend to outgrow it. Autistic children don't unless their speech follows a normal development.);
- Use of reverse pronouns or misapplication of pronouns (Reverse pronouns is a condition whereby an autistic child refers to himself using his proper name or pronouns like "you", "she", or "he". This condition is closely related to echolalic speech);
- Inability to properly perform joint attention (This is a condition wherein the usage of nonverbal cues or gestures calls another person's attention towards a particular stimulus. Autistic children do not have this capacity. It is common for them to look at the finger that points the object instead of look at the object that is being pointed-at. They also lack the ability to point at objects.);
- Diminished responsiveness (Children with autism do not respond well to most stimulus.); and,
- Because they lack the skills that can help them communicate with people, they cannot share their feelings or demonstrate their ideas.
Repetitive Behaviors
There are many forms of repetitive and restrictive behaviors that are associated with autism. These include:
- Compulsive behavior or intense focus on sticking with a certain rule or routine;
- Tendency to stick with a pattern of behaviors, otherwise known as ritualistic behavior;
- Tendency towards sameness (Children with autism do not like being disturbed or seeing their things removed from their usual places.);
- Performing repetitive movements such as head rolling and spinning ;
- Tendency to perform behaviors that can injure oneself or another person; and,
- Intense focus or concentration on a particular object
It should be noted that an autism behavior checklist is far from becoming a diagnostic tool. It is, nevertheless, very helpful for many parents to confirm whether their kids have autism or not. If your kid zeroed in the checklist, congratulations. However, if you have a feeling that your child's behaviors are somewhat suspicious, you should start considering seeking expert advice.

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Teaching Communication Skills to a Child Diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome

Asperger's Syndrome is a milder variant of Autistic Disorder. In Asperger's Disorder, affected individuals are characterized by social isolation and eccentric behavior in childhood. Though grammatical, their speech is peculiar due to abnormalities of inflection and a repetitive pattern. They usually have a circumscribed area of interest which usually leaves no space for more age appropriate, common interests. Some examples are cars, trains, door knobs, hinges. The name "Asperger" comes from Hans Asperger, an Austrian physician who first described the syndrome in 1944.

If a child is showing symptoms of Asperger's Disorder because highly visual thinking is interfering with the ability to generate language fluently then we may have child who is suffering from a very trainable communication disorder rather than a psychiatric disease.

Children who are highly visual with communication problems can have as many as 50 symptoms that are very similar and predictable. I call these children Maverick Minds.

To begin working on improving language and communication, we start with teaching visual attention skills.

In my consulting practice I teach parents methods for improving attention, memory and communication skills to replace many of the off-target behaviors they have. Before we begin teaching attention we do an evaluation to determine if the child is naturally turning to visual attention and memory skills rather than the auditory-verbal counterparts.

When I build exercises to teach attention I use the natural strengths of each child so that each exercise is easy, fun, and successful because it is critical that emerging communication abilities feel natural and flow fluently. To see my examples of children learning to become symptom-free go to my ebrainlabs website and watch the videos in our video viewing studio. You will see parents y using a pace and methods that result in success. The goals of the exercises are to help your child improve daily and achieve at least 80% success consistently.

We evaluate the "just-right" difficulty level to begin the exercise so that we understand how your child learns best. There are only two rules for the pace of learning:

You and your child should be having lots of fun.

Your child should always be 80% correct or better.

In our seminars, we discuss how we build the visual attention system first because it is the stronger system and is often shutting down verbal development. For this reason we begin our training with very little talking, which is one step toward stopping the antagonism between the visual and verbal systems and initiate a supportive relationship. Thus, we want you to minimize your talking during the exercises. As a result, your child will be able to isolate the visual attention system and begin to load visual memory. The more you talk, the more you reduce visual memory capacity. So by talking during this training, you could reduce your child's capacity from 200 data bytes to 25.

As you work, you'll establish a tri-level sequencer. The sequencer is another important brain function that is the engine of the verbal thinking pathway and the most underused component of verbal biology. The sequencer is often very painful for autistic children so initially you teach it as a "treat," or what feels like a reward.

The parts of the sequencer are:

Continuous - After every correct answer, ping a penny into a cup. Feedback that occurs after every correct answer facilitates rapid learning.

Fixed-ratio - After every three pennies, give your child a treat such as a sticker, a raisin, or a chocolate chip. Fixed-ratio sequencers begin the process of self control.

