Autism is a lifelong developmental disability characterized by difficulties in social interaction and communication. It is considered a spectrum disorder due to the wide variation in symptoms and severity between individuals. Early intervention is key to improving outcomes for children with autism. Technology plays an important role in teaching social, vocational, and independent living skills. Resources like Autism Speaks provide information, support, and funding for research toward understanding and treating autism spectrum disorders.

1. Children with Autism
Spectrum Disorders
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Presented by: Caitlin McGowan
January 2014

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Autism is a lifelong developmental disability
that is best described as a collection of
behavioral symptoms.
The extent and severity of those symptoms
provide a range of diagnoses referred to as
autism spectrum disorders.
Autism was identified as a special education
category in 1990.
Defining Autism

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“Classic” or Kanner’s Autism
Asperger’s syndrome
PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental DisorderNot Otherwise Specified)
Rett’s disorder
Childhood disintegrative disorder
Autism Spectrum
Disorders

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Defined as: children who exhibit severely
disordered verbal and nonverbal language and
unusual behavior patterns.
“Classic” or Kanner’s
Autism

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This is one of the most common autism
spectrum disorders.
Approximately 1 in 500 school-age children are
diagnosed with Asperger’s.
Individuals with Asperger’s may have many of
the social and behavioral characteristics of
autism but, importantly, without any marked
delays in language and cognitive development.
They experience difficulties in social
functioning and relationships, but not in
intelligence or language skills.
Asperger’s syndrome

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Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not
Otherwise Specified
Also called “high functioning autism” or
“atypical autism”
Defined as: children who experience nonverbal
language difficulties but do not meet the
criteria for other PDDs such as autism,
Asperger’s syndrome, or Rett’s disorder.
PDD-NOS

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A rare genetic neurodegenerative disorder that
primarily affects girls, resulting in the loss of
social skills, language, and motor development,
accompanied by distorted hand movements.
Rett’s disorder

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After a few years of normal development,
children regress progressively in all areas,
including language, social development, and
motor development.
Childhood disintegrative
disorder

10. “What
Is Autism Spectrum Disorder
?”

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Autism statistics from the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention identify
around 1 in 88 American children as on the
autism spectrum.
An estimated 1 out of 54 boys and 1 in 252 girls
are diagnosed with autism in the United States.
ASD affects over 2 million individuals in the
U.S. and tens of millions worldwide.
How common is Autism?

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As we learned in the YouTube video, every
individual on the autism spectrum is unique.
They exhibit different kinds of behaviors, from mild
to severe.
Many have exceptional abilities in visual skills,
music, and academic skills.
About 40% have average to above average
intellectual abilities
Others have a significant disability and are unable to
live independently.
About 25% are nonverbal but can learn to
communicate using other means.
What does it mean to be
"on the spectrum”?

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The next few slides will cover websites that can
be used as resources for gathering information
and providing services within the community.
Useful Resources

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Autism Speaks was founded in 2005 by Bob and
Suzanne Wright, grandparents of a child with autism.
Their friend donated $25 million to help financially
launch the organization.
Since then, Autism Speaks has grown into the world's
leading autism science and advocacy organization.
The mission of Autism Speaks is to change the future for
all who struggle with autism spectrum disorders.
They are dedicated to funding global biomedical
research into the causes, prevention, treatments and a
possible cure for autism.
They also raise public awareness about autism and its
effects on individuals, families, and society.
Autism Speaks

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The Autism Society of America is a national
organization for parents, professionals, and
individuals with autism.
Their mission is to improve the lives of all who
are affected by autism.
The Autism Society is a great resource that
includes education, services, research, and
support.
Autism Society of America

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This is a blog about a day in the life of a single
mom raising a teenager and a child with
autism.
Her goal is to give away all that she has
learned and experienced in hopes that it will
help families raising a child with autism.
Throughout the blog, she opens up her world
and share her joys, knowledge, lessons,
disappointments, challenges, frustrations, fears
and successes - one day at a time.
Autism - Day by Day

18. “I Want to Say”

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The next few slides touch on various devices in
assistive technology that can help an individual
with autism manage successfully within the
community.
Assistive Technology

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TapToTalk is an app that displays a page of pictures
on the screen.
When you tap a picture, TapToTalk plays a word or
sentence and displays another page of pictures.
Each of those pictures can lead to another page, and
so on.
For example, a picture representing Food can lead to
a page with pictures of Fruit, Vegetables,
Sandwiches, Snacks and other foods.
Overall, this app can be used to give nonverbal
individuals with autism a voice.
TapToTalk

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This app can be very beneficial for an
individual with a developmental disability, like
Autism.
It allows you to create visual supports such as
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First Then boards
Visual schedules
Task analyses
Social stories
Choice boards
Video models
First Then Visual
Schedule HD

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Kids with autism often have difficulty
recognizing emotions and facial expressions.
This app, created by TouchAutism.com, uses
social stories and simple illustrations to show
what different feelings look like.
It also explains why people may feel a certain
way.
It's excellent for use in special education
classrooms and could even be beneficial during
speech therapy sessions.
Emotions and
Feelings - Autism

23. “What it’s like to have a
Brother with Autism”

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Not all siblings will experience these stressful
issues, but here are some to be aware of:
Embarrassment around peers
Jealousy regarding amount of time parents spend
with their brother/sister
Frustration over not being able to engage or get a
response from their brother/sister
Being the target of aggressive behaviors
Concern regarding their parents' stress and grief
Concern over their role in future caregiving
Siblings

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The recommended focus of curriculum and
instruction for individuals with autism varies
greatly depending on each child’s abilities and
needs.
Teaching Strategies and
Accommodations

26. "Effective use of Teacher
Supports"

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Autism Spectrum Disorder is a lifelong
developmental disability that is best described
as a collection of behavioral symptoms.
It greatly affects the areas of communication,
cognition, and social behavior.
Early intervention is a key factor for improving
the prognosis of children with autism.
Technology plays an increasingly important
role in the interventions used to teach social,
vocational, and independent living skills to
individuals with autism.
Overview

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“Exceptional Children” and Youth by Nancy
Hunt and Kathleen Marshall
http://www.autismspeaks.org/
http://www.autism-society.org
http://www.feat.org
http://researchautism.net
http://autism.healingthresholds.com
References

29. Thank you 