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A presentation on Autism in children
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Aims and Objectives
To gain a basic understanding of autism
To think about how people with autism behave and see the world
To consider strategies for working with people with autism
To know who to contact for advice
What is Autism?
‘Autism is a lifelong developmental
disability that affects the way a person
communicates and relates to people
around them’
National Autistic Society
Autism Spectrum Conditions/Disability
Asperger Syndrome
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Autism
Childhood Autism Pervasive Development Disorder
Autistic Spectrum Disorders Means …
Difficulties with social interactions
Difficulties communicating
Difficulties with imagination and flexible thinking
Communication difficulties
Difficulties in understanding what other people say or mean, instructions
take things v literally, e.g. pull your socks up, dying for the toilet
May not understand sarcasm, verbal jokes, irony, exaggeration, turns of phrase
Difficulties reading – especially comprehension
Spoken language difficulties
Mixing up he/she and I/me
Calling self by own name/he or she rather than I
Flat/odd intonation/pitch
Unusual accents e.g. American
Jerky, problems with rhythm and stress
Difficulty finding words, made up words,
Unusual choice of words,
Precise/formal speech – “little professor” “little old man”
Echoing others words (Echolalia) – immediately or later
Repetitive words/phrases learned from others/TV/DVD’s
Repetitive questions even though know answer
Problems with the social use of language
May not speak in certain situations – Elective Mutism Problems requesting things
Or may only speak to request/get needs met/gather information – not to be social
Difficulties with 2 way conversation:
Talk at you rather than to you Turn taking – Interrupt, talk over, don’t listen Conversation doesn’t build to and fro - 1 sided Only on particular subject they are interested in Lack sense of what you need to know - give too much or too little
information things out of context Don’t show interest in your views/experiences
Difficulties with Non-verbal
communication May not understand gestures and body language, facial
expressions etc.
May not use gestures or struggle to do them appropriately – pointing, waving, beckoning, nodding/shaking head, shrugging, showing, giving, descriptive gestures
SOCIAL DIFFICULTIES
Difficulties understanding what others are thinking or feeling
Difficulties picking up on social cues
Difficulties knowing what is expected of them/how to behave socially
Lack social interest in others – solitary or socially interested but don’t know how to do it
Unusual social approaches to others
Lack of or unusual responses to others
Don’t know how to keep interactions going in a to and fro manner
Difficulties with eye contact – reduced and unusual quality
Lack of or unusual facial expressions
Difficulties with friendships/relationships with others
Difficulties with social rules and conventions – taking turns, sharing, listening, instructions, joining in, asking for help
Difficulties seeking help or comfort from others
Difficulties sharing enjoyment or interest
INFLEXIBILITY/DIFFICULTIES WITH IMAGINATION
Don’t use toys imaginatively or as expected
Play/activity is repetitive and lacks variation - spinning objects/patterns, lining up/sorting, running up and down, spinning, opening/closing doors, banging, switching on/off Interests may be more complex but still very narrow, very intense and possibly unusual e.g. vehicles, computers, washing machine, street signs, traffic lights, vacuum cleaners, birth dates, numbers, alarm systems, facts and figures etc
Play alone/solitary interests Lack of pretend play with others (social imaginative play) Seemingly imaginative play may be re-enactments of TV Need for sameness
same exact daily routines, same routes, Can’t tolerate even minor changes in suroundings, insisting things be done in very particular ways, difficulties trying new foods, clothing, meeting new people, going to new places, overwhelmed by choices
Focus attention on one thing only
Difficulties moving on/changing activity
Difficulties generalizing skills
Difficulties seeing the bigger picture, detail
Rigid opinions – difficulty being able to see another’s point of view or that there may be more than one way of looking at something
Sensory sensitivities
The majority of children with ASD have sensory sensitivities
Can impact on any of the five senses
Can make it very hard for the child or young person to function in certain environments
Children may be hyposensitive to pain
Cognitive Processing
Autism means a different style of thinking – monotropic (Wendy Lawson)
Filtering out environmental information can be difficult
Generalising skills can be difficult – there can be a lack of ‘connectivity’
Non social rpiorities
Associated difficulties
Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Learning Disabilities
Bowel problems
Eating and drinking difficulties
Sleeping difficulties
The Autistic Spectrum
Everyone with autism:
will have problems with social interaction, communication and imagination / flexible thinking
But:
not everyone with autism looks the same or behaves the same e.g. some people with autism will be able to make eye contact better than others
Individual differences…
Age
Gender
Temperament/Personality
Environment
Reactions of others
Previous interventions
Life experience
How common is ASD?
Recent national studies show a prevalence of 1 in 100 people are on the autistic spectrum
There are far more boys than girls
In Manchester (2009) recent figures suggest approximately 180 children per year receive a diagnosis of ASD
This means that there are likely to be several children with ASD in every Manchester primary school
Numbers are rising – possibly due to increased awareness?
What causes autism?
We don’t know
It is not caused by: MMR
Parenting
Autism is not anyone’s fault
There is a genetic component but it is not straight forward and there is no genetic test
SCAIT (Social Communication
Assessment and Intervention Teams)
In Manchester there are 3 SCAIT teams that assess for ASD. They are based within CAMHS
SCAITs consist of a child psychiatrist, clinical psychologist, educational psychologist, mental health practitioner, specialist speech and language therapist and consultant community paediatrician
SCAIT Assessment process
Information from parents/carers Observation of child in different settings –
e.g. school, clinic, home Individual assessment – ADOS SLT assessment There is no blood test Assessment may take number of months Following diagnosis a comprehensive SCAIT
report is sent to parents and professionals including school
A Multiagency meeting is held in school to consider needs
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