Variable - At the end of your session, go on a treasure hunt with your child. Hide clues around the house that lead to a surprise under the pillow. Varying the elements of the treasure hunt helps your child transfer learning and generalize it to daily life.

As you work, you'll begin to vary your sequencers to increase the flexibility of this component of training. After you have used pennies, raisins and a treasure hunt, for example, you might change to printing out a picture of a desired toy and cutting it into pieces. Then, you can have your child earn pennies, stickers, and then a piece of the puzzle. Tape the piece on the wall. When the picture is complete, go to the store to buy the toy.

You can also vary the elements of each part of the sequencer, depending on your child's needs. For example, you could change the Continuous to macaroni, marbles, poker chips, or small post-it notes. You could change the Fixed Ratio to tickles, chocolate chips, pretzels, stickers, or nickels. Or you might change the Variable to coupons for privileges. The goal is to keep your child interested and challenged, and to have lots of fun.

Dr. Cheri Florance is a brain scientist with training and clinical experience in how to teach the brain to replace symptoms of communication and language disorders. In her books, Maverick Mind, (www.penquinputnam.com ) and A Boy Beyond Reach (www.simonschuster.com ), she describes how she taught her own autistic son, Whitney to replace disability with ability and become symptom-free. To learn more about her own personal journey and successful methods visit her complimentary Learning Library at http://www.ebrainlabs.com

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Autism Disorder - Learn How to Enjoy Your Amazing Child!

Autism disorder, also called autistic disorder or simply autism, is not a disease but rather a developmental disability affecting the brain that usually always manifests itself by the age of three.

Autism is considered to be a pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) and it is estimated that some form of the condition affects as many as six to eight of every 1,000 children today. There is no one set of symptoms or behaviors typical of all people with autism as the condition can cause a vast spectrum of symptoms ranging from the mild to the severe.

Autism is four times more likely to affect males than females, for reasons still unknown, and the condition knows no social, racial, or ethnic boundaries.

Some different types of autism include Asperger's syndrome in which language skills aren't affected but social problems abound, and Rett Syndrome, a form of autism that only affects females who seem to develop normally but then lose their social skills and communicative abilities before replacing normal hand movements with repetitive ones.

Children with autism aren't able to interact socially with their peers, including their own parents and family, and have limited communication skills. Autistic children often demonstrate some type of repetitive behavior whether it's rocking back and forth or saying the same phrase repeatedly. Some are preoccupied with certain objects, usually those that move or have lights to capture their attention

Effectively Dealing with Autism Disorder

Despite the increasing number of children diagnosed with autism every year, the number of viable treatments also expands as different methods and strategies are proven to be successful. Currently the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a few different strategies, each with many facets to them, for treating autism disorder and improving function.

A child affected by autism will have their own set of unique learning needs that must be tailored to them individually, making no one strategy the most effective for every single child diagnosed with the disorder. Also, treatments must vary and be adapted to the changing needs of the child as they grow older.

A structured and specialized treatment program that addresses the child's capabilities should include methods of improving communication and social skills along with implementing the best means of facilitating learning and development.

Several types of behavioral training are used as autism therapies including the commonly used ABA, or Applied Behavior Analysis, as well as specialized therapies involving separate components for occupational, physical, and speech therapy, and of course, medication when necessary.

ABA programs will address aspects of improving communication and social skills along with advancing academic development by setting small, attainable goals. Children will work extensively with a therapist who has been highly trained in the world of autism and the therapy has been shown to be most effective when it begins with children under five, although older children will still benefit.

Ongoing training for parents and caregivers along with support from the community, friends and family are also imperative when dealing with autism disorder.

There are also a number of alternative therapies to consider, however, be sure to research any treatments or therapies thoroughly and seek the advice and recommendation of your doctor before proceeding.

Unfortunately, there are no preventative measures known as of yet that will reduce the likelihood of a child developing an autism disorder, nor a means to initially gauge the severity of their condition. However, with plenty of support and knowledge on the subject, families touched by autism disorder will have a far easier time dealing with the condition and its possible ramifications.

My name is Ken H. I am an internet marketer and I love to spend time with my wife Susan and our two children, Jason and Emily. We love to go to the ocean and mountains to relax, and enjoy each others company.

http://mildautism.org/

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Make Communication Picture Cards For Your Autistic Child - How?

