As an educator, I try to keep the following two main goals as a top priority when working with spectrum kids. 1-TEACHING  INDEPENDENCE 2- DEVELOPING/ IMPROVING SOCIAL SKILLS Academics are very important to be taught. But life skills are most important. Children grow up very quickly. Time flies, and soon the elementary grader becomes a

Instead of saying the child is obsessed with a certain subject or an activity, we can call it an interest or area of strength. Things that we keep doing or repeating over and over are things that we can do well. For example practicing a sport, riding a bike, playing a game, reading in certain

According to “Autistica”, 24% of autistic children are non-verbal or minimally verbal. Researchers at the University of Bermingham, UK, supported by “Autistica” found that: 1- The learning of a language is tightly related to motor behaviors (like knocking a toy), and the imitation of facial experssions or gestures. The imitation of gestures and facial expressions

Children with autism don’t respond to the games, like peek-a-boo, the way neurotypically developed kids do. They avoid the interaction with people or tune them out altogether. Remember that the poor social skills are one of the autism’s main traits. Researchers found that parents should rather play with their kids the games they like. In

This is the biggest study of fetal growth and autism ever. Extreme, whether big or small, growth of the fetus in the womb can be a risk factor of developing autism. Babies weighing over 4.5 kg (9lb14) or under 2.5 kg (5.5lb) at birth showed higher incidence of autism. This isn’t related to whether the

The world’s most famous autistics adult, Dr. Temple Grandin, will be speaking at the main branch of the Cambridge Public Library, Massachusetts, 449 Broadway, on May 16 at 6:30 pm. Dr. Temple Grandin is an animal science Professor at the Colorado State University. She also runs a her own business of designing live stock animal

Three recent studies show the benefits of an early diagnosis of autism. The new studies confirm what I have mentioned in my article autism-tips.com/?p=1251 based on my experience from working with kids with autism. Scientists can detect brain anomalies as early as six months old. At this young age the brain is still malleable and

Summer is around the corner! You are probably wondering what should you do with your child with ASD for two months or more! You are torn between two temptations: Should I let her rest, relax and forget about her daily routine? Or should I keep the strict school schedule going? This is what I think

What should you do if your child is bored in her/his school? Do you know why is she/he bored? Is the program too easy for her/him? In this case your child needs to change the current placement which needs to be discussed in the IEP meeting seriously with no delay. You definitely want your child

Here is one bright side of autism. Anecdote A student has difficulty spacing her words and numbers when writing. I keep telling her that her sentences and paragraphs looks like one single word of a string of letters. She also does the same with number. Her handwriting becomes almost illegible when all the letters and