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Organization Skills for Children with Aspergers and High-Functioning Autism

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"Any tips on how I can help my child get more organized? He loses and misplaces many things, including homework and school books, which is now affecting his grades. Help!" Children and teens with Aspergers and High-Functioning Autism (HFA) often have deficits in what we call “cognitive function” (i.e., the intellectual process by which we think, reason, understand ideas, and remember things). So a child with Aspergers may have difficulties with: “executive function” (i.e., he/she may be detail-focused and less able to see the whole picture) predicting the consequences of an action (e.g., “If you do this, what will happen next?”)  processing information  understanding the concept of time One or all of these four examples can affect Aspergers kid’s ability to organize, prioritize and sequence (e.g., if they struggle to understand the concept of time, they will have difficulty planning what to do over the course of a week). Below are some ways in which ch

Obsessions in Children with Aspergers and High-Functioning Autism

"Why is my 6-year-old son (high functioning autistic) so engrossed in Minecraft, and how can I tell if it is an unhealthy obsession rather than just a fun time activity for him?" CLICK HERE for the answer...

Potty-Training Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Special Considerations

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"Any tips on potty training a child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder?" Potty-training success hinges on physical and emotional readiness, not a specific age. Many children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) show an interest in toilet-training by age 2, but others might not be ready until age 3 or even older — and there's no rush. If you start toilet-training too early, it might take longer to train your youngster. Is your ASD youngster ready? Ask yourself these questions: Can your youngster pull down his/her pants and pull them up again? Can your youngster sit on and rise from a potty chair? Can your youngster understand and follow basic directions? Does your youngster complain about wet or dirty diapers? Does your youngster seem interested in the potty chair or toilet, or in wearing underwear? Does your youngster stay dry for periods of two hours or longer during the day? Does your youngster tell you through words, facial ex