Communication for children with autism is one of the major obstacles. Many autistic children have a difficult time to express themselves verbally. Many do not retain or understand the information they receive. Now you can help solve that problem by making communication picture cards for your autistic child. But, how?

One of the tools that is helpful for your child to learn how to communicate is using pictures on cards for communication. This system can be extremely helpful for reinforcement, expressing messages instead of words through visual pictures, placed on cards.

These cards have images and you may purchase them, but it can become expensive. Therefore, you will probably be inclined to make your own. By making your own cards, you will save money, you can be specific about what images your child is in need of, by using and understanding the pictures you want to put on the cards.

If you decide to make your own cards for communication with your child, it can become creative and you can even include your child to help you with the cards, or let him or her know what you are doing and why. In addition, the cost is reduced.

To make your own cards for communication with pictures, start with the following steps:

* Find out what your child will need or places your child will go on a regular routine. For example: Foods, objects, directions, etc. Create a list of these areas, subjects, and objects, add them to the list or subtract them from the list as time goes on.

* It is a good idea to make sure you are using the same cards that will help your family, your therapist, church, school teachers, siblings, relatives, and other people involved with communication for your child. You may want to consider giving them a set of the same cards you are using.

* When you go with your child to meetings, appointments, other functions, bring your picture communication cards with you to designate what the pictures on the cards will communicate while you are there.

* Now that you have thought about what to put on the list, next take digital photographs, cut the images out of magazines, newsletters, advertising data, that is familiar to your child and is also on the list you have made. You can take time to draw the images, as well.

* Now that you have the images for communication picture cards to be made, place these images on poster board, or heavy stiff card stock. You can use rubber paper cement glue to adhere them to the card stock.

* Underneath the picture, write the word or description of what the picture indicates for communication purposes.

* You might want to think about laminating the cards to protect them. This is an option. In addition you can use clear protective plastic sleeves for protection.

* I have learned, when you are making your communication picture cards is, if you are drawing pictures, be sure to keep them simple and not confusing.

* To make this process fun for your child and you to learn, you can put your picture communication cards on velcro strips and hang them in his or her room or purchase magnets and place the picture cards for communication on your refrigerator for viewing.

Be willing to take the time and be creative in making your communication cards with pictures. You will have positive results. It is a fun process.

Bonita Darula's informational web sight==> http://www.autismintoawareness.com is where you SIGN up and RECEIVE your FREE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER with updated topics that are imperative for your Autistic child and you. In addition, updated new E-Books to choose from about the signs and warnings of Autism. Check it out.

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Speech Pathology - Affects Good Communication

Communication is very essential to our daily lives and it is the best way to express our emotions in order to be understood. There are two types of communication: verbal and non-verbal. Verbal communication is also a form of oral communication, it is the process of sending and receiving messages with words. Normally, speech is categorized under verbal communication. On the other hand, non-verbal communication is defined as conveying of messages other than speech or writing which includes sign language and body movement.

Now, let's focus more on speech because this the medium we always used to express our thoughts, opinions and emotions through spoken words. However, in some cases speech is not achieve because of speech pathology or also known as speech disorder.

What is speech pathology? It is the study of speech abnormalities and/or the organs of speech. It is also involve in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders which relates to speech, language, swallowing, fluency, voice and communication. What are the causes of speech pathology? This includes hearing disorders or deafness, voice problems, stuttering, developmental disabilities, autism, and stroke. We will dissect each cause of speech pathology to understand more why they cause speech disorder.

• Hearing disorder and deafness. A deaf person does not have the capability to hear sound at all. If sound is not perceive so with spoken words or uttered sound. On the other hand, hearing disorder means difficulty in hearing and understanding spoken words. Most commonly for hearing impaired individuals, use of hearing aid in order to assist them in understanding spoken words.
• Voice problems. Voice is very essential for us when we speak. Did you ever noticed that if you experienced sore throat, pharyngitis or laryngitis, often times you will have a difficulty to make a sound and voice will not come out from your mouth. Most of these disorders are treatable.
• Stuttering. This is a disorder that affects the normal flow of speech. It is affected by repeated or prolonged sounds, syllables or words.
• Developmental disabilities are birth defects that causes a lifelong problems with how body part or a system works. This is also a genetic condition that is often attributed to mental retardation. Mostly these disabilities affects speech.
• Autism. This is a disorder that affects children. They are often described as " special child usually confides in their own old". Children with autism have a difficulty to communicate and interact socially.
• Stroke. This is a medical emergency that affects the human brain were sudden confusion, trouble or inability to speak and understanding of speech is a common symptom of this condition.

