Disclaimer

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In broad terms, there are 2 main “types” of autism on the spectrum; “Kanner/Classic Autism” where in addition to the autism, there is also intellectual impairment. Statistically, it is consider that 76% of people with autism have “Kanner/Classic” Autism (i.e also have intellectual impairments in varying degrees), where as 24% of people with autism do not have any intellectual impairments, nor speech delay in early childhood years and these people are classified as having “Asperger Syndrome”, displaying a “normal” or more than often, above average intellectual ability.

Ÿ	Regardless of the manifestation of autism, ALL people on this spectrum, are affected in different degrees, by the “Triad of Impairments” that causes a disturbance in quality of development in the following areas:-

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1. Language and Communication. 40% of people with “Kanner/Classic autism” never speak nor fully understand verbal communication. People with Asperger Syndrome with seemingly fluent speech will have areas of their communicative abilities that are adversely affected; for instance an extreme difficulty in reading non-verbal communication such as facial expressions, body language etc.

Ÿ	2. Social Interaction. For a person with autism, the area of the brain that enables us to understand other people’s emotions and feelings is altered and thus a person with autism cannot fully understand the complexity of the thoughts of people around them and the resulting social interactions.

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3. Imagination and Creative Play. A person with autism usually becomes trapped by rigid thought patterns and behaviours. Difficulty in understanding abstract concepts and the day-to-day jargon we regularly use flippantly in conversation, such as “It is Raining Cats and Dogs”, “Throw the baby out with the bathwater”, “I nearly died laughing” …….

Ÿ	No babbling by 11 months of age

Ÿ	No simple gestures by 12 months (e.g., waving bye-bye)

Ÿ	No single words by 16 months

Ÿ	No 2-word phrases by 24 months (noun + verb – e.g., “baby sleeping”)

Ÿ	No response when name is called, causing concern about hearing

Ÿ	Loss of any language or social skills at any age

Ÿ	Rarely makes eye contact when interacting with people

Ÿ	Does not play peek-a-boo

Ÿ	Doesn’t point to show things he/she is interested in

Ÿ	Rarely smiles socially

Ÿ	More interested in looking at objects than at people’s faces

Ÿ	Prefers to play alone

Ÿ	Doesn’t make attempts to get parent’s attention; doesn't follow/look when someone is pointing at something

Ÿ	Seems to be “in his/her own world”

Ÿ	Odd or repetitive ways of moving fingers or hands

Ÿ	Oversensitive to certain textures, sounds or lights

Ÿ	Lack of interest in toys, or plays with them in an unusual way (e.g., lining up, spinning, opening/closing parts rather than using the toy as a whole)

Ÿ	Compulsions or rituals (has to perform activities in a special way or certain sequence; is prone to tantrums if rituals are interrupted)

Ÿ	Preoccupations with unusual interests, such as light switches, doors, fans, wheels