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Early Childhood Autism Autism Autism encompasses a range of disorders that fall under the heading of pervasive developmental disorders (PDD). Autism is included as a neurological disorder and can be characterized as a disorder that affects a child's speech, language and social interactions. Some children receive helpful services in speech therapy to improve these communications skills that may be troublesome. Children may also be fortunate enough to be provided with alternative communication materials in the classroom and in the home to help promote their communication and language abilities. Early childhood autism is an important topic to early childhood educators and teachers who may be in an integrated classroom or have children with special needs in the class with support. Understanding this disorder is invalue to teachers in enabling them to plan activities for all the needs of the children and organize the classroom environment according to what the children will respond to and again according to their individual needs and differences. Wikipedia could definitely benefit from the following informational websites, articles and news releases that I found below. Autismis an area of special needs that fascinates me, along with the wealth of research available. Despite all of this researchand many studies that have been conducted, it is unknown as to the actual cause of autism. There are ideas on what factors may effect or influence a child to be born with autism but there is no consensus. History of Autism Little research in the area of Autism focuses on specific characteristics of the disorder in children. One Dr. Leo Kanner introduced the term early infantile autism which he defined as a form of Autism that is found at birth. Leo Kanner is a well-known Austrian-American physician that is noted for his work in conjunction with Hans Asperger for much of the information found today on Autism. Hans Asperger is known for the first ever definition of Asperger's Syndrome that he developed in 1944. Despite the wealth of information found on Autism, its symptoms, possible causes and history, little is known about childhood autism. Early Childhood Autism - What we know Characteristics of Children with Autism According to Amorosa et al. (2002) there is a definition of childhood Autism and it can be described as being characterized by language and communication impairments, deficits in social interaction skills and stereotyped behaviour. Language and communication impairments adversely affect the development of language acquisition in the early years. Children with Autism and/or language impairments are at risk for demonstrating a wide range of additional problems including those associated with their motor development. Motor problems are the most commonly reported of children with Autism. These motor issues that children with Autism face have been found to negatively affect their ability to develop adequate communicative and interactive skills. Those children with motor deficits were also shown to be at risk for later learning and behavioural problems in the school environment. Specific fine and gross motor activities have been defined as being problemsome including rapid foot tapping, balance finger and hand functioning and sequencial movement.
In reference to Blackwell and Neiderhauser (2003) Autism is characteristically one of the most prevalent developmental disabilitiesin children, even more so than Down Syndrome. Autism present in children is four times more likely to be found in boys than in girls and seems to cross all racial, ethnic and social status lines. Children with Autism have been found to have some degree of impairment in their ability to use joint attention (eye contact and pointing) and pretend play. As mentioned above, children with Autism have problems in areas such as verbal and non-verbal communication, social interactions and play. These children may also exhibit repetitive body movements, be extremely resistant to change, follow strict routines or injure themselves physically. Children that have been diagnosed withAutismhave usually established they have this condition by the age of 4 or later due to it often remaining undiagnosed even though actually symptomsgenerally appear by age 3. Diagnostic Tools and Assessments Early Autism in children needs to be diagnosed early and should be paired with early intervention strategies and necessary assessments for the child. Researchers have found that the following assessment tools are sensitive enough to determine the behaviours of Autistic children. These include the Ages and Stages Questionnaire, BRIGANCE Screens, Child Development Inventories, and Parents Evaluations of Developmental Status. Parents can help to encourage the process of assessments on their child by noticing key normative age and developmental skills their child is lacking. Children that have been recognized for assessment will have a physical examination, determine any present medical conditions, perform audiological and visual evaluations as well as speech and language tests. Parents will be helpful in providing a full medical history, including any birthingissues at the time of the assessments. The following chart illustrates some sample Autism diagnostic and screening tools.
Common Misconceptions Surrounding Autism Annotated Bibliography Peer Reviewed Articles - Amorosa, H., Mildenberger, K., Minow, F. & Noterdaeme, M. (2002). Evaluation of Neuromotor Deficits in Children with Autism and Children with a Sppecific Speech and Language Disorder. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 11, 219-225. Retrieved October 27, 2004 from
Neuromotor Deficits
This article explains that Autism is characterized by language, communication and social interaction impairments. This article and its corresponding study examined the motor deficits of experienced by children with Autism, which has been largely ignored. For example, in language or cummincation impaired children, it was found that these same children also have difficulty in complete fine motor tasks and some gross motor activities that require balance. The results of the study allowed for conductors to indicate the specific type of neuromotor deficit in both children with Autism and children with a specific language disorder (either expressive or receptive). Most of the children tested in the study who had Autism had significant impairments in neuromotor development which can be attributed to biological factors of Autism. - Billstedt, E. & Gillberg, C. (2000). Autism and Asperger Syndrome: Coexistence with Other Clinical Disorders. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 102, 321-330. Retrieved October 27, 2004 from Autism/Asperger
This article describes both Autism and Asperger's disorder in relation to other medical conditions, psychiatric disorders and behavioural and motor symptoms. Many children who are diagnosed with Autism are dual-diagnosed with another disorder, symptom or condition. Comorbid conditions is the focus of this article and how these appear in children who are diagnosed with Autism or Asperger's disorder. Childhood Autism is defined here as a neurodevelopmental disorder also known as 'Kanner Syndrome.' The article describes many possible behaviour and motor control problems that co-exist with Autism. These include: ADHD, OCD, Tourette's syndrome, depression, eating disorders, selective mutism, abnormal sleep patterns and self-inflicted injury. - Blackwell, J. & Niederhauser, C. (2003). Diagnose and Manage Autistic Children. Nurse Practitioner, 28(6), 36-43. Retrieved October 27, 2004 from