In some cases, speech pathology or disorders are genetic and cause is unknown. Five percent of children entering first grade have noticeable speech disorders but mostly they can be treated with help of speech pathologist or speech therapist.

Edward Hicks enjoys writing for Uniformhaven.com which sells urbane scrub pants and landau 8320 as well as a host of additional products.

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Hyper-Visual in a Verbal World - Autism and Communication Disorders

A child or adult with Autism or a Communication disorder will have difficulties fitting into our extremely verbal world. These difficulties can create isolation from others and threatening walls of silence. However, there is a specific sub group of people diagnosed with these disorders who have a hyper-visual system. In these cases, when the visual system is harnessed, teaching communication becomes much easier.

I Rode the Train, I Want to be an Engineer

Hyper-visual people are experiencing visually when speaking. Their communications may appear to be almost nonsensical rambling but in fact they are following a very logical pattern. The difference is the pattern followed is visual rather than verbal. The exchange below illustrates this point.

I asked Mark, a college student, "How did you get here today?"

He replied, I took the train in from Long Island. My family went to the beach (Mark was seeing himself on the train but did not say this). Maybe I will be a engineer. The reason I like engineering is that there are serious problems. (Mark was thinking about being a transportation engineering and designing train tracks and freeway intersections) I have always been good in math. When teachers are difficult to understand. (Mark is seeing himself at school doing well except when the teacher is confusing and then associating to a video he watched about Einstein)Like Dr. Einstein- There was an exhibit on Einstein at the history museum did you see it?

Mark was attempting to answer my question but his picture mind took him on quite a ride as one picture blended into the next from the train- to a vacation to an engineering career to Einstein, at the museum. The expected answer was "TRAIN". This very verbal illustration demonstrates how the visual pathway can create leap-frog thinking-which to verbal people can seem like impulsivity.

Instead of negotiating the world with verbal reasoning, a visual person often negotiates with patterns. As a result the "sameness of routines" becomes the template to make sense of the chaos of everyday life. We refer to these visual learners as "Mavericks." We often ask Mavericks to adjust to changes in schedule or adjustments in plans based on how we typically explain things - by talking. These words can create more confusion and frustration as they may not be processed at the speed expected. This lag in processing time can create resistance, immature behavior, odd play, tantrums or reluctance to participate. As a result the normal teaching methods that are based on processing incoming language can fail.

Sequencing & Associating

Visual people often use the brain's Associator to form memories. They learn of a new idea and they relate that idea to their own knowledge base. The opposite of the Associator is the Sequencer from the verbal pathway.

The Sequencer is rigid and ordering, one sound following another to make a word, words produced in specific order to form grammatically correct sentences and ideas linked in order to make paragraphs.

The Associator is time-independent and the Sequencer is very time based. Understanding consequences depends on a time based understanding of cause and effect.

My son, Whitney, at age 4, wanted to jump off of the roof to fly like Superman, without understanding, from verbal reasoning, the danger involved. Whitney would sit mesmerized watching Disney's Snow White as if he were deaf. In fact, at times, I could scream in his ear and he could not hear me even though all of the parts of his ear to brain physiology were judged to be normal. At these times his visual brain powered by his associator were shutting down his verbal sensory system.

If the pictures drive the thought, children can appear to be oblivious to cause and effect. They may disregard threatened consequences. Often Mavericks feel that they must complete the pattern to finish the thought they have developed through the associator before they can transition to the next idea. If the thought is disrupted the Maverick may hit a wall and resort to talking with lines from a movie or echoing what was said or get stuck like a broken record and repeat the same thing over and over again.

With the appropriate training, Mavericks can learn effective verbal communication. The teaching methods must first then harness the visual system first before moving forward to teaching communication.

Dr. Cheri Florance is a brain scientist with training and clinical experience in how to teach the brain to replace symptoms of communication and language disorders. In her books, Maverick Mind, (www.penquinputnam.com) and A Boy Beyond Reach (www.simonschuster.com), she describes how she taught her own autistic son, Whitney to replace disability with ability and become symptom-free. To learn more about her own personal journey and successful methods visit her complimentary Learning Library at http://www.ebrainlabs.com

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The Role of Visual Memory in Communication

Memory is how we move thought from our fluid attention systems to our crystal knowledge. Visual memory is a very powerful and dynamic set of systems that equips the brain with enormous capabilities. How we organize memory determines how efficient we are at thinking, responding, communicating, and comprehending.

