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Autism in Early Childhood


An On-line Course of The Julia Institute

Virtual Field Trip on Autism

In the 22 years since I began graduate school and picked up my first special education textbook, the incidence of autism in this country has gone from one child in 5,000 to one in 166, correction, I just read the latest statistics on the Autism Society of America website and they say the 2007 CDC report now gives the figure as 1 in 150.

General
Autism speaks - this starts with a short slide show, and usually those irritate me, but I found this one really touching. We strongly recommend their "What is it" video series on autism. If you have dial-up, you'll want to click on the "low" version of the videos, but if you do have DSL or other high-speed access, you probably want to pick the 'high' versions as they are easier to see.
Living with autism, from the Autism

Autism Answers - is an informative guide containing articles on a variety of autism topics.

Early Childhood
Calm in a crisis - we really liked this article by Paula Kluth that discusses providing "gentle support" for children with autism when they are having 'a meltdown' .
My child has autism - discusses a mother's experiences, good and not so good, with early intervention.

Family

Autism Society of America - symptoms of autism page. Early signs of autism

The Stress on Families page gives a good description of the experiences of familes who have a member with autism, such as not being able to go somewhere as a whole family because someone has to stay home with the person with autism, negative reactions from friends and family- from the Autism Society of America .

Schools and Schooling
Getting comfortable in the inclusive classroom is another Paula Kluth article that provides simple, practical changes in the classroom that can make it easier for a child with autism to succeed. This article focuses on when children respond strongly to sensory input - sights, sounds, smells and sensations that may affect children with autism more strongly than the children without disabilities.

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