Diagnosing Autism
(cannot upload file article 6 mb) Autism, according to this article, is one of the most common developmental disabilities found in children. An interesting fact about Autism is that it seems to occur more prevalently in boys and does not seem to be influenced by race or ethnic background. Signs and symptoms of the disorder are discussed, including the statement of symptoms generally appearing by the age of three. Parents can do their job in trying to speed the process of diagnosing their suspected Autistic children. Parents can keep medical records, observe behaviour they find non-characteristic of their child's age in order to provide reasoning and background information for the assessment. There is no 'cure' for Autism but several alternative interventions, services and therapies are noted in this article. - Magnusson, P., Saemundsen, E., Sigurdardottir, S. & Smari, J. (2003). Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised and the Childhood Autism Rating Scale: Convergence and Discrepancy in Diagnosing Autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 33(3), 319-329. Retrieved October 27, 2004 from Diagnostic Assessments
This article describes two main diagnostic/assessment tools for Autism. In order to diagnose a child as Autistic, professionals need information from the family on the child's previous development patterns, as well as present observable bahviours that they themselves can record. The article compares the two diagnostic instruments, the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised and the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) for their accordances. A study was conducted on forty-four children referred for testing on the grounds of possible Autism, ranging in age from 22-114 months, in order to determine how well these two diagnostic tools worked together in providing specific and accurate information for the family. The study found that the two diagnostic instruments had an agreement of 66.7% between them. Websites - Autism: Recognizing the Signs in Young Children. (n.d.). Retrieved October 20, 2004 from http://www.mugsy.org/pmh.htm
Autism effects three areas of development, namely in the social-emotional domain, language and speech development and engaging these children in interests. As this article states, the cause of autism is still unknown but the hypothesis is damage to the brain. Some explanations include viral infections, genetic or chromosomal abnormalities and pregnancy/birth complications. The article illustrates a model to help explain how these factors consequently affect the child in them developing autism or other cognitive disabilities. Focus is central on the importance of early recognition of signs, early identification and intervention. - Childhood Autism Diagnostic Criteria. 2004. Retrieved October 20, 2004 from http://counsellingresource.com/distress/autistic/autism-childhood.html
In this article the symptoms of childhood autism are explained by trained professionals in the field. These professionals describe the guidelines in place for the diagnosing of children with Autism before the age of three. These diagnostic guidelines are established by observing characteristics of autistic children. Common characteristics the article names are: poor use of social cues, weak make-believe play, lack of emotional response to various situations and restrictive and repetitive movement patterns. - Children's Mental Health Facts: Children and Adolescents with Autism. (n.d.). Retrieved October 20, 2004 from the National Mental Health Information Centre http://www.mentalhealth.org/publications/allpubs/CA-0009/default.asp
This article provides a large amount of information about childhood autism for the average curious reader. The article is easy to read and follow with descriptive subheadings. Sample headings and information the article includes are signs of autism, causes of autism, facts sheets and parent's role. This article also mentions that autism usually appears in early childhood before the age of three and can also be called autistic disorder. A helpful addition to this article is its focus on the importance of parent involvement and Autism services. It explains the options that families may choose to use in order to enable their autistic child to live an enjoyable life with any support that they need. - Early Childhood Autism: Age at Onset and Early Regression. 2002. Retrieved October 20, 2004 from the National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI)
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12227223&dopt=Abstract
The NCBI article focuses on a study conducted on childhood autism with respect to late onset or early regression of social and/or language development in the affected children. The study was conducted in order to determine if their was a specific subgroup within children with early infantile autism. The study found, amongst other results, that these children with early setbacks in language and social development more frequently had epileptic seizures than children with the same condition but without the setback. The reults of the study will be used in diagnosing children with early infantile autism. Research Articles - Bradstreet, J. (2000). Overview of Autism/PDD: The Clinical Evaluation and Research Treatment Options. International Child Development Resource Centre. Retrieved October 24, 2004 from http://www.gnd.org/autism/overview.htm
The information in this article presents evidence for a biological approach to the treatment of Autism. As opposed to the usual definitions of Autism as having to do with social, behavioural and language impairments, this article focuses on Autism as an autoimmune or dysimmune encephalopathy. The author emphasizes that before any treatment or intervention can be put into place, the family needs to have had an accurate diagnosis done in order to be able to meet their child's individual needs. Autistic children do all follow the same intervention techniques, they are all different and need varying degrees of support materials and individuals. - Stokes, S. (n.d.). Effective Programming for Young Children with Autism (Ages 3-5). Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction under contract with CESA 7. Retrieved October 24, 2004 from http://www.cesa7.k12.wi.us/sped/autism/early/ear11.htm
This article emphasizes the importance of early intervention and programming related to the Autism diagnosis. Despite the importance of this process, many children are going undiagnosed until at least the age of two or three. The reason behind this is the approach medical professionals are taking to wait and see if they grow out of the symptoms. This puts the child behind before their are even diagnosed because now they are missing out on two or three years of intervention services they could ahve been receiving. This article is a wealth of information for teachers on how they should incorporate best practises for children with Autism into the curriculum, program planning, family involvement in the program, ensuring high predictability and strict routines every day and preparing for the difficult transition from an early childhood program to a school-aged program. Other Websites * Press Release3
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