The role of memory is critical to understand when you have a child diagnosed with a Pervasive Development Disorder such as PDD-NOS, Autism or Asperger's Syndrome.

Many children diagnosed with PDD-NOS may have symptoms in language processing and communication because their highly visual thinking is interfering with the development of verbal skills. A child that is a highly visual thinker and has highly visual "brains" in the family tree can show as many as 50 specific symptoms in communication, attention and memory. I call this group of children "Maverick Minds."

Visual thinkers experience visually what they are thinking. They follow a visual pattern rather than verbal to negotiate the world. To verbal thinkers, their communications may seem like nonsensical rambling. In fact the communication is following a logical pattern but it is a visual rather than verbal pattern.

Visual people often use the brain's Associator to form memories. They learn of a new idea and they relate that idea to their own knowledge base. The opposite of the Associator is the Sequencer from the verbal pathway.

The Sequencer is rigid and ordering, one sound following another to make a word, words produced in specific order to form grammatically correct sentences and ideas linked in order to make paragraphs.

The Associator is time-independent and the Sequencer is very time based. Understanding consequences depends on a time based understanding of cause and effect.

Creating associations

Visual memory involves the brain function called the associator. The associator creates memory by linking concepts or ideas. An associator works optimally when it can complement the sequencer, but for Mavericks the associator can become the enemy or the antagonist of the sequencer. The associator can multi-task, leapfrog ahead conceptually, intuit solutions, see patterns and relationships readily, and manage an enormous workload effortlessly.

A simple example of the associator is the ideas that come to mind when you see a fire truck. This fire truck could make you think HOT, RED, FIRE, TOY, DALMATIAN, or 911. For Mavericks, associations are a constantly available and very user friendly thinking tool.

Visual memory is one of the four brain pillars that are essential for developing a symptom-free life for a Maverick child. Visual memory is the thinking powerhouse that is your child's greatest asset/liability. You use it not only to process and retain visual input but also as a mental refresher.

You can train your child's visual memory so that it becomes an asset rather than a liability. Visual memory can be harnessed by training the skills needed for immediate memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory.

Dr. Cheri Florance is a brain scientist with training and clinical experience in how to teach the brain to replace symptoms of communication and language disorders. In her books, Maverick Mind, and A Boy Beyond Reach she describes how she taught her own autistic son, Whitney to replace disability with ability and become symptom-free.

To learn more about creating a customized training plan for your Maverick Mind, visit us on the web at http://www.ebrainlabs.com or contact our office at 1-866-865-9820. We have helped many children who are visual thinkers move into verbal land.

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Symptoms and Treatment For Autism and Its Communication Disorder

Children with autism syndrome have a lack of effective communication skills, therefore inhibiting lifelong social skills. Parents who know what to look for at an early age can increase the chances for their child to live a somewhat normal life

All children learn at their own pace, therefore making it difficult to diagnose at infancy. Infants a few months of age will typically start to babble, imitating the sounds it hears around him. While every baby develops speech at a different rate the following is a guide for the average child. At one year, can use negative phrases such as "No, want", can imitate animal sounds and noises, and says four to six simple words. At 18 months can say 10 to 15 words and can make two word sentences (i.e., "Daddy up") At 2 has a vocabulary of about 100 words and asks, "What is?" The autistic child on the other hand does not develop at this normal rate and has a difficult time building his/her vocabulary. There might only be a few words they understand or respond to. They might not speak at all; half of the people diagnosed with autism never learn to speak

A more comprehensible clue for an autistic child is the skewed verbal cues they might respond to. For example: Pointing at a red car and stating, "look at the red car". The autistic child will become fixated more on your finger pointing at the red car than the actual point of interest. An autistic child will have a difficult time making his/her wants and needs known and will more than likely point at something he/she wants rather than using words to describe it

The inability to verbalize his/her thoughts affects the imaginative play, making it difficult to have cooperative play with other children.

Even if an autistic child does develop speech he /she has a difficult time holding or starting a conversation due to the inability to understand facial cues, sarcasm and the use of humor and will likely understand it in the literal sense. A child with autism will repeat phrases over and over again and will often mimic others speech.

