My ASD Child

The vast majority of students with Asperger’s (AS) and High Functioning Autism (HFA) receive their educational experiences predominantly in general education classrooms. Thus, general education teachers are primarily responsible for the education of these “special needs” students, although frequently with the support of special education teachers. In many ways, students diagnosed with AS and HFA are well qualified to benefit from general classroom experiences. They typically have average to above average intellectual abilities, are motivated to be with their fellow classmates, and have good rote memory skills and other assets that bode well for their educational success. However, all too frequently, these young people have significant problems in academic performance, and some have learning disabilities. The reasons for these problems often are related to the social and communication deficits connected to AS and HFA. ==> Teaching Students with Aspergers and HFA In addit

A guide for parents who want to promote self-reliance in their older teens and adult children with Aspergers and High-Functioning Autism.  ==> Launching Adult Children With Aspergers: How To Promote Self-Reliance

Based on the challenges that Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) present, it’s no surprise that kids and teens diagnosed with Asperger’s (AS) and High-Functioning Autism (HFA) often have behavioral and emotional problems. These challenges are most often connected to social deficits associated with the disorder (e.g., when the youngster fails to take his turn in a playground game because he doesn't understand the social rules of an activity). These challenges frequently involve feelings of stress, loss of control, or the inability to predict outcomes. Therefore, children with AS and HFA typically have behavior problems connected to their inability to function in a world they see as unpredictable and threatening. As a result, they may behave in ways that appear mean-spirited or malicious. But, this is an unfair assessment. While these “special needs” children do have behavioral difficulties, their problems are most often associated with their social ineptness, an obsessive interest

Do you think you may have Aspergers? Let's see... For you, are the following statements TRUE or FALSE?

High-Functioning Autism (HFA), formerly “Asperger Syndrome,” is first and foremost a social disorder. Children with HFA are not only socially isolated, but also demonstrate an abnormal type of social interaction that can’t be explained by other factors (e.g., shyness, short attention span, aggressive behavior, lack of experience in a given area, etc.). Children with HFA are notable for their lack of motivation to interact with others. However, their social difficulties frequently stem from an incompetence and lack of knowledge and skill in initiating and responding in various situations and under variable conditions. For example, an adolescent with HFA may appear odd because of his continuous insistence on sharing with peers an obsessive interest in space craft, despite their displays of apathy for this topic. The fact that social difficulties of young people with HFA range from social withdrawal and detachment to unskilled social activeness is well documented. Nonet

"We have a 2½ year old son with Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency and some other undiagnosed problems. When we did the routine screening at his Pedi’s office, the Pedi said he showed possible Autism and wanted us to see a behavioral specialist. When we went to see her, my sister and I showed her a couple of videos of him “blacking out” during one of his meltdowns and hurting himself.   We explained to her his sensory and tactile issues and other things we had noticed.  This was the winter of 2015 when he was just 1½.  She said “I don’t think he has Autism because he makes eye contact occasionally and has good interaction with us.  I think he is pretending and acting this way because he does not feel good and he knows if he does this he can be left alone.”  With that we left and drove the 1 hour 45 min back home.  Now he still have the same behavior and he is not only hurting himself (he just punched himself in the lip) but he is becoming aggressive towards others.  The babysitter

There's been an explosive growth in the number of children with High-Functioning Autism (HFA) in recent years. Following is a list of some of the common issues that these individuals experience in the classroom and beyond. These characteristics are usually not isolated ones; rather, they appear in varying degrees and amounts: coordination problems with both large and small muscle groups difficulty in following complicated directions or remembering directions for extended periods of time difficulty in working with others in small or large group settings difficulty staying on task for extended periods of time easily confused easily distractible inflexibility of thought; is difficult to persuade otherwise low tolerance level and a high frustration level poor auditory memory—both short term and long term poor concept of time poor handwriting skills spontaneous in expression; often cannot control emotions weak or poor self-esteem Whether you have a special educ