Characteristics of the Learner with ASD
- Intense and restricted interests and hyperfocus on specific things
- Social rigidity: insistence on specific themes in play or conversation
- Lack of motivation to interact, share or engage with others
- Strong need for sameness and negative responses to novelty
- Tendency for self-stimulatory behaviors and problem behaviors
- Inability to interpret social gestures/facial expressions
- Problems with auditory understanding; they are visual learners
- Problems with imitation
- Trouble generalizing information or skills to novel situations
- Problems regulating sense input
- Executive skill deficits (e.g., organization, attention, trouble with transitions)
Caveat: if you know one child with autism, you know one child with autism