Working with autistic children's communication skills prior to the age of two will prevent the skills atrophy. Intensive therapy at an early age can decrease many of the communication problems that autistic children face and may enable them to attain a near average capability. Epilepsy and associated seizure disorders are common with autistic children that haven't been diagnosed prior to the age of two.

There are many more resources and information about autism signs, symptoms, treatments, and cutting edge medical research in, Autism: Everything Parents And Caregivers Should Know About The Disorder - http://www.mynewworldweb.com

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Autism and Communication - Staying Connected to a Meaningful Life

Autism is a neurologically-based disorder that affects verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction. Autism is different for every person. No two people with autism are exactly the same. Some people with autism have difficulty with their mobility such as controlling their arms, legs or mouth muscles. And, others have difficulty with cognitive skills-like reasoning, learning or memory. The problems may range in severity and may even change over time.

Research shows that autism occurs four times more often in males than females. Autism is found in all racial, ethnic and social backgrounds and families. Early signs of autism can be seen by as early as age 12 months and diagnosis can be made as early as 24 months. Early identification and treatment of autism increases the chances for improving problem skills and improves quality of life.

There are several different types of disorders in the autism "spectrum" also known as "autism spectrum disorders" or "pervasive developmental disorders."

o Autism disorder

o Asperger syndrome

o Childhood disintegrative disorder

o Rett syndrome (in girls)

o Pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified

Although each person with autism is different, there are some common communication and social characteristics that most exhibit. These communication and social interactions will vary in severity and may be altered as the person grows and develop in the various stages of his life.

Communication

o Delayed language

o Not speaking or very limited speech

o Difficulty expressing basic wants and needs

o Limited communication to share interests with others

o Poor vocabulary development

o Problems following directions

o Problems finding objects that are named

o Repeating what is said (echolalia)

o Difficulty understanding nonverbal communication, such as gestures and facial expressions

o Problems answering questions

Social Interaction

o Inappropriate eye contact

o Becoming overly focused on certain objects or topics

o Difficulty building friendships

o Dislike being held or touched

o Inappropriate behavior such as crying, laughing or becoming angry for no known reason or at the wrong time

o Poor play skills

Other Social Interaction

o Problems dealing with change

o Using objects in unusual ways

o Feeding difficulties-accepting or refusing only selected foods or textures

o Over or under sensitivity to sounds

Speech and language services are important for people with autism at every age. Speech and language treatment can help people with autism develop effective speaking, listening, reading and social skills. At all ages, appropriate communication and positive social interactions are important for:

o Relationships with family, peers, friends and community

o Inclusion in social activities

o Success in school or at work

o Reducing behavior problems

o Emotional well-being and self-esteem

Ways to Stay Connected

As a caregiver of a person with autism, there are ways to help your loved one stay connected through communication. Finding the best way for the person with autism to express his thoughts, wants and needs to others is very important in helping him stay connected to those around him. Here are few ways to help in improving communication and social interactions:

o Increase awareness of and respond to all communication attempts. In order to accomplish
this, parents and other caregivers must begin to interpret all actions and behaviors as having communicative intent or communicative meaning.

o Use picture communication boards or books of familiar activities and people. Create a
communication board or book to help the child with autism to communicate needs, feelings, or desires.

o Use music therapy such as singing songs while during routine tasks. When washing body parts you could sing..."this is the way we clear our ears, clean our eyes, clean our cheeks."

o Provide positive supports and learning opportunities. Identify and arrange communication
opportunities in natural contexts throughout the child's day. Manipulate the environment! Create circumstances which encourages communication.

o Encourage interactions by providing individuals with autism the opportunity to socialize in
environments with age-appropriate peers. The experience of participating in a social group is essential to developing social-communicative skills.

o Teach children with autism that their actions or words have distinct results associated with
them. The child must learn that communication can be used to influence the environment.

By employing these communication strategies, the result is an increase in a child with autism understanding and use of communication. These strategies can help reduce the result of challenging behaviors and help the individual stay connected to the world around him.

References: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Speech-Language Pathologists: Helping People with Autism

Fielding, Linda. Autism: Communication and Behavior Links

Denise Moore Revel is a Leading Speech Therapist that specializes in improving communication skills in children. Visit her website at http://www.AsktheSpeechTherapist.com and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve communication skills.

