My ASD Child

“Abstraction” is a relative concept related to the age of the youngster. For a 3-year-old, “the day after tomorrow” is a highly abstract concept. But for a teenager, “the day after tomorrow” is relatively concrete. The ability to think abstractly is associated with the ability to transfer what is learned from one context to another. For instance, a child who is a reasonably abstract thinker may learn the organization of an essay in English class, and then transfer that learning to his writing in Social Studies class. Conversely, a concrete thinker may need to be specifically taught in both classes. Relative to some academic skills, teaching "social competence" involves abstract skills and concepts. Because young people with Asperger’s (AS) and High-Functioning Autism (HFA) tend to be concrete and literal, the abstract nature of these interpersonal skills (e.g., kindness, reciprocity, friendships, thoughts, feelings, etc.) makes them especially difficult to master.

 Do you need some assistance in parenting your Aspergers or HFA child? Click here to use Mark Hutten, M.A. as your personal parent coach. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Mark, You are a clever man. You're saving thousands of parents and their children. I just want you to know you're immensely humanitarian and I'm so very grateful to you and the Internet for finding you. After all these years I've only just discovered my son is probably Aspergers but have just thought he's always been a bit awkward and contrary. I never considered he might be wired differently to other children (though he's certainly different to my younger sons). He would hate labels in his clothes as a toddler, would fight other children causing me to avoid socialising with him, going in car seats, getting his hair cut at the barbers etc but he got through school and worked hard despite OCD tendencies and never had behavioural problems at school. He just seemed to lose all motivation a

Most teenagers with Asperger’s (AS) and High-Functioning Autism (HFA) experience frequent social failure and rejection by peers. Because social encounters are seldom reinforcing (rewarding), these young people often avoid social interaction. Over time, they may develop negative attitudes about themselves and others. The poor self-esteem that may result makes it difficult to continue attempts at social interaction. As a result, the cycle continues. Therefore, social skills interventions are greatly needed – especially in the form of fostering self-acceptance. Self-acceptance refers to a global affirmation of self. When an AS or HFA teen is self-accepting, he is able to embrace ALL facets of himself – not just the positive parts. As such, self-acceptance is unconditional, free of any qualification. The teen can recognize his weaknesses and limitations, but this awareness in no way interferes with his ability to fully accept himself. Furthermore, behavior clearly reflects fe