Autism Spectrum Disorder

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Welcome FriendsAdapted from Slide Share created bMy aMneureill

Definition of Autism

!   It is defined by the presence of abnormal and or
impaired development characterized by
abnormalities of social development,
communication and a restriction of behavior and
interest.

!   It is a developmental disorder that appears in the
first three years of life, and affects the brain’s
normal development of social and
communication skills.

Background

!   Autism is one of the five disorders in the
category of Pervasive Developmental Disorders.
These include:

!   Asperger Syndrome
!   Childhood Disintegrative Disorder
! Rett’s Disorder
!   PDD – not otherwise specified

Historical Perspective

!   Child psychiatrist, Leo Kanner, in 1943 was the
first to use the term autism. He published a
paper describing 11 children who were highly
intelligent, but displayed “a powerful desire for
aloneness” and “an obsessive insistence on
persistent sameness”.

!   He later named the condition early infantile
autism.

Historical continued…

!   Until the 1960’s it was believed that people with
autism consciously withdraw themselves from
social interactions.

!   Although the exact cause is still unknown, today
we understand that it is neurological and
biochemical alterations in the brain that is to
blame for its cause.

Statistics

!   Prevalence is 2-6/1000 individuals
!   4 times more prevalent in boys
!   No known racial, ethnic, or social

boundaries
!   For the school year 1996-97, 34,101

students, ages 6 to 21, received services
based on an autism diagnosis.

Characteristics of Autism

!   Difficult relating to people, !   Avoiding eye contact
objects and events !   Inability to accept

!   Delayed speech affection
!   Lack of interaction with !   Compulsive and ritualistic

others behaviors
!   Appearing to be unaware !   Self stimulatory behavior
!   Non-speech vocalizations
of others
!   Repetitive movements

Spectrum

!   Although a lot of children display many of
these behaviors, it is varied from child to
child and there is a huge variety of
combinations. This is why it is
considered a spectrum disorder.

!   Not all people with autism manifest every
characteristic.

Strategies for Teaching

!   All ASD children have !   Visual schedule gives
communication clear structure to the day
problems. Directions because it presents daily
should be given one step activities in sequence.
at time.
!   Include the practice of
!   Visual prompts are an skills that are functional
essential way to teach for real-life situations
any task.