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Relationship Between Autism and Communication

Autism can be defined as a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication and by restricted and repetitive behavior. Speech is only one of the aspects of communication. The body language and the tone make any speech understood better. Autistic people have difficulty in communication on all or any of the aspects of speech, body language or tone.

If speech alone was regarded as communication, there is nothing weird in the communication of autistic people.

More attention is drawn to the aspects other than words during communication. Hence autistic people gradually begin to avoid communicating since it becomes difficult for them to make sense in the aspects of body languages or tone.

For people who only have speech disorder, technology has provided alternate 'media' which converts thought in to words. Alternately, therapy using music is also found to be of effective assistance.

For autistic people who do not understand another person's tone and body's signal, basic communication can be difficult task. The conversation could have interruptions, choice of words could seem literal, body language can seem awkward for the listener, and the confusion they experience of not being able to comprehend another person's communication aspects becomes evident in their broken structure of speech.

Some therapies available to correct such disorders include; speech therapy for developing muscles in the mouth, art or picture therapy which will help them see the various aspects which happen along with speech, music therapy which will show that conversation is a game of transmission and reception of speech and therapy for comprehending aspects like emotions.

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Teaching Children With Autism Better Verbal Communication Skills

Children with autism commonly face problems with verbal communication. This is usually due to the frequent speech and language problems associated with the disorder. Though the actual reason that these problems are faced by autistic children is unknown, many experts believe that they are the result of several conditions occurring before, during, or after the child's birth that have had an impact on the development of the brain. The inability to properly communicate verbally can make interpretation and interaction with the child's world much more difficult.

The communication problems experienced vary from child to child, depending on the individual's social and intellectual development. While some may not be able to speak at all, others may maintain extensive vocabularies and can express themselves regarding complex topics. However, most children with autism experience some form of communication difficulty usually with the appropriate use of the language, for example difficulty with intonation, rhythm, and word and sentence meaning.

Autistic children who are able to speak may say things without true information, expression, or content. They are only words with no meaning to the situation. Others will use echolalia, where they simply repeat what they have heard, even if they have been asked a question. And yet other autistic children will use delayed echolalia, using the question previously posed in order to ask for what they want. For example, a child who had earlier been asked "are you hungry?" may say "are you hungry" at a later time to express his or her hunger.

Many autistic children will have a stock of phrases that they use in specific conditions. For example, a child may introduce him or herself at the beginning of every conversation. Some autistic children learn scripts from television shows, commercials, books, or other recorded dialogs.

Autistic children able to speak can frequently speak extensively about a topic without the ability to actually converse with others. They may also make up a voice to use other than their own such as a robot voice, a deep voice, a squeaky voice or another similar type of alteration.

It is possible to help an autistic child to better his or her verbal communication skills with improvements made through the use of appropriate treatments.

The first step is to consult a speech and language pathologist in order to have your child's communication skills evaluated. Specific treatments suitable for your child may be recommended during this evaluation.

No single method of communication treatment has been universally found to improve all autistic children, but starting early increases the chances of significant improvements. Try to target your child's specific communication strengths and weaknesses. Different forms of goal orientated therapy for useful communications are the most successful techniques, though not guaranteed to work for all children. Periodic in-depth evaluations from a specialist are recommended for perfecting and altering the therapy to best work for your child's unique needs.

Many parents find that consulting physical and occupational therapists can also be very helpful for helping to reduce unwanted behaviors during communication, which are common hindrances to the development of skills.

Find out what your child best responds to: a structured behavior modification program, an in-home therapy program, or another type of therapy that utilizes reality-based situations as a foundation for the therapy.

It may surprise you to discover that music therapy and sensory integration therapies may have a large impact on your child's ability to use verbal communication. This is because stimulation of the senses often helps to improve the child's ability to respond to sensory information, and therefore helps him or her recognize what he or she is hearing through verbal communication and seeing through non-verbal communication. The goal is to help improve the effectiveness of sensory understanding.

Medications may also improve an autistic child's attention span, which in turn can help to improve verbal communication in your child. However, with long-term medication use there is the possibility of undesirable side effects.

To be certain that your child is at his or her fullest potential, mineral and vitamin supplements, as well as a tailored diet, psychotherapy, and overcoming sleep challenges may greatly assist in focus and attention, which should help improve verbal communication.

Grab your free copy of Rachel Evans' brand new Autism Newsletter - Overflowing with easy to implement methods to help you and your family find out about autism treatment options plus information on improving autism verbal skills

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