Asperger Syndrome and Young Children: Building Skills for the Real World

by Teresa Bolick

From the author of Asperger Syndrome and Adolescence comes this helpful guide for parents and teachers of children aged three to seven who suffer from Asperger Syndrome. AS is on the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum and is purported to have afflicted luminaries like Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein. It is characterized by a lack of social ability, obsessive-compulsive tendencies, and fits of rage, along with above-average intelligence and hyper-focus on subjects of interest. This book gives parents and teachers insight into the condition and strategies for managing their child?s behavior, with the ultimate goal of helping the child gain independence and function successfully in the real world.

Genres: Autistic Spectrum Disorder

240 pages, Hardcover

First published July 4, 2004

Reviews

[Cathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book introduces a wonderful analogy of a human body as a 'house of human development', where various skills and abilities contribute together to provide a stable building that can withstand bad weather. I particularly liked the idea of sensorimotor processing and self-regulatory skills which most of us can do without thinking being the basement and sub-floor of the house. Vital to stability but rarely thought about. The other 'floors' represent Communication and Language - Cognitive Development - Emotional and Social Competence and all of these floors support the roof of Overt Behaviour - the side of a person visible to all. This model made it clearer to me than other descriptions as to why AS kids have problems keeping overt behaviour in check - if you have to think about screening out sensory issues all the time your basement is bound to be a little shaky which impacts the strength of the other floors.

This book made me reconsider one important thing, I have spent 3 years getting my son to make eye-contact, which he still finds difficult, but can do for short periods. I was unaware that Autism affects a child's ability to use multiple senses at the same time, thus eye contact and listening at the same time is difficult for him. Now I get him to look at me to ensure he is paying attention, without insisting he maintain eye contact whilst I am talking to him.

[Briana · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Details behavior in AS as depicted through levels in a house.”

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I should just buy this book so I can refer back to it.