CHILDREN
The Signs and Symptoms of, Asperger’s Syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorders and Social Communication Disorder

The diagnosis and differentiation of these sub-categories of disorders that can manifest in the classroom, requires professional diagnosis and at Learning Insights we often recommend a second opinion. Scan down this list of behaviours that may or may not be evident in your child’s behaviour. Remember no child can possibly show all these symptoms!

If you find you are ticking a fair number of these it may well be worth a conversation.. click CONTACT US.

Asperger’s Syndrome and Autism spectrum disorders can show as difficulties with:

• Restricted repetitive behaviour
• Low eye contact
• Social anxiety
• Lack of common sense
• Simultaneous processing of two pieces of information overloads and causes child to ‘shut down’
• Poor sense of direction/disorientation
• Poor coordination
• Poor self/body awareness
• Lack of awareness of danger
• Required supervision
• Social motivation poor
• Poor awareness of social cues
• Stereotypic/repetitive play patterns and themes
• Narrow interest patterns
• Resistance to change
• Imposition of routines and rituals
• Regression or withdrawal
• Volatile/quickly-changing emotions
• Inability to know when to stop
• Over-excitability
• History of selective mutism
• Egocentrism/egocentricity
• Speech and language – delayed
• pseudo adult style of language
• monotonous/stilted
• poor comprehension
• poor idiomatic
• Attention-seeking
• Obsessed with foods/other aspects
• Problems can include sleeplessness or problems with sleeping, over-activity, aggressiveness, and a level of regression

Rita Jordan’ article “Identifying and meeting the special educational needs of pupils with autistic spectrum disorders” reports that children with Aspergers syndrome “may have to be told to memorise or listen in a direct way, may have to have homework specified much more clearly than for others since they may not realise or remember its connection with a lesson, may have a particular difficulty in accepting (and therefore reading) different handwriting, may have particular difficulty accepting certain punishments (e.g. writing lines or detention) when there is no (or less) awareness of having done something “wrong” nor little/any social understanding of the purpose of such activities. There are many more problems that will need consideration, but the real teaching issue is understanding and a willingness to try to take the pupil’s point of view”

Frith U 1989 Autism: Explaining the Enigma, Oxford, Blackwell
Howlin P 1998 Psychological and Educational Treatments for Autism Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 39, (3) p307 -322

If any of this rings a bell and is making sense for you, check out Parents, Children + Schools, follow this up with a call to Learning Insights or click on CONTACT US.

HOMEPAGE